Look for something they don't sell or something you can produce better or less expensively. If you hope to exploit a skill, make friends with local store and shop owners. Soon Richard had more orders than he could fill.Ī secret to these teenage success stories is finding a niche in the market that no one else is filling. This led to even more sales in the form of commissions for large items. Each item contained an offer to hand-tool initials on the item free of charge. These he sold in a larger shop in the neighboring village. Soon Richard could buy larger quantities of leather, which he made into beautifully tooled handbags and purses. However, Richard made small items he could sell at the only shop in his village.īecause he could provide a service and was determined to produce the highest-quality work, his reputation and his profit margin grew. He lived in a remote community in Wales, a place of few employment opportunities. At the age of 15 he learned leather craft at a summer camp. Richard is an example of developing and using his skills to earn money. Do you have any hobbies like Dorothy's or Naomi's? Can you provide a service like Ben's? Do you have any special skill that could be developed to earn money? In the third column of your paper write down your interests along with any potential money-making ideas you can think of. Ben got the position because he had taught himself the one thing every company is looking for: self-motivation. The company was not looking for a high-powered businessman it wanted someone who had learned financial expertise and the value of customer satisfaction and perseverance-all vital entrepreneurial skills. Because of the skills he developed through hard work, he landed a position with a large company, which paid his college fees, provided him training in a career and guaranteed him a job after graduation. One young man did just that.īen's family helped him turn an after-school job cleaning swimming pools and mowing lawns into a successful and valuable service. In the middle column write down what it would take to accomplish this.Ĭonsider, for example, financing four years of college. In column one, write what you want to accomplish in the next five years or so-a really good job, financing for college, more money or whatever you would like to do. Divide a piece of paper into three columns. It sounds easy, doesn't it? But how do you get started?įirst, brainstorm. Now that Naomi has run a guinea-pig business, she would like to work with bigger animals, perhaps horses. If we don't, we would no longer have a market, because the pet shop wants to keep their good reputation." So we have a responsibility to the pet shop to supply the very best product we can. If the animals aren't well looked after, they become dirty or even sick. I never realized making money was so much work. "Having to look after so many animals takes a lot of time and work. "Some of the money we make has to be saved to buy hay and more hutches and to pay for veterinary bills," she says. She's had to concern herself with cash flow, quality control and the responsibility of running a small business. Since first selling the animals, says Naomi, she has learned all about guinea pigs. My parents gave me some money to buy more hutches, and my brother, who was 10 at the time, went into business with me." The lady at the shop told me that the guinea pig was probably pregnant and she would buy the babies back from me when they were six to eight weeks old. "I bought a female guinea pig from a pet shop. "I was 11 when I started breeding guinea pigs for a bit of pocket money," she said. Stick insects (called walkingsticks in some countries) were the ideal answer for some, and her beautifully designed cages are just as attractive in a room as any aquarium. She found that many people who worked all day wanted a pet but could not provide the attention needed by a dog or cat. This greatly increased her ability to supply the whole package to her customers. Her company sells 50,000 a year.īecause she had experience with insects and knew she wanted to make a career in the insect business, Dorothy studied applied biology at a university, designing the right kind of insect houses and researching proper feeding facilities for her insects. Less than 20 years later, she is Great Britain's biggest breeder of stick insects. Look at what these teenagers were able to accomplish:ĭorothy started her business at the age of 14, selling stick-insect eggs by mail order. All it takes is a dream and a little thought and planning. Would you like to have more money in your pocket, face the future with more confidence and be able to set up a successful business for yourself? It is easier than you think.
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