8 Tips For Becoming A College Entrepreneur

Want to be the founder of the next Facebook? College is a fantastic time in one’s life to start exploring entrepreneurial opportunities. Here are 8 tips for aspiring college entrepreneurs.


Look for problems
Always be looking to identify problems in your everyday college life. A problem is an opportunity to find a solution. Once you identify a problem that you’d like to solve, analyze the following:
What’s the problem?
Who has the problem?
How is the problem currently being solved?
How would your solution be different/better than the current solutions?
 
Know how to test your assumptions
Initially, you likely cannot confidentially answer the 4 questions listed above. That’s quite alright. All good entrepreneurial ideas are based on initial assumptions that need to be tested. For example, if you were developing an app that solved a problem surrounding college students and the food they consume, maybe one of your assumptions is that “the average college student spends $50 a week on food”. If you wanted to prove/disprove this assumption, you might want to do some online market research, conduct in-person interviews, or send out online surveys. It is very important to test your assumptions before you put too many resources (time/money) into developing a product/service to solve a problem that hasn’t been validated.
 
Create a minimal viable product
A minimal viable product (MVP) is a rough prototype of your product/service. An MVP will help you test your assumptions and help you work out the kinks before you put too many resources toward development. It doesn’t have to be pretty. The goal is to create the basic functionality of your solution without all the bells and whistles. For example, imagine that you wanted to develop an app that suggested what shoes go best with an outfit. A very rough MVP of that product might be a Facebook page where your first users can post photos of their outfits/shoes that you monitor and respond with suggestions in real-time. This MVP would be free, quick to set up, and could serve as an invaluable learning opportunity.
 
Get friendly with the campus nerds
If you aren’t one yourself, take the extra steps to befriend your classmates who are STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) majors. These are the technical minds that can take your “awesome ideas” and turn them into a reality.
 
Don’t be afraid to share your idea
It might be true that Zuckerburg stole the Winklevoss twin’s idea. Yes, there is a chance this could happen to you…but the probability is very low. First, you’d had to have a good idea worth poaching. Secondly, the student you shared your idea with would have to motivate enough to try to compete with you. Also consider that sharing your ideas in college is the best way to find potential partners.
 
Register for entrepreneurship classes
Most colleges offer entrepreneur courses. No matter what your major might be, the knowledge you learn in these courses should be very valuable to an aspiring college entrepreneur. An added bonus of attending these classes would be to network with like-minded students who also have the ambition to start their own businesses.
 
Utilize the resources available to you on campus
Along with potential courses, consider what other entrepreneurial resources your university might offer. For example, they might have labs, pitch competitions, clubs, connections to local startups, alumni networking opportunities, etc.
 
Learn how to pivot
Instagram started as a location check-in app similar to Foursquare. YouTube began as a dating app. Taco Bell was founded as a hot dog stand. You get the picture…Your first ideas aren’t always successful. Founders often find out that their technology/product/service can be used in a different way and/or for a different market than originally expected. Be ready to recognize new opportunities, stop working on a dud, and pivot towards something more likely to be successful.