Rock Star Lifestyle Design

photo by jpellgen

Unemployment is approaching 10% quickly. That means there are a lot of great people that are currently sitting at home “waiting” for an opportunity to come their way. Watching Current TV this morning they ran off a statistic that said there are approx. 1.2 million unemployed college grads with an average of $20,000 in student loan debt. That number sucks and I will tell you why.

I knew in high school that I was different. My senior year I was in a program called WISE where we had the opportunity to leave school 2 hours early everyday to either attend an internship or work on a senior project. I chose to start an indie Record Label. I worked hard on the weekends to have cash to pay for recording, found some seed money from a friend who’s uncle passed and left him some cash to fund manufacturing, and partnered with local businesses to sell our CD’s and promote our music. It was great, I had found a calling.

Fast forward into college and I knew that I was throwing hard earned (and borrowed) money away. I was sitting in Science Classes and learning public speaking from someone who was scared to talk in front of the class. This was supposed to give me a dream job, a white picket fence, 1.5 kids, a minivan and all that good ol American dreaming stuff?

I spent good money there too. I managed to rack up about $12,000 in student loans for something that I didn’t have the pleasure of finishing.

Something happened in the next year or so that made me realize that it isn’t about where you get the education, what kind of paper trophy you get or how much you spend to get it that matters. What matters is learning the things that matter to you, putting action into that education and meeting some really cool people along the way.

In my post dropout depression period, or in between touring with the band, I went to an Internet Marketing Seminar. You know, the kind that sprinkles testimonials of “people just like you” making big bucks online. The education in those 6 hours clicked and I bought the stupid websites and training that they offered.

Three years later I am in a better position in my life because of that one day than any other education session in my entire life. It opened up the possibility that I can do something with my life. It showed that Micro Biology is not a pre-requisite for a marketing major and that the education I was spending thousands on was not going to put me in a position to succeed.

This is not a college bashing article.

College is great if you know how to work it. Spending money to build relationship skills is well worth the investment. If you are spending money on a Liberal Arts Degree and hoping that your calling is going to smack you in the face 20 minutes after you walk through graduation, well then, you are in a world of problems my friend.

Jobs are down and unemployment is up. This means moregraduates applying to the same jobs and companies being able to reduce payouts due to demand. It also means that high level firms are not hiring and entry level jobs are also in danger. Sara Murray from the Wall Street Journal says

…many graduates end up with lower-wage, lower-skill jobs at less-prestigious firms or in firms outside their field of interest. Once the economy picks up and they try for better jobs, these workers have to learn skills they should have been developing immediately out of college. In the meantime, colleagues who graduated in a better economy have already developed these skills and progressed much further.

Even the New York Post is getting in on the action stating that the cost of a 4 year degree is not panning out like many political figures are saying it does. Jack Hough writes:

A student who secures a degree is increasingly unlikely to make up its cost, despite higher pay, and the employer who requires a degree puts faith in a system whose standards are slipping. Too many professors who are bound to degree teaching can’t truly profess; they don’t proclaim loudly the things they know but instead whisper them to a chosen few, whom they must then accommodate with inflated grades. Worst of all, bright citizens spend their lives not knowing the things they ought to know, because they’ve been granted liberal-arts degrees for something far short of a liberal-arts education.

So where does this leave us?

It means that chasing your dreams in this economy is worth the chase, the effort and the adventure. It means that putting all your effort and future savings into a 4-year school for the sake of having a piece of paper may need consideration when passion and a path can be cooked up.

It means that young people are considering starting companies at extremely high levels knowing that the cost of starting that company can be less expensive and more conducive to learning that the elusive four year degree.

Thoughts

If your parents were to pay for room and board as well as books, tuition and spending money they may shell out up to $100,000 over 4 years. Imagine if that money went to investing in a company. They would be investing in real world education, creating jobs and possibly seeing a return on their money. If the startup fails, the experience and know how is going to propell you farther than 4 years drinking with frat boys and the money is in the toilet either way.

What if you graduated into this economy with no jobs in sight? Would you consider moving to Hawaii and working in hospitality for a year or 2, live your life to the fullest and come back fresh and experienced in the reconstructed economy? My wife’s sister is doing just that and taking a friend along for the journey.

What if a $500 - 1,000 - 2,000 online course that teaches Internet Marketing or Real Estate Investment or whatever actually clicks for you more than micro economics, more that advanced Chemistry, and puts you in a position to make a great living doing something that has you excited to wake up in the morning?

What if you look back at 30 wishing you had taken a chance at 20 or 25? Would it be not missing a class in college to go on a road trip or would it be skipping a class to sit in on a real world business deal that could open your eyes to your future?

Stop Going Through The Motions

Stop doing things because someone says that is what you have to do. Do it because you believe in it. Do it because it is making you a better person. Do it because you wake up in the middle of the night thinking about how awesome things are going to be when you wake up at 6am to do something cool.

Is 5 years in college and $20,000 worth what you are doing in your life right now? If you can “honestly” answer yes to that question, then I applaud you. If you answer no, then stop going through the motions and do something about it. Change the world. Change your life. Change the status quo and the way business is done. Have standards and define new ones.

Most importantly start doing things that make you happy, that make your life more fulfilling. The education will follow. The money will to.

Questions of the day:

How much student debt are you in for and are you happy about your decision to be in that position? See you in the comments.

-Greg Rollett