Entrepreneurship for Teens: Turning Hobbies into Income

      Money has a huge impact on our lives. As teens, having personal money to spend on ourselves or help out our parents is a strong motivator. However, finding a stable, well-paying job can be hard when you’re under 18! Given these considerations, the question on many teens’ minds is often, "How do I make money?" The answer to that is easy: entrepreneurship!

        Entrepreneurship is defined as the innovation for the aim of making profit. It can also mean creation of wealth. While it might seem complicated to decide what to do to make that profit, the answer is simple. Even as a young person, you can monetize your hobbies.

Think about the activities that you do daily that fill you with joy and make you lose track of time. Let's use an example to explain entrepreneurship’s basic fundamentals. Let's say you love making fruit drinks and sharing them with family and friends. Guess what? This hobby can be a source of income!

Imagine: you can set up a stand in front of your house. Make it pop—add colors and decorations to get the attention of passers-by. First impressions matter. The first fundamental is packaging. As an entrepreneur, you have to make your item eye-catching to attract consumers; consumers, in turn, make your business grow.  Creativity is key—the presentation will get you customers, but the quality will keep them.

       Put informative, attention-grabbing signboards that appeal to the five senses. Use strong verbs and adjectives in order to advertise your products efficiently. Have a smile on your face and speak politely and respectively to customers. They'll stay longer and sometimes tip. Good manners are a must.

        Do a little market research. Are there any other teens in your area selling similar products, or can you find any online? Set affordable prices that are competitive against what you’re seeing. Make sure to earn profit to be able to enjoy and create more products. Profit is the extra money left over after you’ve paid any expenses. For instance, let’s say the cost of the fruits you’re using and the decorations you used to make your stand add up to $10. Try selling your product at a price that will get you enough customers to make way more than $10, so you come out on top!

       Think up business ideas that you can venture into with your hobbies. Google can be a source of help and remember to be creative. If you love reading and storytelling, you can get paid to teach children how to read, or read to senior citizens who love books but no longer have strong eyesight and are willing to pay. If you love writing, write on platforms like Inkitt and Wattpad that pay top contributors. If you enjoy being outdoors, try selling your services mowing lawns or shoveling snow—and don’t forget to ask your customers if you can leave your sign on their lawns to catch neighbors’ attention and grow your brand-new business.