Three advantages of college entrepreneurship
Incubation centers of Academic Institutions help students about starting a company in college. I’d like to expand on the answer here.
There are a lot of advantages to starting a business in college.
I’m gonna touch on three big reasons.
1. You’ve got less to lose -
Earlier this year I had the pleasure of hearing Paul Berberian speak about a few
of his past businesses and tips for the college entrepreneur. He was showing a slide with nothing on it but a big zero.
Berberian then explained that
in college, we have little holding us back. He said that things like kids and
mortgages are down the road. For now, it’s mostly friends, school, and a bunch
of free time. Why not take the risk?
College is a great time to take an idea, bootstrap it and try to make a little (or a lot) money
off of it. There are people around you majoring in useful areas like marketing,
computer science, accounting, and psychology. Make a few friends, tap into their
studies, and get together. Put what you’re learning in class to use in a Real
World setting.
I haven’t forgotten about those
students who take out loans and go into huge debts in order to attend
universities. Here’s the way I see it: If you’re going, for example, Rs.5,00,000 into debt to pay for education, why not bootstrap a business and add a little more
to your debt? Life hasn’t gotten real yet. You’ve got less to lose.
2. The age advantage -
When you graduate you’re just another
person in the Real World. Why not play it up that you’re doing some cool
stuff and you’re
still in college?
Chances are, there’s a university newspaper associated with the
school that you attend. Drop them a line. They love to feature some of the best and brightest that the university
has to offer. That’s you!
Tell them your name, your year,
your major, and what you’re doing - whether it applies to what you’re studying
or not. Let the journalists take it from there. I consider university
newspapers/newsletters to be an essential piece of marketing.
3. The experience around you -
Universities are filled with
incredibly smart, and experienced professors. Use their expertise and their
knowledge to your advantage. Fill them in on your project or startup and ask
them to dissect your idea, your business plan, or your revenue model.
Turn professors into
mentors.
I hope
that in your college experience you come across a professor or two who change
your life. Or give you a path to follow.
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