spoiled teenager?

Question

My husband and I are raising our grandson.. He is 16 years old ..just got his driver license.. his insurance is over 700.00 for 6 months plus his gas money and fun money every weekend.. i think he should have to get a part time job and share in the responsiblity
instead of having everything. cell phone fun money gas money;..
my husband says he has his whole life to work. let him enjoy it while he can..what do you think

Answer 1

At 16 I was already working for 5 years. Too many kids today don't understand the value of earning a dollar. He needs to work to earn his keep. Your husband is wrong. You are right. If you don't teach him life lessons now, he will never learn them. And earning your keep is one of the most valuable life lessons that is taught.

Answer 2

Well I'm going to tell you what I think from a 17 year old, senior in high school perspective. I have had my driver's license since I was 16. I don't have a car and I got my first cell phone when I was 15. I paid my own cell phone bill. I got a job when I was 15. I worked at the library and have had 2 other jobs since then. I no longer work because I can't handle working and school work so you know school is more important than work. I have had to buy my own clothes and everything since I got my first job. My mother even took $20 out of every check I've gotten to teach me responsibility. I still don't have a car but I'm getting one soon. I've raised almost all the money for my car since I was 16. My mother isn't financially able to take care of me so I do what I can. I have friends that get everything like your grandson and they are so mean to their parents and disrespectful and ungrateful I think you shouldn't spoil your grandson too much.

Answer 3

He should definitely get a job, at least for things like gas, and fun money and perhaps even his cell phone bill. He will learn the value of a dollar. Otherwise, he may still be asking you for money until he is 35. Kids are less likely to spend money on frivolous things when it is their own. Yeah, he has his whole life to work and I'm not saying that he should work 40-60 hours a week, like 10-15 a week is good....whatever he can handle with his school load. During the summer, he could pick up more hours. I worked when I was 16-17 and even though it was not in my chosen career field (It was in a discount dept. store, similar to Wal-mart), I learned the importance of punctuality, customer service, and following directions. You also meet a lot of different kind of people at work.

Answer 4

Balance is everything. I think that a part-time job teaches your grandson responsibility. He might even like it! I would suggest that he works no more than 15 hours a week. This should give him enough money for fun activities, and it gives him a feeling of being in control of his own life. This small bit of responsibility will pay off for him in the future.

Answer 5

Your husband is right that he has his whole life ahead of him, but he's at the age that we start teaching them responsibilities. I told my son that if he wanted a cell. phone I would buy it, but that he would have to get a part time job and pay the bill. I also told him that if he wants a car, I'll help out with the purchase but that he would have to pay the insurance. It's o.k to help, but doing everything is going to make it hard on him when he gets into the REAL world

Answer 6

He definately needs to learn the value of a dollar or you may endup supporting him the rest of his life. He can still work & enjoy life. I had to pay my share of bills while living with my parents & I did babysitting on the side. Something I enjoyed & made money. His school should be able to help him find a fun partime job. Even if it's leaf blowing, lawn mowing & shoveling, pumping gas... whatever, a few hours a week wouldn't hurt.

Answer 7

How will he learn the value of a dollar if he has everything handed to him now? I think it is doing a great injustice in the long run not making him earn at least a portion of the money he gets usually. My parents made me pay half of my car insurance, more if I could afford it, and I'm truly grateful. I learned responsibility.

Answer 8

in my opinion he is spoiled. Just giving him money whenever he wants is spoiling him. Give him things when he deserves it, like he gets good grades, make the football team , does chores around the house. This way he learns how to be responsible and to not be a spendthrift , saying that let him enjoy while he can, is like saying that he won;t be able to make it in real world so why ruin his life by saying that he has to earn money for himself in the future. Take me for an example, i wanted a guitar, but i was to only get if i scored well in my final GCE O'levels, and i did , and i got the guitar, i felt a sense of accomplishment. He should this now , and not later, you should tell him this. and he is too young to be driving himself around in a car, don't you think?

Answer 9

Grandma is right. I truly believe that we should spoil our children as long as possible because being an adult bites. However, at 16 your grandson is a young adult and needs to learn the work ethics. a part time job will help prepare him for life. it wouldnt hert him to payhis phone ,his funtime,and his gas. and still count his self as lucky that he has loving grandparents paying room and board and car insurance.

Also alot of car insurances give a good brake for students with a's&b's. can save you alot of money.

Answer 10

I am the voice of experience: make the kid work and appreciate what he has.

My son was the most spoiled person in the world because my parents gave him everything he ever wanted. If I tried to teach him how to work or save or be thrifty: my parents told him I was mean and evil tempered. He grew up expecting the world owed him things. He had a wonderful college education but he stayed in college 8 years for fun. Then when he got out he had a wonderful series of low paying jobs because he was sure one of his over achieving friends would hire him just to have him around (I am serious my son was not in reality ever in his life). Of course, all his friends and fraternity brothers love him but no one ever gave a thought to hiring Mr. Party.

Now he is 39 years old and just woke up to the fact he has to work and support his wife. Hurricane Rita really tore up their house and their lives but he is working every day to try to get it all back together: FEMA did nothing for them and they had insurance but it paid very little.

Start early with this kid and you will save yourselves and him a lifetime of pain and disappointment.