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Although 83% of U.S. adults said parents are the most responsible for teaching their children about money<\/a>, 31% of American parents never speak to their kids about the topic, according to a survey<\/a> from CNBC and Acorns.<\/p>\n Last week, the subject came up on Northwestern Mutual’s A Better Way to Money<\/i><\/a> <\/i>podcast, which featured social media star and owner of Stur Drinks<\/a> Kat Stickler and Northwestern Mutual vice president and chief portfolio manager Matt Stucky.<\/p>\n “I love and respect my parents, but we didn’t really talk about money ever \u2014 I never saw them talk about money,” Stickler told Stucky during the conversation. “It was taboo<\/a>. It wasn’t brought up once.”<\/p>\n Related: Members of Every Generation Have Side Hustles \u2014 But They Don’t Spend Their Earnings the Same Way. Here’s the Breakdown.<\/a><\/b><\/p>\n According to <\/b>Stucky, parents can instill strong money management<\/a> skills like any other good habit.<\/p>\n “It just takes a lot of repetition \u2014 things like saving, investing<\/a>,” Stucky said. “I’m not going to teach my 4-year-old about investing, but just the idea of if I save a dollar, that means I can spend it down the road on something that I really want. That takes a while to sink in.”<\/p>\n Money<\/a> might not have been a regular topic of discussion while Stickler was growing up, but the entrepreneur says her mother did show her the value of a dollar in other ways: repurposing old jeans into shorts or empty butter tubs into containers for school lunch.<\/p>\n In addition to talking to their kids about money, parents can lead by example when it comes to smart financial decisions<\/a>.<\/p>\n “There are new risks that are now in the equation of being a parent,” Stucky said. “Things like, What if something happens to me; what if I can’t work anymore? How does that impact my child’s financial life?<\/i>“<\/p>\n Navigating those uncertainties means planning for big-ticket items, according to Stucky. Stickler, who has a young daughter, said she’s already taken some key steps to secure her future: setting up a will complete with a month-by-month timeline and establishing funds for healthcare and school \u2014 and even one for clothes and toys.<\/p>\n Related: What Your Parents Never Taught You About Money<\/a><\/b><\/p>\n According to Stucky, parents should leverage today’s circumstances for tomorrow’s success.<\/p>\n Stucky recommends setting up a 529<\/a>, to which you can contribute funds for education, and a Roth IRA for your child.<\/p>\n “[With a Roth IRA], you are able to contribute on their behalf up to the child’s earned income amount or the current contribution limits of $7,000, and the dollars come out tax-free after age 59 \u00bd or if they need to use it for a qualifying life event,” Stucky explains. “It’s a way to set up your children for their retirement<\/a>, as well as support generational wealth.”<\/p>\n Parents might also consider a Uniform Transfer to Minors Account (UTMA), which has no limit on the amount that goes in and allows them to retain control until their kids reach 18-21, depending on where they live, Stucky says.<\/p>\n