Entrepreneurship for students is not just about starting a business. It is about learning how to think differently, spot opportunities, solve problems, take action and build confidence in the real world.

When children learn how entrepreneurs think, they begin to see that their ideas matter. They also begin to understand that money, work, creativity and contribution can be approached in a very different way.

Entrepreneurship for Students: How Do Entrepreneurs Think?

In an earlier article, we spoke of charitable entrepreneurs and successful business thinkers such as Richard Branson, Warren Buffett and John Templeton.

They, together with many other successful people, have extraordinary stories to tell about their entrepreneurial journeys. Some will tell you they struggled at school, dropped out, were dyslexic, or found reading and writing difficult. Others came from homes of poverty, while some were born into families where business and enterprise were already part of everyday life.

Although their backgrounds and circumstances differed, one thing often remained the same: they thought in a similar way.

It is not circumstance alone that creates an entrepreneur. It is mindset.

That is why entrepreneurship for students matters. Young people need more than information. They need the chance to develop the kind of thinking that helps them create opportunities, make decisions, solve problems and take responsibility for their future.

Why Entrepreneurial Thinking Matters for Families

What we have come to understand is that for our family to become economically and personally free, we need to question our conditioning around money and then reprogram our subconscious minds with a new success money mindset.

Many wealthy and successful people either developed this mindset from their upbringing, or they discovered it for themselves. Sometimes this happened consciously, through study and self-development. At other times, it happened unconsciously through experience, environment and action.

It is often said that only a small percentage of people live with real economic and personal freedom. The bigger question is this: what do they do differently?

More to the point: how do entrepreneurs think?

Before we look deeper into that, consider this.

Entrepreneurship for Students Starts with Money Mindset

Whether we like it or not, we are being conditioned constantly to think a certain way about money. We are conditioned by our family, schools, advertising, politicians, television, social media and friends.

Many people become tied to jobs and debt because the conditioning they have received favours a money mindset of lack, rather than abundance.

Do any of the following sound familiar?

• “Money doesn’t grow on trees.”
• “Money is the root of all evil.”
• “You’ve got to work hard for your money.”
• “Get a good, well-paying job and you’ll be set for life.”
• “Buy a home, it will be your best investment ever.”
• “We can’t afford it.”
• “What job do you want to do when you grow up?”
• “Go for the cheaper ones.”

Only this morning, I was listening to a friend talking with his teenage sons. He told them they needed to get jobs. He explained that he had a job pushing shopping trolleys at their age. He even went down to the local IGA supermarket and picked up applications for them to apply for jobs.

When I was fifteen, I started out with a casual job working at a Target store. My hourly rate was $2.90 an hour.

All of the above are examples of conditioning. Much of our thinking about money, work and possibility is formed very early in life.

What Schools Often Teach About Work and Money

Our schools are largely designed to prepare workers for the workforce. Banks make money by selling debt. Governments collect taxes and often depend on people staying within predictable systems. Retail businesses make money by encouraging us to spend. Big businesses need workers to build their businesses.

There is definitely a design to much of this madness.

That does not mean jobs are bad. It also does not mean every child needs to become a business owner. However, it does mean young people should know there are other pathways.

They should understand that work, money, creativity and contribution can be approached in different ways.

This is why financial education for kids is so important. Children need to learn about money, value, assets, liabilities, work, enterprise and choice before they enter adulthood.

Entrepreneurial Mindset for Young People

What our family has discovered is that our money mindsets are changing. We are learning that it is okay to accept money and to have money. In fact, it is okay to offer something of value to others and receive payment in return.

Working hard in a job is not the only pathway for young people entering our big world.

There are other ways. These pathways can allow young people to follow their passions and dreams while making a meaningful contribution to whatever they consider important.

Wouldn’t it be fantastic if all our kids could achieve economic and personal freedom?

People who have achieved financial freedom through being entrepreneurial tend to have a mindset of abundance. Their habits differ. Their thinking differs. Their actions differ.

This is why we keep coming back to the bigger idea of raising entrepreneurial kids. It is not just about business. It is about helping children become confident, capable, creative and resourceful.

How Entrepreneurs Think: Lessons from Napoleon Hill

Rather than attempting to explain every detail of how entrepreneurs think, I will refer to one of the most influential books ever written on personal and financial achievement.

Think and Grow Rich by Napoleon Hill was originally published in 1937. Hill spent his life studying successful people and recording how they think and act. He became successful himself by following the distinctions in his own book and by modelling himself on his mentors.

Think and Grow Rich is essentially a book about what to do and how to do it. It explores ideas such as self-direction, organised planning, autosuggestion, mastermind association, self-analysis and the selling of personal services.

The thirteen steps to riches described in the book offer a philosophy of individual achievement that has influenced thousands of people’s lives.

This book could be worth a great deal to you and your kids, not simply because of the money ideas, but because of the thinking behind them.

At the time of this original article, Cathy was rewriting Napoleon Hill’s book in a way that would be suitable for kids to read, with simple explanations and modern examples they could better relate to. It was a work in progress, built around the idea that children should be able to understand powerful success principles in language that makes sense to them.

You can also learn more about Napoleon Hill’s work through the Napoleon Hill Foundation.

Entrepreneurship for Students in Real Life

For our family, entrepreneurship for students has never been just a theory. It has been something we have tried to encourage through conversations, real-life projects, mentoring and practical action.

Looking back now, we can see how these early conversations about entrepreneurial thinking have carried through into real life. The goal was never just to teach our children about business. It was to help them become confident, resourceful young people who could spot opportunities, solve problems and take action.

Today, we see that continuing as Jai shares business ideas and strategy with his younger brother Chayse, passing on what he has learnt through his own entrepreneurial journey.

Jai has gone on to build his own entrepreneurial path through creative work, content and business. You can see part of that journey through Art of Mondays.

Key Takeaway: Teach Students to Think Like Entrepreneurs

Where to Next?

If you enjoyed this article about entrepreneurship for students and entrepreneurial thinking, you may also like:

• Raise Entrepreneurial Kids — ideas for building confidence, initiative and real-world enterprise skills.
• Kids Business Ideas: Amber’s Kids Biz Program — a real family story about turning a $20 challenge into a kerb painting business.
• Financial Education for Kids — a practical lesson about money, assets and liabilities.
• Green School Bali — a powerful example of real-world learning, creativity and student-centred education.
• Justin Herald: Entrepreneur Story to Inspire Kids — an inspiring story about attitude, action and business success.

We would love to hear your thoughts. How do you think entrepreneurs think differently, and how can we help children develop that mindset while they are still young?