This week Andy began a new earning enterprise. And his work world looks a whole lot different than mine at his age. Forget mowing lawns (our neighbors don’t have them). Delivering newspapers is out of the question (long ago this job was moved from bike-riding kids to underemployed drivers). Babysitting is out (just not interested). In the 21st century, the best job for underage kids is selling family castoffs on eBay.

He did well with his first item, all the while considering it an experiment. In other words, the bar was set low — if it sold, the experiment would be a success. And if a few mistakes were made along the way (such as underestimating shipping costs), well, they’d be lessons learned. Mission accomplished. Now he’s on to reselling the CD he just received as a gift but already owned.

[Disclaimer: Theoretically, he's doing this over the shoulder of his parents (who actually complete the transaction), as eBay requires buyers and sellers to be 18 or older.]

I love that the Internet is a great equalizer: Kids can do as well as adults and geography is meaningless (unless you underestimate shipping costs). When I enter our garage these days, its overflowing shelves no longer evoke guilt about never getting around to holding that garage sale. Instead, I think of a young boy who can earn some cash, learn a new skill, and get excited about entrepreneurship. Now we just need to negotiate a parental cut of the earnings before he gets too successful.