One of the awards that we will be giving out at the S.T.E.A.M. Fair in June is for 'Entrepreneurial Spirit'. We want to celebrate the amazing kids that have taken the risk and started or plan to start a business.
So why is it so important for kids to deliver entrepreneurial skills? Well, the simple answer is that there is no better way to learn than by doing. My husband and I have been business owners. While we have tasted the fruits of our labor we have also dealt with the hard blows of failure. The lessons we have learned have been invaluable. Each one makes us better and smarter for future decisions.
The biggest problem for us is that we have limited room for failure. As adults responsibility makes it so hard to take the risks and recover from the failures because we have responsibilities.
If we allow our children the opportunity to develop ideas and businesses without the challenging factor of 'adult responsibilities' like rent, bills, etc., we give them the perfect environment to truly develop an entrepreneurial spirit.
Even if they do not go on to become a business owner, the skills they will take into their future careers will serve them well. We hear a lot about 'corporate waste'. It's easy to spend money on wasteful things when it is someone else's money and you are receiving a paycheck regardless. However, when you have a small business the bottom line is your paycheck and you learn skills like budgeting, frugality, and how to make wise decisions.
Bubble Ball
You may not have heard of Robert Nay or his app Bubble Ball. In 2011 when Angry Birds was the number one app in the world, he knocked them off their perch. The app was downloaded 2 million times in the two weeks after its release. No big deal right? Wrong, Robert was 14 years old at the time.
His friends suggested he create his own game app. So he took the idea to his parents who invested in him and got him a Mac computer. They took him to the library to get out coding books. Nay had no experience coding at this point. One month later he had written 4000 lines of code and with help from his mother, he launched the app.
Never too young to start!
We do believe that kids of all ages can benefit from learning these skills. My own son started selling eggs when he was 8 years old. My other son was 6 years old when he started selling honey from our beehives. Last year, at 12 years old, my eldest wanted to build and sell Chicken Coops. For the initial investment to purchase the supplies, he saved his money. We helped him by advertising. There were more requests than he could handle. He took his initial investment and increased it 10 fold from his hard work.
As the weeks progressed, he learned how a do a Profit and Loss Statement, time management, and customer service. He even had a little human resources management when he hired his younger brother to help him paint.
His plan for this year was to sell them again. He wanted to use the winter months to prepare and get several made ahead of time but he has learned another lesson. Timber prices have gone up dramatically and he has to determine whether it is a sound decision to operate this year. If he does he will have to raise the price to account for the increase of the raw material to maintain his profit margin. Then he is learning the delicate balance of pricing your product right.
No textbook or college class could ever have given him the skills he has and is developing from this simple opportunity we allowed him to explore. And simple is the keyword. A simple lemonade stand is a wonderful opportunity to learn. Plus don't say anything to your kids but the mathematics involved is great. It's applied mathematics so they will have a better understanding of the concept.
What To Do With An Idea? Workshop
On January 27th, 2021, Edison Kids is hosting the 'What To Do With An Ideas!' workshop to help students put together a project for the Entrepreneurial Spirit Category. We will work through a business plan and how to develop an idea into a successful project. If you have a budding entrepreneur then please join us. The cost is $15 and runs from 10:30 am - 12:00 pm on the westside of Jacksonville. Registration ends on January 20th, 2021. You must be a member of Edison Kids Inc to register. To find out more visit our website.