Time management skills are a necessity to success among students as they have to balance academics, athletics, jobs, clubs, social life and family life. A prime example of a student athlete exercising this skill is Derek Salas. Derek is a junior at Green level who plays club soccer for WAKE FC, and has been on the school soccer team for three years, one of which he was Captain of the JV team.
While juggling academics and soccer, Derek still finds time to make money in his little free time between practices and games after school through baking and delivering homemade flans to families in the local community.
What started off as a family recipe grew outside of the Salas kitchen table, as Derek decided to use his recipe to make a business called Benito Bakery.
“I took my family’s recipe book and my old grandma’s recipes and thought, I want to share my family’s culture from Costa Rica with other people back home,” Salas said. “And why not make some money while I’m at it. “
The small business exploded quickly through interconnections and word of mouth after Derek’s flans were a hit among his family friends.
“I baked my flan for my family parties with family friends and it instantly got attention. Everyone was asking who made them and how to get them. Quickly, my business spread and people outside of my close circle were ordering my flans too. My customers have been building up since the last six months and now I have quite a lot.” Says Salas.
Balancing school, soccer, and an entire self-run business is no easy task, but Derek has found his own way of making it work.
“I always have to be on top of my work and make sure I am always prepared in advance in all aspects of my life,” Salas said. “Especially when it comes to my business. If I get an order I have to prepare when I have time so I am not scrambling later. Usually I get it ready the night before I’m supposed to make a delivery.”
He offers advice to this year’s underclassmen to have good time management, stay consistent, and “give 100% to everything that you do” in order to be successful.
“If there is anything I’ve learned from the start up of my business it’s that the customer is always first, you have to align your time to make the customer happy and always be prepared.” Says Salas.
Derek’s success is something that many students at Green Level can relate to, balancing academics, athletics, family, jobs, clubs, and social life. His story mirrors what other students go through everyday.
More and more people are turning their hobbies into small businesses, and Derek’s Flan business shows that this trend is thriving at Green Level. Not just Derek’s story but stories like his, highlight that with hard work, consistency, leadership, and creativity, green level students can find time for their hobbies on top of everything else, even in innovative ways that make money and bring culture to the wider community.
