"It's Your Reality"

Between the ages of 14 and 20, young people make critical decisions that will affect their whole lives.  Those with specific goals for their future stand an improved rate of success in the adult world over teens without career plans.  “It’s Your Reality”  is an exercise that gives students a chance to glimpse their possible future in a fun way, and helps them become aware of the importance of basic skills in finances, decision making and career planning.

Although "It's Your Reality" has been presented in Robertson County in years past, I had not had a chance to be involved in the actual setup and participate in the event after becoming a CEA myself.  This had always been done in cooperation with Family Resource Youth Services here in the county.  After the FRYSC Coordinator at Robertson County School retired at the beginning of the Fall 2018 semester, I did not expect this event to transpire this year as the new Coordinator had a great deal on her plate.  However, the Community Education Director at RCS approached me to see if I was willing to step in and assist him so that “It’s Your Reality” could be presented in 2019. He wanted to have the exercise for the Freshman class during the School's KPrep testing since they were not being tested on that day - however, the date he wanted was only two weeks away.  We met for a session of brain storming/organizing in a big way so as to make things happen in a hurry.

"It's Your Reality" has in the past been held at Blue Licks Battlefield State Park and Resort, as they have meeting rooms there at their lodge.  It has been customary, and a big draw for the volunteers, to thank them by treating them to the excellent buffet at the Lodge after their assistance with the event as a way of saying thanks for their help.  As luck would have it, the Lodge had a conference room adjoining the dining room available on that day.  Knowing we had a place for our event gave me confidence that we could proceed with collecting our volunteers. You would think that in a tiny county like Robertson, it would be very difficult to procure the 15 volunteers necessary to operate all the stations, but due to the recognized value of the "Reality" exercise, willing folks quickly stepped up. The appointed day soon arrived.

The Freshman class found themselves thrust into the adult world and given an occupation based on their educational plans after graduating high school. .Once given an amount of play money equivalent to the average monthly salary of the assigned occupation, they entered the Reality Store to spend that income on their perceived needs and luxuries of their lifestyle as an adult. The volunteers, representing the Housing, Utilities, banking, auto dealerships and other related expenses including medical expenses and childcare, helped the students to see how much of their income would be needed to provide them with the lifestyle they desired.

Students also had a visit to the Crystal Ball where they could pull out a “Chance” card containing unexpected circumstances that could affect their daily life.  These situations, such as a car breakdown or unexpected illness, sometimes caused them to find themselves in real financial trouble.  An “SOS” table was provided that gave them ideas, such as taking on a second job or selling unneeded items, to raise extra funds.

After this exercise, the Freshman students had new knowledge in regards to educational paths, money management, career options, lifetime mates and family living that affected their critical decisions about the realities and options of the future. The goal of this exercise is to help students see whether the occupation and educational choices they are considering will provide the type of lifestyle they want.  It was interesting to see how their outlooks changed after attending “It’s Your Reality”.

Of the 16 students that participated in the post evaluation, 81% said they had a better understanding of the importance of budgeting their money.69% had a better grasp of the importance of saving for future economic goals, and 75% better understood the impact of credit card debt on their future financial choices.

The mother of Lily, one of the participants, informed me that her daughter had a new outlook on both finances and career choices after attending “It’s Your Reality”.  “Mom, I was broke! I need a bank account and I need to start learning how to handle money right away!” Now that daughter has a bank account of her own and discusses her spending with her mother.  It sounds as if she, and hopefully several others in her class, are on their way with greater knowledge on what type of career they would like to have as an adult and more sophisticated attitudes about their habits and options for the future.