Milestone map
Milestone map
3 milestones
Identify a real way to earn money and take the first step
1–2 weeks
Before earning, you need to identify a legitimate activity that other people will pay for — something you can do, deliver, and get paid for within a few weeks. The activity should match your current abilities, require no large upfront investment, and be something you can do independently. Once you have identified it, take the first concrete step: tell someone, post an offer, ask a family member, or apply for a job.
Proof required
Describe in writing: the earning activity you chose (babysitting, lawn mowing, selling something you made, helping a neighbour, part-time job), why you chose it, and the first action you took to make it happen. A short paragraph or bullet list is fine. Accepted verifiers: peers, teachers, or parents.
What gets checked
- Activity is specific and doable: a named activity with a real audience (family, neighbours, local employer, online marketplace) — 'start a business' without specifics is not a first step
- First action is concrete and already taken: 'I told my neighbour I was available on Saturdays' or 'I applied on the employer's website' — not 'I plan to ask around'
- Activity is age-appropriate and legitimate: no activity requiring working papers the student does not have, or skills not yet in place
Common mistakes
- Choosing an earning idea that requires significant upfront investment — a K12 student's first income should come from services or sales of things already made, not from launching a product requiring capital
- Waiting for the perfect opportunity rather than starting with the most accessible one — the first income proves the skill, not the business idea
- Taking no action beyond thinking about it — the milestone requires an action taken, not an intention formed
Resources
Foundationstart here
What a verifier looks for
- K12 outcome — accepted verifiers: peers, teachers, or parents
- Ask the student what the first action they took was — 'I told someone' or 'I applied' is a real first step; 'I thought about it' is not
- Confirm the activity is age-appropriate and legally accessible — if it requires working papers or a license the student does not have, it is not a valid first step
Complete the work and receive payment
1–4 weeks (depends on activity chosen in M1)
Do the job, deliver the service, or sell the item, and receive payment in any form — cash, bank transfer, payment app, or employer pay. The amount does not matter for this milestone. What matters is that you completed something real that someone valued enough to pay for, and you have a record of that payment. A £3 cash sale counts exactly the same as a £30 job — the proof is in the receipt, not the amount.
Proof required
Share evidence of completed work and received payment: a cash receipt or note from a parent confirming payment, a Venmo or PayPal screenshot, a pay stub, or a bank transfer record. Include a brief description of what you did and when. A parent's written confirmation is acceptable if the payment was in cash. Accepted verifiers: peers, teachers, or parents.
What gets checked
- Evidence shows an actual payment was received — a description of the work alone without payment evidence does not meet the standard
- Payment record is dated, showing the transaction happened in a specific week — a description without a date is not verifiable
- Work description is specific enough to be credible: 'mowed the neighbour's lawn on 4 July' or '3 hours babysitting on Saturday' — not 'I did some work'
Common mistakes
- Doing the work but not getting paid — payment received is the milestone; promises of future payment do not count
- Accepting payment but keeping no record of it — even a text message confirming 'paid £10 for babysitting' is a usable record
- Work done for free as a favour and retroactively described as 'income' — the exchange must have involved actual payment
Resources
Foundationstart here
What a verifier looks for
- K12 outcome — accepted verifiers: peers, teachers, or parents
- Payment evidence must be present — a description of the work without payment confirmation is incomplete
- Parental confirmation is acceptable for cash transactions: the parent should confirm the amount, date, and activity in writing (text, email, or signed note)
Reflect on the experience and plan the next earning step
1 week
Now that you have earned income once, you have direct experience to learn from. Reflect on what was harder than expected, what worked well, and whether you want to do this again — and if so, at what scale. The best first-income reflection does not just describe what happened; it names one concrete thing you would do differently next time and one step you will take in the next two weeks.
Proof required
Write a short reflection (at least 4 sentences) covering: what you did, what was harder than expected, one thing you would do differently, and your next step — whether that is doing it again, trying something different, or stopping. Accepted verifiers: peers, teachers, or parents.
What gets checked
- Reflection references something specific that was harder than expected — 'harder than I thought' without naming what is too vague; 'finding a second customer was harder because I did not know who to ask' is specific
- One concrete next step is named and has a realistic timeline — 'earn more money' is not a next step; 'ask two more neighbours if they need lawn mowing next Saturday' is
- Reflection is honest about whether this is something the student wants to continue — the outcome is earned first income, not a business plan; it is fine to decide it was a one-time experiment
Common mistakes
- Writing a reflection that only describes what happened without identifying a lesson — a retelling of events is not a reflection
- Next step is too vague to be actionable — the commitment should be something that could happen in the next two weeks without waiting for perfect conditions
- Glossing over what was difficult — the hardest parts are where the real learning lives; a reflection that says everything went smoothly probably missed something
Resources
Foundationstart here
What a verifier looks for
- K12 outcome — accepted verifiers: peers, teachers, or parents
- Ask the student to name one thing that was harder than expected and how it would change their approach — a student who earned income honestly should have at least one concrete friction point
- Next step should be specific and named: who will they ask, what will they offer, and by when — if they cannot answer, the next step is not yet concrete enough