Table of Contents
The New Totally Awesome Money Book for Kids (and Their Parents)
By Adriane G. Berg
Moneythink
How Not to Go Broke at 102: Achieving Everlasting Wealth
Your Wealthbuilding Years
Financial Planning for Couples
Your Kids, Your Money
Gifting to People You Love
Investment Spy (CD-ROM)
Warning: Dying May Be Hazardous to Your Wealth
How to Stop Fighting about Money and Make Some
How Good Guys Grow Rich (with Milton Gralla)
Keys to Avoiding Probate and Reducing Estate Taxes
Making Up for Lost Time
To all the kids in this world whove had bad breaks. Hang in thereyoull make your own luck.
Dear Kids,
You might be wondering how a brother and sisterthats us, Arthur and Roseended up writing this book. When Arthur was eleven (and Rose was only an infant), he and our mom wrote a book called The Totally Awesome Money Book for Kids and Their Parents. It explained how the stock market works, what banks can do for you, how to make a budget, and even how to invest money in other countries.
He traveled all over the United States, to England, and to lots of schools to talk about investing. It was great! Kids learned how to read the stock pages, buy mutual funds, and save for college. Best of all, they liked learning how to buy one share of stock in companies they knew, such as McDonalds, Toys R Us, and Burger King.
But many of Arthurs personal friends and kids he met at the schools asked him, How do I make the money to do all the cool stuff you wrote about in your book? He thought about that, too. Arthurs answer was always the same: get a job or start a business.
When this book was first written, Arthur was too young to get a jobbut not too young to start a business. He did just that, and then wrote about his experience.
If you are curious, his business was selling Magic the Gathering cards through retailers. He bought packs of these collectible cards, sorted them, priced them, and placed them in retail stores in our neighborhood. He earned about thirty to eighty dollars a week, which boiled down to between twenty and sixty dollars after expenses. Today, twenty-five-year-old Arthur works in Washington, D.C., and fifteen-year-old Rose is just starting to find after-school work. But she, too, has learned all about business.
You see, there is a lot to running any business, even a small one like Arthurs. You have to think of a way to make money that works, find people to work with, get supplies, be on time, keep records, speak up for yourself, use the telephone, and do many other big and little tasks.
We think thats what being a business owner (which is also called being an entrepreneur) is all about. Adults find that being an entrepreneur is hard to do, but it can actually be very easy for kids like usand lots of fun. In this book you will learn some skills vital to running a successful business. Of all the things that will be important to you in later life, the most important skill youll learn is how to see the big picture. More about that later.
After that, you will learn about businesses that you can start right now, including many that can help save the environment. We are very concerned about the environment, and we think most other folks are, too. Thats one of the reasons we rewrote this book.
At least ten of the profiled businesses help stop waste or are environmentally sound in other ways. None pollutes the environment. For example, one of the businesses described in this book is bringing some of your recyclable goods to the recycling plant for a profit. Another is a business in which you learn to grow your own plants. With such businesses you can make a profit while helping the environment.
Like our publisher and our mom, we are very interested in getting across ideas about how businesses are formed and how they make money. But of more importance to us is starting out with a worthy ideaan idea that not only works and makes money but also does some good in the world. If nobody is benefiting from what you do and many are harmed, we dont call that business a success, no matter how much money it makes. Doing well by doing good is not just a clich.
Weve also rewritten this book because a lot has changed since it was first published more than ten years ago. The Internet is now even more integrated into the economy, and technology is changing the way everyone does business. And now that Rose is one of the authors, she can add a girls perspective.
If you are worried about getting bored while reading this book, dont be. This book is filled with activities and cartoon characters to keep you interested and entertained as you read. Also, this book is written with kids in mind, so it will be simple to understand.
Before we even start, we can think of three questions you might want to ask already:
1. Whats thebig pictureyouve been talking about?
The big picture is seeing all the important things about a business at once. When we look at a business project, we look at everything. We look at the cost of the business and where we can get the supplies we need to run it successfully. We also look at the way the business would work in our area. We see if the business needs anybody else besides us to make it work. We also look at one of the most important things that a person in business must consider: the skills we need to run the business. In other words, can we do the job?
For instance, if you are going into a baby-sitting business without looking at what skills you may need for the job, you could be in big trouble. What are you going to do if you need to change a diaper but dont know how? What if you need to warm up a bottle but dont know how hot to make it? If you think about such things before starting the business, you could learn how to change a diaper and warm up a bottle, or you could rethink going into this business. So, you see, looking at the big picture is very important.
2. To run some of the businesses in this book, wont I have to work with my parents?
Yes, in many cases, thats true. And for all the businesses, youll need their permission and cooperation. Yes, we knowyuck. But dont worry. The skill of working with other people, even parents, is called human relations. That skill is covered in this book.
You may also have to work with your older or younger brother or sister. That could be even worse! But you must always keep an open mind about the people you are working with. To help you do this, you can think of the rewards you will get if your business is successful.
Arthur worked with our mom for a long time, and now were working together. So, to give you a head start, we included in this book the things we learned about working with older people.
3. Whats the real secret of business success?
