| I am now 36 and have been on the "business" rollercoaster since I was 19. In and out of jobs when things didn't go to plan. Here is what I can tell you about my experiences: 1. Learning to, and mastering how to sell is everything. No business starts with the best product because great products takes a long time to build. But every business needs revenue. Clearly you know this because you had a successful ad agency. But it sounds like you stopped selling that for what? Lesson: never, ever stop selling. 2. But the mistake you made was throwing away a 500k/y agency because your investors didn't like it. The mistake you made here was playing someone else's game. Lesson: play your game, and only your game. 3. Your desire to go to college is something I understand. You are in two minds (I think). Part of you wants business success, the other part wants stability. But there is a third option. This option I learned far too late. That is this: you do not need to work 100% of the time to be successful. You can build a successful business over time. With a team, over time. This is not something investors like. By accepting investors, you are forced to make quick (often stupid) decisions. Lesson: build one (or more) good businesses over time. Stick to it. I want to make one thing stand out here... working 16 hours a day doesn't create success because it's 16 hours (I know some cleaners who work 16 hours per day in my building). What nobody will be honest about is that there are only 1-2 things that actually move the needle. The other "activities" just make us feel like we are being productive. |