An entrepreneur is someone who builds and runs a business, creating new and innovative ideas that help people in their everyday lives. According to a Junior Achievement USA survey, 3 in 5 American teens are more interested in starting their own business rather than having a corporate job, and nearly 2 in 5 teens were also interested in programs that focus on teaching entrepreneurship.

“Becoming an entrepreneur offers a multitude of benefits personally and professionally,” President of Young Entrepreneurs Club Madelyn Yan said. “It allows individuals to pursue a passion and turn ideas into reality.”

“Being able to control your work, time, and vision,” Yan added.  “It also allows for continuous growth and learning opportunities through navigating challenges.”

Teen entrepreneur of Rks_nails nail business Rachel Kaykov expressed her passion for nails, saying that although she was unable to go to salons when she was younger, she was “very interested in all things makeup and nails,” and used her hands and practice hands to educate herself.

“I was like, ‘You know what? I’m determined to learn,’” Kaykov said. “I ended up learning how to do nails myself and I’m very prideful of the fact that I’m kind of self taught, meaning I didn’t go anywhere to be taught of it and/or watch videos on it, I kind of just tried to learn myself.”

Kaykov hopes to improve the quality of her clients’ mental health and self esteem through her nail business. She offers a comfortable environment for clients to vent and have a good time.

“It’s like that fresh feeling of new nails and you’re like okay, you’re feeling yourself or whatever,” Kaykov said. “I just feel like it helps with certain people’s confidence, and for me to be able to help other people raise their confidence, that feels amazing.”

The Young Entrepreneurs Club at Francis Lewis similarly prepares students to pursue a dream of entrepreneurship.

“Young Entrepreneurs Club prepares teens with the skills and abilities to publicly speak, communicate with others, leadership, teamwork, time and money management, and responsibility,” Yan said. “Also includes the ability to network and meet real-life entrepreneurs in various fields of business.”

Yan created the club this year in order to showcase her passion for business.

“Members engage in various activities, from actual business activities to skill activities,” Yan said. “As well as offering networking opportunities with real-life entrepreneurs.”

It is useful that Young Entrepreneurs Club helps students learn time management skills as time management is crucial for managing academics and business as a young entrepreneur.

According to research published in the National Library of Medicine and Dr. Philip G. Levendusky, lack of time management can directly impact one’s engagement by causing one to experience stress, depression and sleep issues.

“I feel like something really important that even I am trying to work on right now is just time management,” sneaker reseller Aiden Yap said. “Managing time is extremely important if you’re doing multiple things at once and it’s a great skill to have in the future.”

Yap started reselling in seventh grade when it was a popular trend, and now he has his own business sneakeresells, selling a variety of sneakers ranging from Jordans to New Balances.

“In terms of my reselling gig and school in general I just keep it balanced,” Yap said. “When you have time, focus your time on reselling, getting your money up, but then when you really need to study for SAT, Regents or college applications then you start shifting your attention to that and then have that done first.”

Kaykov also believes that scheduling and organization are the best skills to have as a young entrepreneur, “because if your day is not organized and you don’t know what you’re doing, you can feel very stressed and out-of-sort.” Fortunately, time management can be mastered overtime by deliberate planning and decision making.

“Our club teaches members to recognize the importance of time management through various activities and presentations,” Yan said. “Making members work through problems within time limits with pressure but making it fun as well as working in groups.”

It can be difficult to manage time and workload, and running a business can sound daunting at first, which can concern teens. According to another Junior Achievement USA survey 75% of entrepreneurs believe motivation is an essential characteristic to have, as “Fear of Failure” can concern 67% of teens.

“As teenagers, I feel like being in high school is a great time to experience new things,” Yap said. “So maybe like, in terms of student body they can motivate more young entrepreneurs to, maybe try something out.”

Kaykov agreed that, “it’s really amazing when your friends, like you know, support you throughout all that,” and businesses benefit from the promotion and support of others. A simple repost, like or follow can help a business gain recognition.

“Like if they have an idea of what they want to do, don’t hesitate to go for it and rather than being put down I feel like they should just support them more,” Yap said. “Give them support not just with words but with action, maybe promotion or something.”

Even if one feels unsure about entrepreneurship, it can still be rewarding to start a business as a side hustle. Yap explained that for him, reselling is a side hustle, “so when I got time I shift my time towards reselling and then when I got to lock in for like, my assignments, my exams, projects,” he shifts his focus to that.

“There are always risks but being an entrepreneur is all about risks as well,” Yan said. “Becoming an entrepreneur empowers people to realize their potential and make a difference in the world.”