I entered the world of business in 2009. I came from the realm of education where I had spent my career. Still teaching children at the time, I became excited about the possibilities if I could just help them understand the basics of business, money, and growth.
During those years we had many conversations about assets compared to liabilities, possibilities to generate revenue, and the reality of the rat race for most people including our own families. I remember the day one of my 7-year-old students looked up at me with surprise and exclaimed, "You mean you're in the rat race?!" I explained that it was a journey, but by starting at their age, there were so many possibilities that I never considered until I was older.
Together as a class, we built businesses. They learned how to bring their ideas forward and then choose together what they would work on. They learned how to calculate their expenses, their income, and their profit. They learned how to decide where the profit would be used. They learned about collaboration as they experienced firsthand the necessity of working together to reach their bigger goals.
It was fun to see the delight in their eyes after all the hard work of baking and selling pumpkin pies one Thanksgiving so that they could finance shoebox gifts for children living in poverty. It was amazing to load them into the vans for a field trip to The Ontario Science Centre and the IMAX Theatre, a trip that they financed with the profit generated by making and selling chocolate bark. They learned to imagine, and design, and bring their ideas to reality. They learned to talk about money. They started to think about children in families without financial stability. They wanted to help, and they found ways to do so.
I am still amazed that I had nine years as teacher to those children. I didn't love every minute of it. But I loved the children, and that gave me everything I needed. This is no idyllic picture I am painting. It is simply a remembrance of nine years of conscious and intentional action. It was a decision to love, and I am convinced that when I apply that same decision in every business interaction as an entrepreneur today, I will continue to open up doors of possibility for me and for the others I work with.
I am grateful for every day I spent teaching those children. I am grateful for every child I had the privilege to interact with.
I am now looking forward to seeing the fulfillment of my dream to provide high-quality, practical education for entrepreneurs and their families around the world!
I know that it will come to be with intentional action and great love.
What is your dream, your true heart desire?