Even though the tradition of developing a businessman mindset in a child exists not in every country, there is an obvious tendency worldwide: business is getting younger. Those who would be considered just kids a dozen years ago, now manage to become millionaires without any family capital. Ruslan Tymofieiev (Ruslan Timofeev), an IT investor and the founder of venture capital fund Adventures Lab, explains why Ukraine should adopt the American idea of developing an entrepreneurial mindset in a child and why it is important to start doing it now.
According to the investor, the US has a long history of raising children with a focus on their entrepreneurial spirit, while in Ukraine, it is only gradually introduced now. For example, the recent GoGlobal’s Business Camp for children is also part of this transformation of the nation’s attitude towards business mindset. Ruslan Tymofieiev took part in the event as a speaker and told children about his career and what they can heed from American kids.
As Ruslan Tymofieiev explains, the United States is home to pretty much every modern concept of successful business, be it a start-up or generally an innovative economy. And it is not a coincidence. The thing is the US has at least two role models, or archetypes, for kids to help them develop their businessman spirit.
The first one is a kid who sells lemonade next to his\her door. Such a kid usually makes lemonade by him\herself, sets a price, and tries his\her best to attract customers. Then, when the child is a bit older and becomes a scout, they sell cookies. This is the second archetype that is encouraged by the people around. Scouts approach passers-by and try to convince them to buy their cookies.
Such an experience helps future businessmen understand what is needed to succeed: once they are grown up, they already know how to set the price, negotiate with customers, bargain, and what their work is worth.
As Ruslan Tymofieiev explains, such archetypes are very important for developing a goal in life. For example, in Brazil, where lots of kids play football, there are higher chances to become a professional successful player. African kids try to be a runner, so there are many Olympic runners over there. And American kids “play” businessmen, so no wonder there are so many successful businesses that conquer the whole world.
At the same time in Ukraine, as Tymofieiev explains, there are lots of smart talented children with brilliant ideas. But they do not know how to approach either a client or investor. Ukrainian parents tell their children to avoid strangers, so even when the kids grow older, they still lack the skill of communicating with strangers.
And the thing is not only in family attitude. According to the investor, one can see the legacy of the Soviet Union and the Soviet education model. It is only now that Ukraine is switching towards alternative ways of educating children. Now, there are more robotics schools, innovative technology, and engineering schools in the country. And more and more institutions turn from drawing formulas on the blackboard towards building and programming robots and developing soft skills.
The founder of Adventures Lab considers the emerge of GoGlobal’s Business Camp as a breath of fresh air. This way of education provides children with exactly what can come in handy for them when building their way to succeed in the modern world.
