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Your child’s senior year is one of the most trying times in life, for both the parent and the child. Not only is it trying on your checkbook and your credit card, but it is the first real turning point in your child’s life and as a parent you want to do everything you can to guide them through it with as few scars as possible. Here are a few self improvement tips for helping your high school graduate manage their future.

1. Start Early
Preparing your child for the idea of college or work after high school when they first start out in high school is the best way to get their mind in the right place. Kids who know that their parents expect them to go to college or to get a good job after school are more likely to do so, it is a proven fact. If you want your child to go to college and they share that same desire, grades tend to be better and behavior tends to be better as well, giving your child a better chance to do well and excel in every area of their life, both academic and otherwise. Encourage your child to take college prep classes in middle school and in high school as well, as the earlier your child begins taking college prep classes the more likely they are to actually go on to finish college.

2. Teach Them To Save…And Practice What You Preach
If you start saving $50 out of each monthly salary from the first month of your child’s existence, you will have saved over $15,000 for college for your child. While it is important for you to care enough about your child’s future to put money away for it, it is also important that your child know the importance of putting (not to mention keeping) money in their college fund every month. Not only does this guarantee that your child has money for college if they need it, but it also teaches your child good spending and saving habits, not to mention the importance of putting money away for a goal. If they participate in paying for their college education they are also more likely to finish, as it won’t just be Mommy and Daddy’s money they are wasting.

3. Meet With Counselors and Attend Workshops
Another way to take an active part in your child’s education and prepare them for life after high school is to attend workshops at their school and in the community that relate to college, financial aid, and the like. In addition high schools have counselors who are paid to care about your child’s future and help them map it out. High school counselors are always eager to meet with concerned parents who care about the future of their child, and they can help you to put together the best plan of action on how to help get your child not only into college, but out of college with a degree as well. Meeting with your child’s counselor may also put a bit of a spotlight on your child as well, as the professionals at the school will be able to see that your child has a desire to succeed and a parent who cares to participate. Of course, you want to find a balance between this and pushing your child away by being too ‘nosey’; ask them what they want to do and get their input on things that you could do together to help them feel better about college and about their future in general.