Money can be a very tough subject for you and your kids, but you're probably doing something right if you're talking about it with them at all.

To help you start your kids on the right track, we're bringing in Nathan Dungan to help.

Dungan is an author, award-winning speaker and national expert on family finances and the effects of mass marketing on young people.

A top-performing financial adviser and vice president of marketing for a Fortune 500 financial services company, he founded Share-Save-Spend LLC, an organization that helps people of all ages develop and maintain healthy financial habits.

Dungan will offer insight drawn from his highly successful Share-Save-Spend approach to money. "Having a balanced approach to financial matters means aligning what you care about with how you use your money. While this sounds simple enough, it becomes seriously complicated by the compounding pressure on young people to spend, spend, spend, and to reach for an upscale lifestyle," Dungan said.

Each week, Dungan will offer advice on how parents can create financial values in their children.

Dungan will offer a Share-Save-Spend tip, a question to prompt money discussions with your children, and a gotta-have-it-now fact that illustrates the incredible influence mass marketing has on our children.

Here is Dungan's second column.

Set Savings Goals
By now, your child has probably mastered the phrase "I want." In their lifetime, that single phrase will be uttered thousands, if not millions of times. Advertisers know this. In fact, they study how children ask for products in order to design more effective advertising and marketing strategies.

My suggestion: If your child wants something, let them save for it -- even if it only costs a few dollars. The goal is to help kids understand there is a reward for their efforts. It's also important to know that you are their primary source of motivation and inspiration to reach that savings goal. Young people need frequent reminders and encouragement to keep up their efforts at saving. It might be a small item today, but the discipline and patience your child learns will be invaluable when facing big-ticket items like a car, a home, or retirement in the future.

How effective is your current approach in teaching your child to save for a goal?

Families with children in school are expected to spend more than $483 on back-to-school goods, which is an increase from about $450 last year per family, a National Retail Federation report says. Clothing will be the main draw, but almost half of those surveyed are also expected to purchase electronics or computer equipment.

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