I've been to a lot of country markets - many bad ones and many good ones - and last week I was at the latter, one of the better ones I have ever attended. The stalls were numerous, stall-holders friendly, products and produce was top notch and it all had a cool country vibe which I like...being the small-town country boy that I am. It was, in a word, enjoyable.
My wanderings brought me to a stall curiosity made me stop...and if you believe that you're fucken bonkers...What made me stop was the dark-haired, porcelain-skinned mum-hottie behind the counter...when she greeted me with her cute Irish accent I knew I'd arrived at exactly where I needed to be at that given point in time.
Anyway...Her two children, a lad of around eight and girl of around six to seven, were running the stall under the direction of the two bluest mum-eyes I'd ever seen and as we chatted I browsed their wares...and the mum-hottie just a little also.
The stall held display boards of keyring holders they'd made themselves; apparently patterns are loaded into an overlocker (whatever that is) and there's little else to do but cut shapes and all. It's probably more complicated but you get the point.
I chatted with the lad, it was primarily his business, and with the mum of course and you wouldn't blame me if you saw her, about the process of running his business, what got him started and why, what he's planning for the future and what he's doing with the revenue...for the last, I suggested Lego which his mum was into, but the kid likes swap-cards and that's where most goes - with some into savings also. I was really impressed with the whole situation and at how well the lad spoke and explained things. A top kid if ever there was one.
I ended up buying two Star wars keyrings, Darth Vader and a Storm trooper, at $10AUD each which I'll send to my nephew, @mrbonkers, who is just getting into Star Wars and I think he'll get a kick out of them; he loves getting letters in the mail from me and returns his own back so he'll love opening up the little package these will arrive in.
I said goodbye after some kind words and encouragement for the lad, and his sister who handled logistics and inventory for the operation, and a few words for the parent, the hot Irish lass. I walked away thinking it was a cool experience and how great it was to see a parent supporting and encouraging her kids to do this little endeavour and how cool it was that the kids were actually able to hold a conversation and eye contact with another adult; it's rare these days.
I wandered away wishing for one last look at that lovely mum but having the self-restraint not to, and thought what a great head start those kids have on life...rather than being at home looking at a monitor playing video games they're thinking, strategizing, participating, and working on life-skills that will help carry them forward into adulthood a little more equipped for it.
I did odd jobs around home and neighbourhood to earn some money as a kid; I'd actively seek it out and started around the age of five I guess. I got my first real job at thirteen and have worked towards a better life and outcomes ever since. I was fortunate to have parents who instilled a strong work-ethic in me which I carried forward, an understanding around the concept of money, working for it, saving, investing and spending it. Those lessons have stuck with me and my life has been better for it...I wonder about you.
What was your first job, did you seek work to earn a few cents as a kid, have a lemonade stand or some such thing? Did you get an allowance given to you for nothing or did you have to swap time and effort for it through chores and tasks? Did you receive a grounding in financial and other life-matters and if so what was the biggest lesson? If you've got any thoughts on this, or anything else, feel free to comment below, I'll respond.
Design and create your ideal life, tomorrow isn't promised - galenkp
[Original and AI free]
Any images in this post are my own.
They seem very industrious indeed. The keyrings are awesome, a great way of getting some cash. I need to find out how to inject my kids with don't entrepreneurial spirit!
Yeah, a good couple kids really, guided by a parent who actively promotes diversity in experience. Apparently, but do well in school and there's been a strong improvement in overall attitude in both, especially in interactions with older people. I'd say that's a good thing.
Maybe you remember, I think you do, I think you have a good memory .... I am believing it too much, aren't I? hahaha....
You may remember that I once told you that one of my first jobs was to give lessons in my house to children who were younger than me, I think I was between 8 and 10 years old. I also ran errands for some neighbors who gave me tips.
I remember one time something came up at home and my mom was collecting money for something, I gave part of what I had collected and my older brother, 11 years older, was very sad because he couldn't help but I could.
I recall you mentioning that, a big responsibility for one so young, but one that probably taught you some things right?
I believe it is a good thing for a child to want to help their parents and whether that comes financially or through physical effort it has the same result. Being a parent, from what I can tell, is difficult work and if a child can make things a little easier I believe it to be the right thing to do.
I'm glad you remembered.
And of course it left me with lessons, I believe it's never too late or too early to do the best we can for ourselves and the people we love.
And, I totally agree, being parents should not be easy, something that I will never prove by the way, and it is good that children cooperate in whatever they can to make things better, always supported by their parents who must also ensure that the essence of childhood is not lost.
This is such a great line. People get stuck in their ways and habits and it's difficult to change, but if they remember this line...yes, it's never to late to make positive change. Well said.
There are always things to improve, right? We should all always do it or at least consider it, question it, but as they say, "every head is a world."
Continual improvement is exactly that, continual.
I got a job heaps younger than I was legally allowed to wrapping candles. It was super tedious but paid really well ($50 a day sometimes) which turned out to be a massive blessing because this was just before a brutal recession hit and my parents needed to use it quite a few times for groceries. Sometimes they paid it back, sometimes they didn't, but even at that age I obviously understood that they were clearly embarrassed to have to ask.
I think I'm way more financially conservative because I watched my parents struggle so much and the stress it caused them both. I think in my very first graduate IT job I had a higher annual income than one or both. I've been super, super careful about saving/investing for retirement because I think my Dad in his mid-70s is still not quite able to.
CEO of candle wrapping, seems legit. $50 a day man? What year was this in? My first job (at 13) was in a supermarket sorting soda bottles returned for their deposits into the respective brands/companies for re-use. I worked 4-9 Thursday night, 8-12 Saturday morning and two other weekdays 4-6...I earned about $40 a week. Lol. Granted, it was in 1983.
I started paying board to my parents as soon as I started working, $20 a week...they didn't have a lot of money and it made a difference, I guess similar to you. #ownership #responsibility #lifelessons
I hope you're well mate, and your weekend is enjoyable.
I think it would have been around 1990-1991. I think the recession was around 1992 if I'm remembering correctly. I didn't always earn $50 a day, it was dependent on how much I wrapped, but I think I was earning between $30-$50 each day.
Unfortunately I was eventually replaced by a wrapping machine, and then I just kind of did odd jobs until I was old enough to drive and do pizza delivery. During my uni course we actually worked for a full year in the 3rd year (and then came back to study full time in the 4th year) so I paid board during that year but moved out after that finished. I think I was 20 or so.
Thanks! It's Friday night here so the weekend is just starting!
Yeah, I figured and yeah, your dates are right. That's pretty good cash for a kid I'd say, and all for wrapping candles.
I shook my head when I read the wrapping machine comment. So many jobs kids would do to learn some work ethic, earn a few bucks and actually contribute to society are gone, replaced by machines or AI. I don't think it's a good thing. They should all have to go into the military for two years, just my opinion; three meals a day, ownership and discipline, life skills. They're not seeming to get it currently.
Yeah, I've kind of said that for years, and especially if they're doing lots of disaster relief work and building refugee infrastructure to also learn some perspective as well as discipline, etc.
Exactly, they don't all have to bang away behind a rifle, there's a lot the military do that doesn't involve killing and, here at least, there's simply not enough to do it - people don't want to seem to work as @bozz and I were discussing in another comment in this post.
Perspective, work-ethic, discipline, consistency, persistence, tolerance, team-work, camaraderie, ability to take direction, give it, to lead by example...there's so many things the military teaches and that those lessons can be learned without having to kill someone is of value. The ADF, the Army in particular, is many thousands of personnel short of required recruitment levels and there's no way to get people there despite the money being very solid and the opportunity also...Maybe the threat of war with China holds them away (not a good enough reason in my mind) maybe people just don't want to work. I guess the young people would want to all go in as Generals, Major Generals and Brigadiers and not enlist as Privates. #idiots
I mean, does anyone really want to work?
If I had financial freedom my life would definitely be quite different.
I know it's been a very popular past time to complain that younger generations are lazy, a past time that's existed ever since there was more than one generation, but how excited should younger generations be about going into the workforce? House prices are completely unobtainable, interest and inflation are super high, career progression is extremely hard, education costs are rising, everything seems absolutely intent on bleeding everyone completely dry and I'm sure it's hard to feel optimistic about the future with climate change making everything so uncertain.
One of my mates dropped out of school in Year 10, started as a tradie and had bought his first house before I'd even finished Uni. I was much later to the game but I still managed to get a foothold in. Those same opportunities just don't exist anymore.
If the Army isn't getting the people that it needs, it's just going to have to increase its incentives until it does. Simple supply and demand.
My first job was a paper boy. I had to get up early in the morning, be at work around 5am, and deliver the papers.
My first proper job was a farm hand which I enjoyed. It wasn't just milking, it was installing new fences, fixing water pipes and installing new troughs, and looking after the cows with feed etc. I enjoyed it but as a weedy 50kg slip of a a townie I wasn't really cut out for that sort of work.
From there I went and worked at the local meat works. I worked there for two reasons. As an ex-farmhand I wanted to see if the animals were killed humanely. They ARE. Also, for religious reasons I wanted to ensure the meat was properly bled. They ARE.
Most of my working career has been in IT with it totalling 18 years of my life until I realised that my desire to play with all the cool toys was being fulfilled by me buying the gear rather than working on it in my job. What I learned from 18 years of wasting my life is that corporations who would stand to gain by using the latest technology are too tight to spend money on it and therefore waste money by keeping old technology alive. God corporations are stupid.
Paper boy...a job that doesn't exist these days, at least in my location. Back in the day it was a thing though, I never did it though, as I just wrote in another comment on this post my first real job was in a supermarket.
Farm hand...that's some kinetic work (I'm from a small rural town originally), a good way to learn some life skills and build muscles that don't come from a gym.
It seems you had a pretty good work-life journey and as a person who shoots (and kills) animals I respect that you went to investigate what happens in a meatworks/abattoir. Many have baseless opinions on such things, yours is now more balanced.
Paper boy doesn't exist here in New Zealand either. A van comes along and just chucks it out the window and hopes it finds the house.
I find it sad that people don't know where their food comes from. I find it sad that they rail on cattle farmers and don't realise just how much worse for the environment crop harvesting actually is.
I have to admit, I'm someone who likes to learn how stuff works. It's way more interesting than just using something.
But I'm what is referred to as a Day Walker. As a late Gen-X I've walked the lack of technology path AND the technology path. I definitely prefer the latter though. God we wasted so much time doing stuff robots could do for us so much better.
Day walker...Ok, cool name, sort of like Blade in the movie of the same name, but different. Considering your age you may need to google that.
I respect people's opinion, it's polite and courteous, however I prefer them to be based on evidence, fact or at least some form of investigation; you seem to have done that so well done. As someone who has killed, and continues to do so, I get all sorts of comments about it, mostly negative and baseless, and the world cruel gets uttered which is people's prerogative...I know what I am and cruel is not it but I do not argue, I never have the conversation to be honest, there's no point.
As for the tech...I'm the guy that wants the power to go out for the next hundred years, that'll sort people out, a correction I feel is rewuired.
New Zealand huh? Love that place, want to return and considering its proximity to where I am it's sure to happen.
I'm 49 mate. No Googling for me. 🤣🤣🤣
You're in NZ's Western Island aren't you? I think we call it Australia. 😈😈😈
Lol...Ok, my mistake. Fucken hell, you're an old bastard! (I'm 53.5 so an even older one.)
Yeah, New Zealand's western province. (South Australia is where I am.)
I spent some time on the South Island of NZ, the less populated one on purpose) and loved it. Two weeks wasn't nearly enough but I got to see and do some amazing things so it was valuable.
Great hunting in SI. I've been twice but not really to do much, although I did check out the Burt Munro museum in Invercargill.
My first job was mowing lawns. We got an allowance for helping around the house, but that really wasn't much. When I was in school my parents said my job was to get good grades, so I didn't have a proper job until I was in college.
Mowing lawns huh? Yeah, I think we all did that and I didn't mind it, except for that one time I mowed my name in the lawn and left it...I got in trouble for that...but it grew back and we laughed about it later. (I didn't get my pay for that effort though.)
My parents wanted me to be a doctor or lawyer or some such thing...my life took me in other directions though and I'm content with what I did, even if they were not. You had no job until college? It's good you were able to focus on your studies I think. Was that college job a fast food place?
That is too funny about the lawn mowing. I have never worked in fast food. My first job out of high school was as a counselor at a youth camp. Then I worked in the library at university and as a math tutor. Eventually I worked retail at Radio Shack before getting my degree and diving into the IT field.
I thought it was a good idea at the time, it was not. Live and learn though right?
Oh, you had good jobs man, the counsellor thing especially, the library too. I never worked at a fast food place either, as I moved into adulthood my job was rather more complicated and kinetic.
A degree...that's something I never got I'm afraid to say; I actually never completed high school. (I'm a dumb ass.) It's not really impeded my progress though I guess, I've had a good life, and continue to.
If I had it to do over again, I am not sure I would have gotten a degree. There are lots of trades jobs that appeal to me that you don't need a degree for. Electrician, HVAC, welding. I'd love to have those skills.
Yeah, I hear you...my trade was different but those you mention are in strong demand at the moment, commanding big dollars, because no one wants to work! Not sure about there, I mean here...getting young people into trades is difficult...they all want to be the fucken CEO in their first ten minutes. #nutbags
Yeah, did you see that recent article about the girl who was mad she couldn't get a six figure job because she didn't have experience and she felt her degree should count for experience.
I won’t lie at some of the recent fairs we’ve been to, I poked around a booth or two because the woman working it was attractive haha. It’s what it is to be a man.
That’s awesome of the kids, and reflection on the mum, at how important of a lesson they are getting. Working is going to serve them well and being creative and driven is crucial in the day we live in, lots of people are soft. We still thankfully have many hard ass people and hopefully will continue to have them and more but there’s more soft people than there used to be I think.
I think they do it on purpose to get us there...it worked too, I spent $20.
I thought it was cool of the kids to be doing what they were...there's an Instagram account for it also but I'm not on Instagram so I didn't mention it in the post, haven't seen it.
I hope the kids carry forward the work ethic, the thought behind it and that the lessons learned at this young age make a positive difference in years to come. The mum was a smart cookie so I think those kids are in good hands. Also yes, many people are softer, lazier or entitled these days...they don't want to apply effort, they'd rather get something for nothing. #assholes
Yeah I’m not on any of that other shit either lol. Hive only!
My son wanted to start a lemonade stand this summer, we were looking into the various things we would need. I want to try it next summer and post it up on one of the major streets to see how we do. I love shopping at things made by or organized by kids!
What? You mean you don't get your tits or beans and frank out on Instagram for a like or two? What the fuck man, how do you find your self-worth and feeling of relevance and validation? Fuck man. 😂
Lemonade stand, make that happen man, it would be cool for E-man and a good thing to post on.
Awww that's adorable xD
I usually buy stuff at kids' businesses partly to encourage them and partly because they're cute and I'm a sucker
MrBonkers will probably love them :D
Haven't dealt with too many homeschooled kids then? :) This was completely normal in the homeschool groups we went to (for the most part, there were a couple that were being homeschooled because they were autistic or severe anxiety and the school system couldn't cope with them).
Mine and the ones I maintained contact with didn't start businesses though (two of them got as far as writing business plans at a couple of points in their lives but bailed out on the actual thing), I hope the ones I lost contact with are doing awesome XD
My mum really, really, really tried hard to give me a decent financial grounding and at the time I really, really, really did not care one whit and refused to listen because it wasn't relevant to me and what I wanted to do in the moment. Additionally (and I'm pretty sure I've mentioned this before) there was an overwhelming consensus among my uni friends that investment was a waste of time and money because it unnecessarily locked up money and made it unspendable for no reason (it was probably a justification to keep the money free for use for instant gratification, I don't think any of us had a clue about long term planning and probably none of us had money to invest at the time anyway).
I really think there's some peresonality trait involved as to when that kind of stuff sinks in (if ever). I don't think the dyscalculia helped in that regard. I've only recently (last couple of years x_x) got somewhat on top of that (not really) and that's purely because I found apps that my brain works with.
I did babysitting as a teenager and all of my jobs have been something Mum organised for me when I went home for the holidays, or with places where someone specifically came looking for me because I had skills they wanted (I have so far been headhunted for a handful of webdev/Drupal jobs and kind of got thrown into my current one). Jobs I applied for in between I apparently have amazing attention grabbing resumes and bomb the interview stage.
The mostly unrestricted (they lost internet to all devices til 15) screen time doesn't seem to have done all the terrible things they're supposed to do to my kids; 18yo applied to uni recently (after a month of procrastination due to anxiety issues which he came and chatted to me about before forcing himself to just go and get it done), 16yo currently has a job and has found out that she is actually able to apply to childcare centres so will be looking at that next year (stuff is ramping up a bit much for us at the moment for her to think about it before then) and 14yo...well he has been applying for the usual entry level jobs but they keep knocking him back. Like everyone else he has all these brilliant ideas and like everyone else doesn't want to put in the time and effort to realise them and just whines about the fact they don't exist XD
Just on the topic of money, my kids have all independently recently told me that the financial literacy of some of their peers is so abysmal that they're apparently unironically believing that if you pay cash for something it's free because your bank account didn't go down and that if you walk past a shop you've saved/earned money and can spend more at the next shop and I hope whatever they saw that on was joking.
I never received any kind of financial education as a child, because I don't think people generally understand that this is beneficial. They just view the subject of money with a lot of suspicion and something that children shouldn't even think about. This is totally wrong. However, in my childhood and adolescence, my parents did make sure that I understood that money did not come through the pipeline. And that they worked hard to feed us, and take care of our basic needs. I don't know if it's because I lived in another life and I still have my memory, but I never demanded that they gave me anything. Nor did I crave for things in the street for them to buy for me. I was simply in my world and whatever came, I received it with affection.
I remember one day they bought us two toys with keys that we blew on and musical notes came out. My memory fails, but I think I wanted my sister's because of the color and I threw mine on the floor. It broke and I was left without a toy. This was enough for me to understand that it was silly of me and that they were not going to buy me another one. They didn't even scold me, but I also understood that the broken toy hurt them because they had spent money on it and I didn't appreciate it. I don't forget it today. And all these things actually... they taught me something: to be grateful.
My parents worked all their lives for a salary. In my house we had just enough. No luxuries. As I've gotten older I've come to understand that what I thought was luxurious are actually normal things that anyone could have, but here it's always been difficult to get even the basics.
It's been a few years since I started to look at money differently, because by myself, I learned certain things. Nobody has educated me in this. I felt the need to learn and see money not as something malicious (as many times I heard people close to me say), but as something necessary and that I should do something to save in a smart way, putting my money in assets that do not devalue for example. Or that at some point may acquire value. But I have been able to think about this in recent years when these conditions were given, because here there was a time when having dollars was a sacrilege and you could even go to jail for it. Anyway, at that time I did not know anything about financial matters. I was a child.
I have a lot to say on this subject. There are other things... many other things. But the important fact is that I have learned something and I think it's never too late to learn and make progress.
A sad fact is that many don't see it as beneficial to kids, fortunately my parents did. You're right though, many do not see it as valuable.
I said in another (very long comment in this post) about the examples a parent (should) set (s) for their children and how important they are. We tend to soak up knowledge as kids, not just told it, but we observe. My parents didn't sit me down and lecture me about finance, but I saw what they did, how much they struggled financially and how they worked around it and I learned. We talked about it too, but much of what I learned came through observation which also made me inquisitive and I then asked questions. probably the same as you.
Your toy story...I was the same, didn't know if what I had would be replaced if it broke (rarely was through lack of money) and so I looked after things better. I can still recall unwrapping birthday or Christmas gifts of things that I knew were second hand and as a kid I felt sad and somewhat disappointed...now I'm glad it was the case because I learned some valuable lessons about material things, financial responsibility and ownership and sacrifice also - my parents went without a lot so us kids could have something, even if that thing was food.
I think we've had the same lessons and experiences despite being in different countries...I'm glad for those lessons, I'm a better man for it now as you are too...a woman, not a man. Lol.
It's an interesting and broad topic, one that must be had over many lunches and dinners in person, don't you think?
I think so. But I'll have to learn to speak English very well for that, because you only know how to say Hola in Spanish.
😂
I'm going to answer this commment totally in fluent Spanish...Ready?
Hola.
😂
We were rather sheltered when we were kids. I was a bit sickly when I was younger, and just stayed home most of the time. I think my first taste of earning money was with our test results. Depending on on how we do in a finals exam, we get some money. For every 1 mistake, 2 pesos was deducted from the total of 50 pesos [1 USD]. I wasn't the brightest kid, so I got a few change, but my sisters were raking in the money. I think it was effective for them, since they improved their grades a lot. I was still lazy, and was content with what I got.
Hmm, if I relied on my exam results to earn a few bucks I'd have been waiting a long time...unless there was rewards for barely passing. 😉
Sisters raking in the money huh? Well, I hope you worked out some clever scheme to lighten their load a little, Blackjack, poker or some such thing.
I was too innocent of a lad back then, so those never crossed my mind. They were older and nicer than me, so they bought me candies lots of times.
The operative words being, back then. Now a different story I'm sure. :)
Candies hey? Candy solves a multitude of problems I'd say.
Nice post...
Damn those Irish Lass
I went and married one. 😲
The bloody Irish gals...temptresses, the lot of them!
I didn't have that much orientation about wealth, finance and money, though I did save money then. Starting from when I was young, my mom taught me how to save money.
She taught me to start saving money from the first day of January. During the festival period, some of my uncles and aunts come home to celebrate with us, and some of them tip me.
I never did a business as a kid, but at 16 years old I started a teaching job.
We pick up valuable lessons in different ways and times so I think you've also done that; you saved some money, that was smart, and hopefully that habit has stuck with you until now.
I picked mine but the economy changed, to save money, there must be income. I thought I would continue to get free tips from relatives but the change in government changed everything.
Getting free stuff doesn't teach work ethic and responsibility, it breeds complacency, just my opinion. There's a lot to be said for a reward for effort ethos.
That's true.
I don't know about jobs, but my first source of income at the age of 12 was through flipping MP3s and MP4s in school, and sometimes CDs, DVDs, and accessories. I'd even take pre-orders for such stuff from other kids. All they had to worry about was paying, and I'd just have to get it to them.
Since I had some "freedom" to move around and some "street knowledge", I knew my around these parts and also how to get a decent bargain. So, I always got my profits, no matter what. In the first year, I probably made around $1500 in profits alone haha. 😂
Having the mindset and taking the initiative to do such things is something that sticks with a person I think; have you found that in yourself?
Definitely! I'm still hustling out here. 😏
I've hustled all my life. From flipping stuff to working on countless businesses and startups; now I'm still on that path.
You're working on, or have worked on, multiple/countless businesses and start ups...have they not been sustainable?
Two were failures, even though there was potential. Thanks to a lack of proper authority and vision, we didn't last more than 2 years. No one else in the business had the intention to invest back into the business, and with every chance they'd get, they'd fill their own pockets. Money is all they care about. They never thought logically and never listened to reason.
From there, I learned to never start a business just because we're friends. And never to hold on to such things, for just the sake of friendship. Some of their mindsets about the word "business" were completely wrong, by the I got to know about it, the damage was already done.
Yet, that was about a decade ago; we were young, so I'm not holding any grudges.
The only two businesses that are still standing now are our family business, which has taken quite a big hit during COVID. And the other is a new 3D printing company, catering to quite a niche market.
So, some failures and successes...which would you say was the most valuable from a learning perspective?
From failure, it was to never look at the money, but rather at the people you're going to be working with, their character, and vision.
From success? I don't know actually. It's just the beginning I'd say, there's a long way to go. And I don't think I've tasted success just yet...
What a lovely experience, the keyrings look super cool.
On the other hand, those kids are a role model and their parents too, I would like to see more families like that, not only here in my country but in the whole world.
In my case, the first job I did was as a gardener at 6-7 years old, it was more out of curiosity than necessity, I saw that the neighbors paid for picking up the leaves from their gardens, they paid me well and I had fun because I did it with my sister, so I continued doing it, my dad saw us and bought us pruning scissors and gloves (we paid him back later) he has always helped us with the entrepreneurial part (mom is a bit more demanding with school) from that moment until now (that I’m still young) I’ve been a delivery boy, seller, waiter, occasionally gardener and more recently tour guide (all part-time while I study) I like to work and above all, acquire the experiences that these jobs bring with them.
But I could never have my lemonade stand (you can imagine why, right?😅), even so I think that starting with small paid tasks led me to work later and realize that everything in life is achieved by working hard, working, working and working. But I do think that I lacked a bit of financial education, in my country it is very rare that people know about this and it is very little talked about but as I grew up I was studying and filling this gap😁. A lote to improve yet.
Good topic to debate, mate.
I guess it comes down to the influence of the parents, especially when the kids are that young in age, as per the lad in this post. Opportunity needs to be there too, although many have created their own opportunities I guess also, been innovative and all.
I can tell you've been, and probably are, quite happy to try your hand at things...so many fear failure (or hard work) and so never try things. I also like how you've seen the need to educate yourself a little on financial matters and understanding...so many simply don't and aim believe they pay a high price for it...credit debt spiralling out of control because not being able to make sound purchasing decisions and all the ramifications of such credit debt.
You seem quite responsible and that's a good thing, it means that should you have the chance to excel, say in a country that is more financially sound, you probably will do great things.
I agree with you a lot, butcI think that opportunities can be created (for example, we charged much less than the gardeners and did almost the same work and we were from the neighborhood, so the neighbors didn’t hesitate to give us their gardens) if we hadn’t had gardens, we probably would have walked dogs (the smallest ones of course😅) which we also did at another time. I think that if you prepare yourself, look for and want the opportunity, it will present itself.
In my case, I do fear failure (it would be a lie to tell you otherwise) but I still do it, failing is part of life and I reached a point where I liked failing, because I realized that by failing I improved twice as much, learned twice as much and grew twice as much as people (so failure became an unexpected victory)
It doesn’t matter where you live, to have a future, to achieve what you want, you can’t lack financial education and I understood this at the moment that my first venture got out of hand because I didn’t know how to manage my finances, it was a venture about fresh natural juices and the idea was good but my financial education was poor, so I set out to learn and improve, it doesn’t matter if you live in a country broken economically or in the best one in the world, if you don’t have financial education you will be in trouble and I wouldn’t like to see myself like that. And if I hope to do well in another country, at least working hard doesn’t scare me anymore 😅
It's up to the individual to see, participate and actively seek to benefit from opportunities in life, that helps a person move forward, so I agree with you, and think if that ethos is instilled from childhood it's more likely to spill over into adulthood.
I get it, many do...but you need to embrace it, that's the best way to learn and undertaking a difficult thing even though failure may result means you're undertaking a difficult thing, and we all know that through trying comes succeeding, it's just that sometimes the journey is circuitous. One thing is for certain though...not trying something because of possible failure means one has failed to try, and so failed completely.
I think you're on the right track and if you try more often than you do not try, fail often and tray again, great results will follow.
Although my family is well to do and here is no such guidance to start up small businesses like stall and shops from childhood. Here, every being remain dependent on parents for almost complete life. On the other hand, my Father always guided me and from 8th class I had this passion to teach students. My first job started as tutor when I was in 11th standard and pay was so low but it was source of happiness for me. Recently,During my summer vacations ,I joined a school where I taught students for three months. It was my first official job.
I think being proactive as a kid and seeking some form of income, working for it no matter how little money it may be, builds character that can be advantageous to have and use later in life. Your tutoring is an example of this.
I learned so many things from this profession. The prominent change which I observed is in my behavior. My behavior was calming with a little dose of aggressiveness but now there is full dose of calmness with no aggressive attitude. I learned so much about others behavior.
Good lessons to learn.
Heheheh, Star Wars is a great gift for kids as they usually appreciate the laser-swords more than many other attractions.
Yeah, kids love Star Wars huh?
Lol, Irish people generally are like that - I know many and they've just got pizazz. The accent helps too I think. Cute key rings
Yeah, the keyrings will go down well with my nephew I think, I'll be sending them off Monday so I'll know in a week or so.
It's wonderful to know about your experience at the country market and the positive interaction you had with the young entrepreneur and his family.
As for your questions, I honestly seek work to earn a few cents as a kid. Didn't have a lemonade stand but I remember doing business among friends selling paper cards in a stand as a kid. Then I helped an uncle for his side job by becoming a delivery man. I simply delivered his work to a certain point where I got a little amount for each trip. Those are some bold memories, man.
I wonder how those experiences you had as a kid carried forward into the rest of your life? Were they positive influences?
They were positive for sure. I got to know back then that I need to earn money for livelihood no matter what happens.
I started 9-7 job as my first real job so businesses couldn't effect me yet but I guess that'd be my retired planning.
Yes, we mostly all need to earn money for many different reasons. A good lesson to learn.
Hahaha, this post had me smiling, I mean you checking out the hot blue-eyed Lassie. No crime in that.. Lol
My first job was actually at age 15, then being quite a bright student, would teach even my classmates those subjects in which they were lagging behind. They paid for it. That idea of exchanging knowledge for money was bred then and for years now, it's been a side hustle for me.
You were a tutor to your classmates? That's nice, and that they paid for it helped you in return even though you probably found value in the act of kindness itself I guess.
When I was a child I lived with my mother and my grandmother, neither of them would let me do any work... they wanted me to study and only that... well I went to painting too but despite that I did work inside the house even if it wasn't paid and I helped my brother who was 5 years younger than me at school.
My first paid job was to write texts on typewriters, to pass on other people's work that they brought me and I would pass them on and then I started to give private classes for adults who hadn't finished secondary school, people who were already retired and wanted to do secondary school, I would go to their houses and help them with their subjects.
Beyond the work and the pay, I learned a lot from those people and I still carry them in my heart, even though they are no longer in this world.
Hugs Galen!
I never really understand why a parent would want to limit their child's progression by making them study and not experience other things like a part time job a few hours a week - it seems rather limiting. It's pretty clear that study along doesn't round out a person's skills or progression. Still, it's up to the parents I guess, and the individual.
I feel the same way but I understand the way my mother and grandmother were raised... women were for the house.... then I came out as a rebel hahahaha
You learn in life, my grandmother was very good but very dominant. Life stories.
Last evening I thought of your post about getting the Star Wars keyrings for your nephew when looking around the shop. I wonder if he would have liked better the Star Wars figure 😂
He'd have liked my Land Cruiser four wheel drive even more, but he's not getting it.
In truth those two key rings were bought to support the kid selling them and not specifically for my nephew, but I have no use for them so off to @mrbonkers they go.
I hope you're well.
Gotta watch those Irish girls!! We are a little crazy but oh so loveable. ☘️🍀
Lol...yeah, one must be wary indeed.
Care-Fool @galenkp that is how they lure you in... "Pillow Talk" 😂
Mmm. This might be a slightly shameful for me but I would say that I have never done any job till now. But it is nowhere here because in Pakistan children aren't motivated to be self dependent they always rely on their parents (sometimes for their whole life and even they fight over the belongings left by their parents).
I am a student and will be applying for any good job after completing the degree. But I haven't experienced any small work to earn a little. (And it is normal here for people to only apply for a job after completing Bachelors.
No job and not motivated to be independent? Have you ever considered self-motivation?
I do consider self-motivation but first I have to complete my studies so that I can get a good job
This was a beautiful read. The boy and girl amaze me as it is hard seeing kids going into such these days.
I did hustle when I was a kid. I sold chocolates and balloons before I moved to selling Yougurt. It was a fun experience for me, and I did learn a lot.
How did those lessons you learned impact you into your adult years?
I can handle pressure and don't let people push me around. I am not also scared to let my opinion out and just so much more.
The ability to handle pressure, and adversity, is a powerful force.
Yes, it sure is.
where is the irish mum pic?
In a folder called Irish Mum pic on my smartphone.
lol