Becoming a Volleyball Coach

Through my Entrepreneurship class, I realized that entrepreneurs need capital to start most businesses. I decided to look for a job so I could start building my savings. I surveyed the job landscape and realized that finding the right opportunity was challenging. I wanted to find the right fit to maximize my earning potential, but still have time for school and volleyball. Ultimately, I decided to work for Raki Volleyball which capitalized on my skill as a volleyball player.

Problem

I needed to find a job to increase my wealth. I applied to many jobs including being a server, golf cart attendant, and valet. I was turned down for most of the jobs because I was not 18 years old. I was willing to work for minimum wage, but realized that with my schedule restrictions due to school and playing volleyball, I wouldn't have too many hours to work. I needed to find a job that was flexible and that I could make a lot of money at per hour.

Process

With the inherent obstacle of only being 17, I had to find a job that wouldn't mind that I was 17 and that would value what I had to offer. I overcame this obstacle by realizing that after playing volleyball for the past 7 years, I had enough experience to teach kids younger than me the game of volleyball. Giving private lessons would give me a flexible schedule and enable me to generate the cash flow I was looking for.

I reached out to Raki Volleyball, a privately owned company to seek this opportunity. I know the owner, Ashley. because she used to be my coach there. I wanted to work here because I loved my own experience being trained at Raki. I met with Ashley to propose that I be one of her instructions. She agreed but required a 15-hour training period as an unpaid intern to prove that I could teach a lesson on my own. Once I completed my 15-hour training I was given my first lesson for $20 per hour. I knew the student was paying $100 for the lesson and while I felt I should earn a greater portion of the $100 I felt that I had no leverage to ask for more money.

After working weekends and after school I realized that the kids I was teaching loved me and were learning a lot. More importantly, their parents loved me and I knew I finally had some leverage. One day I gained enough courage to present my case to Ashley and asked her for a raise. She said I had earned the next level of coaching and started paying me $40 per hour.

Reflections

Through the process of finding a job this semester, I learned several skills that will help me along my journey to becoming an entrepreneur including:

I didn't give up after being rejected from several jobs due to my age.
I used the opportunity mindset to evaluate the job landscape and find an open door for my skills.
Instead of seeing the 15-hour unpaid internship as an obstacle I changed my mindset and saw it as an opportunity to learn how to be a good coach and grow Ashley's confidence in me.
I waited for the right moment to ask for a raise, when I felt I had leverage and negotiated a raise.

Results

I work as part-time coach at Raki Volleyball working 6-8 hours per week making $40 per hour.