Kanya King CBE is the founder of the MOBO awards. King had a far from easy childhood, as re-told by various news outlets. She was the youngest of nine children, born to an Irish mother and a Ghanaian father who died when she was 13. She described...
Jasmine Crowe, the founder of Goodr—an app that fights hunger through addressing food waste management, shares the inspiration behind her entrepreneurial journey. “My dad inspired me to be the giver that I am. I was always invested in spending time with him, doing things, and getting...
Stanley Kubrick was a film director, screenwriter, producer and photographer. He's cited as one of the most influential filmmakers in cinematic history and his films include The Shining, A Clockwork Orange and 2001: A Space Odyssey. “As a child, I was a school misfit, and considered...
Dr. Edward Zuckerberg, father of Mark Zuckerberg, CEO and co-founder of Facebook, talks about how having computers around the house sparked his son’s interest in technology. “My kids all grew up around the office and were all exposed to computers. There are advantages to being exposed...
Barack Obama, former president of the United States, shares details of how he was raised by his mother, Ann Dunham. "For all the ups and downs of our lives, there was never a moment where I didn't feel as if I was special, that I was...
A LinkedIn post shared by The Female Lead told the story of athlete Abel Mutai, who was in the lead whilst representing Kenya in a running race. Mutai stopped just a few feet from the finish line. He was confused by the signage, and mistakenly thought he...
Shelley Röstlund, digital marketing consultant at Harbour 32, is introducing the concepts of public speaking, and sharing great ideas, to her 10-year old daughter. "We have tasked her with watching TED talks of kids of various ages standing on stage sharing their ideas. She's going to write...
Carly Fiorina, CEO of Hewlett-Packard, talks about the assurance her mother gave Carly of her talent and potential, as well as the focus on character as an important long-term trait. “My mother and father were incredible people who invested so much in each of their children....
In a fascinating keynote for the WrapWomen's Power Woman summit, actress Eva Longoria told her childhood story to 2000 people. Here are some of our favourite parts. “My mom made me take the gifted and talented test in hopes that I would get into a superior...
In a thought-provoking article by author and entrepreneur Derek Sivers, he outlines the three things to consider when making life-size decisions. What makes you happy What’s smart — meaning long-term good for you What’s useful to others In terms of career, smart and useful, but not...
Esther Wojcicki is a journalist, educator, and vice chair of the Creative Commons advisory council. She is the mother of Janet Wojcicki, a professor at UCSF, Susan Wojcicki, CEO of YouTube, and Anne Wojcicki, co-founder and CEO of 23andMe. Esther is also the author of How...
Tony Robbins is an author, entrepreneur and motivational speaker. He grew up in North Hollywood, the eldest of three siblings. He described his home life as "chaotic" and "abusive". “I had to protect my brother and sister, so I became a practical psychologist just out of...
Clara Wilcox, founder of The Balance Collective, describes how she has taught her teenage daughter the main skills needed to be entrepreneurial. Together they have also discussed how to keep clients. “I worked as a teenager, and encourage my teenager to do the same. She has...
Angela Duckworth, the author of one of our favourite books, GRIT, discusses raising gritty kids. "In our family, we live by the Hard Thing Rule. It has three parts. The first is that everyone—including mom and dad—has to do a hard thing. A hard thing is...
I attribute every success I've ever had to the fact that when I was a small child, whenever our family went on holiday, my mum made me pack my own suitcase. To me, it was normal. Who else would do it?! I realise it might not sound...
Tim Spiegelglass, owner of Spiegelglass Construction Company, describes how he had to pitch for what he wanted during childhood. “For as long as I can remember, my father asked me to negotiate or make a pitch for what I wanted, and now I’m having my daughters...
Sir Richard Branson, founder of the Virgin Group, shares his mother’s unconventional parenting lessons. “As an introverted kid, my mother worried my shyness would become debilitating as I got older. So, to nip it in the bud, she continuously challenged me. She tried to drum it...
Benjamin Banks is the founder of SBD Apparel, a sports performance brand worn by some of the best strength athletes in the world. We interviewed Ben for our podcast and learned the inception of the extraordinary attention to detail that underpins his success to this day. “My...
Jodi Chaffee, founder of Our Modern Heritage Academy LLC, explains how a conversation with her father helped her overcome challenges at school. “When I struggled in school one year, my dad asked me whether I believed I could be a possible A student. He asked me...
In interview for The Economist, Natasha Loder interviews Maye Musk, mother of three children: Elon, a world-famous inventor, Kimbal, a tech and food entrepreneur, and Tosca, a film director. The full article is linked below, but these snippets tell the story of how these three...
I am a huge advocate of the entrepreneurial messages and characteristics that you are driving. I think it is a fantastic idea to instil the idea of entrepreneurship into children from a young age. This is a great way to open children up to the idea of not always following conventional paths and giving them the belief and confidence to pursue their own creative business ideas.
The Clever Tykes series are such a wonderful way to introduce ‘enterprise’ to children from a young age – I can’t recommend them highly enough, and strongly urge parents to read along with their child as there is no doubt the stories will stimulate lots of questions and interest!
I found Walk-it Willow easy to read and full of lovely messages that children can take from it. It touched on taking responsibility, problem solving, admitting mistakes and also the work it takes to run a small business. Willow is entertaining but very human. A lovely story.