things to convince parents to let me have a ipod

i bought a ipod and i have to convince them to let me keep it. its a black 30gb ipod video that i got for $209. my parents are very controling and i bought it for college for use of a music player obviouls ybut alarge flash drive and other stuff like that but i need more i think. and i need help becuase its not looking so great any input is apreciated.

 

you could say you want it to be able to back up your hard drive.

 

1. Your finances are your own business. No one, not even your parents, should have final say over your purchases - of course, if they control your finances or they're paying your stay through college, it might be different.

2. Buy a MBP and tell them the ipod was free.

3. Just skip the excuses and justifications and be firm and reasonable. The ipod is famous enough that even the most clueless people (including parents) are aware of what it is and what it's for. No matter what reason you can give for buying it (extra backup, conversion software for use between PCs and Macs, etc etc,), they'll all be rather obvious justifications and excuses. You'll probably do better by standing up for what you did rather than trying to justify it with a bunch of excuses that they'd probably see through in an instant. Show them that you're independent and mature enough to make your own decisions and take responsibility for your own actions.

4. Last resort: Tear up the receipt, destroy the box it came in, and do whatever it takes so that it's unreturnable

 

I agree with taelrak, unless that money that you used to pay for this ipod is your college money. So if they are paying for your school and your bank account then they have every right to do this, though it's not fair, it is their right as a sole source of income. You can also work a fulltime or parttime job while going to school and do what you want with your money...

 

no they dont control all my finaces just a majority of it im working full time and will be going to college next year. i will be going into computer science

 

I agree with taelrak's third point. You are heading off to college and they are not going to be around 24/7 to monitor your actions. As I tell my little sister, if you show that you are mature enough to make smart rational decisions and are willing to act accordingly, that usually works.

If it is the monetary amount that they are concerned about, then show them that you are willing to work for it. There is no use arguing about it. Saying you need it is not the same thing as showing you need it.

 

What I would say for the forum: the majority of the income you earn yourself. Time you sat down with your parents and explained to them that trust also needs to be reciprocated

What I am really thinking: hush. They brought you into the world, so get in line!

Of course, some of us have no such worries

 

What exactly is your parents rational for not letting you keep it if you bought it with your own money? My parents don't always agree with what I spend my money on, they didn't go crazy over the idea of me buying a $1400 Thinkpad but they didn't try to stop me...

 

Take their advice and get rid of the ipod before it breaks.

 

lol the reason they dont want me to have it is money and thats it.

 

If it's not looking so great, what did you do/say to wind their watches? If you're going to convince your parents, you pretty much have to shoot down (or weaken) all of their arguments and put forward some of your own.
Whatever you do: stay rational. Don't whine, scream, yell or cry. Don't stomp your feat. Don't threaten them. Don't go into ''that's not fair". Doesn't work, I've tried.
Instead, think about what you want to say before you say it, and say it calmly. Think about (Or ask them) why they are against this iPod and ask yourself if there isn't the slightest possibility that they're right. If you can't avoid a discussion with this, it will help you win it in the long run because then you know what it's all about. The arguments and strategies listed are well worth trying, I think.

By the way: you're going off to college next year but work full time? And your parents pay/control a majority of your finances? How can this be? (I'm sorry if that's too personal, I'm just a little confused by your posts.)

 

yeah i dont yell cry or any of that crap lol ive have been told by many im wiser than i should be due to my age but i guess my parents dont see that. and my parents wil be paying most of it at the start im trying to turn my part time job into full time. yeah i shot down my dads arguments because he told me to ask my mom so far so good.

 

personally, if it's not my money I don't even wanna keep it, you can imagine how hard this was when I didn't have any money. I think if it's your parent's money and they say no, that's that. Otherwise you're like this bratty whiny ungrateful son. Esspecially if you're still living with them and not in college yet. And that's another thing, you are going to college next year. Don't be so inconsiderate as to buy somethign when they have to pay for college next year.

however, I don't think most places have a very good return policy when it comes to things like ipods, so either way it seems like you're going to get that ipod.

now if it's all your money, I'd tell them to but out (maybe not in that exact phrasing. If you bought it and you worked for it they can't/shouldn't say anything. Now this'll also apply to them (read above).

 

i bought it with my money. and as for the ipod i still have the recept and its still in all is packaging and shrink wraped sealed as well i wont open it till this is over. and they are helping pay for my college.

 

Well, that's good. Sounds like you've got a reasonable chance of keeping it. I'd save the 'wiser than my peers' speech for a later date, though - my parents never liked the arrogant wise guy approach... Actually, they'd probably threaten to put an end to financial support if I said something similar. An iPod is surely not worth that!
It might be a good idea to work planned purchases into dinner conversation though, so you can avoid these situations in the future.

 

Well if it's your money, it's your money. And music is a huge part of college and just listening to it when you want to. Another thing you might want consider or compromise is get a smaller cheaper ipod. I have an 8GB MP3, I don't think I've ever listened to all 8GB, I'm not even sure if I've filled it up to 8BG. 30GB's always seemed like overkill to me. Yeah I guess you can watch videos or whatever, but for some reason that's never been a good enough reason for me.

 

Based on the info you provided you have some choices. You can buck them all together and keep the ipod. You can go to your mom and explain your rationale for an ipod, right after you let her explain her point. Parents like to know that they are heard, even if you make another decision. I really feel like they are frustrated by the fact that you are living at home, preparing to go to school and in their eyes not making sound financial decisions by buying an ipod when you could have bought other things and they are footing the bill for most of your school which isn't cheap by an stretch. This is a tough time for you my friend, you are learning alot about alot of things in a short time. Ultimately no one on this forum can tell you the right thing to do, only you can decide that for yourself but whether you keep it or not it won't be the end of the world so do what you do and be prepared to live with the consequences, whatever they may be. Good luck!

 

well with 30gb im going to also boot my laptop form for my computer science class which we use windows xp pro and i have vista. so that another thing im using it for. but i would never say that i was wise to them lol. i also told my dad i was willing to take it back if he wanted me to

 

Don't compromise. No justifications. If YOU earned the money then YOU'LL buy what YOU WANT and that's that. Tell them that and if they don't like it, tough. Then they don't have to pitch in for it. To those who suggested trying to reason with them, that's fine if you can, but in my experience, unfortunately, not all people are reasonable and parents are certainly no exception to that. My parents were often unreasonable too, and now that I'm older (31) I see it even more clearly.

So break open the packaging, and make it unreturnable like Taelrak suggested.

Edit: If you're paying part of your tuition, just clarify with them how much they expect you to contribute per year, and anything extra you earn is for spending at YOUR DISCRETION.

 

whats a MBP prob a noob question but ohwell lol im guessing a mac book pro idk. but i already have a laptop so i dont really need it.

 

MacBook Pro. They have a deal where you can get a free 4gb ipod nano if you buy one. You might have to be a student at a participating school, but I'm not sure about that part.

 

Do they already know about it? If not, just keep it out of sight until you get to college. Then, you'll never have to worry about their interference.

 

I like to tell my parents about the good deal I got when I buy something, and for $209 it shows that you know how to save money.

 

yeah i know and thats some of my reasoning behind it lol

 

Wow, that seems like a huge deal to be making over an ipod....

 

Tell them the truth.
You wanted to have an iPod, so you worked for it an got it.

I'm a parent as well, most likely your folks just want to make sure you won't go through life buying every "toy" you fancy along the way.
Tell them you realize that (hopefully you do lol ) but you would like to be able to enjoy the benefits of having your own $ as well.
Now is the time, once you have your own family, you will think ten times before making a decision to purchase anything just for fun The important thing in my opinion is that you worked for it.

 

Return your Ipod then buy another one without your parents knowing when you move out for college, assuming you're living in a college dorm.

 

i know how that work for example getting laptop i spent every minute of spare time for 3 weeks reseraching evything i could find out before i bought my laptop. and i have done this with the ipod as well because i noticed i am buying a new mp3 player every few months because the one before it didnt have enough room for what i wanted. i figured i would save money that way and i got a good deal on it as well. this is actually the first thing i have bought in a lil over a month. so not like im a implusive buyer lol

 

Leave the "good deal" stuff out of it. It clouds the issue. The issue isn't whether you got a good deal and it's certainly not whether you can convince them you did. The issue is you earn your own money and you make your own decisions. Read Taelrak's post again because I agree with him 100%. Tell them it cost $350 for the black one, just to piss them off more. Let them yell a lot, what are they going to do. If they don't like it, they can spend buy something besides ipods with their own paychecks.

 

i perferbally dont want to make them angry i like rebeling the pecaeful way lol

 

Just tell them what you're telling us. It makes sense, just don't come up with excuses that aren't true. You want them to trust your decisions you need to be honest about them.
Your dad doesn't seem to mind, and maybe his concern is more your mother getting upset with him for "allowing" you to keep the iPod lol.

My 8 year old son has one...he was saving up $ for a few months and when his birthday came I decided to throw in some cash so he could get one. I was actually amazed at how he was able to resist temptation and not spend the little cash he had on other things for so long. We could probably have used this $ for something much more usefull, but hell, laptops and iPods are not something you buy every day. Take it easy, don't feel bad and go explain things to your parents as they are.

 

well my dad came home and said i could keep it he said he over reacted last night so i dont have to worry about it anymore

 

You said the right thing when you told your father earlier that you were willing to take the iPod back if that's what he decided he wanted you to do for him. Parents want their kids to enjoy themselves, be happy, but also, to make wise choices. Those who help support their children, also usually demand a say in how their kids spend their money.

Your dad sounds like a stand-up guy. I'm a father, too, and glad you didn't lie to him or give him BS about things he felt are important to you

 

Your parents should teach you how to better spend your money ^^ many mp3 players out there just as good and better than the ipod for less.

Apple products are always so expensive, oh and the sound quality of an ipod is very sub par to an audiophile like myself.

 

yeah i like to rebel peacefully lol sure lots may not get down but it gets the basics that i care about.and yes he is a very smart understanding guy. and about lieing i estalbished basicly a code of conduct for my sellf vowing not do do lieing drugs and other things as well

 

Chill dude (EDIT: ). The kid did good, stood up to the parents for what he believed in, and I think just grew up a little bit...all without doing something to get him in trouble.

 

That wasnt a harsh comment, it was sarcasm.

I guess "^^" is more used on my japanese forums than american ones but its a "smiley" and I use it as an indicator of sarcasm.

I was being truthfull tho about ipods being bad purchase decisions, for the cost there are so many players with all the same featuers that cost less and are of higher quality. Ipod just has the biggest rep and best advertisment market and too many people let the hype tell them what to buy rather than do the research or try to be more individualistic (if thats a word) and get somthing diffrent from main stream.

 

I wasn't trying to be harsh...my bad! iPods have their advantages from what I understand...I just don't want one .

I thought "^^" was 'look at above post'...???

 

Am a bit of an Apple fanboy, VXUSMC, and had a tough time with your post. Irked me to read it, frankly, but the USMC part of your screen name, and my own 16 years in the Corps keep me from posting an angry diatribe. Guess you're entitled to your own opinion, but, I don't think you should have attempted to rain on this kid's parade.

Semper Fi

 

yeah hes entitled to his opinion and he can say that if he wants. but im happy with my purchase. lol

 

Yep bmwrob we fought for that freedom of speech thing so I use it!

Plus you cant fight with somobody over the internet anyways.

Now the expalanation of "^^" its japanese in origin. Often used in japanese comic books called manga it sort of represents sombodies eyes (eye brows if you want) squinting.

smilies are diffrent in japanese forums and thats a common one. Its a simple version of henohenomoheji wich is a smile face made up of only japanese characters not the roman "^" sysmbol.

 

Well jeff I hope you enjoy that ipod and the fact that your parents sound like they respect you just a little more than they did before all of this. You did an awesome job by asking opinions, taking appropriate action and it all worked out for you in the end. Had to rep you for that, you deserved it!!!

 

The way my friends do it:

a) pretend they don't have one

failing that:

b) go on a sulk and say that just because their not cool enough to have one

and the sneeky ways:

c) buy them one as well so that they're not jealous
d) if their not into computing tell them its a cheap way of backing up important banking data (if you've got anything against outright lying don't go here)
e) kill them and then they can't complain
f) tell them it's a necessity for your degree at college because they give you sound files of all the lectures and you need to be able to listen to them

Hope this helped. Good luck mate.

 

This happened when I got my first ever mobile phone. Trying to hide it is a no-go. They will eventually see it, and you will get so stressed ensuring its out of sight.

I usually just persuade my parents I'll not get another one for a long time. Tell them its an investment. Families that are really tight with money are usually very serious about buying good quality electronic products, otherwise would go for the cheapest product around. Tell them that if you just purchased a cheap one, it would break quickly. You expect this ipod to last 5 years, if not longer.