A Word from the Author
Throughout my personal life and career I have been moved by conversations with youth from around the world, on their soil and mine. Because of my role in these exchanges – teacher, leader, adult – youth shared their thoughts on life, the world, and their future.Many young people face a stuck-in-muck predicament: a lot of our social structures and systems suppress and constrain the natural ability we had as children to overcome challenges with imaginative solutions. Beneath the feelings of constraint is an urgent desire and a strong need among youth to break through real and perceived obstacles that stand between them and dreams of doing what they love – and more profoundly, what they are meant to do.
By nature and nurture, I am a solution architect and a problem-solver. The Entrepreneurial Spirit Program – a concept that promotes apprenticeship for aspiring entrepreneurs – is a solution to the pervasive dilemma caused by the status quo. The ESP mission revives the intuitively creative spirit of the inner child.
When we renew youths’ trust that it’s OK to do what they are meant to do, the stuck-in-muck emotions transform into unstuck, unbridled energy. Through the pre-apprenticeship component of the ESP concept, participants are inspired to trust their instincts and see their future. The learning outcomes provide the freedom, courage, and know-how to take a healthy run at leapfrogging the status quo.
Web Conference Engagements
The Entrepreneurial Spirit Program concept applies the model used for skilled-trade apprenticeships to youth entrepreneurs. While it is a unique application – the apprentice is the employer and the employee – all of the benefits carry-over. Inquire about scheduling a web conference with Joe.Facilitation Workshop
Participate in a full-day workshop to tailor the entrepreneur apprenticeship concept to suit the core values of your community and its workforce system. Define the requirements, roles, and responsibilities necessary to implement your version of a formal apprenticeship for aspiring entrepreneurs.
The Entrepreneurial Spirit Program (ESP) is perfectly tailored to strategic philanthropists and foundations who understand that supporting youth is central to promoting diverse and prosperous communities. This powerful book is the lynchpin that connects wealth and wisdom to the unbridled potential of young minds to re-invent our nation's future. A best-seller in the making!
Tom Deans Ph.D.
Author of 'Every Family’s Business' and 'Willing Wisdom'
