The Self-Employed Teenager
You go to school, participate in activities, then go to work, then go home and sleep. Rinse and repeat. Sound familiar? Well welcome to the life of the average teenager with a job! And the worst part of it all? You’re getting paid minimal wage!
Wouldn’t it be great if you could have more control, and make more money? Welcome to self-employment!
Self Education
Start with an idea Think of a need in your local area. This could be anything from someone to mow lawns, to a school tutor (for you brains out there). Develop this idea into a basic business model. Ask yourself:
What expenses will there be? (Equipment rental, etc)
What will be my income?
How fast will income be made? (Figure out a rough hourly wage)
How will I get customers?
What kind of money will I need to start up? (For example, lemons for a lemonade stand)
Test the waters Create some inexpensive fliers and see what kind of feedback you get. Do a few jobs and see if it’s practical. The key here is to invest as little money and time into the process. You’re just seeing if the idea is a gold mine or a ghost town. If it sucks, either modify your idea or find something new.
Get the word out Once you get a nice solid idea, it’s time to get the word out as much as possible.
Create a business website
Use social networks (MySpace, Facebook, Twitter)
Fliers
Pamphlets
Talk to family, adults, and peers (word of mouth)
And possibly your most valuable resource, references. References will do the hard work for you. It’s almost viral how they can get you jobs. The concept is simple; customers tell other people about your work, and then they bring you more customers.
Polish your business model Now that’s your business is going somewhere, you can revise your business model. Perhaps expansion is necessary, you’ll need to figure out who to hire, and how much you’ll pay. Just remember, be creative with your business ideas.
The Self-Employed Teenager
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