college is a waste of money

[Sig]

I’ve run a successful business for 22 years. I used to work 60 hours a week now I work 20 hours a week. My real world looks different then your real world obviously.

I work 20-30 hours a week as well, and often from some other part of the world I'm interested in seeing, both huge benefits of being a successful entrepreneur (so I can turn around and waste the extra time here). But you didn't address my point at all. Do you disagree that it takes a certain skill set and a lot of luck to start business that's ultimately successful, especially if you only have a high school degree? And even more especially if you're a 19 year old right out of high school? I'd be curious what industry you're in if that's not the case in your experience, because you're right (even if you were being gratuitously condescending), that world is pretty different from any real world I've seen? Again, I would maintain that the advice to "don't waste your time going to college, just go be an entrepreneur" is about as useful, and dangerous, as "don't waste your time going to college, just go be a professional baseball player". Even though I love startups, actively mentor several new entrepreneurs, and do my best to encourage and help those who have the right skill set succeed. I'm just not going to recommend it to someone unless I know they have the skills and aptitudes to give them a shot at success, which is actually relatively rare. And it would be a pretty unusual circumstance where an entrepreneur is better off without a college degree than with one, and vanishingly rare for a 19 year old making the college vs entrepreneur decision.

 

[smallfil]

I work 20-30 hours a week as well, and often from some other part of the world I'm interested in seeing, both huge benefits of being a successful entrepreneur (so I can turn around and waste the extra time here). But you didn't address my point at all. Do you disagree that it takes a certain skill set and a lot of luck to start business that's ultimately successful, especially if you only have a high school degree? And even more especially if you're a 19 year old right out of high school? I'd be curious what industry you're in if that's not the case in your experience, because you're right (even if you were being gratuitously condescending), that world is pretty different from any real world I've seen? Again, I would maintain that the advice to "don't waste your time going to college, just go be an entrepreneur" is about as useful, and dangerous, as "don't waste your time going to college, just go be a professional baseball player". Even though I love startups, actively mentor several new entrepreneurs, and do my best to encourage and help those who have the right skill set succeed. I'm just not going to recommend it to someone unless I know they have the skills and aptitudes to give them a shot at success, which is actually relatively rare. And it would be a pretty unusual circumstance where an entrepreneur is better off without a college degree than with one, and vanishingly rare for a 19 year old making the college vs entrepreneur decision.

There is some luck involved too. It must be a field you are interested in. I believe I saw this on You Tube about the story of a young woman, around 25 years of age who decided to sell cosmetics at Amazon for some pocket monies. She did not expect it to take off. Anyway, by the time she put up her own website and now only putting a small portion of her goods on Amazon, she was making over $600,000 per year. Start small and in a field that interests you. That way, you will persevere and hopefully, be good enough at it! Not everyone will be hugely successful but, even if you are moderately successful, you have developed an income stream. Multiple income streams is what we need.

 

[newwurldmn]

I do have a college degree in Accounting and have a year of units in my masters. Looking back, I see I would have been better off trying to start a business, much, much earlier. I am now 60 but, going in a different route. How, I wish I could bring back 20-30 years of my life. Robert Kiyosaki opened my eyes like his Rich Dad (step father) opened his!

I started my entrepreneurial ventures at the age of 35. If I had gone to Bschool with my wife, I might have started them at the age of 29. I didn't even know what I am currently doing existed for people with my background.

 

[Sig]

I started my entrepreneurial ventures at the age of 35. If I had gone to Bschool with my wife, I might have started them at the age of 29. I didn't even know what I am currently doing existed for people with my background.

Exactly! I too didn't even know what I am currently doing existed when I started business school and I too could have started the company I started at 35 when I was 27 (my co-founders age) if I'd graduated from business school at the same age he did. If nothing else, college teaches you how much you don't know that you don't know in a way that framing houses never will. Especially if you came from a lower middle class family and didn't have the chance to travel or meet people from a bunch of different backgrounds (as was the case with me).

 

[qxr1011]

===college is a waste of money===

it really depends on the student and on the college

for the average joe its better to have college degree, especially if government pays for it

for well below average, who anyway will end up with a broom in McDonadl's, and well above average, who are business oriented or have some balls and talents, it is probably waste of time and money

 

[murray t turtle]

I thought so: you see the "what that gets you in return" in financial terms. I don't doubt you're right, given that perspective (I just don't share it, though).

%%
Met a good younger friend that went+ she finished college, so it's a complex subject.LOL. BIG problem in USa, the gov got in to the student loan business, so now so many are in debt[5+6 figures] so much ,cant even buy any real estate, even on credit!!. The college i paid for to; dont regret quitting -they did not even have any stat courses, so have to ask higher up than higher ed+ Ela Young,hope this helps........

 

[Sig]

Not everyone will be hugely successful but, even if you are moderately successful, you have developed an income stream. Multiple income streams is what we need.

I used to think that, and I started out doing it. I still think it's not a bad line of thinking if you've got a family and a mortgage (or obligated military service in my case) that realistically makes it difficult to impossible to just jump in and dedicate everything to a business. I was moderately successful at this, starting a company that netted $20K/year at its height. And it probably was key to getting into the business schools I did because I was otherwise a military pilot with an electrical engineering degree, so not much chance to show a business aptitude. But once I started my first real company I ended up shutting it down, not because it wasn't still making money but because I couldn't afford the opportunity cost of the distraction. It's far easier to focus on one company and develop a core competency and brand around that than to juggle more than one ball at a time. I also would have had to divest it anyway when we got funding since angels and VCs don't want you distracted by any side projects, especially one's they don't have the potential to profit from. So you may want to keep in mind that if you pursue that track since you'll effectively be foreclosing the opportunity for outside funding at the outset before you really know if you can benefit from it or not. That said, I had a blast doing it, learned a ton, and had some great vacations paid for by the extra money, so it can certainly be a good idea depending on who you are and where you're at.

 

[viruscore1]

No child left behind was the dumbest thing. All it did was make average and smart children the same as the dumbest child.

 

[smallfil]

Take this real life experience I wanted to share with you. I had two friends who wanted to learn about trading and so, I started to teach both of them for free, of course. Now, I learned to trade on my own and made multiple, costly mistakes, attended seminars, but, did not have a mentor. So, these two had the benefit of my actual experience in the stockmarket. Both, took unnecessary risks with their monies. Take note, both are college graduates, one is a doctor. The one who is not a doctor just dropped out. I do not know if she still trades. On the other hand, the doctor continued to make the same dumb mistakes because she was hard headed and traded against the trend, took too high risk with huge positions in trades in the hundreds of thousands of dollars at risk , did not make a trading journal to monitor performance and correct her mistakes. I share my trades with her and problem again, she picks and chooses. If I put up 10 trades, she maybe, will pick 1 or 2 to trade those. Of course, 9 out of 10 times she gets the losing trade. Had she just took all 10 trades, the winning trades would have been more than enough to offset those losses. Being too smart is actually, bad for your health if you trade or invest in the stockmarket. My doctor friend has lost 7 figures in the stockmarket. Despite, her college degree, she is unable to become a good trader because she does not put enough effort into trading! Also, she is too arrogant for her own good. The fact that she is a doctor probably, roils her ego that she has been unable to succeed in the stockmarket. So, she plods long. Now, she trades 1 contract on options like me most times but, picks and choose which trade I share with her she will get in! So, she continues to lose most times. I do not guess but, take trades as the setups appear. Oh, well.

There are two kinds of smarts: 1) book smart you learn from your education and 2) street smarts that you learn from experience. If you have street smarts, you can still be successful in life! A lot of people do succeed using their street smarts. You will not learn what they know in a book!

 

[jinxu]

TMy doctor friend has lost 7 figures in the stockmarket. Despite, her college degree, she is unable to become a good trader because she does not put enough effort into trading! Also, she is too arrogant for her own good. The fact that she is a doctor probably, roils her ego that she has been unable to succeed in the stockmarket. So, she plods long. Now, she trades 1 contract on options like me most times but, picks and choose which trade I share with her she will get in! So, she continues to lose most times. I do not guess but, take trades as the setups appear. Oh, well.

There are two kinds of smarts: 1) book smart you learn from your education and 2) street smarts that you learn from experience. If you have street smarts, you can still be successful in life! A lot of people do succeed using their street smarts. You will not learn what they know in a book!

I don't think I've heard anyone (in my 7 years history) on this forum claimed they have a PHD or Medical License...but maybe most were too smart to end up here in the first place.