I had just received my 2 copies of Kidpreneurs for my 2 kids (ages 7 & 11) and had the opportunity to hear what they both thought of the Kidpreneurs book today. They are both VERY excited that they have learned the basics of Entrepreneurship! My 7 year old daughter and 11 year old son are planning to do a ‘business plan’ for a dog walking service for our community now! Its so nice to see them thinking like this and getting them away from their video games and ipods for a few minutes! Great post Lilia and I encourage all Mompreneurs out there to get this book! It will surely be an asset for your kids future! As they say in the book, “Tomorrow’s future Starts Today!”

While the youngest generation (whichever that is at a particular point in time) might have the advantage of coming unencumbered to the new ways of working, every generation has a unfortunate habit of treating what they learnt in their formative years (~24) as dogma once they hit their late 20s. Social research has show that most people’s interest in novel idea or experiences peaks around the mid to late 20s, at which point they tend to know what they like and stick with it. Or, put another way, 24-28 might have the advantage in a rapidly changing world, and once you grow out the top of that age bracket you’ll find yourself at the disadvantage.

However, as with all gross generalisations, the exception is more interesting than the rule; in this case the commonalities between groups are usually stronger than the differences between them. Research like Forrest’s Groundswell show that its more productive to think in terms of personality types.

I prefer to focus on getting stuff done, and ensuring that each and every stakeholder/employee has the tools and support they need to get their job done. And this is probably the most important mega-trend we’re seeing at the moment: the drive to personalise communication/products/services for each an every individual, rather than trying to divide people to coarse-grained, and increasingly unproductive, demographic groups.

r.

PEG

Now that I have a 5 year old who has no clue that letters correspond to sound, I find myself leaning toward “leapfrog’s talking letters” and sites like “starfall”. It appears he would benefit from kid-friendly technology that compliments what we are doing at home.

Our generation has a complicated relationship with technology. So many of my friends have shunned all media and screens from their children until 7 or 8 years old. My husband and I have chosen a “use it, don’t abuse it” approach and the balance feels just about right. Now, excuse me while I log my little one onto starfall.