Self-employment
Students hone entrepreneurial skillsIn a season when many students are scooping ice cream, flipping burgers and hanging out with friends, others are testing the entrepreneurial waters. Running their own summer business allows them to earn not only a paycheque, but employable skills that will boost career prospects. LINDA WHITE |
|
 [ 2006-03-08 ] |
To find out, take this test by eCareerFit, the career assessment experts.
York University Career Centre
"Everyone has his or her own motivation, but students ... who want to run their own summer business often know they have an entrepreneurial spirit and want to be their own boss," says Jenny Peach, programs co-ordinator at York University Career Centre (www.yorku.ca/careers) in Toronto.
'TRANSFERABLE SKILLS'
"When you are your own boss you will have to know all aspects of the business," she says. "Students will develop many transferable skills that are essential to any career. Some of these skills include communication, time-management, problem-solving, critical thinking, relationship building and risk-taking."
Business management student Katerina Laskaris established The Summer Fun Workshop with the help of Summer Company after her first year at George Brown College in Toronto. Her "Art in the Park" classes provided a chance to hone her business skills while indulging her love of art.
The time it took to run her business was among the lessons Laskaris learned. "It went far beyond the time spent teaching and preparing lessons," she says. "I was pushing 50 or 60-hour work weeks and that didn't take into account the time I spent thinking about different ways of approaching things."
Drumming up business was one of her greatest challenges. "I made flyers, canvassed door to door, painted the fence next to the park and advertised in the newspaper. I didn't appreciate how hard that would be."
Laskaris credits a business plan and mentors with keeping her on track. "Preparing a business plan and setting down my goals was a big task, but it helped me out in the end. It gave me a direction when I saw I wasn't on target and helped me remember just what I wanted to accomplish."
She's grateful for the experience. "It went really well. Some customers wanted me to continue, but I had to go back to school," Laskaris says. Since graduating last year, she has been working as an assistant manager at a jewelry store and has applied to art college.
Every business starts with an idea. From there, you should build a strong business plan, advises Nancy Schaefer, president of Youth Employment Service (YES) in Toronto and author of Good Work! Get a Great Job or be Your Own Boss. The book includes advice for budding entrepreneurs, from creating a business plan to marketing your business and managing your time and finances.
YES is one of numerous Small Business Enterprise Centres across Ontario that will co-ordinate and deliver the Summer Company program this year. In addition to receiving financial support, successful applicants will learn how to register their business, collect PST and GST and market their company. They're also hooked up with a mentor.
SUMMER COMPANY
Hundreds of students have participated in Summer Company, including 284 last year alone, reports Molly Finlay, spokesperson for the Ministry of Economic Development and Trade. They've offered swimming lessons, computer repairs and jewelry design. One operated a crepe stand.
Of those selected, 93% have successfully completed the program. Over the past five years, 64% of participants have been male and the remaining 36% female; half have attended high school and the other half attended college or university.
In addition to developing valuable job skills, the experience helps participants develop self-confidence and can make their education even more meaningful. "If you needed to do accounting as part of your business, maybe your math class takes on a whole new spin," Finlay says.
"Operating a Summer Company helps young people understand the joy of being your own boss and the responsibilities that go with it," she says. "It's not about how much money they make ... but about completing the process."
---
SUMMER COMPANY QUICK FACTS
Summer Company, funded by the Ministry of Economic Development and Trade, is open to students aged 15 to 29 who are returning to school full time in the fall.
Successful applicants will receive up to $1,500 for start-up costs and up to $1,500 when they return to school in the fall.
Applications are at www.ontariocanada.com/summercompany and must be submitted by April 10.
Students wanting to run their own business can visit www.youth.gc.ca to learn about federal government programs and services and www.youthjobs.gov.on.ca for other provincial government initiatives.
Other resources include business development centres and college and university campus employment centres.
How many hours a week do you work?