While preparing to sit the Caribbean Advanced Proficiency Examination (CAPE), Sheridan Dyal, a student at Queen’s College, established an online business called ‘Teen Hustle’.
Dyal is recongised for being the most outstanding student in Science for the Caribbean Secondary Education Certificate (CSEC); she secured 18 Grade Ones and a Grade Two pass last year.
And over the Christmas break, the teen invested in the online business that sells accessories.
She intends to travel abroad to further her studies and while she hopes to secure a scholarship, Dyal said she felt the need to find another source of funding.
The 17-year-old now spends her days establishing her business when she not preparing for the regional exams.
Speaking with the News Room on Monday, Dyal said balancing her new business while focusing on her studies is sometimes difficult but she is determined to have multiple streams of income.
“I had a bit savings that I had gotten for Christmas…I was like okay this is just a little bit of savings and instead of putting it in the bank and having it all accumulate in the bank, we learned that money depreciates when it’s kept in the bank,” she said.
While she hasn’t invested in index funds and stocks, Dyal said she decided to invest her savings using the knowledge gained while studying.
“I plan to go to college next year. I want to go on a scholarship because it would be more financially beneficial for me. Although I will hopefully get a scholarship to go, I don’t know if it will be guaranteed 100 per cent, and even if it is, I still want to have my own money to use.”
Managing her business while preparing to sit the CAPE first-year exams, she said, “I had to learn to compartmentalize when I am going to deal with business. Usually, when I get home I deal with business between five and six.” But with this strict timeline, Dyal finds that some customers can be very demanding.
“One encounter I would have had is that I would tell customers that I will get back to [them] or someone would contact me after I would have allocated time for my business and customers tend to want me to meet their demands at all times,” the young entrepreneur explained.
Nevertheless, the teenager intends to rebrand her business when she goes abroad to study. Dyal said she will be expanding to have a base in Guyana and wherever she goes to study. Persons can access her business on Instagram using the handle teenhustle_gy.
This is good thinking Sheridan. What I like about it all is that if plan A fauls you could always turn to plan B if that is feasible. You do have that insight into things. Keep up the good work as I wish you the very best in your future endeavours