Dear FutureMoneyTrends.com Member,
Ever since I was a teenager, I have thought about life, money, and everything that is wrong with the current model for the average person. I was recently contacted by a 16-year-old, who had a question about life and, specifically, how to go about becoming financially free through entrepreneurship.
Question: I recently read the book Rich Dad Poor Dad, and it inspired me to become an entrepreneur. I want to ask for your advice. What should I do with my life starting now and after high school? Do I need to go to college to learn how to become one, or do I venture through this field my own? I know for a fact that I want to live a financially free life, and not live as a slave to debt. I would greatly appreciate it if you could help me.
Below is My Answer to This Young Reader….
Thanks for contacting us. Thinking about life at such a young age is very wise. My advice to you is if you don’t want to get stuck in the rat race, follow the road less traveled. Don’t ever feel obligated to do what everyone else is doing; at age 16, you can literally do anything you want.
If you want to be an entrepreneur, then find out what you enjoy doing, learn as much as you can about it via books and the Internet, and then get out there and do it. If college is required or it is something you think you would enjoy, then go. But don’t go to college just to get along and follow everyone else.
I never went to college. When I was your age, I hated school and knew that I had no intentions of going to school for 4-8 years, and then working for another 30-40 years. This just wasn’t an option. You will have to find your own path; as an entrepreneur, there are no two paths alike.
There are similarities and core values that can help you, but being an entrepreneur can be very messy and may result in failure. If you fail, consider it your tuition. Failing is not a bad thing; it will help move you forward, and it is the fire that will refine you.
An important thing to think about is what do you enjoy doing? How can you monetize it? Answer this and the rest will follow. Do what you love. Don’t think within the box. Be open to traveling, moving, or talking with people who may think you are crazy. Find a mentor in the field you want to be in and read as much as you can about money.
Nothing is going to determine the enjoyment of your life like the “understanding” of money. Money doesn’t equal happiness, but it sure does make things a lot easier if you know how it works. I would bet that 90% of the population has no understanding of money or even how to live their own life – a life they choose. This will make the road less traveled difficult because there aren’t very many people you can turn to for help.
Most of your friends, if not all of them, will choose the easy path; they will go to school with student loan debt, get a job, buy consumer goods that give them an artificial high, and borrow money for decades to finance what they drive and where they live.
Don’t get caught up in the love affair with stuff, and treat debt as the enemy of your time.
Best of Luck to You,
Daniel Ameduri
President, FutureMoneyTrends.com