Parents and guardians are often the first influence in a child’s entrepreneurial journey. By introducing our children to entrepreneurship at an early age, the experiences—both positive and negative—can help shape their future and may be the start of something amazing.
Presenting ideas and opportunities that are fun and challenging help young minds that are brimming with entrepreneurial ideas to become problem-solvers and motivates them to create a positive change in their communities.
So, how can you support your child’s journey to becoming an entrepreneur and innovator?
Let’s find out!
- Listen to their ideas
It all begins with supporting and nurturing their curiosity. Supporting children to brainstorm and think of unique solutions to common problems, share it with you and have a conversation with them about it. Encourage them to be creative and use their imagination. No matter how far-fetched their idea may seem to you as an adult, providing positive reinforcement and having patience while they figure it out fosters self-confidence and the courage to think outside the box. Parents can be great coaches.
- Let them make mistakes
Allow your child to explore and try new things. If they fail, be there to support them and help them learn from their mistakes. While it’s sometimes tempting to try and ‘save the day’ – especially if you can identify gaps or downfalls – it’s important to let your child follow through and see if their ideas work. Your reaction to their negative experiences will help teach them to see failures as opportunities, to learn, and to do better. Smart risk-taking is a skill that will serve your kids throughout their lives, whether they become an entrepreneur or not. We call this failing forward. - Leverage your network
Introducing your kids to entrepreneurial role models in the real world can leave a lasting impression. Allow them to engage with a variety of people, from all backgrounds, who have chosen to be entrepreneurs who create jobs rather than work in them. This offers them opportunities for learning and emulating. This also includes you, as their most important entrepreneurial mentor! Leverage your network.
We have the responsibility to teach our children how to recognise opportunities, take some risks and learn what it takes to become a future job creator.
As parents, we want our children to grow up to be happy and successful. Exposing them to the benefits and rewards of entrepreneurship as a young child or teenager will help them see that there are endless possibilities for their future.
WATCH: Lesson #11 from Unlocking Africa’s Hidden Job Creators that discusses how a widespread parental attitude shift could unlock entrepreneurship as a career.