Summer time is one of the most wasted times of the year for children here in the United States. Parents allow their children to become slugs - sleeping all day, laying on the couch, watching TV or playing video games. This is not a good habit to allow children to learn. Today’s article talks about how successful parents stimulate their child’s thinking and using those creative thoughts to create a way of living for them as they grow older.

“Pint Sized Entrepreneurs” By Joel Boggess
As the excitement of school children builds to super-charged levels as they prepare to shift gears and fly into summertime, there has never been a better time for students to let their entrepreneurial wings catch the wind and soar. There are at least two reasons for this.

Number one: No one dreams better, about things that aren’t, than kids. Take 11 year-old, Richie Stachowski. In the crystal-clear waters of Hawaii, his imagination swam beneath the ocean’s surface with him and the idea for an aquatic walkie-talkie bubbled to the surface. Ritchie shared his deep-sea thinking with retail giants Wal Mart and Toys R US and they bought into it, hook, line, and sinker. Two years later, the young inventor, not yet old enough to drive himself to the bank, sold his toy company for a cool million.

The second reason for students to climb aboard the entrepreneurial flight deck is what John Maxwell calls the “law of timing.” Let’s just call it the “cuteness quotient.” Simply put, kids will never be as cute as they are today. Ask your local Girl Scout troop about the cuteness quotient and they’ll not only tell you that sales are good, they’ll also tell you that “Thin Mints,” “Samoas” and “Caramel deLites” make up about 44% of all Girl Scout cookie sales. The million-dollar question for pint-sized rain-makers is easy, “What is it that my school, church, or community is hungering for that I can provide with enthusiasm and excellence?”

John Shorb found a hunger. As his sixth-grade classmates were sleepily brushing away the newness of the dawn, this entrepreneur was busily working on the neighbors’ lawns. Through the teenage years, while some of his classmates were earning minimum wage, John was creating a legacy. At 19, his gross sales reached $125,000.

Do your children have a passion for animals? Why not encourage them to start their own pet grooming business? Do they have the skilled hands of a craftsman? A mobile car detailing business might be the perfect match. Both of those businesses can be started on a shoestring with NO PARENTAL TRANSPORTATION REQUIRED. Kids can start at one end of the neighborhood and go door-to-door delivering crackerjack service along with a toothy grin.

One of the best kid entrepreneur stories out there is about 15 year-old Chris Paolini. He used the fruit of his childhood fantasies to satisfy the craving for entertainment. He brought together tales of dragons and make-believe and put them in book form. “Eragon” went on to become a best seller with more than seven million copies sold. As a movie, the series grossed a quarter of a billion dollars worldwide.

What are your kids doing this summer? Consider the possibilities and make this summer count.