10 Ways To Teach Your Kids About Entrepreneurship In Nigeria
10 Ways To Teach Your Kids About Entrepreneurship In Nigeria
Gone are the days when parents only tell their kids to go to school and get a job after. As much as getting a formal education is good and important, much more is it necessary to encourage entrepreneurship in the coming generation. It might be a cliché statement to say that children of today are the leaders of tomorrow, but it is still the truth. Teaching your kids about entrepreneurship, especially in a country like Nigeria where employment is never certain, is very crucial. It helps to boost their confidence, gives them a sense of responsibility, and increases their capacity.
It is way easier to imbibe different skills and habits in children than it is for adults. As apparent, you should encourage your kids to be creative, and do not look down on whatever it is they come up with. The business principles they learn in their young age is what will serve as a basis for their business success as adults. A research done in 2007 and 2010 by Kaufman Foundation, shows that kids are more likely to start a business or aspire to do so if they know about entrepreneurship. In general, about 40% of kids from ages 8 to 17 showed an interest in starting a business.
A parent does not have to be a child’s example to be an entrepreneur, but can train the child along the path of entrepreneurship. Here are 10 ways to teach your kids about entrepreneurship in Nigeria.
- Encourage divergent thinking
Encourage your kids to ask questions, and research on things. Ask them questions and allow them to air their view on different situations. Encourage them to take note of things in their daily affairs and try to provide solutions to what they feel is wrong. Whenever a problem comes up, instead of leaving them to get frustrated or throw tantrums, ask them how they think it should be done, or what they would have done to make it better. Let them make decisions on their own, discover and make new connections, with your guide, of course. Whenever opportunity shows up at home, practice divergent thinking with them.
- Make it easy for them to come up with ideas
The environment is a major factor in divergent thinking. If their ideas are not always welcome, they will tend to shut off and keep their opinions to themselves. Kids who feel safe are more likely to go out of their comfort zone to get things done, or to share their ideas. Build a safe place for idea generation for your kids, and by that, you make divergent thinking and creativity easier for them. Do not criticize their ideas, but rather correct them in love. Make them know that it is okay to make mistakes sometimes, but they shouldn’t beat themselves up over it.
- Encourage them through ownership
Whenever they come up with ideas for a problem, acknowledge them for it and praise them. Let them know when their ideas work to create solution for a certain problem. This makes it easier for them to improve on idea generation, and also helps them to be more creative in their thinking. You can also give names to their solutions and ideas, like “Ander’s solution” or “Nelson’s theory”. You can also reward them with gifts for coming up with such brilliant ideas.
10 Ways To Teach Your Kids About Entrepreneurship In Nigeria
- Challenge them
When humans are challenged, it forces us to think of alternative solutions. Children are no exception to this. Ask them questions, and encourage them to provide multiple solutions in case one fails. Do not allow them to just accept things the way they are, encourage them to ask why things are done the way they are done, and come up with different solutions if they were in the shoes of the creators. Teach them to carefully examine problems and find several solutions to them.
- Teach them by experiences
Allow them to be involved in things they love doing, and watch their curiosities in a bid to guide them through. Take them to different places and allow them explore different things. Kids tend to be more creative when they participate in things they love doing. Watch the way they challenge their peers or ask questions from adults, and then help them improve on them. Children learn more when they are actually involved in what you have told them about, so leave them to explore.
- Create an idea box at home
Whenever they come up with a random idea or solution to a problem, encourage them to write them down and put it in the “idea box”, and create time to go through the ideas. This method helps them to always look for problems to create a solution for, or to think deep to come up with ideas. This helps to build confidence in them. This requires your commitment as you have to make sure not to forget to open the idea box per time. And after you have gone through the ideas, encourage them to take action on them.
Read Also: How to Promote Your Ideas and Inventions on a Global Scale
- It’s alright to make mistakes
Allow them to make mistakes and teach them how to learn from the mistakes. Do not criticize them when they make mistakes, but let them know that it is normal to fault sometimes. The next step should be how to learn from the mistakes, other ways they could have had things done, and how to move forward. Never allow them to stay down too long sulking over a mistake they made, but train them to reflect, come up with new plans, and move on. Failure is a great lesson as it teaches children how to be persistent in any situation, and it is important for them to build a healthy mindset and self-confidence.
10 Ways To Teach Your Kids About Entrepreneurship In Nigeria
- Teach them how to handle finances
Handling finances is one critical factor of being an entrepreneur. Introduce them to money early and give them responsibilities on how to manage their finances. Teach them the importance of saving and investing, open a savings account for them and encourage them to save in it regularly. You can also create a saving incentive for them by offering to double up their money each time they save.
- Communication
Make communication easier and safe for them to share their ideas, answer questions, or provide solutions. Communication is important to divergent thinking and creativity, and being a successful entrepreneur. It also builds up their self-esteem and confidence. Discuss with them like with an adult and be attentive to listen to their ideas. Talk about your day at work with, this helps them understand reality.
- Build positive relationships
Building positive and meaningful relationships is one major tool that entrepreneurs understand. Talk with them about their friends, and help them to be compassionate and have a listening ear. Entrepreneurs like to work with and patronize people they like. Teach them to be careful about the relationships they make and make the most use of them.
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