|
Simply Street
Smart
Several years ago I attended
a breakfast at a local school where Jeff Kennett was the guest
speaker. “Today’s youth”, he said, “are the future of small
business in Victoria”. He stressed the need to encourage young
people to extend their thinking and to envision the ‘bigger
picture’, because for most of them, the old ‘one job for life’ rule
no longer applied.
I was recently given the
challenging task of re-writing the ‘Plan Your Own Enterprise’
brochure for The Victorian Commercial Teachers’ Association. It was
an inspirational experience and an opportunity for teachers to
encourage their students to think laterally; to discover whether
their ideas could be developed into successful businesses. The
finished brochures have been circulated throughout secondary
schools in Australia and New Zealand, and have already received
positive feedback.
Even more heartening is John
Marsden’s acknowledgement, in his recent book for teenage boys
entitled ‘Secret Men’s Business’, that today’s young people are
under extreme pressure to achieve academic success. For many of our
students, this will be impossible. For some, the road has already
proved too difficult, with disastrous consequences. John Marsden, a
widely respected writer speaks with courage and passion about
students who often stay at school against their will. He positively
encourages young men to think about options, such as owning their
own business and creating a future for themselves without the
pressures of ‘joining the treadmill’.
What would happen though, if
there were a mass exodus of children from school? Could they
still achieve success without the school leaving certificate and
the university degree? What is it that drives people
to achieve? Could a young person develop his or her own business
with just guts and determination? Is it possible that all young
people need is a good dose of ‘street smart?’
Some of Australia’s best
known identities have achieved success by being ‘Simply Street
Smart’. Motoring greats such as Norm Beechey, Bob Jane and Lou
Molina can all testify that “making a dollar in Brunswick” in the
early days required drive, determination and the guts to ‘get out
there and give it a go’. Whilst it is true that these men were from
a different era; the main providers for their families unhindered
by the women’s movement or the push for equality, they were,
nonetheless, dedicated, hard-working Australians. They were men
with little education, who used their imagination, their wit
and their will to achieve success; men whose stories will live on
in the hearts and minds of future Australians, and perhaps
encourage young people to think ‘street smart’ in order to
create their own niche in the business world.
Back
|