Jobs for 17 year olds – As a seventeen-year-old, it may be difficult to earn money. After all, most teenagers that age are in either high school or college and may be more concerned with their grades and friends rather than with their financial status. More than that, most people are not looking for inexperienced teenagers to employ, making it more difficult to get a job as a teenager especially if a young person is looking for their first job.
Still, there are jobs for teenagers if you know where to look for them, and this article will list some of the possible occupations for adolescents. Unfortunately, please note that the following may or may not apply to you. Some areas do not allow seventeen-year-olds to work at all or may limit their job opportunities. On the other hand, some areas may allow seventeen-year-olds to work but prefer older people, making their search for a job more challenging.
Sometimes the neighborhood is the best place to start
When searching for a job, we often go to where we think the most money is. This may be far away in the tall buildings downtown, but sometimes the best place to start looking for a job, especially when one is young, is in the neighborhood.
What jobs are available in the neighborhood? A place full of houses and families and yards may seem to provide no employment prospects, but that is not entirely true. First of all, since people are familiar with you, it may be easier to get a job. They may trust someone they see regularly rather than a stranger to do the jobs they may have no time to do.
Cleaning
One of the best jobs for 17 year olds around the neighborhood is cleaning. You can be paid to clean a house, a yard, or even a car. Of course, before applying for a job like this, you must be familiar with the chores necessary to do a quality cleaning job. Help around your house, and once you are confident clients will find your work satisfactory, then you can look for people who may need your help with their cleaning tasks. The people who often fall under this category are either extremely busy adults who may have high-powered careers, kids, or both or elderly people who may find chores to be difficult in their advanced age.
Dog Walking
On the other hand, if you would rather spend time around animals instead of cleaning, then maybe the perfect neighborhood job for you is dog walking. To succeed in this occupation, you must be comfortable around animals and can relate well to them. You must also invest in some quality items, like a leash just in case something happens to a dog’s leash and a comfortable pair of walking shoes for you.
Still, if you like animals but would rather not spend the day walking under the sweltering heat of the sun, then it may be a better idea for you to become a pet sitter instead. Like a dog walker, your main responsibility is the pet of your client, and you must be comfortable around animals. You need to be willing to spend time with pets even cuddling and playing with them. The owner will usually give you all that you need to do your job, so all you need to provide is your time, your expertise, and your love for animals.
Finally, if the idea of spending your time with animals makes you uneasy, you can always earn money through babysitting. Before you advertise yourself as a babysitter, though, you need to be comfortable around children. You must have the ability to care for them and know what to do in case of emergencies. If a child falls sick, who do you call? If someone under your care is in an accident, what should you do? Babysitting may sound easy, but it is most definitely not. After all, the lives of people younger than you are under your care.
Those are the most common jobs around the neighborhood, but neighborhood occupations are not limited to them. You may be able to assist your parents in their neighborhood jobs or teach the kids a skill you have, or maybe you have an idea for a necessary job that is usually ignored in your area.
jobs for 17 year olds in the service industry
On the other hand, one of your motivating factors to get a job may be to get out of your neighborhood more. You want to explore downtown areas or at least go to places you do not usually frequent. Well, there is always the service industry if you want to work in more crowded places.
Note that this kind of occupation may be unavailable to you depending on where you live. Some places require people to reach the age of majority before working, or if they are minors, they may be asked to provide proof of parental permission before being hired. Nevertheless, if the service industry is an option for you, then it may be a good idea for job, especially since it can help you develop important skills such as teamwork and professionalism.
What exactly are the jobs in the service industry, though? First of all, you can work at a fast food chain or at a restaurant. The tasks you will do include taking the orders of customers, serving other people, and general cleaning. Second, you can work as a cashier for a supermarket and other stores. Most of your responsibilities will center on ringing up the prices of things people bought and then placing them inside a shopping bag. Finally, you can also work as a salesperson for department stores and boutiques. This might be a good job for you if you like dealing with other people and have an eye for fashion.
Virtual/Online jobs for 17 year olds
So far, all of the jobs discussed in this article take place in what is considered as a real world. To go to your job, you have to get up, get ready, and get yourself physically to your place of employment, but what if that is not option for you? What if going out to earn a living is too difficult and outweighs the benefits?
Fortunately for you, we live in the digital age, and it is now possible to earn a few bucks with just your computer. Some of the following jobs may pay less than traditional adolescent work, though once you get started and gain reputation, it will be easier to up your price, just like with a traditional job.
One of the jobs you can do using a computer is completing micro tasks. How do you do this? Well, you apply on a website that asks you to complete a certain set of easy and quick tasks for money, and once you get accepted, you will have the list of tasks to do. The tasks may range from identifying objects in a video to taking pictures of a specific item, though the pay may be lower than what you expect.
Similar to that, you can also take surveys for money. However, if you choose to do this job, choose a trustworthy website and be careful with the information you provide. Do not answer any questions you feel uncomfortable answering, and click on links only if you are sure they will not do anything harmful.
Aside from taking surveys, you can also watch advertisements to earn money. This may be more time-consuming, though, since you often have to finish a whole advertisement video if you want the money to be credited in your account. There is no skipping or fast-forwarding this time.
Finally, if you are a gamer, then perhaps the best job for you is as a beta tester. What a beta tester does is checking if a game has no more bugs or problems. Be warned, though: it may sound like a pretty sweet job, but it is actually very time-consuming and may become boring. You will not spend your time playing your favorite games from start to finish. Instead, you may have to try out all possible actions for a certain scenario, checking that whatever a player presses or clicks will not result in the game crashing.
Perhaps you want to use your intelligence to earn money
Tutoring
Maybe you are a student with stellar grades, and you spend a lot of your time studying by yourself and with other people. Do you know you can use that to your advantage when you want to earn some money?
If you can understand and explain concepts really well, then perhaps the job for you is tutoring. This is a wonderful idea for high school students not just because it can help you get money, but also because if you are allowed to write it on your applications, then it shows that you have the drive and the patience necessary to succeed as an educator. This means that you can work well with others even to the point of helping them understand something they find difficult. If I was a hiring manager or a member of a university entrance committee, then I would give you extra points for that ability.
On the other hand, working for other people may not sound appealing
You may be one of those people who has declared ever since they were young that they will never work for others. You want to be in charge of your own time, money, and creative output, and the idea of following someone’s orders just to earn money does not sound the least bit appealing to you.
Luckily, you do not need to be a degree-holding adult to start your own business. If you think you are ready and you have the necessary capital or money to start a business, then you can earn your own money at your own time and pace.
Well, how do you exactly start a business? One of the first things you must do before starting your own business is research. Ask all the important questions and make sure that you receive the right answers. What are the products and services needed in your area? How much does it cost to run a business and how much can you earn from it? Do you have any competitors? Is your product or service a necessity? What are the average prices for the products and services in your place?
After doing enough research, then you should make sure that you have enough money. It will not be a great start to your business if before even beginning your venture, you already have run out of capital. As a teenager, it may be a great idea to start a business that does not involve much capital.
Once you have done your research and made sure that you have enough starting money, then buy all the necessary items you need. Before doing so, though, do a little research again. Figure out the cheapest brands you can buy without sacrificing quality. Ask if it is cheaper to buy at the grocery store in your city or ordering online. These things differ depending on several factors, but they can make or break your business before you even get started.
After that, you should hire people if necessary, though as an inexperienced teenager, it may be more wise and prudent for you to be the only employee of your business. Once your enterprise booms, though, you have to hire employees, and when you do, you need to make sure that they are trustworthy and hard-working people.
Next, you should look for a good location. Again, this depends on your circumstances. Maybe a physical location is not necessary for your business. Perhaps all you need is an online presence, a place to make your products, and then you can ship out orders to your customers. On the other hand, if a physical store is a better idea, then you need to ask yourself some questions again. Where should I set up my business? How many people go through this area? Are the potential customers passing by in a hurry or are they willing to stop and take a look at my products? How much will setting up my business at this location cost?
Now you are almost ready to actually begin your business. Still, before that, you need to get word out about your products and services. Good marketing ideas include setting up social media pages for your business and increasing its online presence. Maybe you want to go old-school by giving out flyers and coupons for the first day. Again, it all depends on you and what is best for your venture.
It is now time to finally start your business, but all your work does not end there. Once you have everything going, you have to constantly check the quality of your work and the financial status of your venture. You have to make sure that you are profiting from your business and that you are not losing money.
Now that we know how to begin a business, what are good business ideas for teenagers? Well, one of the most common businesses for young people is a lemonade stand. In fact, you do not have to sell lemonade. You can just think of a popular drink in your place – maybe hot chocolate, juice, or smoothies – and perfect your recipe. Once you have that down, you can just set up a stand outside your house and sell your delicious drinks.
On the other hand, if you are an artistic person, then maybe you can design shirts and accessories. There are many do-it-yourself kits that you can buy, and if you make great designs and accessories, you can sell them for a good price.
Lastly, if you make a pretty mean cupcake, you can sell your baked goodies just outside your house. If your cupcakes are really delicious, then maybe someone may even ask for a custom order of any baked item. You can then ask for a higher price.
Those are not the only possible businesses for teenagers. In fact, almost any skill you have can now be translated into a business. If you have enough time and motivation, almost any passion and ability you have can now make money for you.
Maybe a less traditional job is what you want
Aside from the common adolescent jobs, there are other money-generating occupations nowadays. For example, if you are comfortable with a camera, you can become a YouTube vlogger and a social media influencer with the right set of ideas. If you are a gamer, then you can stream your games online and gain a following just like a vlogger and an influencer does.
Granted, sometimes these jobs may not even provide money. Instead, you may be given sponsorships or expensive items to advertise.
Skill based jobs for 17 year olds
Not all teenagers have the same skills and abilities. Some are better artists, while others are a whiz at math and science. If you are very confident in a certain ability or skill that you have, then you can use that to generate money.
For example, if you are an excellent writer, then you can join writing competitions. Some winners earn over a hundred dollars for a single story. You may even get a semi-permanent job writing for a client or a company.
Coding is also an excellent money-generating skill. Like writing, there are also competitions available for talented coders, and the winning prize is also quite a large sum. Furthermore, you can also be employed by a company if they like your skills.
Finally, if you have a musical talent, you can take to the streets to earn money. You can busk with a single musical instrument, and if you can sing well, you can sing along. If people like your music, they may leave you a dollar or two.
There are many jobs for 17 year olds and finding a job as a teenager is possible
As a teenager, financial opportunities may seem limited or even nonexistent, but if you know where and how to look, then you can find a job. The key is to knowing yourself enough that you can identify your strengths and weaknesses, and then turning those strengths into a money-generating scheme. With enough time, motivation, and help, you can become a seventeen-year-old who earns their own money.
