People & Lifestyle
Top 10 Reasons to Start Your Own Business While Studying in College
<![CDATA[]]>
A Snapshot of the Dynamics of Life
While growing up, we were led to believe that the cycle of life is being born, going to elementary or primary school, high school, join college, get a good job, marry then get a family of your own. In most cases, whoever told you that, is maybe, say 60% correct because a lot of changes occur once you are done with high school.
Some people decide not to go to college and pursue their dreams-some of these people even end up being so successful that no one would ever believe they never went to college. Others never really completed pursuing their college degrees for a reason or two. Click here to see a number of such cases.
However, not all of us are that lucky to have ready opportunities waiting for us after high school. To make it worse, 90% of parents will definitely not be happy to see their children drop out of college. You’re probably here because you are in college or maybe planning to join one; and wondering whether you can start a business while still studying. Well, in this article, you shall clearly understand exactly why you should start your business while at college. You shall also know how today’s very successful entrepreneurs who started their businesses while at college made it.
Classes are really time-consuming and definitely saps the energy out of you and you need time to rest. But what about your free time? What do you really do? Why don’t you turn that time into something that can get you some extra cash? Note that campus is the only place that you will get ready customers and if your idea is service delivery, students are very ready and eager to test and promote your idea for free. If in doubt, remember that the world’s biggest companies Google and Facebook were first used in college.
Why You Should Start that Business While in College
Here are the top 10 reasons as to why you should consider starting your own business while still in college;
- Ready customer base
If you are in a well-established college that has hundreds if not thousands of students, count that as a plus for you. Students are always there ready to buy anything as long as it is cheap. If you have an idea, say the next Facebook or the next Google, the students are always there and you will definitely have an easy way of collecting your data through their honest opinions. If your products are nice, word will spread like wildfire advising other students come to try your services as well. However, the main secret to a success here especially if you’re involved in selling something, be friendly and make lots of friends, you will come to understand what the phrase ‘Tell a friend to tell a friend’ really means.
- You have little to lose
In most cases, those in campus don’t have many responsibilities yet. Most students don’t have children or are not the breadwinners of their families as the majority mainly depend on parents and guardians for pocket money and survival. This is the best chance for you to venture into business without really having to worry what you are going to eat later on-or rather you won’t be stressing over paying someone else’s school fees or rent.
- You have all the time in the world
As a student, you definitely have to balance between studies and other stuff. When you do the math, you really have lots of free time in your week if not in your day. In most colleges we have interacted with, students have on average two classes in a day. That’s at most 6 hours in a day. Sometimes you got a class in the morning or afternoon other times. Why don’t you use the time you are not in class or studying to run a business? Instead of binge-watching many TV shows at ago, why not watch an episode a day and spend the other times doing something that is the money generating for you?
- You gain early ‘Real world’ experience
Yes, the real world. It’s tough out there, guys. The truth is that there’s no better way to learn than by doing. And starting a business while still in college is the best way to do just that. Make practical use of the skills you learn in class while still learning them! Despite what some of your professors and lecturers might tell you, the key to running a business is not an A in economics, but by having an understanding of how running a business is in reality and how to best market to your consumers.
- Lots of resources at your disposal
Let’s face it guys, you pay quite a lot of money to these institutions. Do you really want to leave college without making the most out of your money? There are libraries of course where you can learn more, but haven’t you thought about the free Wi-Fi or halls that may not be occupied? These are some commodities most businesses pay a fortune for.
- You can easily get mentors
Another thing you get for ‘free’ is your professors and lecturers. Those guys love it when a student involves them and seeks their advice pertaining to issues such as starting businesses. Moreover, get in contact with someone who is successful in the same field you want to get into and seek their advice. Sometimes the person you would like to get a piece of advice from is a CEO of some big company and is so hard to find, in that case, contact their secretary, tell them who you are and ask to book an appointment. Most times, the successful love to share with upcoming individuals and you’ll definitely get a meeting with them, someday.
- You will gain work experience
Believe it or not, some students actually graduate college without a single job experience. While internships with big companies are certainly a plus for someone, they’re extremely competitive. Having a start-up business experience on your resume or CV as early as when you join college, can be equally impressive. Your level of hands-on experience will far surpass that of any student intern at whichever company.
- You get a good control of your life-early enough
Running and managing a business needs someone with a sound mind. Moreover, here you get to train on how to handle responsibilities early enough. Some businesses will even harden you to withstand pressure and learn of ways to cop up with it sooner. Sometimes when you start a company, sometimes you may mismanage your finances but you slowly learn to manage your money correctly.
- You get to identify your passion early
There’s a famous quote that an average person should have three hobbies; the first one for enjoyment e.g. traveling, the second one to keep your body fit e.g. swimming, sports and the third one is to get the money. The third one is of course, the one we mean. That is the one folks like Bill Gates, Mark Zuckerberg and Steve Jobs had in common-they had a passion in computers and they discovered that while still in college.
- You can afford to fail
No one really wants to fail at something especially after they have invested in them. The sad reality is that many successful stories such as the one for Colonel Sanders show that the founder of KFC did not fail and get rejected once, ten times, a hundred times but more than a thousand times! Well, for your case, it is easier as you do not have kids or people who depend on you-in most cases. But then, in today’s ideal world, when your business keeps on failing, then there must be something wrong or something you may or may have not done. Final thought Entrepreneurship is a slow, intriguing learning experience. If you can summon the courage to make the jump, you are sure to have a rewarding and life-changing experience and success. If anything, this article proves one thing that is very important for our millennial generation that you don’t need a college degree to start your own business!So while the thought of starting your own business might seem a bit grim at the moment, you should still consider it. The risk isn’t as bad as it seems - and the perquisites are just so impressive!
Author’s bio. Daniela McVicker is a freelance writer, blogger, and editor at Top Writers Review. She graduated from Durham University and has an MA in psychological science. Her passion is travel and finding ways to enrich students’ learning experience.]]>