Last week’s exercise involved making the final choice for your first project. This entrepreneurial journey has been designed for adults and children to do together or separately with help and encouragement both ways. If you haven’t been following the series, last week’s post had all the exercises in it.

The Big Day has arrived – it’s time to make some money – not earn it, but make it! Like any act of creativity, making some money is immensely satisfying. Especially the first time. So, now you’ve chosen your product or service. You know where, how and to whom you are going to market it. Off we go! Now there are only two things between you and making money – action and your emotions…

How do you feel now? Excited, scared? Unmotivated, raring to go? Some people, the most entrepreneurial amongst you, will have raced ahead. No starter pistol necessary, they will be a couple of weeks into their quest by now, having doubled their money already and now on their second project. Some will have raced off without planning or preparation. Already, they will have given up, convinced this won’t work, and moved to the next big idea. Others will have diligently worked through the exercises, arriving at the starting blocks ready and willing, looking for the next lot of instructions. Some will have read the exercises with interest, possibly even had an idea or two, but broadly, for them, it will be an intellectual exercise. Yet others will be wondering if they dare go ahead, their heads will be full of “what if”s. They’ll cradle their dream of making some money and developing financial independence without ever making it a reality. None of these are better or worse, just different – where do you fit, what does this tell you about yourself?

Watch carefully how your children think and behave around this. Their world is different to the one we grew up in. They will have to more comfortable with change, develop habits of lifelong learning and tolerate a level of risk, to be independent and happy adults – all this in societies that are becoming more risk-averse. Entrepreneurs have always stood apart as people prepared to take risks. Developing the skills and attributes of entrepreneurs is the key to living beyond survival in a rapidly changing world.

So what can we learn from them? What can we teach our children? Why is this series of simple exercises, so important? Those of us who grew up between the 1960s and the 1980s had more freedom than any other generation before us. With the exception of traffic, life is, statistically, no more dangerous now, than it was then. Children are no more likely to be victims of violent crime, abduction, accidents or abuse than we were, but the perception is that they live in a more dangerous world. They get driven to school while we walked, they play inside while we played out, their time is tightly structured, ours was free. They are in danger – of obesity and fear and lack of creativity. Sure, kids don’t break their legs and have scabby knees nearly as much as preceding generations, but, be honest, wasn’t that stuff fun?

Entrepreneurs are risk takers, they feel the same fears as others but they go ahead anyway. They are willing to fail – sometimes spectacularly, rather than live with the regret of no endeavour. They develop relationships of mutuality and reciprocity, sharing and learning with others. They surround themselves with people who support them and take their advice from successful people, champions of what they do. Entrepreneurs give it a go, even when they don’t have all the facts. They are confident that, if they fall, they can pick themselves up.

Equip your children for adulthood in their world, by daring to teach them – to dare.

This Week’s Exercise

Feel the fear, then Go Ahead – make some money!

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