Out of all of the blogs I have written about teaching
business and economics to kids, the article that has had the fewest readers is
my first one about my Biz Camp rules.
People don’t like rules. Especially tough ones with
consequences. And yet, when we work for a company there are always rules to
follow. Rules give context. They give structure. They define the boundaries.
And they give a foundation. If you can’t live within the rules of the company
you are working for, you probably don’t belong there. I have found this to be too true.
You will see, as I continue these blogs, that the kids
participating in the Biz Camp had a lot of flexibility once they started
exploring the different aspects of business, but they had to have some place to
start. As a matter of fact, as the camp went along, many of the kids wanted
more rules. But, there are some parts of business that just don’t have cut and
dried answers, which was the point of the whole exercise. So, the rules they
did receive at the beginning became more important.
So, here are my other four rules:
Rule # 5: Be on time. Be on time. Be on time.
Business people donate their time to teach these classes. And businesses donate
classroom space. There is an old saying that time is money. It applies here. We
do not want to waste anyone’s time, as there is a cost applied to it. Nothing
is totally free. Participants will need to learn to be on time for when they
work, when they get older.
Rule #6: Listen to what people are talking about at
the different businesses you visit. You may think that what is being said is
boring, but trust me, it will apply to your life in the future. If you do not
understand, ask questions. And you will need all of the information for your
final project. The more you hear, the better that final business plan will be.
Rule #7: Keep a list of words that are new to you.
Business has its own language, as if it is a foreign country. Each part of
business – finance, marketing, human resources, management and sales – has its
own language. And each industry has its own vocabulary. It is kind of like
Americans and the English speaking the same language, but it is different. Or
talking in text-speak to your parents. Only when both the sender of the message
and receiver understand the vocabulary being used is there actual
communication. As the nubie, it is up to you to learn the business language,
not for the people already there to use your way of communicating.
Rule
#8: Take notes!
If you do not know how, ask questions about what is important to write down.
Notes are important for two reasons. First, you are getting a ton of
information, a lot of it completely new concepts. You cannot remember it all.
Second, you will be referring back to it on your final project. That final
project will kind of be like an open book test, but a lot harder.
Okay.
I am done with the rules.
Next
up, a few fun games to get the party started, before learning all about writing
a business plan.
Lee Rennick is a freelance
writer, former Vice-President of Marketing and past Executive Director of the
Business Education Foundation of Rutherford County, TN. She shares her
interests and knowledge about working, learning and living at http://www.sidelinemusings.com. This
is blog is part of a series about how to teach business and economics to middle
school students based on her time developing and coordinating the State Farm Summer
Business Camp in Rutherford County, Tennessee for 10 years.
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