Becoming a Holistic Entrepreneur

Overview

Have you ever wondered what it takes to start your own business? In this engaging lesson, students will hear from the Rising Entrepreneurs Summit Keynote Speaker:  Andrew Holmes, Founder and CEO of Three Strands Marketing – who turned their passion for marketing into a thriving company. By sharing his personal journey—filled with challenges, creativity, and success—students will gain real-world insights into entrepreneurship.

This lesson ties to the New Brunswick Holistic Curriculum by fostering critical thinking, innovation, and career exploration. Students will reflect on the entrepreneurial traits, challenges, and the importance of giving back to the community while connecting these themes to personal wellness and career goals.  In addition, students will reflect on their own interests, develop problem-solving skills, and explore how they can turn ideas into action. Get ready to be inspired!

NB Curricular Connections

Personal Wellness (6-8)

• Strand: Mental Fitness – Big Idea: Students will apply the knowledge, skills, and attitudes necessary to develop and maintain positive mental health.
• Strand: Career Connected Learning – Big Idea: Students will identify knowledge, skills, and attitudes needed to pursue career pathways.

English Language Arts (6-8)

• Strand: Interactions – Big Ideas: Expression
• Strand: Interactions – Big Ideas: Exchanges

What You’ll Need

• Access to Keynote Speaker video link
• Handout with Instructions and timings (alternately could be put on Smartboard)
• Time frame: 1 – 3 periods
• Pen and paper
• Chart paper/post it notes (optional)

Instructions

Reflective Journal (10-15 minutes):

Have students write a short reflection in their journals based on the talk, addressing the following prompts:

1. What traits of an entrepreneur do you see in yourself?
2. What challenges mentioned by the entrepreneur do you think you would handle well? Which ones might be difficult for you?
3. How does an entrepreneur’s holistic lifestyle contribute to their success?

Entrepreneur Wellness Wheel (20 minutes):

Students create a “Wellness Wheel” for an entrepreneur.

1. Divide a circle into segments: mental health, physical health, social life, community involvement, creativity, financial stability, and lifelong learning.
2. For each segment, students write down ways an entrepreneur can maintain balance in that area (e.g., regular exercise for physical health, giving back for community involvement). Teacher can go around the room and have students share with class their ideas.

Alternately, teacher could create one large wellness wheel or use chart paper with headings: mental health, physical health, social life, community involvement, creativity, financial stability, and lifelong learning.  Students may be placed in pairs or small groups and be given post it notes.  Each pair/group must come up with 1 – 3 suggestions for each heading.  Students place post it notes under correct heading.  These can be shared as a class – keep up for the visual reminder of the activity.

Group Brainstorm: Community Business Ideas (20 minutes):

In small groups, students brainstorm a business idea that gives back to their community while supporting personal wellness.

1.  Students must consider how the business aligns with wellness (e.g., a yoga studio offering free classes for seniors or a community garden project).
2. Groups will create a short pitch (2-3 minutes) for their business idea.

 This activity reinforces the themes of entrepreneurship, wellness, and community, while allowing students to creatively engage with the material in a hands-on way.

Extension Activity

1. Discuss how entrepreneurial skills and wellness habits can be applied to any career or life path.
2. Ask students to share one takeaway from the activity or the entrepreneur’s talk.

Global Competencies

Collaboration

Communication

Critical Thinking and Problem Solving

Self-Awareness and Self-Management

Innovation. Creativity and Entrepreneurship

Reflection Activity

Please see the attached PDF for several choices on how you and your learners can reflect upon today’s activity.

Acknowledgements

This learning resource was created by Carolyn Barnhart who is a retired high school teacher in ASD-W of over thirty years.  The video portion was created by Andrew Holmes, Founder and CEO of Three Strands Marketing.