Kids Making Money

Today we did our family presentation for our homeschool group. We agonized over the topic, but finally settled on how kids can make money. So, here's the bloggy rendition:

Younger children usually make money by doing chores around the house. Maybe they earn extra cash by doing special jobs for mom and dad like sweeping out the garage or cleaning the refrigerator. But even younger kids can earn money outside the house.

We've all heard about the lemonade stand. It does not usually yield a high return. One problem with it is that adults don't trust it. They wonder if the child has poured it back in after drinking some, whether or not they've had their hands in it, and what if the child already used that cup?! Hold this thought, we'll come back to it in a moment.

The key to finding a job outside the home is finding opportunity. And the way to find opportunity is to pay attention to what people want or need. Sometimes a job will land in your lap and sometimes you have to hunt for it or even create it.

Gem has a job that fell in her lap. Because she is homeschooled and is available during the day, our neighbor asked her to take out her dogs every weekday at noon. The return: $20/week. Not bad for a 9 year old.

But what about the jobs that require you to hunt for them or create them? They can take lots of thought. Here are 4 questions to get you thinking:
1. What do other people need that I have?
2. What do people really want?
3. What do people not want to do that I can do for them?
4. How can I give them a better product?

Some of the best jobs for kids are those that come and go: commitment is low and return is quick. So, what are some of these opportunities?

(Gem) How about seasonal work? (Me) What kind of seasonal work might you do in the spring? (G) Plant flowers (Me) For who? (G) My neighbors. (ME) Lets work through all four questions and see how this might work. What do other people need that you have? (G) Time. (Me) What do people really want? (G) Beautiful annuals on their front porch. (Me) What do people not want to do? (G) They don't want to go to the store and buy the flowers and soil. They don't want to get out all their tools and pot the plants. And they don't want to have the mess to clean up. (Me) How can you give them a better product? (G) I come to your door and there's no mess when I'm gone.

Here are some other seasonal jobs that kids might consider: pick up sticks in a lawn (provided that parents train the child to do a thouough job); sell organically grown tomatoes from your garden; at the end of the season, clean out plants that you potted in the spring; have a baker fill your order, then and deliver pumpkin and pecan pies to houses the day before Thanksgiving and Christmas. That is when company has arrived and hosts don't want to run to the store, but they still want fresh goods.

Now lets go back to that lemonade stand. Your opportunity is your neighborhood garage sale, when there will be a large number of people coming by. Question 1: What do people need . . . at 7am? Answer: Breakfast. Question 2: What do people really want? Answer: something to eat that is quick and trustworthy. Question 3: What do people not want to do that I can do for them? Take the time to fix breakfast. Question 4: How can I give them a better product? Get rid of the pitcher of lemonade and offer bottled orange juice, pre-washed fruit, breakfast bars and individually packaged muffins. After breakfast, I can offer bottled water and rice krispy treats and fruit snacks--maybe add candy for kids.

For all you homeschool parents, this is a great opportunity to introduce practical math. During our planning time, I had Gem figure out how much she would have to charge for each item in order to make a fair profit. It's also a great time to introduce counting back change.

The entire process fosters excellence and responsibility, and emphasizes the importance of finishing a job well.

The next thing you'll have to teach them is how to save their money.