Howtomakeadollar is a very principled, ethical, and values-driven institution, and one of its primary beliefs is that you should get your children involved in entrepreneurship at an early age. Many people call this child labor, but don't worry. Its not.
Now, starting with yesterday's blog, I want to show you a few more ways. First, you need to read yesterday's blog. You can do that by scrolling down below this blog.
Idea no. 1 for teaching your kids to make money: Make money
Idea No. 2 for teaching your kids to make money: Sell Lemonade
First of all, you need to know that selling lemonade is illegal without a license. However, I don't think you should worry about starting your kid on the path of crime. Most kids in my neighborhood commit several crimes everyday anyway, so you may as well teach them to profit from it.
Secondly, you should know that traditional lemonade stands are money holes that will never make you rich. The cost of ingredients is simply too high. Howtomakeadollar has a better way
1. Get a ball that is yellow and looks kind of like a lemon. A tennis ball might work. Actual lemons are too expensive and will eat into your profits.
2. Tell your kid to write "LEMONADE 4 SALE" in big, uneven, kid letters on a big piece of paper.
3. Get a pitcher of water and put it on a table beside the sign.
4. Put the tennis ball in the pitcher
5. Tell your kid to charge people $1 for a cup of lemonade.
6. Do not provide cups. People should use their own cup. This will save you the cost of those little plastic cups, which are prohibitively expensive. Despite the fact that plastic cups provide numerous environmental benefits,* we believe that their cost is the most important factor.
7. If people say that the lemonade is just water with a rubbery flavor, tell your kid to tell them to quit complaining and get off your yard.
8. Take profits from your child
*Pros and Cons of using plastic cups.
Pros:
- Plastic cups have been known to kill baby seals in the Arctic +10
- Plastic cups emit a powerful aroma when burned +1
- Smoke from burning plastic speeds ozone depletion +5
Total: +16
Cons:
- Extremely expensive. Profit trumps all environmental concerns. +infinity
Total: +infinity
Infinity > 16
Since lemonade stands are not licensed businesses, nor do they generally last for more than a few hours, it's no surprise that few statistics exist on lemonade stands. So we must rely on the most supreme scientific mechanism we have - anecdotal evidence.
ReplyDeleteI did the lemonade stand gig as a kid, and I know that we used Country Time. I think most people expect that. So the most important thing is not to make the lemonade look like there's a lemon in it, but to make it look yellow. Mustard will not accomplish this goal well because it does not dissolve. Things that will dissolve are chalk and food coloring. You could even use a minimal amount of Country Time powder for the flavor.
There is a good way to get yellow liquid for free, but this is "How to Make a Dollar," not "How to Get Your Ass Kicked."