The year 2020 will forever be remembered as one of the most challenging years on record, particularly for small businesses. In fact, some industries may never be the same again and the future of business and the world of work has never been so uncertain. The children of today will grow up facing a changing society with drastically different career opportunities to the ones we have today.
A new book, co-penned by entrepreneur Jodie Cook and best-selling business author Daniel Priestly is offering to help parents better prepare their kids for tomorrow’s world. How To Raise Entrepreneurial Kids, published by Rethink Press, shares stories from over 150 parents and entrepreneurs and presents four pillars of development; entrepreneurial mindset, entrepreneurial skills, entrepreneurial experience and coaching or mentoring.
There are 46 bitesize components of entrepreneurial learning, each containing actionable points for parents to think about and integrate into their day-to-day where appropriate. The focus of the book is to develop an entrepreneurial attitude and versatile skills rather than being a blueprint for a child actually starting a business. Author Jodie Cook is keen to point out that “there’s a big difference between an entrepreneurial child and a child entrepreneur.”
A must-have resource for forward-thinking parents
The book was actually created by chance after Cook’s request for sources for a piece about entrepreneurial upbringings resulted in over 500 responses from parents and entrepreneurs across the globe. “I was hoping to get a few strong quotes I could use for an article and I received about 40,000 words’ worth of responses. I couldn’t believe it. I had hundreds of amazing stories about the lessons people had learned growing up and what they were passing on” says Cook, “I knew I needed to create a book so everyone could benefit from them.”
Parents can expect to be inspired by the stories of famous entrepreneurs, as well as those intrepid small business owners who have followed their dreams and hope the next generation will be able to do the same.
With the education system taking care of the academic side of development, Cook believes parents can play an important role in helping prepare their kids for the future. “School is great but there’s only so much it can teach you. School won’t teach kids life skills like negotiation or pitching an idea and they’re exactly what more and more people are going to need in their career”. With self-employment on the rise, it’s likely that by the year 2030 or 2040, far more people will be starting their own business.
It’s not Cook’s first foray into entrepreneur education as she co-created the Clever Tykes series of books, stories aimed at introducing children to entrepreneurial role models. Combining her experience in the field with her research and Priestley’s background in business coaching and being a parent of three kids under six, the book promises to be the must-have resource for forward-thinking parents.
How To Raise Entrepreneurial Kids launches on the 1st of December and will be available in print and e-book from Amazon. Find more details and bonus downloads at clevertykes.com/book.
