Would you believe it has been nearly four years since our last post?
Our “little” kids are not so little anymore. Kaitlin and Jai are 20 and 18 and have left school. Flynn and Amber are 16 and 14 and are studying at high school, and our three babies — Kit, Chayse and Akaisha — are 10, 8 and 5.
The Enterprise for Kids team — the Howitt family, still learning, growing and continuing their entrepreneurial journey.
The Howitt clan household is intact and, would you believe it, still on our entrepreneurial journey.
There is so much to catch up on with our family’s activities. Too much for one small update post.
Over time, we will revisit each of our children and look at what they have been doing and what they have learnt. We will share their successes, but we will also share the tough lessons, because that is where so much of the real learning happens.
We are also excited to share our latest enterprising projects and continue building this collection of real family stories about children learning enterprise, money, responsibility, creativity and confidence.
This has always been at the heart of Enterprise for Kids. We believe children learn a great deal through real conversations, small projects, family enterprise, money lessons and opportunities to have a go. That links closely with the kind of everyday money conversations encouraged by MoneySmart’s guide to teaching kids about money.
So stay tuned for the next chapter in the Howitt clan’s entrepreneurial journey.
You might enjoy looking back at little Amber from five years ago when she embarked on her Money Bunny enterprising project.
Key takeaway: The Enterprise for Kids team is back. Our children are growing, our family is still learning, and the next chapter of our entrepreneurial journey is ready to unfold.
Financial freedom was the dream that began our Enterprise for Kids journey. We were one average, large and happy family daring to dream big, hoping to escape the Rat Race and help our children grow up with a different understanding of money, opportunity and enterprise.
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This was our very first post. It marked the beginning of a family adventure where we would learn alongside our children, challenge our own thinking and explore what it takes to raise enterprising kids.
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About to embark on our new entrepreneurial adventure.
Financial Freedom: Our Enterprise for Kids Journey Begins
Welcome to our blog, Enterprise for Kids!
We are one average, large and happy family daring to dream big.
We are on a journey to escape from the Rat Race and join the relative few who have achieved personal and financial freedom.
But we have seven gorgeous reasons to try.
We hope to inspire others to follow our lead and to provide our readers with insights and ideas into how it can be done.
Why We Started Enterprise for Kids
Our story begins with a huge understanding of what it takes to be a loving and adventurous family with wonderful family and friends, but only a little understanding of what it takes to be financially successful.
It is from this point, and with the help of a successful entrepreneurial mentor, that we will start our journey.
It is our hope that our children can gain a financial education and success mindsets surrounding money, whilst maintaining a genuine love of life.
For us, financial freedom is not just about money.
It is about having choices.
It is about being able to follow passions, serve others, support family, contribute to community and live with more freedom, purpose and possibility.
Teaching Our Children Enterprise Skills
We want to teach our children how to develop enterprise skills.
In simple terms, that means learning how to spot an opportunity.
We also want them to learn how to put that opportunity into practice through entrepreneurial skills, and of course, how to manage money successfully.
In addition to this, we want them to appreciate and be grateful for all the opportunities they attract, and learn to give back to the community in a way that makes a real difference.
This process will take time, but we hope you enjoy the learning with us.
That is exactly what we hoped to do through Enterprise for Kids — make money, enterprise, giving, gratitude and opportunity part of our family conversations.
Following Each Child’s Enterprise Journey
You will have the opportunity to follow each of our kids on their individual journeys, and ours too.
We also plan to introduce some of our kids’ friends to Enterprise for Kids, and our blog will follow their journeys too.
Conventional thinking may be challenged as we look and reflect upon our own belief systems and learn what it takes for a person to become financially and personally free.
We know we do not have all the answers.
In fact, much of this journey will be about learning by doing.
We will be learning as parents, and our children will be learning through real enterprise projects, money lessons, goal setting, mistakes, action and reflection.
Financial Freedom Begins with Mindset
One of the biggest things we hope to explore is mindset.
How do people think when they create personal and financial freedom?
How do they see opportunity?
How do they use money?
How do they manage risk?
How do they teach their children to think differently?
These are the questions we are beginning with.
As a family, we want our children to understand that there are many pathways in life. A job may be one path, but enterprise, creativity, investing, service, problem solving and contribution can also shape a person’s future.
The Beginning of the Enterprise for Kids Journey
So jump on board and let’s see where this exciting new adventure, Enterprise for Kids, takes us.
Follow the Beginning of Our Family Enterprise Journey
Start here: This first post began the Enterprise for Kids journey. These early articles show how our family moved from dreaming about financial freedom to giving the kids real enterprise challenges.
Key Takeaway: Financial Freedom Starts with a Different Conversation
Key takeaway:financial freedom begins with mindset, learning and action. Enterprise for Kids started as our family’s attempt to teach our children about money, opportunity, gratitude, giving and enterprise while learning those same lessons ourselves.
