Not Everyone is College Bound and THAT’S OK.
The “college for all” message seems to be doing more harm than good. Far too many students from all demographics are making choices that result in failure.
The narrative of graduating high school, attending a four-year university and accepting a well-paying job right after is not a reality for most Americans anymore. College graduates increasingly face debt with no means to pay it off because they often find it difficult to get a job.
The student debt crisis has surged 144% over the past decade, a master’s degree is the new bachelor’s degree, the unemployment rate of college graduates is higher than the total unemployment rate, yet the idea is still presented to students as if they will live a comfortable life by earning a degree.
As more and more students are catching onto this reality, about 60% say they are more interested in someday starting their own business, according to a March 1 survey from Junior Achievement USA.
WHY ENTREPRENEURSHIP?
Entrepreneurship can be a great way to financial freedom, but building a successful business is hard work.
GENERATIONAL WEALTH
For many Americans who come from families without a long history of access to capital, building wealth for future generations can feel like an overwhelming task. But the road to wealth for your family has to start somewhere.
Building generational wealth is important because it can mean that your children, grandchildren, and their children can at minimum get a fair chance at financial success.
SELF EFFICACY
If an individual believes that they have the ability to achieve a goal, they are more likely to develop the intention to achieve the goal. On the other hand, if an individual believes that they do not have the ability to achieve a goal, then they will not form intentions to pursue the goal.
Individuals develop self-efficacy over time as they obtain a variety of skills. Past achievements (e.g., mastery of a given task) reinforce self-efficacy and lead to more ambitious intentions.
Self-efficacy can also be gained via modeling the behaviors of others through close observation, self-reflection, and social persuasion (positive feedback). If an individual performs well at a task as compared with similar others that they observe and are told they are performing well by others, they may decide that they indeed have the skills necessary to pursue the next, more challenging task.
WHY START YOUNG?
Today’s students face an uncertain future full of complex global and socioeconomic problems.
We don’t know what new skills and competencies will be required to thrive in tomorrow’s world-which is why our students need to be prepared for a variety of different real-world scenarios.
The earlier students are introduced to entrepreneurship, the more refined their skills will become by the time they get to high school, college, and beyond.
BILLIONAIRES WHO STARTED YOUNG
Every successful entrepreneur got their start somewhere. Many of today’s biggest names in business were once bright-eyed young entrepreneurs
Around age 10, Elon Musk developed an interest in computer programming using a manual and sold the code of a video game he created to a magazine for approximately $500. At 12 years old, billionaire Mark Cuban started selling trash bags door to door. Warren Buffett got his first taste of business selling packs of gum.
The list of successful entrepreneurs goes on and on! Will your child be next?
THE LAUNCHPAD – A REALISTIC APPROACH
With the help of The Launchpad, students can learn how to become a successful entrepreneur. The Launchpad is a realistic and palatable approach to starting your own business for students ages 9-18. Register Today!
Learn the basics of:
- Business model canvas
- Accounting
- Marketing
- Entering the Marketplace
- Registering your business with the State