As a parent, one of the most important lessons you can teach your teenager is how to become self sufficient financially. By spending the time to educate them on being fiscally responsible and by showing them how they can be self reliant, you are doing them a great service by guiding them towards their own independence.
According to Sam Miller, a teen life coach from Parenting Teenagers Academy, running a business or managing a project in which your teen can make their own living can be highly rewarding for them and you as well. Not only does it provide you an opportunity to bond together, but it can help them get an early start on understanding the importance of getting things done in a timely manner and what it takes to be an entrepreneur. If you are looking for ways in which your teen can earn a living online, here are three platforms that provide great opportunities:
The Care.com website has a collection of babysitting jobs available for teens. First, you start by creating a free profile on the Care.com website. Next, make sure to include a picture of yourself. Parents who visit the site like to see photos of possible babysitters.
It’s a good idea to share your previous babysitting experiences too. This way prospective clients know that you’ve got experience caring for children.
For example, you might have gained babysitting experience by caring for neighborhood kids. Or by watching kids for family members or friends. Maybe you’ve helped care for younger siblings. Or you’ve volunteered in other places like the nursery at your church.
All of these different types of childcare count as experience. So be sure to share them on your Care.com profile. You will also want to list your expected range of pay on the website. This will help parents have a starting point for negotiating an hourly wage.
Do you draw great pictures of different breeds of dogs? Can you knit? Are you a good woodworker? Do you have a knack for making trendy or unique jewelry? Are you good at creating invitations for weddings? Or at creating announcements for other events?
Whatever your talent, you can make your item and sell it on Etsy. People view your item, buy it, and pay you via PayPal. You ship the item safely to the address they provide for you.
Don’t want to deal with having to pack and ship items? How about creating downloadable templates of beautiful artwork? You can design a pre-created selection or custom make one to a client’s request. The artwork can consist of a popular saying written in a great font. Or a cute picture or a customized item like a client’s name.
It’s easy for you to deliver if a client decides to buy a template you have for sale. The client pays, and you send them the file containing their design. They can then bring a media file containing the template to a printing store. They’re responsible for getting it printed and framed.
BookScouter helps people sell textbooks and other used books. They work to get you the most money for your books. How? By comparing buyback offers from over thirty-five book buyback vendors. And you can do this with just one search.
As a teen, you might have a few textbooks laying around from school. If not, you can find some by hitting local garage sales. If you live near a college campus, you could find a lot for sale. You can check out local thrift stores too.
Buy the books and re-sell those books for the highest price. Use BookScouter to help you find the highest paying vendor.
Here’s how it works. First, you find the ISBN of the book. This is the long number listed near the barcode. In most cases, you’ll locate it on the back of the book. Second, type the number in the BookScouter search bar. Then the site populates a list of all of the vendors from different sites who will buy your book. It will let you know the price they’ll pay for it.
Related: Investment tips for young entrepreneurs
