Your kid is good with their hands. That's not a fallback plan.
AI is changing how young people get their start in office work, while the demand for people who can build and fix things keeps growing. Neither fact should scare you. But both should be part of the conversation at your kitchen table, and everything on this page exists to help your family have it: a free guide, a workshop for your parent group, a private family session, and a six-week cohort where your teen launches a real side business.
I'm not here to talk your kid out of college. I'm here to help your family make a real decision instead of a default one.
I went to college. It never fit. I learned more managing restaurants to pay for it than I did in any lecture. Then I spent fifteen-plus years owning small businesses and built a chimney & fireplace company in Bucks County into a multi-million-dollar operation. So I've lived both sides of this question, and I don't have an axe to grind with either one.
Here's what I see from where I sit. AI tools are quietly taking over a lot of the entry-level tasks that new graduates used to get hired to do. That doesn't make a degree worthless. It makes "get any degree and figure the rest out later" a riskier plan than it was when we were kids. Meanwhile, nobody has figured out how to sweep a chimney, replace a water heater, or wire a panel over the internet. The work my industry does can't be done by a chatbot, and there aren't enough young people coming in to do it.
And here's the part most people miss: AI belongs in a tradesperson's toolbox too. I built AI quoting tools and marketing systems for my own company. The kid who can do the work and run the office side with modern tools isn't settling for less. They're setting up to own the company, not just work for one.
College is a fine road. The trades are a fine road. The only wrong move is drifting onto either one without a plan.
Three ways in, one direction
Start free, bring me to your parent group, or sit down with me as a family. And when your teen is ready to actually build something, the cohort below is where that happens.
Pricing is straightforward and I'll give it to you on the call, no games.
A short, plain-spoken guide to talking with your teen about college, trades, AI, and what they actually want, with questions to ask and arguments to skip. It's the same takeaway I hand out at every school event.
- Written for parents, not counselors
- Works whichever road your kid picks
- Free, emailed within one business day
75-90 minutes plus Q&A for your PTO, library, home-school co-op, church, or community group. One flat fee for the whole room.
- What AI actually changes about the entry-level job map
- How to have the college/trades conversation without a fight
- A take-home conversation guide for every family
A 75-minute private session (you and your teen together), offered after you've seen me at a talk or workshop. You leave the session with the plan; the written two-page copy follows within a week.
- Your kid's strengths, in plain terms
- Trade, apprenticeship, and ownership pathways near you
- Which AI skills matter for that path, and which don't
Teen Trades Entrepreneurship Cohort
Vo-tech teaches the trade. I teach the ownership.
Six weeks. Live video sessions. A small group of 6-8 students. Small enough that nobody hides in the back. Every week your teen builds a piece of a real business. Theirs. Not a workbook exercise: a name, an offer, a price, and a first customer to call.
There are plenty of free videos about starting a business. What they don't do is sit your kid in a small group, week after week, with someone who's actually built one, and hold them to a launch date.
The goal is concrete: launch a real side business and earn the first $100 by week 6. Mowing, detailing, pressure washing, junk hauling: whatever fits your kid and your town. The trade is theirs to pick. The ownership is what I teach.
The $100 is a target we work toward, not a promise. Some students book their first job in week 4; some land it after the cohort ends. Results vary with effort.
- Founding cohort starts October 2026; later cohorts are announced to the waitlist first
- Six live small-group sessions, plus a launch plan your teen builds week by week
- Goal: a launched side business and the first $100 earned by week 6
- A parent signs the enrollment; every session is recorded with parent access
- Full refund after session 1 if it's not a fit
What the six weeks cover
Every week ends with something built, not just something learned.
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Week 1
Foundation & business identity
What the business is, who it serves, and why they'd pick you. Name it, define the offer, and say it out loud until it sounds like you, not like a brochure.
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Week 2
Grit, leadership & problem-solving
Every job goes sideways eventually. We practice what to do when it does: own the mistake, fix the problem in front of you, and lead instead of quitting.
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Week 3
Sales & marketing that works
How to ask for work without being weird about it. Where local customers actually come from, and the follow-up habit that most adults in business still don't have.
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Week 4
Money & pricing
What to charge, what the job actually costs, and what's left over. Plus how to work with a CPA: what they do, what to ask, and when it's time to call one.
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Week 5
Licensing, legal & insurance basics
The unglamorous stuff that keeps a business alive. What licensing and insurance mean at this size, and how to work with an attorney instead of guessing.
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Week 6
Launch strategy: book the first paying job
A real launch plan with dates on it: the first customer to call, the script for the ask, and what to do the day after the first job is done.
The same spine runs through my adult program, dug a lot deeper. Starting a business yourself? See First Business Launch.
Before you enroll your kid, check my homework
You should expect all of this from anyone who works with your kid. Here's mine:
- A parent signs the enrollment. Minors can't contract, so you're my client too
- Every session is recorded, and parents get access to every recording
- Parents are welcome to sit in on any session, any time, no notice needed
- No private DMs or texts between me and any minor. All communication runs through a parent-visible channel
- PA clearances are in progress now and will be provided to every enrolled family before the first cohort
- The guarantee: come to session 1, and if it's not a fit for you, your teen, or me, every dollar comes back. Leave before the halfway mark and the refund is pro-rated. Pro-rated means simple math: the price divided by the number of sessions, refunded for every session you didn't attend
Questions parents actually ask
My teen doesn't have a business idea yet. Should we wait?
No. "No idea yet" is a fine answer on the application, and week 1 is where the idea gets picked and shaped. What matters is that your teen wants to build something, not that they already know what.
What happens after we apply?
You get a free 30-minute fit call with me. Your teen joins for the last 15 minutes. If they don't want this, I won't sell it to you. We both decide, and nobody pays a dollar before that call.
What if it turns out to be a bad fit?
Come to session 1. If it's not a fit for you, your teen, or me, every dollar comes back, no forms, no hard feelings. Leave before the halfway mark and the refund is pro-rated. Pro-rated means simple math: the price divided by the number of sessions, refunded for every session you didn't attend.
How do I know my kid is safe?
Check my homework instead of taking my word. Every session is recorded with parent access, there's no private contact between me and any minor, a parent signs the enrollment, and my PA clearances are in progress now, with copies provided to every enrolled family before the first cohort meets. The full list, with the honest status of each item, is on the safety page.
Will my teen actually make money?
The goal is a launched side business and the first $100 earned by week 6. It's a target we work toward, not a promise. Some students book their first job in week 4; some land it after the cohort ends. Results vary with effort.
Apply for the teen cohort
This isn't a checkout page. You apply, we have a free fit call, and we both decide. The October 2026 founding cohort is open for applications now.
Rather talk before you apply? Book a free 30-minute fit call and we'll sort out fit first.
Request a family session
This session is built as a follow-up to my talks and workshops. It goes deeper on what we covered in the room, with your specific kid in mind. Haven't seen me speak yet? Bring a workshop to your group first, or start with the free guide below.
75 minutes, parent and teen together. You leave with the plan; the written copy follows within a week.
Get the Trades Conversation Guide
The kitchen-table conversation is easier with a plan. This is the guide I hand every family at school events: questions worth asking, fights worth skipping, and how to hear what your kid is actually telling you. Free, no strings.
I'll send the guide and the occasional field note. Unsubscribe anytime. Rather talk it through? Book a free fit call.