Middle School Entreprenurship Anonymous

"One dollar." I smiled with satisfaction as I handed my friend a can of soda and hid the money he gave me in my shoe. It was at summer camp, when I was thirteen years old, that I discovered the "Law of Supply and Demand" and created a system that quadrupled my money in a matter of days. I wasn't taking advantage of my friends, but rather following basic financial principles--on a summer camp scale.

The "Black Market," as it was called, had the unit heads baffled. At the beginning of summer, our parents contributed a small amount of money for camp extras. When my camp counselor said he would be going out that night, and asked if we wanted anything, I began to think about my friends, who continuously complained about the heat in the middle of summertime. I finally said, "Would you go to Walmart and buy me a 12 pack of soda?" What cost me less than a quarter per can, I was able to sell to my friends for a dollar each. By the end of the camp session, I had earned a profit of about fifty dollars.

Fast forward to junior year and I was sitting in accounting class. Everyone was nearly asleep; however, I was fascinated by what was being taught. After the lesson my accounting teacher said, "Ok, everyone go to the computers and work on...