EP59: Should Entrepreneurs go to College
What you are going to LEARN in this episode:
If college is still a smart investment
How much entrepreneurs benefit from attending college
What employers really think of your diploma
The importance of building an “experience portfolio”
Today’s guest is Derek Magill, college dropout turned online marketing entrepreneur, author and business strategist. Like most high school students, Derek was told that college was the absolute best idea to ensure he lands a job and makes a “good living”.
During his second year of college, Derek started to realize that the most valuable and enjoyable parts of his life were when he wasn’t in the classroom. He started a small t-shirt company and made a few thousand dollars while in college. Before long he felt like he was creating far more value in the world by selling shirts than he was by writing essays to only turn in to his professor.
He says, “you are never actually creating anything or building anything valuable during your college career.”
Rather than sitting in class and continuing to learn more and more theory, Derek recommends building a website, learning how to sell something online, or maybe start a podcast or blog. By the time your peers are graduating from college, you’ll have a portfolio of experiences and assets that you’ve built for yourself.
I can assure you that, as someone who’s hired dozens of people, this type of “portfolio of experience” is waaaaaaay more valuable than a diploma.
We end the show with a discussion about why “college dropouts” have such a negative stigma and how college may be just an extension of our under-performing public high schools.
If you are a highschool or college student, then don’t miss the Derek’s advice towards the end about taking a “gap year” and learn from the real world rather than only experiencing professors, textbooks and exams.
Contact Info:
Derekmagill.com blog - http://derekmagill.com/blog/
Get a Job at a Startup - http://www.DiscoverPraxis.com
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yaah more people who are not good in college but still great entrepreneur and making huge money! degree does not give you high position it always give you job under some one! need skill join online work and creat own bussiness!
exactly, college used to be the "golden ticket" but those days are OVER for the most part.
Probably my favorite episode because it can be directly applied to anyone.
In an ideal free market, you won't have to go into debt. You'll have a good idea or a service to offer that will make you relevant.
Obviously, there are times when college is good. I don't want a soccer pro doing major surgery on me. But most anything can be learned online for free nowadays. To be cliche, WHAT A TIME TO BE ALIVE!
one of my fav episodes too :) Derek really lays out the case for going and not going to college.
I'm bouncing around a lot with them right now. Listened to 72 today and loved it too. The one about using blockchain for identity protection and storing personal files on it to make international business easier. Makes me wish I had a need for an offshore account lol
Thank you @ashe for the awesome interview
It motivated me alot..... and Derek advices are amazing... He really inspired me
thank you so much @aliza01! Glad you like it!
Thanks a lot for an exceptional interview of Derek Magill... it really enhance my experience... thanks a lot for sharing sir...👍
you are very welcome :) Thanks for tuning in!
College was a great place for networking and failing (learning) in a controlled environment. The experiences were very valuable and the perspectives of fellow students provided an excellent forum to debate and challenge ideas.... that being said, too many classes had professors who looked for conforming views. There were a few transfers from hard right religious schools in Virginia that had a very difficult time even considering views counter to what they were indoctrinated to agree with.
While college may not be as effective as experience, it is a lot of fun and provides you the luxury of exploring intellectual opportunities that are seldom seen outside of academia.
I'm not vouching for all industries, but I know that in the software field having an accredited degree is more of a "oh that's nice" than a requirement to success. I've met a ton of people with no official post high school education who have been quite successful coding (turns out the school of hard knocks + internet access == all you need).
That said, I'd prefer to know that the dentist drilling into my skull has some official qualifications for doing so. Everything is a matter of degrees....
Proud to be a dropout. One of the best things happened to me.