Can enterprising skills be taught at a younger age?

So my first experience with the world of enterprise was in my final year of junior school at the age of 12. I distinctly remember that we played what was called the 'Game of Life' and it really was that. Our teacher was essentially the Mayor and we, as the citizens of the town first had to build our town. So endless hours were spent on building our town using paper mache and once we had done that, we each had to select an enterprise that we would run for the duration of the game. The currency was not real but was recogniszed as a means of trading among citizens of the town. I owned a bank (the last time that I most probably had so much money!!!) and once in a while I dabbled in selling slices of cake and anything to make extra money. With this money as well as bank charges and loans my bank made, I went about purchasing assets such as a house, a car etc from fellow classmates.

But I'll never forget that in the entire class only one of us came up with a different enterpise, only one. It was a girl whose father owned businesses and thus the culture of enterprise and thinking out of the box seemed to part of her life. I often wonder, if after school, she went and asked her father what she could do and I imagine her father navigating her through the process of finding something unique. Anyway, if my memory serves me well, I think she came up with a post of being the Mayor's assistant - essentially, the Chief Operating Officer. Needless to say, she earned the most money.

The lessons that I have gained from this memory are many, but I will share a few. Firstly, we know the amount of time and resources being spent in other parts of the world to incorporate enterprise skills and/or entrepreneurship into curriculum but the question is can it be taught? I, for one am of the opinion that such games or curriculum can ignite the spirit of enterprise but it is how one experiences that game or curriculum that may have a greater impact on the decision to pursue entrepreneurship. Secondly, we should not expect for these skills to be taught in the schools alone. How many of us can remember when we wanted to do something that did not fit into our parents or guardians perceptions of good education would get no encouragement to pursue this? For some, times have changed - there is a lot of encouragement, for others, the struggle continues. So what I am basically saying is that, there are many opportunities for us to be socialized into enteprise/entrepreneurial skills but family, peers and society plays a crucial role. Thirdly, I think it's important to emphasize that not all of us with see small business ownership as our destination in terms of career choices. Rather, we need to extract and apply the values and skills that enterprise and entrepreneurship provide in our day-to-day life. Labelling who is and who is not an entrepreneur does not add value in my opinion but rather, it limits one's dreams.

If I had simply decided that because I had chosen a safe enterprise of running a bank when I played the 'Game of Life', I might have limited my career options. In fact, it is quite funny, to date, I have actually never worked in a corporate setting. I started as an academic, teaching management, financial management and entrepreneurship, moved to managing a degree programme to being a self-employed research consultant. I know that for my parents, they have stepped back, allowing me to do what I want to do and while not always knowing what I am doing, they give the necessary encouragement.

So what do we need to do to encourage the spirit of enterprise? Do we need to include it in the curriculum? Perhaps. But what do we need to include? Enterprise Life Skills, problem solving skills, creativity and critical thinking skills, analytical skills, team work skills? Perhaps. When should it be taught? Earlier than later? Perhaps. Is it relevant for our country? Perhaps.

So while there are many questions and not clear answers, I believe that there is a place for enterprise and entrepreneurship skills within the curriculum, from early childhood development curriculum to Doctorate level and everything in between! Let us work together and start to make a contribution.