By Steven Gordon, Lemonade Day National President

“I’ll let you in on a little secret: Entrepreneurs are scared. They are scared of failing. They are scared of getting fired or losing control. They are scared of not being able to close a deal. They are scared of letting their family, friends or investors down. They are scared that their cynical professor was right — this was a stupid idea. They are scared they won’t be able to come up with another big idea or….

The entrepreneurial paradox is this: The things that make most people feel safest are exactly what put us at the greatest risk. Slowing down and being conservative will ultimately lead to less compelling thinking and less business. Therefore, we must embrace fear.

So all entrepreneurs must learn to constantly dance simultaneously with both fear and possibility.”

          Introduction to the article “How Entrepreneurs Overcome Fear,”

          by Mike Maddock, Forbes Magazine contributor

Visions of ghosts, goblin, and ghouls dance in our heads as Halloween approaches on the last day of this month. Timing could not be better to address the fear of risk and failure that spooks people and makes them run away from pursuing entrepreneurial ventures.

For kids of any age, starting a business is not typically at the top of their priority list. Becoming a business owner may seem like something only adults do.  However, Lemonade Day encourages kids in grades K through 5 to become entrepreneurs. With Lemonade Day, we take away the fear of starting a lemonade business and equip our Lemonade Day kids and their mentors with a proven approach focused on how to get an investor, how to develop a great plan, how to implement that plan, how to market and sell their product, and what to do with the proceeds of their sales. Save some, spend some, share some!

Think about some young people who went on to become famous entrepreneurs.  Singers Michael Jackson (Think “Thriller” especially this time of year) and Miley Cyrus (the star of Disney’s “Hannah Montana action series) are two of many super kids who became super entrepreneurs.  You might not think of them and other artists as business owners.  Michael Jackson’s career as a singer was so successful that even after his death, his estate has continued earning billions of dollars from royalties. Miley Cyrus, who is not quite 25 years old, has a net worth of $200 million – and she has created numerous jobs for those who support her recording, touring and performance schedules.

Bury the fear and don’t be spooked. Check out www.entrepreneur.com/topic/young-entrepreneurs and  visit lemonadeday.org for more information. Registration terms and conditions for Lemonade Day 2018  vary by city.

About Lemonade Day

Founded in Houston in 2007 by Michael and Lisa Holthouse, Lemonade Day is a non-profit organization dedicated to teaching every child across North America the business and financial skills that are the key ingredients of entrepreneurship. By learning these skills early in life, children will be better prepared to be successful, financially healthy adults. Through our fun, hands-on program Kids K-5 are empowered to start their very own business—a lemonade stand—and experience the feeling of earning real money, using 100% of their profit to spend, save and share based on their own goals.

Lemonade Day is in 62 cities throughout the United States. Over the past 10 years, we have served more than 1 million kids in our kid entrepreneur programs and in 2016 alone, 101,000 kids participated in Lemonade Day.

Visit LemonadeDay.org to learn how to participate in Lemonade Day in your city.