Youth CEO Clubs
"When the Student is Ready, The Teacher Will Appear!"
For Ages 7 - 18
Copyright 2008 Angels Press. All Rights Reserved
Youth CEO Clubs
Cathy Harris, CEO
P.O. Box 870849
Stone Mountain, GA 30087
Phone: (770) 873-2072
Website: http://www.YouthCEOClubs.com
OPEN LETTER TO ALL BLACK YOUTHS:
What You Must Do Now To Help Save Your Family
This is a national call to action to save the black family. This action plan is directed to all black youths who are ready to become business owners and help save their families.
Nowadays parents are being arrested for truancy due to ‘educational neglect’ which is a failure to keep their youths in school. Studies have shown that youths that quit school are the ones that ultimately end up committing crimes and end up in prison.
Due to the failing economy and this administration, the whole paradigm has now shifted and that’s why schools are serving as ‘feeder systems’ into prisons. Nonetheless, attending school and keeping up your grades is extremely important for today’s black youths.
If black youths would like to become a business owner, part of a ‘Parent and Youth Business Contract’ should be that they agree to stay in school and keep their grades up.
There is no blueprint to show parents or legal guardians how to raise a black child!
Black youths need to understand that their parents are doing the best that they can to provide for them. Many black parents are in bad predicaments right now because of the economy; therefore, black youths can alleviate some of their pain and suffering by helping the entire family out financially, by becoming a business owner.
For some parents in the workplace, it’s extremely hard to work nowadays with all the unfairness such as discrimination, wrongful terminations and other racial disparities, etc. Because of the economy, the people in charge in the workplace are bringing in their relatives and friends at an alarming rate, and this practice has totally polluted most workplaces in America.
Therefore, in many households, youths are going to have to step up and become ‘breadwinners’ because the workplace has rendered their parents mentally incapable of caring for their families.
Even though much of the financial burden is falling on today’s youths, they should not blame their parents for their current conditions! Instead they need to become proactive in every phase of their own life and use their own interests, talents and passions to become successful business owners.
Don’t worry about the things that you don’t have control over, instead let’s look at what you do have control over – becoming a ‘business owner.’
Even if you are as young as 7 years old, you can become a business owner and help supplement the family income.
But remember not all black youths will be able to start a business. Some will have to work for others. But many do have what it takes simply because they are multi-talented.
By Becoming a Business Owner You Can:
- Grow into a responsible adult
- Help your family out financially
- Change the conditions in the community
- Help pay for your entire college education
Another major reason black youths should become a business owner is because over 70% of all black households are being ran by single parents, who are mostly black women, so what choice do you have?
Black Adults Should Start Businesses Because of the Following:
- One out of every two marriages ends because of finances so someone in your household (youth, parents, or both) need to start a business.
- Most families dream of having their own businesses.
- No family really wants to have ‘latch-key’ kids.
- People are sick of office politics (discrimination, workplace abuse, nepotism, cronyism, favoritism, etc.)
- People do not like driving in traffic.
- When you transfer to another city, it’s best to start a business rather than looking for a job.
- Because of the weak economy, owning your own business will lend more security to your life.
But the reality is – it is going to be extremely hard for black parents over the age of 35 to start a business because: 1) They are too set in their ways, 2) They want everything for free, and 3) They refuse to read helpful non-fiction books.
Youths unlike adults are still learning and their minds are still developing, therefore, youths will read non-fiction books, which will make it much easier for them to learn about business ownership.
The reality is - our youth do not want to be a carbon copy of their parents. They are living in the world of technology. Every thing is open to them with just a “click”. Our youth are imaginative, creative, bold, fashionable and multi-talented.
Do you have what it takes to become a business owner?
Let’s Look at Some of the Qualifications to Become a Business Owner:
- Are you a self-starter?
- Can you make decisions?
- Do you have will-power?
- Do you have self-discipline?
- Do you have a good understanding of their strengths and weaknesses?
How Do You Get Started with A Business?
First of all you want to look at businesses that you are suited for. Our company, Angels Press, through our ‘Youth Entrepreneurship Clubs’ can give you a FREE evaluation of the businesses you are suited for when your take the Youth Talent Survey.
We will look at your interests, your talents and your passion and email a list of at least 5 or more businesses with a description within the next 72 hours that you can get started in right away.
Our Company Will Teach Youths:
- How to Establish Entrepreneurial Goals
- How to Create a Business Plan
- How to Obtain Business Start-Up Money
- Provide a list of Business Ethics & Etiquette
- How to Develop Marketable Skills
- How to Network with Local Business Owners
- How to Obtain Business Mentors
If you decide to work with our company, we will then hold a conference call by phone with the youths and their parents. Then once you pay for our services, we will mail two packets to the family. One packet will go to the youth and one to the parents to monitor the youth’s progress.
The packets will contain a list of every step (or checklist) it takes to start the particular business that the family has chosen with their youths. We will then be available by phone and email for 3 to 6 months to answer any questions the family might have while they build the business. If the family needs our services longer than 3 or 6 months - we will be available through our consulting services.
Remember to always start a business that is your ‘passion’. If it is not your passion, then it’s a good chance you will not stick with it.
Your passion is what you like to read about, talk about and do. But first you need to see if others are making money in your passion.
As you move forward to investigate the possibility of you becoming a business owner, there are 4 stages to starting a business: 1) The Research Stage, 2) The Creation Stage, 3) The Legitimacy Stage and 4) The Business Network Stage.
The ‘Research Stage’ will be the most important stage of starting a business. This is the stage where you will get your business idea. You can be in this stage anywhere from 3 months, 6 months, one year or longer.
Remember that most businesses go out of business within 2 to 5 years. So, the more research you conduct on the front end of starting a business, the better chance you will have at being successful on the back end.
Also the more research you put into a business, the quicker you will be ready to open the doors of your new business. So get started today conducting research at: 1) the library, 2) bookstores, 3) using goggle.com or yahoo.com, or 4) by getting a mentor. All young people need mentors!
How to Get Your Parents Behind You:
- Before you conduct any research for your business, you will have to sit down with your parents and have a heart to heart meeting or sign a “Parent and Youth Business Contract’ with them to get them behind your business idea.
- Remember ‘youth entrepreneurship’ especially in the black community is a new concept. For some, it’s going to be an uphill battle because people don’t embrace new things. Chances are support from the black community will probably be slow. That’s why it’s extremely important for you to get your parents or legal guardians on board as soon as possible as you go through this uncharted territory.
You Will Need to Discuss the Following:
- You need to sit them with them just like you did when you wanted to join some type of extra curricular activity (performing arts, sports, cheerleading, band, etc.) in school and tell them you want to start your own business.
- Tell them even though they don’t understand all the ins and outs of business ownership, the entire family can learn together.
- Explain the advantages of being a business owner. Tell them it will help you: 1) Grow into a responsible adult; 2) You can help the family out financially, 3) You can help change the conditions in the community, 4) You can help pay for your entire college education, and 5) You don’t have a choice because of the economy.
- Tell them you truly believe you have what it takes because: 1) You are a self-starter, 2) You can make decisions, 3) You have will-power, 4) You have self-discipline, and 5) You have a good understanding of their strengths and weaknesses.
- Tell them they do not have to be with you 100% of the time to supervise you because there are ethical business owners in the black community that works with Chambers of Commerce, Business Networks and Business Leagues that will provide mentorship for you.
- Tell them that you can form business alliances and strategic partnerships with other black youths, therefore, their parents and legal guardians will be there to supervise you.
- Tell them there are businesses that you can open up within two weeks and start making money right away.
- Make a pact (Parent and Youth Business Contract) with them that you will attend school everyday and keep your grades up - if they support you in becoming a business owner.
Steps that Parents and Youths Can Do Together to Conduct Research and Jump-Start Their Entrepreneurial Minds:
- Look for ethical businesses that can mentor and give your youth advice. We are an ethical company so allow your youth, ages 7 – 18, to start a business with our "Youth Entrepreneurship Clubs." We offer 3 to 6 months of low-cost business coaching/consultations in person, by phone or email.
- Sit down with your youths at the computer one or two hours a day at home and allow them to conduct research at http://www.goggle.com or http://www.yahoo.com on business and marketing.
- Take your youths to the library often to read books on business and marketing especially during the summer time.
- Buy your youths books from bookstores on business and marketing. List of recommended books (click here).
- Subscribe to Black Enterprise and support their annual Kidpreneurs and Teenpreneurs events.
- Allow your youths to learn from the leisure of their homes by watching shows like "The Big Idea," "Suze Orman" or other educational channels.
- Allow your youths to join and work with local Chambers of Commerce, Business Networks or Business Leagues. Remember not all Chambers of Commerce or business groups cater to youth businesses, so look for one that does. Before joining any business groups find out what to look for at "Top Questions to Ask Yourself Before Joining Any Local or National Business Groups."
How to Get the School System Behind You:
You and I both know that many adults with youths in schools never show up for any type of school meetings or conferences because of their busy schedules.
But the following is what you can do as a student to encourage schools to add some type of ‘entrepreneurship opportunities’ in schools:
- Start talking to all of your friends and encouraging them to talk to their parents and relatives to attend school functions (PTA meetings, school board meetings, other educational meetings, etc.) and encourage them to talk about how important it is for youths to have some type of business opportunity in the school system.
- Join community civil rights groups or tell your family members to join and urge them to put pressure on the school system to create a curriculum that will provide some type of ‘business opportunity’ in schools.
- Ask your family, friends and neighbors to support ‘Business Initiatives in Schools’ where adults from Chambers of Commerce, Business Networks and Business Leagues are allowed to come into the school system and speak to classes and encourage youths to start their own businesses.
- The goal, with permission from the schools, is to penetrate schools in black neighborhoods and select 10 youths a month in elementary and 10 in high school to become entrepreneurs while you guide them to community resources.
- We ask that the youths selected for these positions have good or passing grades.
The goal is for each youth to reach 3 levels within 30 days:
- Level 1 – Get a business idea and conduct research
- Level 2 – Start the business and launch a marketing campaign
- Level 3 – Start making money from the business
Sure there will be ‘gatekeepers’ (superintendants, principals, teachers, counselors, etc.) in the school system that will try to keep any type of ‘business initiatives’ from coming into the school system. But that’s why it will be important for black media entities and civil rights groups in the community to get involved with business initiatives in the school system.
The entire black community must get behind the black family and especially black youths and set up several outlets to teach black youths about entrepreneurship opportunities. If we can’t set up youth entrepreneurship opportunities in the school system, then we must set them up in the community.
Make sure your parents review their action plan "For Mothers" - and "For Fathers."
For more information on how to start, run and build a youth business, have your youth, ages 7 – 18, fill out the Youth Talent Survey.
Cathy Harris is a Business Coach, Founder of Youth CEO Clubs and author of the "How To Take Control of Your Own Life" book series. She is available for seminars, workshops and consultations and can be reached through her company at Angels Press, P.O. Box 870849, Stone Mountain, GA 30087, Phone: (770) 873-2072, Toll Free (800) 797-8663, Fax: (678) 254-5018, Website: http://www.cathyharrisspeaks.com and Email: info@cathyharrisspeaks.com.
Copyright 2008 Cathy Harris. All Rights Reserved
