Youth Entrepreneurs and Philanthropists

How much can one kid do?

We all know how hard it is to start a successful business or raise money for our favorite non-profit organization, yet each day kids find ways to do the impossible. Sometimes you hear about these kids. Sometimes you don’t. It’s important, as business professionals, to nurture the young entrepreneurial spirit. This Monday I’d like to share some Remark!able things kids are doing and the role social media is playing in their communication strategies.

A while ago, we featured our kids at Vivid Image and their fundraising efforts in “When life hands you lemons, Reach out to the community”. We are very proud of their efforts, and we’re working to help them begin communicating their efforts at “LemonAid blog”.

Since our kids started raising money for local charities, one online presence caught my attention: Kids Are Heroes. I actually connected with them on Twitter a long time ago, and enjoy every character of positive energy they tweet! The organization was founded by nine year old MaryMargaret, a young girl with a vision. In 2008 MaryMargaret asked her dad to help her start a website, and just three years later they are on Mashable’s Top 5 Non-Profits list of people to follow on Twitter, along side Sesame Street!

With a strong online presence and social network following, Kids Are Heroes do a fabulous job of highlighting the Remark!able ways in which our kids are changing the world. According to Gabe, MaryMargaret’s dad and President of Kids Are Heroes, “I am always telling people that I feel so blessed to be living in an age where social media is so prevalent because without it, we wouldn’t have achieved 10% of what we have to date.”

Lots of kids do nice things and have audacious goals. Many parents do what they can to foster their kids dreams and encourage them to follow their passions, awarding them through recognition for their efforts. Kids Are Heroes is a special place that gives attention to Remark!able kids doing Remark!able things, while reaching out to people around the world through many social media channels.

Last week I was on Twitter when Kids Are Heroes released their new YouTube video that will soon be used in pitching their positive, inspirational stories to the television networks. In a world that seems caught up in negative, sensationalized stories far from most of our realities, the prospect of a truly uplifting series caught my attention and has me very excited. Take a look:

I encourage you to follow Kids Are Heroes on Twitter, Facebook, and YouTube. I guarantee you will fall in love with the organization and the kids featured there. Maybe there is a kid in your life you’d like to connect to Kids Are Heroes?

If you have an idea for a Remark!able story, please let me know.

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