At Age 7, I Decided to Become an Entrepreneur

I have always been fascinated by the idea of exchanging work and effort for something of value. As a child, this fascination first took shape in the everyday rhythm of home life.

One day, I remember barely being able to contain my excitement when I came up with an idea I thought was brilliant.

I scribbled down my first "price list" on a scrap of paper:

Do the dishes ------------ $0.30
Mop the floor ------------ $1.00
Make my bed ------------ $0.50
Vacuum the house ------ $0.75

With great pride, I taped it to my parents' bedroom door, certain I’d just invented the perfect system. I called my mom over, eager to show her my idea.

She read it carefully, smiled with a softness only mothers possess, and said,

"My daughter, doing household chores is your obligation. It's work we all do to care for and love each other."

At the time, I didn’t fully understand. But I knew the conversation was over — and I knew that, somehow, she was right. Years later, I’ve come to see how profound that moment really was. It taught me that not all work is transactional.

Some of the most important things we do are done not for profit, but out of duty, care, and love.

That lesson has stayed with me — shaping how I work, how I lead, and how I live.