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I wanted to share something important with you about how we’re changing education for teens. When I was in high school, I was excited at first, but it didn't last. I found myself bored and disconnected because the topics I cared about—business and money—just weren’t being talked about in the classroom. So, I ended up wasting years playing video games instead of learning things that felt meaningful.
Money was tight in my family, and I was eager to figure out how to make it. I thought college would teach me what I needed to know, but when I got there, it was just more of the same: classes that didn't connect with my real interests. I wasn’t learning about business or how the world really worked, and I felt stuck.
Eventually, I reached a breaking point in my junior year. I decided that I wasn’t going to wait any longer to learn what I actually wanted to know. I wanted to take risks and start my own business while I was still young. I knew it was now or never.
Surprisingly, some of my most valuable lessons came from a part-time job I had at Vitamin World during my freshman and sophomore years in college. Working as a sales associate, I learned how to talk to customers, sell products, and understand the basics of running a business. I saw how the real world works in a way that textbooks never showed me.
One of the biggest lessons I learned was how to sell using samples. My manager taught me a simple technique: offer customers a sample of our delicious multivitamin drink. I’d pour a small amount into a tiny paper cup, almost like a shot glass but even smaller, and get them excited about how great it tasted, how good it was for them, and how easily it would be absorbed. I made it fun by sharing a little ritual we called the "Texas tap." After we both poured our "multivitamin shots," I’d tap the cup on the counter, cheers with the customer, and we’d toss it back in one gulp.
As they were about to drink it, I’d already be talking up how delicious it was. What I found was that one out of five people who took that shot with me ended up buying the product, often in addition to other items. I experienced this hundreds of times, and it helped me bump up my sales numbers, which played a part in me becoming the top-selling associate in the store within just two months. It was a lesson you can’t learn from textbooks—you have to live it.
That’s why I created the Tech Work Program, which is all about giving teenagers a chance to learn real-world skills as early as possible. The program offers a curriculum based on actual industry tasks, so teens can get hands-on experience that feels like a real job. Instead of just memorizing facts, they get to work on projects that matter to them.
Our goal is to help teens learn how to take smart risks while they’re young. This is the time to explore different career paths and figure out what they’re passionate about. The skills they learn with us are ones they’ll carry no matter what career they choose.
Think about it—most of us take classes like calculus or algebra and forget nearly all of it after graduation. Those subjects don’t usually prepare us for the real world. But learning how to solve real problems and navigate real work situations? That’s something you’ll use for the rest of your life.
We’ve made it easy for your teen to get started with the Tech Work Program. Sign up for one of our webinars to learn more about how this program works and what it can offer your teenager.
This isn’t just an extra class or after-school activity. It’s a chance for teens to discover their interests, gain valuable skills, and set themselves up for success, all while they’re still in high school. Don’t miss the opportunity to give your teen a head start in life.
We're excited to have you join us on this journey, one step at a time.
Help your child learn how to become a stronger problem-solver using the newest A.I. tools & tech they don't learn about at school. Enroll your child into the Tech Work Experience today.