I was a chubby child at five and people say that I am cute. At the time, people also love to buy palamig. My dad came up with the idea of taking advantage of my charisma and charm as a chubby child to sell palamig to people. How entrepreneurial!

My dad set up my palamig stand in front of one of our clothing stores and people would notice a chubby child by the stand. They would ask, "Uy, ineng! Ano ga iyang tinda mo?". ("Hey, baby girl, what is it that you're selling?") Of course, they might have already known what I was selling but it was a rhetorical question and I was still clueless so I would always dutifully reply, "Palamig po. Bili na po kayo!". ("I am selling 'palamig'. Please buy some.) And they would buy one serving for five pesos each. 

Plastic cups are not common then. Either you drink in a glass or you have it in ice plastic bags and a plastic straw. This was the 1990's. Also, the common palamig would probably cost one peso or two pesos each serving. But people still buy my five-peso palamig since they are too fond of me, at least according to my dad.

When my sales amounted to a significant number, my dad brought me to the bank to open a bank account for me. There, we deposited all of my earnings. However, my small business only lasted during the summer as I had to go back to school when June came.

That first business, no matter how informal and experimental, opened up a new world for me. It taught me that you earn more money by doing business than with working for others. It also taught me to use my skills, talents, and strengths for better chances of success. Lastly, I learned that I could save money, not just in my wallet or my piggy bank, but in an actual bank even as a child.

What's your story? Were you also a child entrepreneur?