#37 Entrepreneur For The Day

A great way to spend time with your kids is to be an entrepreneur for the day

Be An Entrepreneur For The Day:

This fun date, full of teachable moments, shows your child creative ways of making money. There are different ways to go about this date, such as making something to sell or finding a product to buy and resell. You can also choose yard sales, lemonade stands, or baked goods. Either way, it’s a challenging, competitive date that can help your child make some extra money. Who knows what doors it may potentially open in their future?

Here are some suggested steps to take for this date. One of the biggest questions is where to or how to sell your product. I’ve used eBay in the example steps below, but you can use a variety of other methods or marketplaces to sell your product.

Decide on the item you would like to sell, whether a toy or something similar, like clothes that you already own. It can also be something you create or a product that you buy and resell.

In making your decision, I suggest researching eBay to see if you can find your chosen item or something similar. Browsing eBay is also an excellent way to get ideas if you’re having trouble coming up with one.

If you decide to make something or sell something you already own, then you’re ready to list the item on eBay. If you want to resell an item, make plans on going to a retail store or spend a few hours going to garage sales, thrift stores, and consignment shops to pick out an item or two to fix up and sell.

List your item for sale.

Watch with excitement.

WMTDS (What Makes This Date Special):

This date is unique because it almost makes your relationship feel like a partnership. As your child becomes an adult, you will have a different relationship from the one you have now. This date offers a glimpse of that relationship, depending on your child’s age. With a 5-year-old, it will be fun with some teachable moments on making money. Even at that early age, you’d be surprised at the lasting impact it may leave on your child. However, if you’re doing this with a 15-year-old, it may truly feel like each of you have a “business partner.” Making important “business” decisions together gives your child confidence and faith in his or her abilities.

Teachable Moments:

Entrepreneur lessons and skills
Application to your child’s future work life and career
Financial aspects of a project (or business)

This date allows you to teach your children that creative ways of making money exist. It opens their eyes to their creative ability to make extra money on the side. It may also potentially impact their career choices. I wish I’d known growing up that there were ways to make money besides working for someone else. To properly list your item takes planning, and the marketing involves creativity – both valuable life skills. This date provides multiple opportunities to teach your child many life lessons, especially around making money.

Variations:

The date also works outside of selling on eBay. You can sell items:

On social media to friends and family members

Using a classifieds system, such as Craigslist

On Etsy, a great platform for crafts and homemade items

On Amazon

With a simple website to market your item

Expense:

The only cost involved is how much you budget for product creation or purchasing the item to resell. Of course, the idea is to get more money back in your sale than you put in upfront. If you sell something you already own, this date is free.

A great way to spend time with your kids is to be an entrepreneur for the day

Planning:

This date requires zero to moderate preparation, depending on your approach. You can comfortably sit down on your date and pick something around the house. This requires no prior planning, especially if you’re already familiar with eBay or your chosen platform. The planning depends mostly on what you want your date to look like. The date can be one evening or broken up into many occasions by going to garage sales, or researching what to sell and how to do it, or creating your product together.