KA1 - Mobility of youth workers A1 - Mobility of youth workers - Programme and Partner Countries Type of Activity: Training Course Venue: Limassol, Cyprus Title of project: “Coaching Young Entrepreneurs - Providing Support in Making the First Step “ Project dates: 01 June 2015 – 01 January 2016 Activity date - Training Course date: 2nd – 9th of September 2015 Program Countries involved in this activity: Cyprus, Czech Republic, Spain, Romania, Netherlands, Italy, United Kingdom, and The Former Yugoslav Republic Of Macedonia Partner Countries involved in this activity: Belarus, Georgia, Moldova, Kosovo Unemployment is a major issue that Europe is confronting nowadays. Young entrepreneurs face great difficulties in starting their own business. It is not only the external environment that creates the chaos for young entrepreneurs but inner difficulties such lack of self-confidence, lack of skills, insufficient leadership capabilities and similar issues. One of the most important decisions for any entrepreneur is choosing what sort of business he or she wants so we will be looking at initial decisions that entrepreneurs need to look seriously at and trainers/coaches need to be attentive to. Moreover, for an entrepreneur, recognition and a sense of achievement are fundamental motivators which have significant consequences in the way entrepreneurs approach and manage their businesses. In a similar way, entrepreneurs need to align their personal goals with their business goals and need to have important skills like motivating others. Furthermore, self-empowerment is a process by which individuals increasingly take greater charge of themselves and their lives. All these issues will be important in the training course. The most important objective of the project "Coaching Young Entrepreneurs - Providing Support in Making the First Step" is to provide non-formal training to youth workers in order to enhance their capacities and skills to be able to motivate youth in taking the initiative of starting its own business and making a positive transition to the work field. The project addresses directly the issues of entrepreneurship, creativity and employability of young people in Europe and has a strong alignment with the objectives of the Erasmus Plus programme and its objectives. The "FIRST-STEP" project aims at promoting young people's commitment towards a more inclusive growth by helping youth workers to become more aware and be able to stimulate young people’s spirit of initiative, creativity and entrepreneurship and employability through the use of coaching tools and promotion of the entrepreneurial spirit. The project is more specifically aiming at providing a training course which will provide an educational learning experience on the topic of providing coaching and support for young people wanting to become entrepreneurs and thus will improve participants ’competences, knowledge, skills and attitudes in coaching and counseling. This will lead to higher quality practice in youth work for all participating organizations. Working methods: The methodology that will be used is based in non-formal and informal training methods utilizing what Mezirow called Transformational Learning. Participants will be part of a highly interactive, experiential and holistic training thus engaging their minds, bodies and emotions. The methodology also includes tools from the art, which can help participants relax and connect in a meaningful way. Methodology of the project “Coaching Young Entrepreneurs - Providing Support in Making the First Step“ is designed to facilitate the acquisition of skills and specific knowledge of business culture, consistent with the objectives and anticipated results. The proposed methodology will ensure the active involvement of young people favor each of the stages and activities of this project. In this way young people learn to work as a team, listen to the views of all, to collaborate and manage situations they face. This will foster feelings of acceptance of learning differences, tolerance and the assumption of views in argumentative manner. Provide non-formal methods proposed framework for cooperative learning and learning from the experience of others, the interactive methods that focus on ideas and arguments supporting their opinions on confrontation. To ensure the effective application methods, the implementation team will identify and contract authorized two trainers, one is specialized in supporting learning sessions pursue entrepreneurial specific learning objectives.