Why should you start a company in college?
Why would you ever think of starting a company in college? It seems like it would be the worst possible time to try to launch a company - you’re trying to make new friends, cram for tests, finish essays at the last minute, join a few organizations, find an internship, and adding “start a successful company” to the mix seems crazy.
It’s not insane, though. First of all, the company doesn’t have to be successful in the sense that you make tons of money. The company could be a complete financial flop, you could lose a few thousand dollars, and you might even forget to do a little bit of homework while you’re trying to keep a client happy. When you look at the big picture, having the experience of starting a company and failing is going to look more impressive to your future employer than getting an A in your entry level philosophy class.
If you happen to work hard and get a little lucky with your ideas you might be able to skip the internship search. You’re going to be running a company - what better way to experience the business world than to build something from the ground up?
College is the ideal time to find new hobbies and learn more about yourself. If you’re interested in entrepreneurship why not give it a try? You have tons of resources at your disposal.
At Ohio State I have one of the best business schools in the nation a ten minute walk down the road. The professors love helping students, the computers have all the software that big companies use, the library has all the books and magazines I need to learn about business processes and understand the different aspects of a company. I can get grants, loans, and scholarships - all of which could help me fund my new ideas. I get to meet new people and bounce ideas off of them, they can bounce ideas off of me. Maybe I’ll meet someone brilliant and we’ll be the next Sergey Brin and Larry Page or the next Paul Allen and Bill Gates. Maybe I won’t. Maybe I’ll meet someone who wants to screw me and take me for all I’m worth. Either way, what I learn will be valuable.
College is also a somewhat protected environment. If you fail, the worst that happens is you lose a few thousand dollars and miss a few classes. In the real world if you fail you might go bankrupt, lose your house and your car, and be instantly homeless. This isn’t to say that you’re not liable for your mistakes in college, but you certainly have a great margin for error.
I love college. It’s a lot of fun and in the short time I’ve been here I have learned a lot. I’ve met lots of new people and have a great time when I’m here. I also love working on new projects and I love the idea of starting a company from scratch and watching it grow into something big. Why would anyone use college as an excuse to not take a risk? When I’m done here I will have 1 (probably 2) degrees, the experience of working on my own, and lots of contacts and friends.
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This is a good point. I started http://www.visualforces.com while I’ve been in college (graduate Sep ‘06) and it has been a great learning experience. It allowed me to learn more about a business than just designing websites. Now I know all of the basic aspects of running a business; planning, accounting, marketing, distribution, customer service…and taxes. It’s funny, the business actually started getting more traffic than I had the time for so I had to cut back on products and marketing. Now it’s on hold until I graduate. haha
I’ve actually learned more from that site/business than I have through my college.
I’m with ya…the risk is worth it. Your social life will hate you though.