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When you want to start your own business and run it as a career, you don’t need a college degree.
Isn’t that the case?
The truth is that although this is what many people think, it’s far from the truth. Obtaining a college degree will enhance the business you build in many different ways, making it much more successful than it could have been otherwise. Yes, there are some notable exceptions to this rule including Richard Branson and Steve Jobs, but for the most part, a college degree is what will set you apart whether you run your own business or choose to work for someone else. Here are the reasons why.
A Back-Up Plan
Right now, running a business might be the only thing you want to do, and that’s fine. That’s exciting. However, will you feel the same in a year’s time? What about five years? What about 10 or 15 or more? Will you still want to run that same business? Or might you have a change of heart and decide that actually, there is something else you would rather do?
We can’t tell the future, and because of this, it is a great idea to get a college degree just in case one day you might need it. It’s a good start to a backup plan, and it means that you have more freedom to run your business because you’ll be more likely to take (calculated) risks. It could make your own business even more successful.
Additional Skills
When you attend college, you don’t just learn about the subject you are studying; you learn a lot more besides, and it is these things perhaps more than any other, that will help you when you start your own business. These incredibly useful additional skills include:
- Organization
- Delegation
- Research
- Time management and making sure deadlines are met
- Listening
- Finances including how to manage a loan to help students with school
- Leading
- Teamwork
- And much more!
Everything you do at college should be treated as a lesson even when you’re not sitting in a lecture hall. That way, you can really make the most of your time there.
Networking And Connections
You might have an excellent idea and want to start a business straight away, but there are some problems with that plan, not least of which is the fact that you will need to have a number of connections that you can call on when you first start. The difference between a business owner with a good network of connections and one who has started with no one around them is a stark one; it can be the difference between success and failure.
At college, you will be able to meet many different people from all kinds of backgrounds who are either already working in or who are going into areas that you might be able to use in your business. Making friends who also turn out to be able to help you in your business life is crucial.
Not only that, but they will be able to introduce you to other people, and you might even choose to form a partnership rather than go it alone. It can mean a very different and potentially much more successful outcome for you.
You Will Need Money
Businesses can certainly be built on shoestring budgets, but wouldn’t it be more enjoyable to have some money behind you before you start so that you have one less thing to worry about and more chance of succeeding?
If you want to start your business with money in the bank, there are two ways that college will help you do just that. The first is that you will be able to obtain your degree and then find a job which will mean you can build up some savings, and work on your business on the side. When you’re ready to do full time, you’ll have money put aside to allow you to do that in a considered way.
Secondly, when you go to a lender with your business plan asking them for money, your case will have a lot more credibility if you can show that you have attended college, earned your degree, learned all of those extra skills that were mentioned earlier in this post, bided your time, and thought carefully about your business rather than just rushing into it. It will be a much more positive experience for all concerned and will hopefully mean that lenders are more willing to help you.