Page 11 - Book11E

Establish strong parenting skills . Discipline your children in a caring and consistent way. Encourage open communication and appropriate expression of feelings. Try developing some new family traditions.
Make managing the household a family affair . Create a communi- cation board and calendar in a central location and encourage family members to keep their schedules updated. Hold family meetings as an opportunity to develop meaningful communication and build self- esteem among family members.
Develop New Thinking . Think of you and your children as a family rather than as a unit with one party missing. This will help you make decisions that will help you progress instead of making decisions based on the idea that there will be someone returning. Feeling like a tem- porary or incomplete family can prevent us from seeing our financial needs in their true light. If we assume that someone else is going to come along and take care of us, we won’t work at taking care of our- selves.
Develop New Habits . You probably have lots of financial habits that you really don’t even think about. It might be a favorite dry cleaner you use who’s a little more expensive than the others, maintaining an expensive cell phone plan, or stopping for coffee every morning on the way to work. These habits might have to change when you become a single parent. Start with one or two habits that need to be changed. Don’t try to change everything at once.
Check Your Financial Fitness . If you were previously married, you may have shared financial responsibilities. Now that you’re single, there are some things you will need to make sure you have in place. See how you do on the following questions. They are a good place to start for taking control of your financial responsibilities.
• Do you have a list of your accounts all in one place?
• Do you have a disability policy and do you know how much it is for?
Financial Tips for Single Parents 3