How would you like to hear a 9-year old kid talk about marketing strategies, loan agreements, supplies, wages, taxes and…uh…thinking out of the box?

Henry Ong, president of RFP (Phils) Institute has cooked up another project — this time to teach children how to be entrepreneurs. No, they won’t be asked to listen to lectures or even interactive classroom discussions. They will actually be asked to think of a business and run it for a day.

Cool, huh? Read all about it here. Before I even mention something in MoneySmarts, I go through it, test it, see if it works. There’s too much at stake and no, I am not being paid to advertise it. So there. Nothing can be more precious than integrity.

Entrepreneurship is what this nation needs and we have got to teach our children to be fearless, to jump not with their eyes closed but with senses fully alert and with loads of research and analysis on their back. We have to show them that there are tools they can use to start a good business, to sustain it and even to close it gracefully, if needed, so they can start a new one.

Shrug. I personally think failure in one business is not a reason to stop trying!

Since this bootcamp is the first of its kind, however, I have no objective analysis yet if it is really effective. My basis is the program’s list of activities and the qualification of their speakers.

Day 1 is like this:

“There will be activities that [will teach kids] that they can do almost anything they set their minds to…”

They will begin thinking of a business plan! Talk about getting your feet wet on the first day

Day 2 will have them discovering the costs of running a business such as marketing, supplies, wages and taxes. Big words for our little businessmen, I’m sure!

“Campers will learn that just because they may own their own business, it does not mean that they will become rich automatically.”

On day 3, campers will really get into the thick of things with more big words like “loan agreement” and be taught that the more they borrow, the more they have to pay back. They will make posters, flyers and business cards after they secure financing for their “business.”

Day 4 is THE day. They get to run their business for a day. They find out if their strategies work, network with “business contacts” and try to make good calls under pressure. They will present their business plan and do a marketing pitch. I can imagine young faces scrunched up with the hard decisions they have to make, but before the day is done, they will still have to analyze their performance.

Day 5 is tough. Guest entrepreneurs will tell them what they did great or point out mistakes. Toughest part is the party at the end and getting their certificates, hehe.

Memories of my peanut-selling days when I was in elementary school still make me smile. I learned the values of hard work, diligence, and the strength to get up even if I fell smack on my face many, many times. (You guessed right, I burned a lot of peanuts haha!)