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Who Needs College? The Education of Millionaires
 

Edmundo Braverman's picture
ST
(Human, 14,342
 
Points)
 on 2/23/13 at 8:00am

mod (Andy) note: "Blast from the past - Best of Eddie" - This one is originally from October 2011. If there's an old post from Eddie you'd like to see up again shoot me a message.

You guys know I love this stuff. It's no secret that you need a college degree to be a doctor, a lawyer, or an engineer. But what if you just want to be filthy rich? College is expensive and may even stifle your creativity. On top of that, PayPal founder Peter Thiel will even pay you $100,000 not to go. Enter Michael Ellsberg, author of The Education of Millionaires, a book about all the people who blew off school and became enormously wealthy. The gist of the book? Work on your soft skills more than anything else. It's something I've said my whole life: The guy who knows why something needs to be done will always make more than the guy who knows how to do it.

I know the average banker can quote the bible of higher education chapter and verse. But there really is a better way for some people, and I'm living proof of that. While I'd prefer balls and brains in equal measure, if I'm forced to choose I'll take balls every time (no homo). Some fantastic networking tips here as well. Enjoy:

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Comments

TL2C24's picture

I like the message, but it

 
Points)
 on 10/5/11 at 10:20am

I like the message, but it was tough getting past how awful this guy looked. Not really easy to believe that this guy is "investing in himself" when hes strung out on a coke binge

blackrainn's picture

On the whole, you're still

O
(Orangutan, 354
 
Points)
 on 10/5/11 at 11:26am

On the whole, you're still MUCH better off going to college. Sure, there are exceptions, but there are exceptions with everything in life. 99.9% of the time the kid who goes to an Ivy is going to have a hell of a lot better life than the kid who drops out of high school or doesn't go to college (Mark Zuckerberg, Gates, Steve Jobs, etc. all went to pretty good schools and were all pretty darn smart). Simply thinking about whether or not one should go to college is reflective of intelligence in and of itself. A large majority of people who don't go to college don't do it because they are looking for some better choice- they simply either don't have the skills or they don't care enough.

UFOinsider's picture

Fuckit. Do both. Contrary

O
(Human, 10,328
 
Points)
 on 10/5/11 at 11:28am

Fuckit. Do both. Contrary to popular belief, it's possible to be both book AND street smart.

Cool post man, thanks

YOU JUST GOT TROLLED
http://www.troll.me/images/red-foreman322/dont-you...

Midas Mulligan Magoo's picture

Edmundo Braverman

 
Points)
 on 10/5/11 at 12:00pm
Edmundo Braverman:

While I'd prefer balls and brains in equal measure, if I'm forced to choose I'll take balls every time (no homo).

I do not think that we can accept this statement in its current format.

On the post, the cult of college is too widely spread to defeat with any amount of great advice. It would take an organized study the likes of which could only be accomplished by top academic minds and a huge budget. In other words, a top school and top researchers would have to undergo a lengthy procedure of quantifying why college is a bad move for the overwhelming majority of those who go. I can't exactly the golden egg going after the goose.

The sad reality will only get worse for coming generations of (specifically) American college kids. A day will come when the "smartest" students will be those who spend all of their free time working through junior high, high school and their college years, scrounging cash while attending community colleges and online schools (if at all) as only the creme-de-la-creme of collegiate society will be guaranteed a job upon graduation.

Though the my preceding comments may not apply to many on WSO, they do to the vast majority of future American college students. This in turn will effect even those crabs who thought they could escape the bucket.

Where I unload on Twits and take verbal S***s

go.with.the.flow's picture

The author graduated from

EN
(King Kong, 1,109
 
Points)
 on 10/5/11 at 12:06pm

The author graduated from Brown Eddie!, plus I think there is a survivorship bias in dropping out and making dough. I believe if we take out the normal distribution of all the population, people who went to college will be closer to the mean than the dropouts.

|| But feeling good and enjoying life are prerequisites to success, not by products of it- Midas Mulligan Magoo ||

lucrativ's picture

Me too, if I'm forced to

ST
(Monkey, 46
 
Points)
 on 10/5/11 at 12:11pm

Me too, if I'm forced to choose, I'd take balls - definately no homo - over brains every day, simple because it takes the balls to take risky moves in life, i.e. Mark Zuckerberg, Gates, Steve Jobs, etc. dropping out of college to start a business they had no guarantee would be successful took some Goddamn balls to begin!!!

By the way guys, look out for my new thread coming soon: OffShore Whores

"Kept feeding him dollars 'till it all started to make cents."

LIBOR's picture

College today is about

EN
(Neanderthal, 2,156
 
Points)
 on 10/5/11 at 12:15pm

College today is about learning soft skills. Academics are only a small portion of the learning experience that is college. For most American kids, its the first time they are away from their parents, and it requires meeting new people and really putting yourself out there. I learned much more from the social experience of college than I did from the classes.

looking for that pick-me-up to power through an all-nighter?

RE Capital Markets's picture

I think people are asking the

RE
(Gorilla, 649
 
Points)
 on 10/5/11 at 12:41pm

I think people are asking the wrong question when they ask "Is college worth it?" or "Is college necessary to be successful?" The real issue is the cost of college. If college wasnt as expensive as it is, this wouldnt even be a discussion.

But to address the question "Is college worth it?", I think the answer is complicated. Sometimes you can argue it is worth it, sometimes you cant.

Man made money, money never made the man

blackrainn's picture

By the way,

O
(Orangutan, 354
 
Points)
 on 10/5/11 at 12:45pm

By the way, http://www.ellsberg.com/: "Ellsberg was born in San Francisco in 1977, grew up in Berkeley, and graduated from Brown University in 1999, Phi Beta Kappa and magna cum laude."

PIGS's picture

Sounds like a whole load of

(Orangutan, 289
 
Points)
 on 10/5/11 at 1:10pm

Sounds like a whole load of quack aka I graduated from brown and dont know what to do other than write a book about how my ivy league uni didnt help me. Timothy Ferriss, u there?

Ari_Gold's picture

I agree to a certain point.

CO
(Orangutan, 273
 
Points)
 on 10/5/11 at 1:26pm

I agree to a certain point. To preface, I did go to college, worked decent smart (wish I actually put in more effort in high school) and got in a decent top university pursuing engineering/comp sci background initially with a humanities double later on (because I enjoyed it). Looking to get a Top 5 MBA...

I am trapped by the idea of golden hand-cuffs as most people (especially on this site). But I feel like I enjoy and thrive in more academic settings and questioning why are things the way they are.

Many of us are told, college education equates wealth and success. This is from historical data. But I wonder if people actually misread the signals. College and wealth in the olden days (early 1900's) were correlated but college didn't "cause" more wealth. People who went to college (in the olden days) in general already had more wealth, "status", and connection that set them up for success. If the G.I. bill following WWII did NOT prompt so many to go to college and further education, would they have done just well? Was the U.S. ripe for success following our victories in WWII? I don't know.

Most graduate (M.S., M.A.) are just not worth it. M.S. and M.A. used to be conciliatory prizes for those who pursued PhD programs without finishing it. Nowadays, they've become the money makers for universities. M.A. and M.S. are simple to setup, 1 to 2 yr in length with no need for dorms, no need to undergrad hand-holding and clubs, no need for one-on-one PhD dissertation attention from professors, etc. These program are guaranteed cash cows, especially with society obsession with credentials, race to the top (bottom) with credentials. I think we've reached the "operational effectiveness" for the value of the graduate credentials. The value proposition for most graduate educational credential outside of the professional degrees are just not worth it. But we live in this educational myth of further education equates greater gains.

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The Hundreds's picture

Has anyone actually had a

 
Points)
 on 10/6/11 at 10:28am

Has anyone actually had a chance to read the book?

And this dude really does look like he is on a coke binge.

Blake Donaghy's picture

For me, the guy's credibility

(Monkey, 46
 
Points)
 on 10/6/11 at 10:51am

For me, the guy's credibility evaporated when he suggested how to create opportunities. Rather than submitting resumes and applying to jobs, according to this dude you should be "through these networking skills, going out finding organizations, companies....and just start adding value...just writing about them on your blog, start finding ways to connect them to potential customers or funders or donors".

So, to be successful, I should find customers for existing companies (pro bono) and "write about them on my personal blog". Cool.

Edmundo Braverman's picture

Blake Donaghy wrote: For me,

ST
(Human, 14,342
 
Points)
 on 10/6/11 at 11:06am
Blake Donaghy:

For me, the guy's credibility evaporated when he suggested how to create opportunities. Rather than submitting resumes and applying to jobs, according to this dude you should be "through these networking skills, going out finding organizations, companies....and just start adding value...just writing about them on your blog, start finding ways to connect them to potential customers or funders or donors".

So, to be successful, I should find customers for existing companies (pro bono) and "write about them on my personal blog". Cool.

No, you're right. BSD's love bending over backwards for junior bankers and banking wannabes with no quid pro quo. Pro tip: I know adding value isn't in the average banker's vocabulary, but you might give it some thought before the next time you approach someone to ask for a favor.

Blake Donaghy's picture

Edmundo Braverman

(Monkey, 46
 
Points)
 on 10/6/11 at 11:40am
Edmundo Braverman:
Blake Donaghy:

For me, the guy's credibility evaporated when he suggested how to create opportunities. Rather than submitting resumes and applying to jobs, according to this dude you should be "through these networking skills, going out finding organizations, companies....and just start adding value...just writing about them on your blog, start finding ways to connect them to potential customers or funders or donors".

So, to be successful, I should find customers for existing companies (pro bono) and "write about them on my personal blog". Cool.

No, you're right. BSD's love bending over backwards for junior bankers and banking wannabes with no quid pro quo. Pro tip: I know adding value isn't in the average banker's vocabulary, but you might give it some thought before the next time you approach someone to ask for a favor.

Eddie - we are talking about two different things man. In the context of relationships and networking, I absolutely agree with you: people need to approach such situations humbly and with the mindset to offer as much as you can to the other person. This is networking 101 and I fully subscribe to it.

It was the application part that I had a problem with. This guy attempts to provide advice on how to create opportunities with companies and, although the mindset should be the same as for networking with people, I'm pretty sure the execution needs be a bit more involved/realistic than simply writing about them on a blog.

StyleT's picture

I think the appropriate

 
Points)
 on 10/6/11 at 12:43pm
Edmundo Braverman's picture

StyleT wrote: Turns out, most

ST
(Human, 14,342
 
Points)
 on 10/6/11 at 1:06pm

Ari_Gold's picture

Edmundo Braverman

CO
(Orangutan, 273
 
Points)
 on 10/6/11 at 4:13pm

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Hug It Out

Edmundo Braverman's picture

Banking and consulting are

ST
(Human, 14,342
 
Points)
 on 10/6/11 at 4:33pm

UFOinsider's picture

Edmundo Braverman

O
(Human, 10,328
 
Points)
 on 10/6/11 at 4:39pm

YOU JUST GOT TROLLED
http://www.troll.me/images/red-foreman322/dont-you...

Edmundo Braverman's picture

For those interested, here is

ST
(Human, 14,342
 
Points)
 on 10/7/11 at 12:43am

koske's picture

To say Uni or COLLEGE as you

ST
 
Points)
 on 10/7/11 at 4:55am

- Only time will tell....

Autistic Lurker's picture

It's debatable whether I need

O
(Chimp, 8
 
Points)
 on 10/10/11 at 7:16pm
BTbanker's picture

Good luck establishing

IB
 
Points)
 on 2/23/13 at 11:29am

"A man generally has two reasons for doing anything. One that sounds good, and the real one." - J.P. Morgan

legitpro's picture

i found i really matured in

(Monkey, 55
 
Points)
 on 2/23/13 at 12:33pm
moneymogul's picture

The problem with assuming

IB
 
Points)
 on 2/23/13 at 1:25pm
CanadianPositiveCarry's picture

So, here is my 2 cents. At

IB
 
Points)
 on 2/23/13 at 2:32pm
Elllo's picture

Half of the kids doesn't even

IB
(Monkey, 56
 
Points)
 on 2/23/13 at 3:27pm
aethereal's picture

Edmundo Braverman: The gist

(Chimp, 7
 
Points)
 on 2/23/13 at 5:32pm
smallmoneygrower's picture

I would like to qoute Howard

 
Points)
 on 2/23/13 at 5:04pm
smallmoneygrower's picture

legitpro: i found i really

 
Points)
 on 2/23/13 at 5:07pm
legitpro's picture

smallmoneygrower: legitpro:

(Monkey, 55
 
Points)
 on 2/23/13 at 5:33pm
smallmoneygrower's picture

legitpro: smallmoneygrower:

 
Points)
 on 2/23/13 at 5:45pm

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