by Patricia Gilliam

Created on: January 19, 2009

The best education for entrepreneurs are the learning plans they design for themselves (sometimes without even realizing it) to fit their needs and personal situation. This can be a combination of formal education, reading business-related materials, finding a business mentor, working within an existing business, and trial and error of his or her own ideas.

Formal education is definitely important, but even it should be directed and not be taken passively. With young children, courses that encourage creativity, brainstorming, and problem-solving help establish a thought process that is very beneficial to entrepreneurs later in life. Courses that focus entirely on memorization and recall are not necessarily bad but are limiting.

Sometimes young entrepreneurial thinkers can appear stubborn and willful to their teachers. They view things from different perspectives, insist on trying things differently from their textbook instructions, and may try to verbally argue with their teachers when they feel they are right about something. Making sure that behavior is channeled correctly into something good for the child, as opposed to completely discouraging him or her for thinking differently, is very important.

College can definitely help an entrepreneur gain knowledge and skills to help them with their business ventures. The main mistake some people make is believing that a college education and degree alone is a guarantee of business success when it should be treated as one part of an overall educational plan. According to a person's business and goals, other majors outside of business can also be very helpful. While it is sometimes hard for many people in their late teens and early 20s to know what they want to do as a career, focusing on skill development can open up possibilities of several different career and business paths.

Having a caring and experienced business mentor really is literally better than someone handing you a million dollars because if you listen to him or her, they'll make you a lot more than that over your lifetime. Mentors can come from very different situations. Some people have parents or family members who own businesses. Others meet a mentor through an employment situation, through church, or through other friendship or other social connections. You may have one business mentor in your life or several. The main thing is usually you have to seek a mentor out, as opposed to them coming to you.

Business books, magazines, articles, CDs, DVDs, and seminars also have educational value. If for some reason you feel like yu can't or don't want to pursue a college education, designing a self-study program from your local library and bookstores can be very economical alternative.

Learning from an existing business as an employee is very different from being an average employee. Many entrepreneurs who are also employees pay careful attention to the business system they're working within, trying to figure out things that are being done right and things that they would personally do differently with their own business. Working a job while you're also developing your business will also give you more stability in your income and give your time to learn.

Lastly, after all of your preparation and learning you still have to do the work. Starting and running a business is a challenge, but it can be very rewarding both financially and to your quality of life. I hope you've found these ideas helpful. Good luck and best wishes to you!

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