How to Survive when Your Parents Cut You off ...

1. Get a Job

This is the first step you need to take when your parents cut you off. Hopefully, your parents will wait until you receive a pretty steady income before they cut you off, but if they don’t, you’ll need to start job-hunting right away! Don’t worry about finding your dream job right now; that will inevitably come later in life. Just work on finding a job that pays enough to make the bills. You’ll earn money, which is your primary goal, as well as experience, which makes getting hired at your dream job much more likely!

2. Cut out Unnecessary Spending

When your parents cut you off, luxuries like monthly manicures and frivolous shopping sprees are no longer an option. Once you start getting your own paychecks, it will be tempting to splurge the way you would when you had a bank account tied to your parents’ income. However, it’s important to save a significant amount of the money you earn, because once you run out of spending money you’ll want something to fall back on. And since your parents won’t be there to pay your bills or fill up your gas tank, those expenses have to take precedence over your costly pastimes.

3. Cook Your Own Food

Going out to eat every night is a bad habit to start when your parents cut you off. It may seem cheaper to buy a meal off the dollar menu at McDonald’s than spend large amounts of money grocery shopping at the beginning of the week, but that simply isn’t the case. You actually save time and money when you cook your own food at home! When you don’t have to waste gas driving to your local fast-food joint every day, or spend money on a meal, drink, and sides each night, at the end of the week you’ll actually have a bit more cash in your pockets! Plus, you’re bound to eat healthier when you prepare your own meal and know everything that’s going into your food.

4. Shop at Thrift Stores

I’m not ashamed to admit that I’m a shopaholic. I love the feel of a crisp receipt in one hand and overflowing shopping bag in the other. However, I don’t like how much lighter my wallet feels after a shopping spree; no one does! And once your parents cut you off, you’ll dread the aftermath of shopping even more! But you don’t need to sacrifice your love of shopping altogether; thrift stores are a marvelous place to shop when money is tight! Thrift stores have a wide selection of quality clothes, as well as shoes, accessories, house supplies, books and much more! So if you expect that your parents may cut you off soon, you should start searching for some amazing thrift stores near you!

5. Carpool

It seems like every day, gas prices go up! I can’t even imagine the days when gasoline cost as little as 25 cents per gallon. But the harsh reality is that gas is expensive, as well as a basic necessity. So to avoid excessive spending, you should carpool with others! You’ll save tons of gas money by carpooling, and, if you often drive on a freeway with a carpool lane, lots of time too! Plus, driving with others is so much more enjoyable than sitting in traffic all by yourself!

6. Use Coupons

Most stores nowadays have coupons galore! If you sign up for a store’s mailing list, you’re bound to be swimming in discounts and marked-down prices, as well as get a head's up before a certain item goes on sale. Keep track of your coupons, and try to only shop at stores that offer great deals! You’ll save tons of money, which will definitely help you survive when your parents cut you off.

7. Avoid Credit Cards

Everyone is tempted to get a credit card when money is tight, but whatever you do don’t give into your temptations! Credit cards are great in theory, but the bills add up, and when your parents have just recently cut you off, you won’t have the funds available to keep up with those bills. Stick to only spending money that you have, even if that means cutting out the luxuries you enjoyed when your parents financed your life. It will be worth it down the road when you’re not drowning in debt!

Every teen dreads the day that their parents cut them off, but you don’t need to be so terrified. If you make wise decisions, it’s easy to survive without your parents’ financial help, so no need to worry. What other tips do you have for young women whose parents have just cut them off?