Crack the Egg

25 Micro Business Ideas For Your Kids

    We've been brainstorming ideas for the kids and I to each have our own micro businesses that we can work from our home, have fun doing, and really learn something about doing business.  Probably the experts would tell us to stick to one business for the family, but we all had different ideas and our own excitement about them, so there you are.

    During brainstorming, one must be careful to allow for every answer, no matter how ludicrous.  Evaluating the ideas comes afterwards.  With that in mind, here is the list of possibles and what we (think) we've decided upon.

1. Baking muffins and selling. (Daughter makes great muffins, but I don't want to worry about food safety.)
2. Fixing lawnmowers. 
3. Piano teaching.  (Possible, but I don't enjoy this.)
4. Small group music classes.
5. Writing classes for kids.
6. Writing e-books.
7. Inventing a game.  (Son1 already has one that we play.)
8. Writing for contests and publications.
9. Dog-sitting.  (We've "sat" anoles and guinea pigs, why not dogs?)
10. Jewelry making.  (Chainmaille is preferred.)
11. Designing crochet patterns.
12. Book making and selling.  (I love mini books.)
13. Hand-painted greeting cards.  (Daughter really enjoys this, but each is unique and therefore, take a bit of time per card.)
14. Themed birthday parties for kids. (Take a craft, games around a theme.)
15. Themed babysitting in our home for group of kids at once.  (Every Friday night from 6-9, pay is prorated.)
16. Growing miniature plants for sale.
17. Cleaning - specifically decks, cars, garage floors.
18. Wrapping gifts at your home with our supplies. (Seasonal)
19. Reading mentor or math/science tutor.
20. Plant gardens or flowers.  Plant flower pots, deliver, and maintain through season.
21. Lawn mowing with trimming or edging.
22. Clean dog poo on regular basis.  Could combine with dog walking.
23. Decluttering garages or single rooms.
24. Running a garage sale.  (Customers provide items, kid does pricing, set up, sale, and clean up.)
25. Putting scrapbooks or memory books together from client's memorabilia.

    Son One found out that creating a card game for kids costs thousands in testing for child safety.  He decided to go with writing for publications and contests.

    My daughter is still investigating three options.  First, what it will take to create jewelry (earrings and bracelets) and sell on etsy.com as well as by word of mouth.  Second, the feasibility of hand-painting cards and selling in terms of time.  Third, creating images to scan on items for sale on cafepress.com. 

    Son Two and I are working together to create a booklet annotating a list of adventure books for boys.

    And myself?  I have one writing class beginning in two weeks.  I have a few things published, but will up my writing efforts for publication.

    What ideas for micro businesses do you have?

    

Image via Wikipedia

 

 

Robin

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Need To Earn Some Money? Consider A Micro Business

    Is your child interested in earning money?  Do you wish they could get business experience without a huge investment of time and money? 

Consider a micro business.  In a nutshell, here's why:

• Easy to begin and stop
• Little start-up money needed, if at all
• Manageable
• Usually home-based

    If you're interested for your kids (or for yourself), the first step is to check out www.MicroBusinessForTeens.com.  Carol Topp is a CPA who has, literally, written the book on starting and running a micro business for teens. 

    Our Family Entrepreneurial Club is working our way through the first book, Starting a Micro Business.  We each have an idea for a business, but the book walks us through writing a business plan, understanding what problems may arise (and how to meet or avoid them), and gives clear encouragement for giving your micro business a real try. 

    What I really like about the book is that Carol shows

 

• just how simple a micro business can be,
• how easily it can work with our schedule and available time,
• the practical steps to creating a business, marketing, and financial plan,
• and that all her suggestions are realistic for kids.

    As a homeschooling mom who wants her kids to learn multiple ways to support themselves and ministries dear to them in the future, I believe micro businesses are an excellent way to practice those ideas now. 

    Let me know what micro businesses you and your kids begin or are running.  Perhaps your good idea may inspire others!

Robin 

Creative Home Learning     

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What Entrepreneurism Can Teach Our Kids

FAMILY ENTREPRENEURIAL CLUB

 Lessons Kids Learn From Having Their Own Businesses:  

• How to work with money

Image via Wikipedia

    Even at the beginning of a business venture, the student must think about money. If offering a service, there can be costs of proper equipment and getting to the customer's home or business.  If creating items for sale, there is cost of making and storing inventory.  Then there is money for getting your business' name in front of people and gas for driving for supplies or to perform the job.  While choosing the price to charge, kids will estimate what they hope to earn compared to output necessary to earn the profit, thus learning a real life lesson in feasibility.

 

• Communication skills

    Whether selling online, in person, or working with clients, your student will end up talking to strangers.  This, however, is not a bad thing.  The experience, as the saying goes, is priceless.  Not everyone will gush over the handcrafted item like Great Aunt Talulah nor offer $10 for an imperfectly cleaned window.  But, they will get verbal feedback to their actions, their words, and their business.  This creates opportunities to do better, be clearer, speak tactfully, and evaluate the worth of what they're hearing.  Remember, listening is also a communication skill.

Robin                                                                                                                                                                                   Creative Home Learning

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Reminder: Posts follow this schedule: Monday, Parent Personal Development and Inspiration; Tuesday, Best Homeschooling Resources; Wednesday, Great Hobbies, Activities, and Games; Thursday, Mini Unit Study; Friday, Entrepreneurial Club Info & Updates.

 

 

 

 

Family Entrepreneurial Club: Homeschool Start-Up

    NEW SECTION!!

 

    Friday posts will now cover our homeschooling family's Entrepreneurial Club. 

    After hearing an excellent talk on microbusinesses by Carol Topp at the Midwest Homeschool Conference, my kids and I started our own entrepreneurial club to help us get moneymaking ideas out of our minds and into our day-to-day life.  This is where I will track our progress (or lack of it!) in the hope it will inspire your family to try something, too. 

YOU, TOO?

• If you've ever thought that it would be a good learning experience for your kids to have their own business, read on. 
• If you have ever wanted to have your own business, read on. 
• If you've thought that doing a business together with your kids would be a good idea, then keep reading to find out what we're doing and how you may do it, too.  (Click on Subscribe at the top of the page to get these articles without missing any.)


WHY WE BEGAN:

    My daughter is interested in creating artwork to sell on etsy.com and elsewhere.  She paints individual cards and envelopes.  She sold a few to people who received them from others, liked them, noticed her name on the back, and asked if she would paint some for them. 

    My son has two objectives.  He wants to pursue writing as a career, but doesn't want to wait until he's in or out of college to begin.  He also wants to create and sell his own board and card games. 

    I wanted to take both my blog and writing to a higher level.  More and better blog content, sending more manuscripts to publishers more regularly, and narrowing in on my niche and making it my own - these are my goals.

 

WHY HAVING A CLUB KEEPS IT FUN

• It's all an experiment.  There is no failure, only the failure to try.
• There is no pressure, but there is motivation and determination. 
• Progress is the purpose, not perfection.  We define progress as making and meeting goals, experimenting with ideas and options, and above all, doing something instead of wishing only.
• We get to cheer each other on.

 Robin

Reminder:  Posts follow this schedule:  Monday, Parent Personal Development and Inspiration; Tuesday, Best Homeschooling Resources; Wednesday, Great Hobbies, Activities, and Games; Thursday, Mini Unit Study; Friday, Entrepreneurial Club Info & Updates.

Did you enjoy this article?  Subscribe for FREE with RSS or email to get the next one.  Recommendations for excellent learning resources for homeschooling smart, curious kids are available under the Creative Home Learning Store button at the top of the page.  Enjoy!