In this week's mailbag, some helpful advice from readers in response to questions in past columns:Tip: I would like to pass along some hints to the parents who wrote to you about their teenage daughter, who has a good job but has trouble waking up at 4 a.m. to get to work on time.
First, I think you are wrong in advising the parents to ask the girl's employer to change their daughter's hours. This is the daughter's job, and that is her responsibility. You are correct in stating that the daughter will need to get up on her own when she is in college next year.
I also had problems hearing the alarm when I was a young adult. It helps to set multiple alarms with varied times. I always used to set the alarms across the room so I had to get out of bed to turn them off. Also, I think the daughter's alarm is waking up her parents, so they should make sure their bedroom door is closed.
Tip: I saw myself in that letter from the parents whose daughter couldn't wake up for her job. Every day for years, I woke my son up or called to get him up. I didn't do him any favors. When he bought his own home at age 20, his biggest worry was that he wouldn't be able to get up on time -- not that he wouldn't be able to pay the bills, not that he wouldn't be able to handle working 50 hours a week while going to classes, but that he wouldn't be able to wake up.
Once he moved out of our house, he did and does manage to get out of bed on time. But the parents in your letter need to let their daughter do it on her own. Once late one or two times, she will manage. Her parents are being a crutch, and in the long run their daughter will be grateful they backed off.
Tip: I applaud your articles on helping kids learn to invest. I did it another way for nine grandchildren. I had talked to a representative at Wal-Mart about opening an account for each of my nine grandchildren. This would have required a transaction fee of $20 each. Instead, she suggested that I purchase the total amount in my name for one transaction fee. When that was completed, at my request, Wal-Mart divided up the shares equally and put them in each grandchild's name, with each child's mother (one of my four daughters) as custodian -- at no additional cost.
Incidentally, I have no financial interest in Wal-Mart. I was using the same philosophy as you recommended: Buy stock in a "safe" company with which kids are familiar.
Have a question about kids and finances for Dr. Tightwad? Write to Dr. T at 1729 H St., N.W., Washington, DC 20006. Or send the good doctor an e-mail message (and any other questions for this column) to jbodnar@kiplinger.com.