There's one constant when it comes to being a teenager — you need money. You know it, your parents know it, and you've probably spread the word to all willing relatives as holidays and birthdays approach. Next to birthdays and “the Bank of Mom and Dad,” though, the only sure way to get money is to earn it. The question is: How in this economy are you going to find a way to put money in your pocket? If you've been out looking for jobs, you know how few jobs are available, even if you're looking for just a few hours a week. If you have not started filling out applications, here's a sobering statistic: As of October 2011, the national unemployment rate for youth ages 16 to 19 was 24.1 percent. Sadly, this is an improvement from 2010, when the youth unemployment rate hit a record high of more than 27 percent. These statistics do not count those under 16 looking for work or teens who have just plain given up. For the most up-to-date statistics, visit the Bureau of Labor Statistics website at www.bls.gov.
This situation mirrors the overall national unemployment rate that for the years 2010 and 2011 averaged at above 9 percent. These are jobless levels not seen since the early 1980s. It's the highest unemployment rate recorded in your lifetime, and probably in your parents’ lifetimes, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Complicating matters further, the average length of unemployment is 40.6 weeks, which means a high percentage of people have been out of work for three-fourths of a year. These once well-employed people are forced to take part-time, minimum wage jobs to make ends meet and keep the bills paid. Not so long ago, these part-time jobs were filled by teens. Now when you go apply for a job, you're competing against older, more experienced workers desperate for any kind of employment.
Another consequence of this struggling economy is an overall downturn in business, which translates into employers hiring fewer workers and cutting back hours of existing staff. So, there's more competition for the jobs out there, and even if you find a job, you might not get many hours. The direst news of all, though, is there seems to be no end in sight for the economic downturn. Many analysts consider this a tipping point and think employment levels might never return to previous highs. As a young worker, this can be depressing. So, what's a teen to do for money?
How This Book Can Help
For starters, don't be discouraged. You've taken an important step in picking up this book. This guide will turn these scary statistics around and give you step-by-step directions for finding what you like to do, offer brainstorming ideas for making money on your own, and provide information on how to find people to pay you. Just because jobs are scarce — and getting scarcer — does not mean you can't find plenty of ways to make money. People are willing to pay for things they don't want to do themselves. Teens always have taken these odd jobs such as babysitting or lawn mowing, and they are still acceptable ways to make money. This book, however, will help you go beyond the obvious job ideas, so you can enjoy making money and fit work into your hectic schedule. It will show you that you don't need a “regular job” to survive. And it will show you how to elevate your passion and make money doing the things you love.
VOCAB
This book considers a regular job to be a job in which you work for someone else, you punch a clock, or you don't have control over when, how, or where you work. An example would be working part time at a fast-food chain.
If you've already peeked ahead through the job ideas, you've seen that this book has nearly 200 ideas for making money on your own, and that's just the beginning. The chapters divide up the general skill sets but overlap in many ways and can be combined to best meet your unique skills and interests. Any one of these ideas is ready to go, but they are also a great place to start brainstorming. Once you've explored the options here, you might realize that working for yourself will be better than a regular job both for your finances and your busy life.
In addition to great job ideas, this book will walk you through the process of working for yourself and include concrete information on developing your ideas, getting things started, and finding customers. It will also include a beginner’s guide to banking, investing, and taxes; job performance tips and marketing ideas; thoughts on taking jobs with you to college; and all the other nitty-gritty details you need to succeed. Throughout the book will be stories of teens who have been able to make money on their own terms. There is, of course, the potential for loss or mistakes when going out on your own, and later chapters will address these issues. Before you start ordering equipment or business cards, it's a good idea at least to skim through the entire book.
How I Know What I’m Talking About
Before we continue too far, I would like to share a bit about my life and the personal experience I have with this topic. I've been self-employed as a freelance writer since 1997. I have dealt with every issue you will have to face, including finding customers, scheduling my workday, handling payment and non-payment, dealing with clients, and developing my business. It's not easy to work for myself, but overall, I love it. To be fair, I did have a ten-year writing career and college degree behind me when I went out on my own — and this experience did make it easier to find work. I've found, though, that young people have fresh outlooks and can add some energy to any project. In my opinion, the good definitely outweighs the bad, and I can't imagine holding down a regular job.
I decided to take on writing this particular subject because I not only know a lot about self-employment, but I'm also the mom of teenager who needs money but does not have much free time. My son, Sam, is 16 and is, for all accounts, a typical teenager. He's a junior and is taking as many AP classes as possible. He is involved in varsity sports; is active in FFA and other local service clubs; loves to hunt, fish, and play video games; cannot miss the ESPN nightly report; religiously follows his fantasy football team, the Minnesota Vikings, and Minnesota Twins; drives a beat-up old car that guzzles gas; works school concessions to earn money for next year’s senior trip; is planning a summer canoe trip; is trying to save money for prom, college, and more hunting gear; and can't really commit to a regular job. Sound familiar? I'm sure you have the same busy, hectic schedule.
Just because you have no time for a job doesn't mean you do not need money — and our backyard money tree is not producing very well. So, over the last two years, Sam (with my help) has found ways to make money for himself. We live in a rural area, so he's been able to find work for farmers and has done everything from haying to digging tiling trenches. He's also taken on babysitting jobs for me and yard work jobs for our friends and neighbors. He's helped me sort through all my garage sale finds and started listing things to sell online. His path really has been the definition of odd jobs, but it has worked out well with his busy schedule and has given him money to spend and save.
Through these experiences, Sam has learned a bit about dealing with customers, putting in a hard day’s work, and doing the legwork to find new jobs. He's learned the value of referrals and word-of-mouth and even picked up a few new skills along the way. We got him a bank account, so he can manage his money, and we joined a stock market website to grow his money a bit before college rolls around. It's definitely been an interesting time for both of us, and we have each learned a lot. I am excited to write this book and am looking forward to sharing our ideas and research with you. I'm also keeping Sam on retainer to review the book and warn me if I start acting too much like a “mom.”
How to Keep Your Priorities Straight
Finally, one last message before you begin your work journey — and I'm sure your parents would agree with me. Your No. 1 job right now is to succeed at high school. Good grades, well-rounded extracurricular activities, and time with your friends and family are the most important aspects of your life. Doing well in school and enjoying the last of your teen years will give you a good base for the rest of your life. Sure, money is important and has to be addressed. However, as a teen, making money should be way down at the bottom of your priority list. Once you add work to your schedule, it's easy to let things slip or tip out of balance, and it's very hard to get your GPA back once it starts to slide. You have many years of work ahead of you, but you will only have these high school and college years once in your life. Enjoy them, and don't stress too much about making money.