Liz Frazier is a financial planner, author of "Beyond Piggy Banks and Lemonade Stands" and a strategic advisor to Copper Bank, a digital bank for teens. She’s recognized by Investopedia as a Top 100 Financial Advisor and is fiercely dedicated to promoting financial literacy from an early age.
In this episode, Liz shares valuable tips for parents on introducing money management concepts to kids and teens. We discuss the importance of hands-on experiences, how to handle allowances and credit cards, and preparing the next generation for financial success.
Please enjoy our conversation with Liz Frazier.
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The Investipal Podcast is produced by www.investipal.co. Past guests include Peter Lazaroff, Douglas Boneparth, Jamie Hopkins, Tyrone Ross and many more.
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Find Liz Frazier at:
www.instagram.com/lizfrazierpeck
www.amazon.ca/Beyond-Piggy-Banks-Lemonade-Stands/dp/1475847610
In this episode, financial planner and author Liz Frazier discusses the importance of teaching financial literacy to kids and teens from an early age.
Key Takeaways:
The key is getting kids comfortable with finance through practical experience and education from a young age. This sets them up for lifelong money skills.
00:00 Introduction and Background
00:47 Discovering Financial Planning
03:23 The Importance of Talking About Money
06:14 Teaching Kids About Finance
08:10 The Impact of Digital Money
09:00 Teaching Kids About Tangible Money
10:24 Tips for Parents to Teach Kids About Finance
12:14 The Role of Copper Bank
14:59 Starting Early for Retirement
20:38 Managing Lifestyle Creep
22:22 The New Generation's Expectations from Financial Advisors
Cameron Howe: Hi everyone, welcome back to the Investipal podcast. Today's guest is Liz Frazier. Liz is recognized for her dedication to promoting financial literacy, including through her book "Beyond Piggy Banks and Lemonade Stands." She's also a strategic advisor to Copper Bank, a digital bank for teens. And outside of all that, Liz is also a fee-based financial planner recognized by Investopedia with Frazier Financial Consultants. Liz, welcome.
Liz Frazier: Hi, thanks so much for having me.
Cameron Howe: You have an interesting background, and maybe we could start by talking about how you got into the financial planning space after your first child.
Liz Frazier: Funny enough, my mother is a financial planner. She opened her fee-only financial planning business in the 80s. When I was young, I found it boring and confusing, and I wasn't interested. But when I had my first child, who's now 10, I immediately went into planning mode – budgeting, thinking about goals, childcare costs, wills, and life insurance. It smacked me that this was financial planning, and I realized this is what I wanted to do – helping people figure out the best path for them. So I left my job at Forbes, got my CFP, and have been a financial planner ever since.
Cameron Howe: That's very interesting. Do you find it's a common theme now for new parents to panic about how to prepare for their child's future financially?
Liz Frazier: Yeah, that's a good way to put it. Before having kids, I was just taking care of myself, not too worried. But suddenly, you have this unit you're responsible for, and it changes things. I see a lot of young families or couples thinking about having a baby coming to me, knowing they need a plan but unsure where to start.
Cameron Howe: I've had interesting conversations about how people talk about finances at the dinner table. If it's never discussed, that can compound later in life versus being introduced to it early. I'm curious to hear your thoughts on socializing finances with kids early on.
Liz Frazier: Absolutely. You and I are probably outside the norm since I grew up with a financial planner mother. The norm is that it seems rude to talk about money, and parents don't want to stress their kids out. But not exposing kids to financial concepts puts them at a disadvantage. I'm seeing more families understand this is important to discuss, even if it's not a formal lesson – just incorporating it naturally, like discussing wanting to save for a jacket rather than buying it right away.
Cameron Howe: And is that where your book comes into play on helping bridge that gap?
Liz Frazier: Yes, I wrote this book for parents who don't have time to formally teach their kids about finance. I wanted to make it easy to incorporate basic financial lessons into their day-to-day lives. When kids hit 18, everything is affected by money management – travel, retirement, buying a house or having kids. But nobody teaches this at a young age. It's like throwing an 18-year-old into the ocean if they've never had swimming lessons. So the book helps instill fundamental finance concepts from a very young age that can be built upon as they get older.
Cameron Howe: We had a guest who raised an interesting point on how young people treat money like Monopoly money now – it's so accessible on their phones, not tangible like receiving cash allowance. Do you think there's an epidemic of young people becoming numb to the effect of their spending?
Liz Frazier: Yeah, absolutely. They don't see the value in money because it's just a card or number on an app. That's why I think it's important to start with tangible money when teaching kids about finance, even as teenagers. Have them pay with cash, get change back, so they understand it's a barter system. The allowance system is also great for learning they have a finite amount of money that will run out if they don't earn more.
Cameron Howe: So you mentioned one tip was the allowance feature. Are there any other tips parents can deploy easily with their children?
Liz Frazier: Yeah, I think it's giving them the freedom to play with money and make decisions. For example, at a local carnival, give them $20 and let them choose what to spend it on, even if it's something you think is a waste. Help them walk through the decision, understand why they want to buy it, explain the alternatives like saving it for something else. And once they buy it, if it's disappointing, discuss what they might do differently next time. But letting kids have access to money, make mistakes, and learn is so valuable.
Cameron Howe: And when they come asking for more, you have to be rigid and tell them no until next week's allowance!
Liz Frazier: (laughs) Yes, that's the tough part!
Cameron Howe: That's funny. So is that the role Copper Bank tries to play for teens' financial literacy?
Liz Frazier: Yes, the reason I joined Copper is that they really have the same mission of raising a generation of financially literate adults. Copper gives teenagers direct access to experience money – saving for goals, budgeting, and even investing through risk-appropriate funds. They can see what's in the investments, watch their money grow, and start understanding why stocks go up and down. It's a great tool for experiential money learning for teens.
Cameron Howe: Is it primarily geared towards the child or for the parent to equip their child?
Liz Frazier: That's a great question, and we really work on both. We know this is a direct relationship, so we need to involve parents too since most adults don't necessarily feel fully comfortable with finance either. We want to give both teenagers and adults the tools to understand finance, feel confident in decisions, and ultimately make better money choices.
Cameron Howe: Let's say you're 16 to 20 and didn't grow up talking much about finances. What could a young individual start doing to prepare for retirement, start saving, and think about their goals?
Liz Frazier: What teenagers have that nobody else does is time. That's the most powerful thing. If they start saving or investing now, they can earn compound interest, which is interest on your interest. It might not seem like much at first with small amounts, but over 40 years it grows tremendously.
The best thing teens can do is get into the habit of paying themselves first – automatically putting a portion away every time they earn money, whether it's 5%, 10%, or 20%. It becomes a habit for the future, whether for retirement, a car, or a house. Then, when they start a first job with a 401(k), that's a great place to start investing, especially if the employer matches contributions.
Cameron Howe: What's your opinion on introducing credit cards at a young age? It can help build credit history, but it's also easy to overspend.
Liz Frazier: Credit cards aren't inherently good or bad – it depends how you use them. Getting a low-limit joint card with your teen can help build their credit, which is important later for getting loans. But it has to be with the understanding that using a credit card means borrowing money you can't currently afford, and you need to pay it off on time every month. Credit cards can be valuable for emergencies if you're disciplined, but by nature, they make it hard to avoid overspending what you can truly afford.
Cameron Howe: I used to be so disciplined about paying it off, but then lifestyle creep happens, and you end up overextended before realizing it. On that note, what role do you think lifestyle creep plays as income increases? Should you limit increases in spending as you make more?
Liz Frazier: Ideally, we'd stick to our previous lifestyle as income rises and just bank the difference. But realistically, we work hard to make more so we can enjoy more – nicer housing, travel, and so on. Our expenses will increase with income. I think it's about trying to maintain a similar savings percentage. If you were saving 10% before when making less, try to keep saving around 10% even as your income increases. That way you can enjoy the income gains a bit, but still prioritize savings. You want to feel rewarded for your hard work, but be aware of continuing to save a decent portion too. It's about finding a balance - like with dieting, you can't just eat kale and quinoa all the time, you need to let yourself splurge occasionally while still being disciplined overall.
Cameron Howe: As a final question, you're a financial planner dealing with people's finances daily. What is the new generation looking for that financial advisors aren't necessarily servicing or aware of yet?
Liz Frazier: The biggest thing I've seen is the younger generation wants to be partners with their financial planner and be educated. There's so much information out there now that they're aware of what they don't know. So they want to understand the rationale behind recommendations, not just be told what to do. They want to feel heard, understood, and like they have a voice in the partnership.
Historically, advisors tend to just give advice, and we accept it because we don't know much about finance. But this generation has more knowledge and exposure, so they need advisors to take the time to explain the "why" behind strategies. It's more work upfront, but that's how you build those long-term, trusting relationships they value.
Cameron Howe: Very interesting perspective, Liz. Before your next book launches, where can people find you?
Liz Frazier: They can find me and reach out for financial planning, my book, or resources at LizFrazier.com.
Cameron Howe: Wonderful, we'll include that in the show notes. Thanks again for joining us on the Investipal podcast!
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