Depending on who you speak to, you’ll probably hear that college is going to be one of the best times in your entire life.
While this may be true for a number of reasons, one of the most under appreciated reasons is that college is also the perfect time to start a business. For example, check out this story of two guys who are making over $100,000 per year in college! That’s amazing!
If you dream of becoming a business owner someday, the good news is that there is absolutely no reason to wait. In fact, college is the best time to start your business for the following five reasons.
1. A Readily Available Network
You will never be surrounded by as many resources as you are in college.
For example, if you need help with your business’ accounting, you can speak to an accounting major. If you want help marketing your business, find a marketing major.
Of course, there are also the professors, many of whom will be more than happy to lend their expertise to someone who is so readily putting it to good use.
Don’t forget about your alumni association, either. Alumni love hearing about students from their alma mater succeeding and will go out of their way to help this happen.
2. More Free Time than You’ll Ever Have Again
Most entrepreneurs are pursuing their dreams despite a constant influx of other priorities vying for their time. This may include their family, a full-time job, and other preexisting commitments.
While you may be a busy college student, you probably have more free time right now than you ever will again. This is time you can spend working on your business.
3. Fewer Financial Obligations
Starting a business requires capital.
You probably know that your student loans will eventually cut into your monthly budget, but for now, you shouldn’t have too many financial obligations – things like a mortgage and children.
Furthermore, you probably haven’t had enough time to do much damage to your credit score, which means you can use credit cards – responsibly – to help fund your entrepreneurial dreams. As a bonus, this can be a fantastic way to graduate from college with an impressive credit score, something most people don’t achieve for years after entering the real world.
Later on, you may be able to leverage options like revenue-based financing to support your growing business. For now, though, you have some unique opportunities to finance its inception.
4. Plenty of Time to Recover from Mistakes
You’ve probably heard that 8-out-of-10 businesses fail.
That being said, failure is almost always a part of entrepreneurship. At least as a college student, you have plenty of time to recover from any missteps. This doesn’t have to be the end of your dreams.
Make those early mistakes – and embrace their corresponding learning opportunities – now while you still have these other benefits at your fingertips and recovery will be a lot easier.
5. An Impressive Resume
Even if you succeed with starting your own business, you may still enter the traditional workforce after college.
In that case, sporting a resume that speaks to your entrepreneurship is going to impress employers. As you probably know, degrees aren’t enough to differentiate yourself anymore. While internships help, you’ll be a much more exceptional candidate if you show you had the drive, ingenuity, and commitment to get a business off the ground.
P.S. Check out our college graduate resume templates here!
Time Is Running Out
Every day, you have less time to take advantage of these benefits.
Once you graduate from college, you’ll be on a level playing field with other entrepreneurs.
So don’t waste any time. Get started chasing those dreams right now and enjoy these once-in-a-lifetime opportunities.
Robert Farrington is America’s Millennial Money Expert® and America’s Student Loan Debt Expert™, and the founder of The College Investor, a personal finance site dedicated to helping millennials escape student loan debt to start investing and building wealth for the future. You can learn more about him here and here.
He regularly writes about investing, student loan debt, and general personal finance topics geared towards anyone wanting to earn more, get out of debt, and start building wealth for the future.
He has been quoted in major publications including the New York Times, Washington Post, Fox, ABC, NBC, and more. He is also a regular contributor to Forbes.
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