The Best Label To Put On A Child

Recently I was asked to be on CW33 TV to talk about my favorite label for a child- “Kidpreneurs”  (Check out the video here!)  Imagine a child that has entrepreneurial tendencies and can monetize that?  Pretty powerful I would say! I did a lot of research about how kids can make money and spoke to some “experts” in the field. I had a lot of information to share with the viewers and the setting of the show is actually the first idea that comes to mind when we talk to our kids about making extra money for fun stuff of course a lemonade stand.  It’s easy to do, doesn’t cost a lot and who doesn’t love an ice cold glass of lemonade when it’s hot outside.  The problem is, it is a seasonal business, some areas are not conducive to having a stand, having a license to have the stand is necessary in some areas and sometimes it doesn’t get the creative juices flowing.

Starting a business today is a lot different than when we were kids.  In some ways it’s easier and in some ways it’s harder.  If it wasn’t a lemonade stand, it was babysitting, a paper route, shoveling snow, mowing lawns or selling “stuff” from your basement or attic. But there are also other neighborhood businesses that may be interesting in today’s market.  There is pet sitting and picking up mail while a neighbor is on vacation or what about garbage valet, someone that takes your trash cans in and out every week. That was an awesome idea by my friend and her son. Sometimes asking your neighbors what they need will open up different avenues….and isn’t that part of building relationships that we as adults try so hard to do in our businesses?

One of the hardest obstacles kids have to overcome is self esteem and as parents, we have to do things to build it.  When they start a neighborhood business they are building trust and integrity.  Imagine what that will do for their self esteem! Having children start a business teaches them responsibility, how to write a business plan, marketing, interacting with customers, making money, spending money, giving back and being a contributor to their family. They might even have a specific goal in mind that their business could help them achieve.  Or possibly earning money to give to a charitable cause is something kids can focus on.

As I said, I did lots of research and even did some investigation about today’s young moguls who have internet businesses and are really quite the business people of this decade.  However, the entire segment was really about a lemonade stand and a young boy who was our young “kidpreneur”.  He thought the info was ok, the money ok but he really liked having a glass of ice cold lemonade on a hot summer day and isn’t that what this was all about?