Parenting responsibilities don't end when a child graduates from college. In many cases in today's society, parenting an adult child is commonplace.

How does one define an adult child? Simple, it's someone who's an adult but still requires the security of a parent's environment to get through the early years of adulthood.

We're not saying parenting an adult child is the same as parenting a teenager or toddler; far from it. With adult children, parenting would be more along the lines of playing adviser. Guiding the child through early financial and relationship decisions.

In many respects though, such parenting would seem to break the mold and traditions of a child's peer group however, unless "junior" is not planning to hang around for a lifetime, this kind of guidance can be extremely beneficial in kick-starting your child's life.

Being A Parenting Adviser

So what do we mean by being an adviser. Here are some clues:

- Being a relationship or marriage counselor

- Advising on financial issues; in other words, playing financial adviser and stock broker. Do Mom and Dad have investments in the market? Are these investments Real Estate or Bonds? If so, they have probably learned a thing or two and can easily offer some investment advice from the heart and not guided by gaining a fat commission. Even without hands on experience, parents can assist their grown children in all sorts of ways regarding the stock market.

- Managing your child's finances is a common way parents help out with their children's early years as an adult.

These are just some ways parenting an adult child can have a positive effect on their early years in adulthood. Yes, the child also has to reciprocate the offer by the parents to receive advice and mom and dad need to be able to establish a happy medium.

The bottom line is, it doesn't matter what age your child is, they still need parental support well into their adult years.