Growing up Blogging

It used to be that if  kids wanted to make some money above and beyond their allowance, they had very few options.  They could get a paper route, do some babysitting or even mow lawns to earn some cash.  But other than that, there really weren’t many avenues available to an under-aged entrepreneur.

But the Internet has changed all that.  More and more young people are going online to make money.  No, they aren’t selling the family treasures on e-Bay, they’re are following in the footsteps of many adults and blogging their way to riches.

Okay, riches might be stretching it a bit.  But as we all know, there is money to be made expressing one’s opinion online.  And whether the subject is fashion, food, or feminism,  teens usually have opinions to spare.

But money isn’t the only motivation for teens to open up online.  They enjoy it for the same reasons millions of adults do:  It’s fun, it’s therapeutic and it gives the writer a sense of being heard.

But beyond giving them an outlet for creative expression and the opportunity to make a few bucks, blogging is something that can actually impact their futures.  Even if they are never ‘discovered’ and gain a wide audience, the writing skills and the discipline required to manage a blog is great preparation for college and, later, jobs in the real world.

Of course, kids who blog need parental supervision to make sure that they aren’t revealing their home addresses along with their innermost feelings.  Which brings us to another reason to encourage kids to write online: What better way to find out what your teen is really thinking than to  read her blog?  I can see no downside to this.

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• Would You Send Kids to Money Camp?
• If They Build It, The Money Will Come
• Nick at Nite’s “Glenn Martin, D.D.S” Upsets Parents
• Kid Survives for 20 Days with $20: Could You Do It?

Tags: blog, blogging, blogs, kids, money, teens, writers