this wasn't in the plan |but life is still pretty good

I caught a great segment on the Today Show on Tuesday morning.  It was about the benefits of giving a teenager a credit card.  Wait, what was that?  Surely that can't be right!  Teens are not responsible enough for a credit card!  And that's exactly right, they aren't.  And since chances are pretty good they won't miraculously wake up one morning in their early adulthood and suddenly be responsible enough, I think its a fabulous idea to give a teenager a credit card...but only if the parent is able to teach responsible credit habits.

The Today Show segment profiled a mother and her 16 year old daughter, who was given a credit card at age fourteen.  Her credit limit was only $200 and her mother was by her side teaching her a credit card works  She taught her about interest rates, minimum balances, late fees, the fact that you have to pay it all back (and then some in some instances).  She showed her some debt repayment calculators so she could see how much those interest rates can add up. Most importantly, she let her daughter make some mistakes and learn from them.

There are some lessons that only experience can teach you.