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The next time you are in a fast food restaurant, grocery store, department store, or your local mall, see how many teenagers are working. Due to the 2008 economic downturn, older adults are accepting jobs that were previously filled by teenagers and young adults. According to The United States Department of Labor, as of November 2012, the youth employment rate was 25.6% (ages 16-19) and 63.6% (ages 20-25). This means that 74.4 % of teens (ages 16-19) and 36.4% of young adults (ages of 20 -25) are not in the workforce. The 2013 economic forecasts don’t point to a rapid turnaround for youth employment.

Many parents are still encouraging their children to compete in a job market against older adults who have more work experience. Right now, many employers prefer to higher experienced, mature, and responsible employees who don’t require employee training. So parents can’t continue to nag their children about getting a job. Parents must become proactive and encourage their kids to start their own business.

I’ve advised some of my clients to encourage their kids to become entrepreneurs but many parents don’t believe that their children have what it takes to run a business. But most teens are very technologically savvy and know how to use social media platforms (such as Facebook, Hootsuite, Foursquare, and Instagram), Ebay, video cameras, and Skype. Many small and medium size business owners are more than willing to pay teens below market rates (which is still higher than $8 per hour) to help manage their social media presence. In addition to technology based businesses, teens can look to traditional businesses that are ideal for teen entrepreneurs such as: babysitting, pet sitting, lawn care services, auto detailing, and tutoring services.

If employers aren’t opening the doors of opportunity for your teen, then you have to teach your teen how to create their own opportunity. Since 2008, American teens have faced an extremely rough job market. Teens can’t afford to wait until their mid-20s for their first job. Now is the time to encourage your teen to create their own employment opportunity.

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Rashad Phillips is a Tax Accountant and Certified Financial Coach. For additional information about this article contact Phillips at phillipstaxg@aol.com.

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