Elementary School prepared anyone for running a successful business
School lessons not taught in school
After graduating high school, I did not want to go to college, like many individuals in my generation. Complaining and bickering to my parents for weeks on end made no difference. There was no way that I was getting my way in the matter. My father sat me down and told me that college is what you make it.
College may not have much to offer you in terms of new information and knowledge, but it does provide some of the skills needed to be successful in life. College allows you to meet new people and listen to what they have to say while developing who you want to be in the future.
In my mind, it was just going to be another four years of endless schooling where I would write papers agreeing with everything the professor teaches or wants to read. There would be more useless memorization of information about science or history, and plugging in or calculate values for math.
This was three years ago…..
Here’s everything that my dad wanted me to truly learn and understand from the very beginning of my schooling.
Build off the Basics
In elementary school, we learned each letter in the alphabet and number. This progressed to being able to write down words that became sentences and finally into essays. Basic arithmetic such as addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division led to solving derivatives in calculus. No matter how many numbers there are in an addition problem as long as the basics are correct, all it takes is time to solve the problem. When trying to solve a problem in life, break it down to the basics, and then you will know that it all takes is time.
Essays = Projects = Business
Approach any projects with the same mindset you approach an essay during your time in school. This allows both time and money to be saved while doing what you love.
1. Do your research
Find a topic that you are going to write about and present to the class.
*Find a niche that you will enjoy building a business about*
Ask yourself the question: What does my essay/business brings to the audience that is different from everyone else?
2. Make a business plan = Write your thesis/hypothesis.
This is the statement in your essay that attracts people and makes them wonder why your paper is essential to read. What value it gives to your customers/readers.
3. Do the work
Research your paper. Find all the resources that you will be citing in your paper and finding where you want to apply them in your writing.
Title Page- The title page in a research paper usually includes the Name of the document and introduces the paper’s writer. For a business, that would mean a name for the company and a way to present who you are to your customers.
Abstract- A summary of what your paper/business is all about.
Introduction- A introduction to what your paper is about and what led you towards this idea. The introduction would include your Thesis or Hypothesis. For a business, this is showing what value you can bring to your customers and what makes you different.
Body Paragraphs- Paragraphs on the research you have done to help bring creditability towards your thesis and backs it up. For a business, this would be whatever you are providing to your customers and what makes it enjoyable.
Conclusion- A summary or explanation to help close the paper. Make sure that all your points are covered. For a business, this is letting your customers buy your product if they see it supporting your company statement.
4. Edit the Work
Check for any grammatical errors in your paper or anything that does not clarify the points that you are conveying. For business, this is making sure everything is soundly and effectively conveyed to the customer.
5. Submit the work and get it Graded
The grade you receive for your work is still going to be a number in the end. Through school, the grade could be a 95 or a 73, but in the real work, it will be how much a customer is paying you with money. The teacher always asks students if they want to receive critique comments. Choose to receive comments because the customers are grading your papers and leaving reviews. These comments will allow you to improve and allow your writing or your business to grow to allow for a higher grade.
The Beginning
Try new things and hold on to what works for you
The first people you meet in school will not always be your best friends later on in life. People/ideas come and go as you progress throughout your journey. There will always be change, and at first, everyone is amiable because they are new to the whole experience. This is the trial and error phase of any process where you find out who you are / what your niche is. For most people in college, this is where they start with a decalred major and end up changing career to something later on. For business, this is finding a niche that is popular versus turning into a niche or category that you love doing.
Building a Schedule and Prioritizing Time
We as humans are given the same 24 hours in the day, and what we do with our time shows us who we are through our actions. When we are little, our days, for the most part are planned out for us. There is a system through parents, teachers and mentors that hold our hands and tells us what to do with our time. The whole hand-holding changes as early as high school onwards to college, where there is not a necessary system to tell us how to prioritize our time or what to do with it. When you put in the work, the results will show what life has taught us.
Learn from the mistakes you make along the way when trying to learn any new information.
This is the best way to improve in life because if you keep trying to solve a math question the same way, the answer will still always be wrong. Make sure there is a clear prioritization of time to achieve your goals in life. Whether it be working out or running a business by devoting more time into the process which will yield more results.
Make sure you are effectively planning on the best thing to do in order of time.
This is doing the research portion of the essay first rather than getting the correct spacing on the title page, which you will read down below. For a business, this is putting more content into the website than worrying about what your website looks like.
I am confident now these are the lessons that my father wanted me to learn, which can be carried into every aspect of my life in whatever I do. He made sure that I understood if those ideas are truly learned during my college experience, I would have no problem overcoming any challenges that came my way.
