We are all hopeful that our children will grow to be confident, motivated and resilient adults, but how do we best set them up for success early in life? Raising our kids with the entrepreneurial spirit can help give them the can-do growth mindset, analytical skills, and leadership abilities that allow them to thrive in any given situation. Today, I will share with you some expert tips for a few ways parents can encourage an entrepreneurial spirit in children from an early age. Help your child transform their dreams into reality by fueling their entrepreneurial spirit. Explore practical steps to turn ideas into action, overcome self-doubt, and unleash full potential as a driven and successful entrepreneur.
What is The Entrepreneurial Spirit?
The entrepreneurial spirit meaning is best described as all of the key traits that make an entrepreneur successful. That is to say, the vision, confidence, drive, determination, persistence, and the ability to adapt, grow, and change based on the market. Being an entrepreneur takes a special ability to think for one’s self, to be willing to take calculated risks, and to go after big dreams with a passion that is unstoppable. Leadership qualities are a must and they love a good challenge. A true entrepreneur is full of new ideas and knows how to seize new opportunities. A few entrepreneurial skills include intellectual curiosity around even ordinary things, creative thinking, and developing innovative products. They can be a measured risk taker who knows how to use right people to create a positive business community that takes a good idea to fruition.
Encouraging The Entrepreneurial Mindset
The entrepreneurial spirit refers to the mindset and qualities possessed by individuals who are inclined toward entrepreneurship. It encompasses traits such as innovation, risk-taking, creativity, determination, and a strong desire to create and grow businesses. Entrepreneurs often seek opportunities, take calculated risks, and are driven by a passion to bring their ideas to fruition. Raising a child with the entrepreneurial spirit does not mean they have to be an entrepreneur business leader when they grow up. It just means that they have the self-motivation and drive to chase their dreams and be self starters.
With this in mind, I am so happy to share with you some fabulous tips for raising entrepreneurs from two amazing moms and successful entrepreneurs, Minna Khounlo-Sithep and Jacqueline Snyder, also known to the world as The Product Boss. Together, they use their expertise to help small businesses with savvy strategies to achieve success through their coaching platforms, top-ranked podcast (The Product Boss Podcast), and social media shopping initiatives that promote small businesses.
With close to 30 years of combined experience in the business venture space, they’ve learned the value of entrepreneurial drive and have been consciously motivating their kids to follow in their footsteps over the years.
The Product Boss ladies have shared their top three tips for encouraging those “kidpreneur” tendencies and fostering feelings of independence and ingenuity below.
1. Give playtime a purpose
While they are young and imaginations are still running wild, encouraging your kids to open up their own shops at home is always a fun and enriching experience for everyone. Whether they decide they want to open up a restaurant, a veterinarian office or a bakery, all of these add a sense of purpose and drive to their free time that didn’t exist before. Getting that first-hand experience, even if just artificial, plants the seed early that one day they too can create a life and career that they dream of if you mix those passions with a little hard work. This is actually great early exposure to business planning. Letting them start a business like a lemonade stand will help them understand the thought and steps involved in even a small undertaking.
2. Keep them interested and involved
If you’re a small business owner yourself, getting your kids interested in your work is a natural next step. Keeping the business conversations going when the kids walk in, asking them to offer their two cents on career-related predicaments, having them help out on certain activities in your work they might enjoy, and discussing your career goals at length with them are all fantastic new ways to keep them invested. Before you know it, your kids are dreaming up their own aspirations, careers and lives soon to unfold.
3. Hold them accountable and offer choices
It’s never too early to begin to instill a hard work ethic in your kids. If they say that they want that new toy, ask how they will go about earning it. Can they set up a lemonade stand? Can they earn money from completing various household chores? When children aren’t simply given everything they ask for and, instead, are encouraged to go out and work hard for what they want, they begin to see the world in a new light. In addition, giving them these decisions early on sets them up as independent thinkers. It also helps improve low confidence levels and indecisiveness. Setting these standards from the jump and holding them accountable for their actions is the best way to set them straight on their entrepreneurial path. Learning to solve problems on a daily basis will set them up well for life in general!
If you enjoyed these tips and would be interested in more tips on how to become a successful business owner, check out the The Product Boss Podcast, A Top 100 Podcast On Apple Podcast Business Charts. You can listen on Spotify or various other podcasting services.
Additionally, I want to share some of my favorite entrepreneurial spirit quotes with you today for a little extra inspiration.
Entrepreneurial Spirit Quotes
“You have to see failure as the beginning and the middle, but never entertain it as an end.” –Jessica Herrin
“You just have to find the solution for a problem in your own life.” -Brian Chesky, Co-founder of Airbnb
“Don’t worry about being successful but work toward being significant and the success will naturally follow.”-Oprah Winfrey
“The way to get started is to quit talking and begin doing.” -Walt Disney
“Keep away from people who try to belittle your ambitions. Small people always do that, but the really great make you feel that you, too, can become great.” -Mark Twain
“Don’t let the noise of other’s opinions drown out your own inner voice. And most important, have the courage to follow your heart and intuition. They somehow already know what you truly want to become. Everything else is secondary.” – Steve Jobs
“There is no greater thing you can do with your life and your work than follow your passions – in a way that serves the world and you.” –Richard Branson
“We all need people who will give us feedback. That’s how we improve.” -Bill Gates
Entrepreneurial Kids Opportunities
It is a great idea to expose your kids opportunities for entrepreneurs. Check your area for local networking events and meet up groups. One such event that has now spread across seven states is the Young Biz Kid Day where kids get to set up their business for a day in a convention style fashion.
Your kids may also enjoy this children’s book called “Eli’s Lemonade Startup” (affiliate link). Its purpose is to help parents introduce the habits of successful entrepreneurship to children.
Spirit Of Entrepreneurship Conclusion
Older kids can take action on an idea by learning to identify and define their vision. Kids are full of passion so this often helps drive them to success on meeting their goals. They probably need help brainstorming ways to take purposeful action. They may also need you to encourage them to use their failures as stepping stones for learning and progressing. By following these steps, you can ignite your child’s entrepreneurial spirit, overcome obstacles, and help make their dreams come true. They can start taking action today and unleash their full potential as a driven and successful entrepreneur!
I hope you enjoyed these tips to encourage the entrepreneurial spirit in your children. It is so good for them to stay curious, optimistic, and eager to find better ways. Developing a positive attitude and the desire to find new solutions will serve them in all areas of life. After all, who doesn’t want to help their kid become more confident and motivated? How will you encourage your young entrepreneur?
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