Four career tips from billionaires who never graduated college

2012-2-02
Source From: The Globe and Mail

A college diploma is not a prerequisite for obtaining an absurd amount of wealth. Out of the 400 richest people in the U.S., 63 entrepreneurs dont have one more than 15 per cent of the list. With total U.S. student debt surpassing $1-trillion (U.S.) and unemployment pushing above 10 per cent, a budding entrepreneur might be tempted to skip university and instead enroll in the school of hard knocks.

Author Michael Ellsberg spent two years interviewing business titans who did just that for his bookThe Education of Millionaires(Penguin Group, 2011). Here are a few lessons gleaned from four billionaires who learned from life experience, not lecture halls. Inspired? Great. If not, you can always plop down six figures and head to campus.

Some Lessons:

Sean Parker | Facebook | Net worth: $2.1-billion

SKIP COLLEGE GOOGLE YOUR EDUCATION

When these incredible tools of knowledge and learning are available to the whole world, formal education becomes less and less important. We should expect to see the emergence of a new kind of entrepreneur who has acquired most of their knowledge through self-exploration.

Dustin Moskovitz | Facebook | Net worth : $3.5-billion

YOU CAN ALWAYS GO BACK

If Facebook hadnt worked out after he left college to join Mark Zuckerberg, he said, I could have gone back to Harvard any time. My friends might not be there any more. I might have to start over socially. That was a risk. But it was a pretty small risk compared to the opportunity at the time.

Phil Ruffin | Treasure Island Casinos | $2.4-billion

LOOK OUT FOR NO. 1

Mr. Ruffins last duty as someone elses employee was to repossess a monkey. He quit and founded a chain of stores, and later, hotels and casinos. The advice I would give to young people? Quit your job. Dont work for anybody. You really cant make any money working for someone else.

John Paul DeJoria | Paul Michell Systems Patron Tequila | $4.0-billion

GET THICK-SKINNED

The Navy vet slept in an ancient Rolls-Royce on Sunset Strip as he slung shampoo door-to-door before making it big with Paul Mitchell. I learned sales and marketing from knocking on a hundred doors a day. You quickly discover that youll get 99 slammed in your face before you make a sale.

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