Since the lockdown in March, life has changed so much for everyone. For our family, we found we had to really look at our income and resources. With some adjustment we’re fortunate to make money to survive even with less. Some people aren’t making any money at all.
I know it’s hard to be at home all the time. The kids especially feel there isn’t much to do. My suggestion? Try a little business project. Maybe we don’t know everything about what to do. But that’s okay! There are always lessons in the learning process and tons of experience. Let’s treat this more like some market research and see where this takes us. Who knows, we might find out what our kids would like to study in college!
What Can Kids Do During Lockdown?
First of all, we know that school comes first. This is more of an afterschool activity. Second, kids will have more resources available now while they are at home. We can help them and they don’t have to worry about living expenses. You’ll definitely want to encourage them choose a business that won’t interfere with school and doesn’t take as much effort to maintain.
To start, come up with a few ideas, set a few goals, make a plan, and figure out how much this will cost. Best part is they can start applying the skills they’ve been learning in school!
Here are a few ideas that come to mind that I thought would be worth a try.
Things kids can do now to make money:
1 – Sell Some Old Stuff
We can go through the old clothes that don’t fit, toys, or games. Sell them online and see what you can get. It helps to clear things out and they can get some extra money!
2 – Take Online Surveys
While this would be easy to do, it might not get a lot for all the effort.
3 – Flip Products
With a little clean-up and paint, old furniture pieces can be spruced up for sale.
Apply an artful eye:
4 – Photography
They can use your phone and upload almost any kind of photo. Buyers will purchase the rights to use their photographs and they’ll get paid for every download.
5 – Sell Art
I know most don’t feel like an artist and are their own biggest critic. Why not let the public decide? Put up a few pieces on Etsy to see if there’s an interest. It’s only $.20 to list. There’s nothing to lose!
6 – Design Your Own Products
I personally love having my kids’ art on something like a mug or a shirt. If other people love their art, this would be a natural next step!
7 – Graphic Designs
Apply an artistic eye and create logos and other branding packages for customers looking for a fresh look for their business. Not everyone knows how to use technology like this generation!
8 – Video Editor
There are a lot of quick jobs available online that could fill the time between homework assignments.
9 – Online Courses
Everyday there’s more and more information available about new programs and apps. It also becomes harder to keep up with everything. Many people are willing to pay for your knowledge and experience through these online courses so they don’t have to research all the information themselves.
What do you think people might need or use?
10 – Make Things
Once they’ve got an eye on design, maybe they would consider making something themselves whether it’s for the home or clothing.
11 – Inventions
Can they think of a better way of doing things? How about an improvement on a design?
12 – Build an App
This one takes a lot of specialized knowledge, but there is definitely a lot of potential especially if there is a want or need.
13 – Create Games
Whether it’s an online game or a physical game, there are tons of possibilities. People are always looking for the next great game!
Share your voice!
14 – Blog
Kids have their own ideas and opinions, but they don’t think they have a lot of knowledge they can share. Writing can help them find their voice and find others that are like them. While blogs are relatively simple to put together, there are a lot of moving parts and will take a lot of time and effort.
15 – Become a Vlogger
This one might also take a lot more time and effort to set up and shoot, but it also has great potential.
Which idea will you try first?
The important part is to do this together with your kids. The experience alone will open their eyes to possibilities. Though as challenges come up we need to be there to help them when they get stuck. Who knows? They might end up on Shark Tank!