Teen CEO shares his tips for a productive summer

Jenk Oz runs his own company at 13. He tells LISA SALMON kids can use the holidays to start a fun (and possibly lucrative) project

IT’S all too easy for kids to spend the summer holidays staring at a phone or tablet. But while that’s safe and easy, it achieves very little. Yet the long summer holidays provide a prime opportunity for children to try something new and potentially achieve something great.

Whether they want to start their own blog, organise a charity event, fundraise or even launch a start-up business, the possibilities for kicking off a fun and rewarding new project during the school summer break are endless.

Jenk Oz knows all about starting a fun and successful project. The 13-year-old became the country’s youngest CEO just over two years ago at the tender age of 11 when he started the online lifestyle magazine iCoolKid, aimed at children aged between eight and 15.

The site offers everything from information about new science and tech, and fun business stories, to news about the latest music, dance, extreme sports, and cool hangouts, and rakes in thousands of hits a day.

Jenk, who lives in London, has interviewed stars including James Corden, Idris Elba, and fashion designer Julien MacDonald.

Every school lunchbreak he calls his team – including iCoolKid’s co-founder, his mum Carmen Greco – to discuss ideas for the website, based on what’s popular with his schoolmates.

It’s a glamorous but busy life for a young teen, and Jenk is happy to discuss how he’s got there. Here, he gives other kids tips on how they can use the summer holidays to kick start their own successful project.

HAVE A CLEAR GOAL IN MIND

“IF you want to launch a new project this summer, firstly, it’s important to think about what you’re passionate about and what’s going to motivate you to succeed,” he says.

“Do you aspire to be the next Mark Zuckerberg? Are you passionate about a charity and want to dedicate your spare time to raising some valuable funds? Are you set to become the next Zoella?

“Whatever your goal, first and foremost you need to spend time thinking about how you see it working, and what success looks like to you. Don’t be afraid to think big – it’s always good to challenge yourself.

“Nailing the initial idea is so important. What makes your