In today’s world, it takes more than good grades to succeed. Find out how developing an entrepreneurial spirit in your child can boost their chances of success
The path to success isn’t as straightforward as it may have once been. Studying hard and getting good grades, moving on to university and then graduating with a coveted job at a MNC was the name of the education game. Fast forward to 2018 and now university degrees are the norm and the job market has become increasingly competitive. It’s natural to fret about your child’s future, but by forging an entrepreneurial spirit in our children, we can arm them with the tools they need to succeed. Here’s how…
Equip your child with problem-solving skills
‘How do I stay organised? How do I wake up on time? How do I deal with all the deadlines from school and hang out with my friends at the same time?’ You may think that your child’s just sweating the small stuff but to them, the struggle is #real. Learning how to deal with everyday issues takes some skill and maturity and this is where parents get to weigh in… Guiding our kids to visualise possible scenarios and weighing up the pros and cons of the situation before making a final decision is a skill they’ll learn to solve their problems along life’s path.
It’s okay to make mistakes
Learning from one’s mistakes is an essential skill for entrepreneurs. Self-starters certainly know all about starting over from scratch when mistakes are made. As a parent, you can encourage your kids to use their experiences as an opportunity to help them grow and learn. No more dwelling on their mistakes! Instead, why not ask them to think about what they could do differently next time? When you teach your child to stand on their own two feet, they’ll grow to become resilient individuals – and it also helps to remind them that even the most successful people have failed at some point in their careers, us included!
Encourage them to be inquisitive
Remember the days when your toddler wouldn’t stop asking questions? It was a frustrating fun and inquisitive time, and renewing your kids’ curiosity again is essential. Entrepreneurs are always pushing themselves to think outside of the box for new solutions to their problems. Similarly, you can teach your kids to be open to new ideas and by doing so, exposing themselves to an inspiring world of opportunities.
Thankfully, there are schools like SmarterMe who encourage entrepreneurship in kids and teens. From teaching critical thinking skills, developing a problem-solving mindset and showing them the importance of being in tune with their emotions, its camps will help your kid discover that just like the world’s top entrepreneurs, they are capable of creating ground-breaking solutions. These are just a snippet of some of the fun-packed highlights:
Learning camps for kids and teens
Smarter Me is running two camps this summer: Be A Teen Boss! Entrepreneurship Bootcamp and Change The World Innovation Summer Camp. In both programmes, both kids and teens will experience the fundamentals of building a business. They’ll also learn how to create a full business pitch with their very own creations, Shark Tank style! And what happens if their pitch doesn’t make the cut? Failure and rejection will make your child more resilient and mentally tough – and that’s a lesson in character building they won’t get anywhere else.
The chance to be the founder of a $1 million company and join a global community of teenage entrepreneurs
As the exclusive partner of LA-based, Milken Institute and UCLA-backed Founders Bootcamp, Camp participants with the best business pitches will stand a chance to win cash prizes of USD 10,000, a fully funded trip to LA and be mentored by top professionals and investors to build their very own million dollar company (and nail a USD 50,000 investment)! Kids will get a chance to interact with other brilliant peers and make enriching friendships for life. Can we be a teenager again too, please?
Real lessons for the real world
Everything taught at the Smarter Me camps is relevant in the real world, and all the courses are spearheaded by instructors who have years of hands-on experience in their expert fields. The Design Thinking course (Change The World Innovation Summer Camp) is taught by Grab’s Lead UX Designer who’s had years of experience working in Silicon Valley for companies like Yahoo, Twitter, and Pinterest!
Want to raise the next Bill Gates or Sheryl Sandberg? Sign up for one of Smarter Me’s summer camps TODAY! Who knows, your child may have the next great business idea that investors can’t wait to be involved in!
This post is sponsored by SmarterMe.
