Communication with loved ones about money

Do you feel comfortable speaking about money?

Breaking through that social and personal barrier of talking about money is incredibly difficult, but it’s vital. Without doing it, you open yourself up to paying the penalty of countless mistakes and facing some deeply painful situations that could have easily been avoided had you just spent a bit of time talking about it.

Here are a few important things to think about.

What’s Unresolved?





Look around your life, particularly your closest family and friends. In each of those relationships, there are likely things that are left unresolved, things that, in your perfect world, they would be resolved. Here are some examples.

Your partner. Are you sharing the same dreams for the future? Do you have any debts that you’re hiding? Are you in better – or worse – financial shape than your partner might believe? Are you in agreement about how to handle your respective property in the event of the other’s passing? Is your relationship fulfilling you, making you happy?

Your parents. Do they have an estate plan in place? A will, at least? Are they prepared for the financial costs of retirement? What are they expecting from you when they retire? Need an Estate Lawyer?


Your children. Are they expecting you to pay for college? Are you expecting to? Are they expecting you to help with a wedding? Are you expecting to? Do they understand your retirement planning? Need a Family Lawyer?


Other relatives. Do they owe you money? Do you owe them money? Are there other problems, such as caring for older family members? Who’s responsible for what?




Your close friends. Are they constantly engaging you in activities that cost more than you are comfortable spending? Do they owe you money? Do you owe them money? Save Money. Print Free Coupons Anytime.


This is just a start. Even in my own life, after lots of talking about money with the people around me, I still don’t feel as though the door is shut on all of these issues.

I will say this, though: every time I made an effort to actually talk through these issues with someone important to me, I found that I had put it off for too long and worried about it too much, because it went easier than I expected and there was much relief afterward.






Mr. Dangerfield is an I.A.P.D.A Certified Debt Specialist whom has worked in the finance industry for over a decade. He manages www.beingbrokesuckstoday.com and is the author of "A Dangerfield Manifesto" and co-founder of SMG Holdings, the parent company of Squad Music Group, Dangerfield Artistic Entertainment SMG Publishing and Taboo Dangerfield Publishing
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