It’s Global Entrepreneurship Week around the world. In Cumberland County in cooperation with Junior Achievement of East Tennessee, the local Youth Achievement Foundation and the Cumberland Business Incubator (CBI) of Roane State Community College, a lot is happening.
On Monday, entrepreneur and CBI client Irene Blackburn of Business Cumberland spoke to Robbie Casteel’s marketing class at Stone Memorial High School. Ms. Blackburn shared the initial thoughts she had about forming her advertising company, who the customers are for her business, why her product is appealing to her customers, how she markets her business and how she funded her startup. One of the questions raised by the students was regarding the biggest challenge she has faced in her business.
On Tuesday the volunteers for the Cumberland County Schools 5th/6th grade trips to Biz Town attended training at the Cumberland Business Incubator. The Biz Town fieldtrip is a chance for students to take the lessons they have learned in the classroom into “real life” in a simulated town. They run businesses, earn paychecks, do banking, take out business loans and make payments on those loans, provide services and products to their Biz Town neighbors and even elect a mayor! Learn more about Biz Town at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h1DjqhCowTM. The classroom programs of Junior Achievement and the trip to Biz Town helps students learn that entrepreneurship is an option for their future.
On Wednesday morning, entrepreneur Wade Stover of Century 21 Realty Group spoke to Ray Hawn’s Business and Telecommunication class at Stone Memorial High School about his entrepreneurship experience including some of his philosophies:
- Dreams change and evolve
- Reject the discouraging words
- Remember David and Goliath
- Do the things no one else will do
- Work Hard & Smart
- Tell people what others won’t tell them
- From Andy Griffith – “We can’t all be winners”
- Personal Interaction is key
- What goes around comes around
The CBI is working with students this year during Global Entrepreneurship Week, to fill the pipeline of future entrepreneurs. From Business.com: Every minute a new business is started in the US. By 2020 more than 50% of all workers will be self-employed. That’s just 5 years from now! We need to make certain that the 50% of workers that will be self-employed have the skills they will need. Some call this the Freelance Economy 2020. This means the students of today will need to know how to market themselves, negotiate, review contracts, price their services, budget, hire and all the skills of entrepreneurs. We can’t start too soon to teach these critical skills.
Join us in celebrating Global Entrepreneurship Week by sharing something about entrepreneurship with a young person. They are our future!
