Lesson 1

USS Biz Trek

Lesson 1: Fantastic Voyage

Alicia: Jeff, before we transport to the ship, do you have your bug zapper?

Jeff: My virobug zapper? There hasn’t been an outbreak of virobug infestation on a starship in ten years.

Alicia: But I’ve heard those nasty things can eat the circuitry of an entire ship in one day. Wouldn’t you rather be prepared?

Jeff: I guess. I’ll call Lalo and tell him to grab a zapper when he leaves the MedLab, but you worry too much. A virobug infestation…now that’s funny!

Getting Ready

Are you equipped for a journey into the uncharted territory of business?

On any great mission, whether it’s in business or in space, problems can arise. If you take time to prepare, you’ll be okay. If you don’t, the outcome may "bug" you for a very long time!

One of the first things to do when you’re getting ready to enter new territory is to learn something about the language. The world of business has its own vocabulary — and you need to know some of it in order to find your way around.

For instance, a term that may be used to describe you is entrepreneur. Do you know what that means? An entrepreneur (ahn' tra pra nur) is "a person who organizes and manages a business undertaking, assuming the risk for the sake of profit." In other words, entrepreneurs create businesses. They’re pioneers, explorers, and inventors — all rolled into one.

Can someone under 21 become an entrepreneur?

Yep! Any person who starts and operates a business is an entrepreneur. Lots of teens earn money detailing cars, landscaping, babysitting, or even doing Web page design. Anytime you sell goods or services for the sake of earning a profit, you are engaged in business. And that makes you an entrepreneur.

Entering the Free Enterprise System

Free enterprise is an economic system in which every person regardless of age, race, religion, gender, or political beliefs has the right to engage in legal business activities. Once you start a business and offer goods or services, you are participating in free enterprise.

Some other interesting aspects of free enterprise are:

You get to set whatever price you want for your products (although selling lemonade for $700 a cup may not be your most profitable venture).
You may offer your products to any customer who is interested.
Unfortunately, those customers are free to make their own choices about what they will buy.
Other people can also start businesses that may compete with your business (like that "sweet" little 5-year-old who ruins your business by selling her lemonade for 50 cents a cup).
You can raise or lower your prices to compete with other business owners.

Who Wants to be a Zillionaire?

The number-one way most millionaires make their fortunes is by operating their own businesses. Some of the most successful entrepreneurs today are Bill Gates (Microsoft), Master P (No Limit Records), and Oprah Winfrey (Harpo Productions). Each of these people essentially did four things:

They saw a need for a new product.
They created that new and wonderful product.
They started a business to offer this product to customers.
They got rich!! (Okay, so maybe it’s not quite that simple, but you can definitely make some extra spending money by starting your own business.)

In the free enterprise system, you have the same exciting opportunity as these well-known entrepreneurs to learn about business and use what you know to become self-sufficient (and perhaps even wealthy).

What Happens Next?

Knowing what to expect when it comes to your money is very important. Below is an outline of the five growth phases that most businesses go through. Remember your business may not go exactly this way, but this outline will give you an idea of what to expect.

Phase 1: Research
You have a business idea, but no customers. In this phase, you are involved in the preparation and research to start your business. You have to pay any expenses out of your own pocket because there is no income yet.

Phase 2: Start-up
After completing your research, you believe your business idea will be successful. You raise the start-up money and launch the business. Although you may have a few customers, there are start-up loans to pay back. The business is not yet making a profit.

Phase 3: Break-even
On the day that your income matches your expenses, you have reached the break-even point. You are no longer losing money! It’s a happy day, but you still don’t have any money to spend.

Phase 4: Early Growth
Your business is new, but you are starting to get more customers and make some profit. It’s extremely tempting to spend that money on yourself, but you need to keep it to buy supplies, pay for advertising, and reinvest in the business. (Even though it may seem like a good idea, it’s still not time to trade your 1990 Ford Explorer in for that 2001 Lincoln Navigator. Give yourself some time.)

Phase 5: Steady Growth
You did it! You’ve got regular customers and the income from your business is steady. You’re finally making enough profit to have some extra money. Don’t go overboard! Put some aside for college, rainy days, and your new Navigator. Enjoy it a little — you’ve earned it. But don’t forget, in order to keep growing, you have to do two things:

Make sure your current customers stay happy.
Find more new customers.

Time to Get Trekkin’!

Now that you’ve had an overview of the journey you’re about to take into the world of entrepreneurship, it’s time to get busy. Your mission is to complete the three USS Biz Trek activities listed below. Just click on each link, follow the easy directions, and use your browser’s back button to return to this page when you’re finished. Have fun!