My dad frequently used a saying about “plowing the back forty”. It popped into my mind today - and I connected it with putting kids to work on a farm, and how most modern parents are not afforded this luxury. Meanwhile, back at the ranch, I was thinking about how I could still keep a small business running when I didn’t have the time for the laborious tasks it required. Hmm.

My idea is thus: I will pay my children to pack and ship certain orders for me. I will pay them  the profit on each order they ship (eventually, they’ll learn how to maximize their earnings). They also have to have the urgency to ensure that all orders ship within 48 hours, that will be the harder part to sell them.

What I’m hoping is that the scope of this idea will make it very exciting to them. Why not let them particpate in the success of the family?