This is a guest post by Melvin of MelvinBlog.com
I’m not quite sure if this is really the “in” thing these days but it seems like in every corner, you’ll easily find a kid (also means a teenager) who either has his own blog/website or is doing client work as a business. I know this phenomenon has started even in the earlier part of this decade but I just couldn’t help but get amazed on how these young kids get to work and be crafty on starting their own mini business.
Even though I’m speaking like an old man, I, myself is only 19 years old so I kinda understand why young people like us (including the owner of this blog) are so determined on carving our way into entrepreneurial success. Of course, the ratio of successful youngsters against those who are not is pretty small. But that is understandable. I mean most of them are not yet even in college so how do you expect them to know all those marketing and entrepreneurial stuffs?
Fail or not though, I still think that we, youngsters are still gaining a lot of values that is very beneficial to our growth, and in long term, the success. I have written a short post before on why teenagers should try making money by now but I feel that’s just a small part.
So now I am going to list here the different reasons why it’s helping us become a better entrepreneur:
1. We Realize That It’s Not Like Playing Games
Kids, teenagers, youngsters all have one thing in common, we love to play. Whether it’s playing sports, toys, computer games and stuffs, we enjoy playing every time. When starting something online though, we come to a hard realization that it’s not just like playing a game. That we are not going to emerge victorious most of times like in the computer games. All in all it’s fun, but it’s giving us a good taste of what to expect in reality. Obviously it’s a big factor for a kid to have a realization like that.
2. We Become More Independent
Admit it, sometimes you are in the situation where you have to make a decision. And worse, you know that nothing older than you in your family could help you. Even in as simple as blogging, each and every one of us makes our own decisions. Should I implement this strategy? Should I pay for this product? Is doing this thing going to help me? Even though we can pretty much ask other people in forums or social networks for some help, in the end it is still going to be our own decision. That’s decision-making skills!
3. We Get To Be More Competitive
Kids, by nature are competitive. How many times have you seen two or more kids in a tussle? That alone is a proof that we are naturally competitive. I have a good own story to share as well and it’s basically about when I got banned from Google Adsense. That time that was my only source and when I got banned, I was forced to look into online business from a wider perspective. By starting and doing our own things, we are enabling ourselves to learn a lot and also develop that competitive spirit that is a powerful weapon in the long haul.
4. Better Budgeting Skills
When I was in my early days, I was like “if I started earning I will buy myself 2 shirts and 2 jeans every month”. Ironically when I started earning, I became more frugal. I started becoming a tight ass and instead of going out partying with the money I made, I began to take down notes, do a little accounting and stuffs. I don’t know but our parents oftentimes tell us that it’s easy for us to spend big because we ourselves don’t make the money and I think it’s true. If there’s one thing that I improved the most, it’s probably the budget skills.
5. Communication Skills (Communicating Professionally)
Communication is not a problem for most people, professional communication is! Most of us need to get rid of those jargon, taboo terms when communicating with a potential client or talking to a wide audience in form of a blog post. And on the flip side, we have to learn to adapt quick, try to understand what it seems like wordy conversations and stuffs. Being a young entrepreneur, we already have a feeling of what a corporate world can be.
6. Learning All The Tech Stuffs
It’s funny but every time I tell a story to my relative on how I am managing multiple websites and blogs, they were almost always shocked. They think that it would take a nerd to run a website, a wordpress blog or just about anything online. And having a website is just one part of this business. Running automated scripts, database management, graphics stuff, testing and tweaking, etc are all other tech stuffs that we unknowingly discover and learn along the way. And for some people, they even take a specific short-course to study that.
Conclusion
If you’re a young fella who’s very passionate into what you are doing online then I really hope you can realize your potential and not quit. After all, we’re young (how many times did I use this adjective already? 😮 ), and we can still afford to fail a hundred times and still be successful in the end. With all those things I listed above, I do hope that it will only motivate you more and continue to strive and be thirsty for success.
I would very much love your opinion about this. If you can add something more to the list, then speak out your minds!
We must be thinking alike. I wrote an article yesterday entitled “When You Keep Your Child From Participating In Social Networks Do You Hinder Their Future?” This is written from the perspective of someone a little older… I am 50 and I have two tweens that grasp social networking very well. Some of the parents of the peers however forbid their children from using these networks. So my question is do you hinder a child’s future when you say no?
.-= Eric Dytzel´s last blog ..Your’e Hired – Now Give Me Access To Your Social Network Contacts =-.
Im not in the position to talk about that since I am not a parent myself but for me theyre just doing their job. Internet is like a wild jungle and most parents associate that with bad things like porn, hate or whatever. Thats why they forbid sometimes.
.-= Melvin´s last blog ..Can You Still Get Traffic By Being Active In Big Blogs? =-.
The youngsters are takin over the blogosphere, lol. Good post Melvin, btw your blog rocks!
.-= Mathew Day´s last blog ..Are Internet Marketing Experts Blogs Only After Your Money? =-.
Blogging is good but I don’t think it’s healthy to spend too much time in front of a computer at such a young age. Interaction among peers, having fun hanging out with friends and all that still sounds like a “normal” growing up stage.
Heheh, I guess I should tell my 2 yr.old daughter to start blogging eh?
Not really i think. Those benefits you mentioned are intrinsic benefits. They get that because they work and its not just something that gets picked up just because of getting wet with blogging. I agree with Teresa in that it can become unhealthy sometimes.
Not exclusively just blogging but you’re right. It all starts there. Its funny how most bloggers get started with big opportunities just because they have a blog and the just leverage their audience.
With young kids though, it can be quite a bit risky as well. I heard some horror stories before w/credit card theft just because these kids are so much involved in the internet.
hey i wish i would have sen this 3 years back. i am 18 but earning less.
anyway i completely agree about the independence, freedom, become responsible, you can understand the importance of money. seriously this has helped me a lot. thanks to you.
Yeah U are right, once I met a web master of a hugely famous blog
and was surprised to know he is only 14 !
surely there are benefits of starting out early….
Great post! Liked the 3rd point very much “Be More competitive”.
Most of the youngsters are joining blogging to make money however they must not forget blogging is more of a passion money comes later.
Absolutely true! I’m still 18 and the competition is really tough. This just gives me a boost to do what I’m doing better. Another benefit starting at this kind of age is we become more mature. We don’t think like other teens do, we write about matured topics. With all these, we learn, we grow, and we become better.
young bloggers spoil themselves by spending most time in internet.they should show some interests to studies also!