Inspired by that blog about funding? Bored of uni? Think starting your own business is an impossible dream? Today we feature a blog from someone who really did take the plunge into starting a business- and did it a way you might not have thought of. Nathan Cruz Coulson tells us all…
(Bubbles! Everyone loves bubbles. Or bursting bubbles.)
Two and a bit years into my Economics and Politics degree, I got the third year blues.
I had lost so much of the passion I had for my subjects. I didn’t really know what I wanted to do, and I didn’t really know how I was going to do it.
I had almost forgotten how excited I was when I tried to start my first business, before I went to uni- I wanted that passion back. So I deferred. First for one year, then for two. It was the best decision I could have made.
Going to University was a great experience- I’d recommend it to anyone,- but it can be a bubble, insulating you from the real world. My advice to students? You don’t have to burst the bubble like I did.
(For one thing, too much paperwork!)
Instead, do something that takes you out of the University bubble: maybe a challenging internship, or take part in a community project outside of your student union, or even start a micro business you can handle part time. But if it gets too much- if you find yourself unable to carry on with University- don’t drop out. Defer!
You’ll either come back to University with a renewed sense of purpose, or you will have found something even better.
Me, I’m doing a bit of both. I’m coming up to the end of my two year “break”, and in the intervening time, I worked as a door to door salesman (the best way to lose your inhibitions?), started an UnLtd backed social enterprise to train young people within a real business (a fashion brand), got a great internship at Wayra (a tech accelerator containing some of the most exciting startups in the country) and I’m on the cusp of starting my second social enterprise: the Tech Talent Academy. And most importantly, I know what I want to do- and how to do it.
What could you do?
Burst the bubble- and see for yourself.
Looking to burst your bubble? Come and have a play at Enternships.
Business: @techtalentac
