Forget College is a place for people who feel underemployed and don’t know where to go next. It’s all about getting your next job and making sure you’re ready for the one after that. It’s about rebooting your life without having to get a degree.
My name is Tom Campbell. I have been the CEO of eSnipe, Inc. since 2000. Before that I was in management at Microsoft. Highlights of my illustrious academic career:
- Last institution from which I graduated was middle school
- Kicked out of high school
- Had a few years of college as a music major
- Dropped out knowing absolutely nothing about computers
Because I liked video games (was and am terrible at them) I wanted to learn programming. So I did what any sane person would do.
- Applied at McDonald’s and never got a reply
- Took a community college journalism class
- Became a writer for computer magazines and tech firms
- Taught myself how to program
- Became a product manager a software company
- Started a company during a previous Great Recession
- Got hired at Microsoft
- Quit and bought eSnipe
I am a “high net worth individual”, as they say, without any degrees. I am a CEO without an MBA. I know a number of people far more successful than I am with equally sketchy backgrounds.
I have made some stunningly huge mistakes. I hope you can learn from those mistakes. I have done some fairly clever things. I really hope you can learn even more from them.
I have nothing against college. I have taken a few courses since I quit. But I believe there are many, many opportunities for people willing to put their resources into educating themselves and forming a business plan for their lives. And that education does not have to be a formal one.
It’s time to design a new life for yourself. It will be fun and scary and tiring and, I think, ultimately successful. Good luck.