What does it take to start and grow a successful business? For some people, including our founder Melany Robinson, it starts very early. Melany comes from a long line of gutsy business founders dating back generations on both sides of her family. She was born with entrepreneurial DNA and, whether she knew it or not, Melany saw the challenges and fulfillment of this career path from an early age.
As Sprouthouse enters our 13th year in business this month, we wanted to explore how we can all nurture the next generation of business owners. We’re grateful Melany’s parents, Patty and Bill Bundy, took the time to share some of their advice on how we all can encourage kids to believe in themselves and foster an entrepreneur’s spirit.
How did you encourage your kids to believe in themselves and develop a strong sense of self?
We believed in them long before we had concrete reasons to know why we did! It felt like they (mostly) believed in us too, so it was a give and take of building hope and trust. Did we get discouraged and frustrated at times? Absolutely! But the foundation of encouragement was never in question. We always said: YOU can. WE can. WE WILL.
Encouraging kids to explore their interests is a big part of helping them figure out who they are, and usually involves navigating a diverse activity menu. As they explore, they learn from external leaders who model the value of a healthy self. We also felt it was important for them to be part of a group experience—sports, scouts, chess club, anything—and learn how to adjust, adapt, and work with their peers as a team.
Can you share any tips or examples of ways parents can encourage an entrepreneurial spirit in their kids?
Parents have asked us when we knew our children had the business DNA, and it may have been when they took the box of nicely decorated valentines around the neighborhood and SOLD them instead of passing them out to friends! It gave us a humorous taste of what was to come.
- Encourage planning, discussing ideas, and mentoring. Be open to any and all of their (even vague) ideas to explore. Nothing is a waste of time.
- We all have gifts, but it can take a long time to figure out what that means. As parents we lived the theme of, “keep trying on the shoe until it fits!” And we tried on a ton of ill-fitting shoes. It was all part of growing.
- Let them make mistakes. You will, they will, it’s inevitable. But mistakes are an important opportunity to learn and improve. Do not be afraid of mistakes! Own them and grow from them.
- Dream AND plan. Entrepreneurial spirits have such fun creatively planning, but the “cost analysis” is a vital piece of the business plan, too. Frank and supportive discussions about money, risk, and how you would manage if your idea didn’t work are part of a balanced conversation.
- WORK. Whether it was chores at home or, as they get older, in the community, we felt it was essential for our children to work. They learned about what a difficult customer was like, the thrill of managing a paycheck, and having a boss they adored (and some they didn’t). Those were lessons we couldn’t teach.
- Experience and education. You need as much as you can of both. Do it all. Learn it as much as you can.
How did you show them both the fulfillment you can find in being an entrepreneur, but also how to overcome the inevitable hurdles you encounter?
We’re retired now, but we had long careers in our self-started businesses. And to the very last day of our work, we loved what we did. Not that it wasn’t hard, but the fulfillment was obvious. But as entrepreneurs we also worked long hours, worried about money, even missed some family events that we regret to this day. The risk/reward debate is challenging for any business owner. Our family was affected by both the good and the bad, and we were open about the hurdles we faced at each stage. We didn’t hide the realities of our choice from our kids.
What kind of support system did you have when you started and how did you show your kids that you didn’t achieve your success alone?
We could NEVER have started our businesses alone, and we exposed our kids to our support systems. They saw us seek out advice from experts in our fields, lean on friends who started businesses, and count on our extended families to hear our business plans and put us through the paces.
