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Quiz: Can you manage your money?
1.What do you do with your paychecks?
A. Spend every cent within a matter of hours.
B. Give it all to your parents to handle.
C. Put half in the bank and use the other half for gas and spending money.
2. When you are in a jam for money, you:
A. Ask Mom and Dad for some cash.
B. Look for a way to earn quick cash by babysitting or cutting lawns.
C. You never have that problem; you’ve been saving money since that paper route when you were 12.
3. When you go shopping, you:
A. Buy everything in sight.
B. Don’t buy a thing—you have to save as much as you can.
C. Usually don’t buy anything unless something really catches your eye and is on sale, of course.
4. How do you feel about lending money to others?
A. I never do it. I barely have enough money for myself.
B. Only if it is for family or a close friend.
C. I am always there to lend a helping hand.
5. If you ever borrow money, how do you usually feel about paying it back?
A. They obviously don’t need the money that badly if they had any to spare. I’ll pay them back if I ever get around to it.
B. I pay them back right away! I hate having things hanging over my head.
C. Oh, they only lent me the money?
6. What will your attitude toward money be when you’re at school?
A. Mom and Dad are just a phone call away!
B. It’ll be rough to make sure I budget my money well enough to survive week to week, but I can do it as long as I am responsible.
C. I’m broke now, and I’m going to be even more broke then! What am I gonna do?
KEY
1. a – 1 pt 2. a – 1 pt 3. a – 1 pt b – 2pts b – 3 pts b – 2 pts c – 3 pts c – 2 pts c – 3 pts 4. a – 2 pts 5. a – 2 pts 6. a – 1 pt b – 3 pts b – 3 pts b – 3 pts c – 1 pt c – 1 pt c –
2 pts 6 to 10 points: Spendaholic You enjoy spending money. Who doesn’t? Well, unfor-tunately, this is a habit you are going to have to break if you want to be financially stable. Mom and Dad aren’t always going to be there to bail you out. (And even if they will be, you need to be able to take care of yourself.) Besides, the rewards of knowing that you have been responsible with your finances and have saved money on your own will someday be better than having money handed to you. Making your own money and relying on yourself is not always easy, but it will help you in the long run.
11 to 14 points: Money manager You know enough to save your money, but you don’t hoard it. Congrats—that’s the perfect balance. Although it is important to be responsible with your cash, it’s OK to spend it once in a while on something you have been saving for. You will also need money for things like gas, food out with your friends and other miscellaneous activities.
15 to 18 points: Penny pincher Your caution with money is admirable, but you take it too far. Constantly worrying about how much money you have could affect your academic performance. This kind of concern adds stress to your life. Added stress your freshman year of college is the last thing you’ll need. Be proud of the fact that, because of your cautious and responsible planning, you are entering college with a stash of money far beyond what your peers will have. You’re not the type to spend waste money on frivolous things. It’s okay to spend money once in a while. It is all about balance, and if you can realize that, you will be in an even better financial position!
Katie Fischette is an intern for The Next Step Magazine. Article provided by 
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