Why You Should Start A Business While In School
In recent times, following the launching of Sumobank, I have had the opportunity to discuss with many students and new graduates. I have realized that many of them if directed properly, will be top business owners and entrepreneurs. But they feel that it is almost not worth it. To them, why start a business while in school when you should be concentrating on making good grades.
Let us make it clear here. When we say school, what we mean is the University or better put, the tertiary institutions. I hope that is clear enough.
I hope for the benefits of those who will gain admission this year and those who are already in the first year that you get the right direction and guidance. Times are changing and things are becoming pretty complicated. It is that simple yet very complicated.
It is usually better to have all the information you need to start something and then decide not to start or venture into it than to have half baked information on what you should do and regret it later.
This year, my younger sister will most likely be admitted into one university like that. Some of my mentees will also be admitted too. It is a personal year for me and this piece is a personal one for me. It is my way of trying to guide them on how to start a business while in school if they so desire.
So, I wish I can tell you stories and stories of people who have toed the part of the school system and obeyed the rule of starting a business while in school and the tales of those who disobeyed. But that will probably be left for another day. You want stories, you call me. I will give you tales like the master of magic that I’m becoming.
Related: What to do in the university to pay school fees
What Does It Mean To Start A Business While In School?
It was a norm to go to school and put all your eggs in becoming the best student academically. Therefore, the school became a ground for raising people grounded in bureaucratic processes and academics. It was a ground where people were trained to know how to work for others. It was an arrangement that had little for entrepreneurship and its related ventures. Well, that was until now.
People have realized that you can actually combine your academics with business and still come out with a good grade. It may not be the best grade but you did have a good grade nonetheless. There are people outside the school system to lay credence to this claim.
To start a business while in school doesn’t mean going to schools to run businesses alone. This is a mere formality but I know I should touch it. It is about being a regular student in any institution and running a business at the same time. The scale of the business will be entirely up to you.
If You Can Start Your Business Right Now, Why Go To College?
Julian Lopez shared an interesting aspect that I would like you to go through. Hear her;
“College has become the “logical next step” for most students after they graduate from high school. In 2017, 19.6 million students were enrolled in public and private colleges in the U.S. While most projections see these numbers steadily increasing over the next 10 years, more and more students are seriously evaluating whether college is the right fit for them, especially with the cost of attending rapidly increasing year over year – the average cost of tuition and fees for the 2018-19 academic year was $35,676 for private colleges and $9,716 for public colleges.
However, college still offers some networks and resources for enterprising students looking to start a business, from free Wi-Fi to mentoring and fellowship opportunities.
If you decide pursuing a college degree isn’t the right path for you, you may still want to consider enrolling in business classes. While it’s not impossible to launch your own business without a college degree, there are benefits to at least taking a couple of business-related courses – such as management studies, accounting, communications, and marketing – to set you and your business up for success. These classes will be especially helpful if they let you dive right in to learn exactly what it’s like to run your own business. Many non-degree business programs and mini-MBA programs are available, and most of the classes can be taken online.
Can Your Business While In School Be Really Successful?
Really, this shouldn’t be an issue. There are proofs of successful businesses in schools both inside and outside Nigeria. That is the reality of the situation. In fact, you can check this article of successful young entrepreneurs. Most of them started out in colleges.
Now, you may become shortsighted and consider only doing the regular kind of businesses. That is okay. But if Zuckerberg did something regular, we wouldn’t have Facebook today. Businesses such as ModCloth, the Onion, Snapchat, and Reddit wouldn’t be there if they did regular businesses.
Therefore, we implore you to become more creative with the businesses you choose to do. You may not start something new but you can take something that is already in existence to a whole new level. You have to reach down to your depth to get ideas and remember that you must solve a problem to make money. That is the only way.
Steps To Take When You Want To Start A Business While In School
If you are at this stage, then you must realize that you have something special. So many people didn’t get to walk this path. I didn’t get to walk this path as I would have loved but we are here now. So, you are damn lucky everything is more interesting now and you are better exposed to more information. Below are the things you should do when you want to start a business while in school.
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Identify the business you want to do
This is probably the most crucial part of the whole exercise. You, my friend, need to have a clear picture of what you want to do. You must know what you want to do before you start it.
There are options out there but you need to be sure of the one you want to do. In the first place, you have to identify the industry that interests you the most. It is not very simple but you will have to find that one thing that interests you the most and pursue it.
You could be interested in technology, ICT, Marketing, Finetech, Agriculture, manufacturing, Fashion, Entertainment, and other industries. This is where your business option will most likely come from.
To start a business while in school and come out successful in it will require an in-depth understanding of the business. To this effect, I will expect you to carry out a market survey on the business of interest.
Find out how to handle the business; the SWOT (Strength, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats) analysis of the business will help with that, the financial base required, the number of staff you will need and indeed, everything you can find out about the business.
However you look at it, you will need a business plan to succeed in any business you want to start. You may not be an expert but you can write a business plan if you get the template. This way, you are both learning and working.
Related: Tips on how you can write a great business plan to attract investors
But in the event that you want someone to do it for you, you can consult professional business plan writers and they will fix it up for you. This plan will help you all the way. We give discounts to students so if you are interested, we will whip something up for you.
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Register the business
Depending on the nature of your business, you will be required to go through a registration process to legitimize your business. You don’t want the authorities on your neck everyday right? Great!!! Contact people who help businesses with registration and they will walk you through all the way.
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Source for fund
If you have money, then there wouldn’t be an issue. But unfortunately, you may not have the needed money to handle the business. The implication is that you will look for other sources of fund. You could get money from the following sources;
- Angel investors and venture capitalists
- Personal funds
- Family and friends
- Bank loans
- Etc.
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Think of marketing and advertisement strategies
In the final analysis, if people don’t know your business, you don’t make sales. If you don’t make sales, you don’t make money. There is a special soft spot for students so you can turn that to your advantage.
Find ways to market whatever business you will start. Utilize the social media channels, mouth to mouth marketing is still effective and any other means within your reach. I know you will be a success.
Conclusion
I don’t want this to be like the other “how to start a business while in school” articles you have read. Nope. I want it to be better so I’m offering the services of entorm.com. You can and should reach us on 07032096140 for free consultancy on the business you want to run in school. This is specifically for students and aspiring students.
Alternatively, you can just save money for some time and start the business before you graduate. You can check sumobank.ng (a savings and investment platform) for more on this point. You can register with this link to start saving. There are many things I did like to share with you but I wouldn’t want to make this piece too boring. Call us up and we will guide you.
