The Kids Biz Job Description

The Kids Biz Program begins with the Job Description. This is where you and your children decide together what responsibilities they will have during the week. Kids Biz jobs are sequenced from morning to bedtime. This sequencing divides the tasks into manageable time frames and prevents children from feeling overwhelmed.

The Job Description eliminates confusion by providing your children with clear written guidelines that detail what is expected of them each day. It teaches them to work from a list and to manage their time. As they complete different tasks, they are immediately rewarded with an Achievement Check. This reward reinforces their good behavior.

Statistics reveal that people are 25% more efficient when they work from a prioritized, well-organized list of goals. The Kids Biz Job Description teaches your children the habit of working from a list.

Goal Box

...teaches how to set and achieve goals.

At the top of the Kids Biz Job Description is a box for your child to write a savings goal. The money saved for something special will go toward this goal. (Suggestions for goals.)

The Goal Box on the Job Description and the Rewards and Consequences section in the Super Star Contract get your children accustomed to attaining daily and weekly goals. Establishing the habit of setting and achieving goals is essential for creating a successful life.

Daily Jobs

...teaches important skills.

Children are much more likely to accomplish jobs which are listed clearly. The Daily Jobs section of the Job Description is divided into Morning Biz, Daytime Biz and Evening Biz. By breaking the jobs in this way, your children will know what needs to be accomplished before school, before play and before bed.

Would you like to reduce or eliminate the arguments over "chores"? Make Kids Biz the heavy.

Instead of "Did you finish your chores?",
simply ask to see their Kids Biz.
Instead of your children asking "What else do I need to do?",
tell them to check their Kids Biz.
When your children ask if they can go out and play,
respond with, "May I see your Kids Biz please?"
Your children will learn to check their Kids Biz first, and to ensure their jobs are completed before bringing their Kids Biz for you to see.

A lot of thought went into selecting each item on the Kids Biz Job Description. Check on the summary of the research that determined a few of the selections, including:

Behavior Biz

...encourages good behavior.

Behavior Biz provides you with a convenient system of rewards and consequences to encourage your children's good behavior and discourage poor behavior.

"Freebies"

Freebies help parents reward good behavior immediately and incorporate the element of surprise. Freebies are bonus Achievement Checks that are given on-the-spot to your children at the exact moment you catch them doing something good. For example, you might say to your child, "I know it is difficult for you to remain cheerful when you are hungry. Thank you for having such a pleasant attitude even though dinner is late. Give yourself two Freebies for your patience!"

"Opps!"

We strongly favor the use of positive, consistent reinforcement to develop successful behavior. However, sometimes it is necessary to stop undesirable behavior. The challenge is to do so without destroying your children's self-esteem in the process. This is what motivated us to invent Oops!.

An Oops! is a negative check that is given when misbehavior occurs. Giving your child an Oops! is a positive way to handle negative behavior, because it replaces yelling, scolding and spanking. It has a negative value equal to one Achievement Check and is subtracted from the total Achievement Checks earned for the day. The Oops! hits your children where it counts: In the pocketbook instead of the ego.

Behavior Biz Summary

The focus of the Kids Biz Program is to reinforce desirable behavior. To avoid discouraging your children, do not overuse Oops!. Please issue them with great care. Both positive and negative consequences must be fair, consistent and most important, immediate.

The winning qualities of self-discipline, patience and persistence all begin with parental discipline. The development of children's character is the result of years of consistent training. Parents get revitalized when they consider the imporance of consistency. Daily use of Freebies and Oops! helps your children develop positive character traits, attitudes and behavior that will pave their road to success. That's why it's very important to emphasize the Behavior Biz portion of the Kids Biz Program.

Weekly Jobs

...teaching life skills.

The Weekly Jobs section of the Job Description is where you list jobs that only need to be done on a weekly basis. Typically, these jobs are a bit more demanding, so we suggest that your children receive five Achievement Checks per task. If the job is espcially challenging, award multiple Freebies in addition to the original five Achievement Checks.

Some Weekly Jobs can be personal responsibilities like writing thank-you notes or cleaning under the bed. However, we strongly recommend that at least half of these taks be family or community related. Taking out the garbage and volunteering to help a neighbor or charity are good examples.

Weekly Planner

...teaches children to plan ahead.

The Weekly Planner is an extension of the Job Description. It is found at the bottom of the page, and is used to schedule the day your children will do each Weekly Job. Simply write the corresponding letter of each Weekly Job on the Planner. (See the example above.) This process teaches your children to plan in writing and prevents over-commitment. Help your children write their Weekly Jobs, sporting events, birthday parties, visits from friends and special occasions in this section. This gives them a chance to plan their days and prevents an end-of-the-week panic caused by leaving all their Weekly Jobs until the evening before Payday.

A Word From the Authors
Press Release

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