Many of the things you want and need are paid for with money. Right now, that money is likely earned by someone who takes care of you. In the future, you’ll earn that money yourself through working at a job.

Working a Job

Most often, having a job means that someone hires you to do a specific task, like cleaning or cooking. You could also start your own business, and pay yourself from the profits, or money you earn. If your business gets big enough, you may hire other employees to help you and pay them as well.

What kinds of jobs are there?

There are hundreds of thousands of jobs. Here are just a few you’ve likely seen people do…

• Mail deliverer
• Cook
• Firefighter
• Doctor
• Teacher
• Janitor

But there are also other jobs that you might not have seen yet, such as a scientist who researches the natural world, a pilot who flies planes, or a director who creates the movies you watch.

Choosing a Job

With so many jobs available, how can you possibly pick? As you get older, pay attention to what you like. This could be subjects in school, activities you do at home, or things you see on TV. Once you find something that sounds interesting, you can start planning to do that for money. Sometimes you can do it right away, other times you’ll need special training or schooling to learn how to do it.

For now, you can start planning for your future job by paying attention to the jobs around you, working hard in school, and practicing working by doing chores around the house or opening a small business like a lemonade stand or lawn mowing business.

Thinking about and planning for what job you will have in the future can be fun. There are so many possibilities!