A College Student’s Journey

Freshmen entering college for the first time are often told that they must focus most of their attention on getting a great GPA. Advisers would explain how maintaining at least a 3.0 GPA will give them the best possible chance of landing a job at their dream company.

Freshmen are also told to be involved in a few clubs in order to develop their Soft skills. To show recruiters that they can handle balancing school work with club work as well as show personality traits that grades and test scores can’t.

While doing great at school and becoming an officer at a club is beneficial, it shouldn’t have to be for the sole focus of landing a job. Freshmen should be encouraged to take risks and focus on extracurricular activities as well as schoolwork.

Building lasting connections

Jim Rohn once said “You are the average of the five people you spend the most time with.”

Entrepreneurs understand that the connections they create with the people around them could be the difference between success and failure. For college students, this could mean picking their close friends wisely so that they could make good decisions while attending college parties, having group study sessions, or just casually spending time with each other.

Instead of just focusing on finding friends to go party with, why not take the opportunities given by the school and form mentor relationships as well?

The importance of mentorship is often overlooked and underrated. College students need assistance in navigating the complexities of higher education. Examples of possible mentors could be professors, public speakers, or corporate representatives that visit the school often to recruit students. Students should also make an effort to meet other students that have skills that they themselves lack.

It should also not be recommended to just pick a person and go to them for every possible question. Students would benefit from forming a circle of people who serve as a sort of council in which each person can guide said student in their area of expertise. More preferably, have friends that excel in areas where the students themselves are weakest. This is known as a mastermind, a coveted concept in the entrepreneurial world that was inspired by Napoleon Hill. Once the student graduates from college, they would still benefit from having this close circle of mentors that could still be of assistance when needed. Here’s a great article on forming a group in your area.

Learning outside of the classroom

A college student can learn just as much outside of the classroom as inside. Entrepreneurs are known for creating their own path and not waiting for an invitation to open new doors.

Many students could benefit not only from learning in a classroom, but also from applying what they have learned in the real world. If a student creates a stream of income while attending classes, then they would be learning about their own skills strengths and weaknesses. Creating a source of income by either getting a job at a company or forming a side hustle. Note the #1 in that article.

Creating one’s own business could teach a student about failure. It’s not implied that the student’s startup business will fail, but there is a lot of rejection that college students face and have to deal with.

Along the entrepreneurial journey a person will often be told no, they will develop a thick skin and a higher level of confidence in their hustle. If a student is no longer afraid of failing then they are more likely to be successful in the real world since they most people end up stopping themselves.

Examples of how college students can create their own path towards self-reliance include:

E-Commerce flipping

Discipline in exercise.

Journaling daily

Blogging about their passion

Tutoring/mentoring others

Life in college

College life is great, it gives people a long form opportunity to become wiser and independent. College students should look past just to getting a great GPA and joining a club. They need to create lasting friendships that will become mutually beneficial later in life. They should also put their knowledge to use by creating their own path towards financial independence. This would turn them not only into great learners, but into self-motivated individuals.

Nxed is an ed-tech firm of talented creatives whom are deeply passionate about bringing universities into the 21st century by the intersection of technology and education. Stay connected with our story and leave a comment, check us out at Nxed.io.

Until then, “Keep Thinking” — Nxed team.