An Open Letter to College Students – Don’t Miss These 10 Things

College is the best time of your life, it is where you meet an array of people with different beliefs, behaviors, perspectives and more, this is where you learn to see things differently.

Watch some great TV Series, Movies, listen to great music and read some good books. Our lives are too short to learn from our experiences alone. They show us new worlds, give us new perspectives, they help us understand ourselves better.

College shouldn’t be just about scoring more marks. The time you spend there is worth a damn lot more than just marks.

I have compiled and made a list of top 10 things to do in college.

1. Your mentors are important in life, so choose them wisely.

College starts with Freshmen hoping to chase their dreams and ambitions. To achieve your dreams, you need to get advice from those who’ve championed your obstacles. How do you find a mentor? Let’s take some examples to help you optimise this search for the right mentor.

(a) Want to be good at Web Design?

Every college has clubs dedicated to web design and related applications, approach them. If you have a pre-set of skills relevant you will probably get in their team. However, if you’re a beginner and still want to brush on some skills. Find someone from the club who can guide you in your learning process.

(b) Entrepreneur banna hai? ( Want to be an entrepreneur? )

Find someone who’s already running a business and ask them this “ I want to startup too and would love to learn from you.” Whatever you want to be, find someone who is doing what you want to do and learn from them. Colleges are full of talented people, your seniors are more awesome than you think.

(c) Pursue music?

Almost every college has a music club. Connect to them, if you’re good you join their squad. If not, you can still find a mentor who is already a part of that club.

(d) Artist?

Love to paint, draw and put life in paper / canvas ? You would want to check Stoned Santa. It is a platform where artists create art for our clients and get paid & recognised for the art that they create.

It’s never too late to start. Confused what you want to pursue? Fill this form up and I shall try to connect you to some awesome mentors. CLICK ME.

2. The value of an idea lies in the using of it.

Startup is the new guitar. Every college kid wants one — Arunabh Kumar.

Why not have one for yourself? By STARTUPP I don’t want everyone to start a business and aim to acquire a thousand users or raise millions in funding.
Startup — The action or process of setting something in motion.
Let’s take some examples to have a better understanding of this term — STARTUPP!

(A) WEB DESIGN : Get your basics straight, start off by building a website and continuously add features to it. Make the front-end better, add more functionalities, work on the security. There’s so much you learn when you’re working on something LIVE and REAL.

(B) ENTREPRENEURSHIP : You can either join a startup and work with them, learn how they operate, make connections, gain experience and then start something of your own.
OR
Identify a problem which is faced by “any sample of population”, devise a solution, discuss it with your target audience, validate idea, iterate and launch the MVP (Minimal Viable Product). Don’t wait to perfect your product/service. Go with the MVP and iterate with every move that you make to grow your venture.
Don’t just go about creating a Facebook page and writing CEO@XYZ. Starting up won’t add to your glamour content.
Work and you shall reap the benefits later.

Whatever you love, start working on it. Consuming tutorials and just watching videos on YouTube and Coursera won’t help. STARTUPP!

You learn from doing, not consuming!

3. Spend time acquiring new SKILLS.

Before you start learning new skills, make a list of what skills are required for you to become what you aspire to be in the next 5 years.

Some common skills which I believe everybody should be good at are :

(a) Using the internet right — Zillions of GBs of data is added to the internet each day. Finding what you want isn’t as easy in this vast ocean. Work towards using the internet efficiently with precision.
(b) Communicating — Super important skill to master. Learn to communicate well!
(c) Social Media— The world is a highly connected platform, letting the world know about what you’re upto isn’t easy. Tapping the immense potential of social media requires regular work.
For some tips, read this : http://bit.ly/trippyentrepreneur3

Learning is a constant process. Dedicate time slots and work on acquiring new skills.

4. STAY CLOSE TO FAMILY.

College is where you spend a lot of time with people your age who are as rebellious as you are. The connection that you form with these folks are at another level altogether. But it is important to remember that you have a family waiting for you to go back and make them proud.

Call someone you love back home few times a week, even if it’s just for a few minutes. College will show you times when you need the support of some very closed ones. Keep those doors open where you can speak your hearts out to your closed ones and they help you get out of it.

5. If it SCARES you, it might be a good thing to try.

Get out of your comfort zone & seek out different people and unique learning experiences.
*Find a girl cute ? Go talk to her. Stalking her on Social media won’t help.
*Want to be good at public speaking? Go talk to strangers. Strike good conversations. It gets very easy after the “First Hello”.

There’s so much to learn and experience outside our comfort zone. Push yourself to step out of it often.

6. Fall in LOVE.

Don’t be afraid to fall in love. When it happens, don’t take it for granted. Celebrate it, but don’t let it define your college experience.
Falling in love, doesn’t necessarily mean falling in love with the opposite sex, you can fall in love with your work too.

Our work should define us, give us a new name, a new identity.

7. Take RISKS — If you win you will be happy, if you don’t you’ll be Wise.

College is the perfect time to experiment, fail, learn and recover. By taking risks I do not mean that you fall into trouble and start doing illegal things. Approaching opportunities with an open mind which is not afraid of failing is what i mean by taking RISKS.

The biggest risk is not taking any risk.. In a world that’s changing really quickly, the only strategy that is guaranteed to fail is not taking Risks.
– Mark Zuckerberg

* Great, otherwise unforeseen opportunities often come from Risk-taking.
* You don’t achieve your dreams by playing it safe.
* Embracing risk taking helps you overcome the fear of FAILURE.

8. HEALTH IS WEALTH.

* Sleep well.
* Engage in physical activities.
* Breakfast — 95% of college kids skip breakfast. DON’T !

Remember. We have 2 lungs, 1 liver and 2 kidneys. What you do to your body in college will remain with you forever. 😉

9. Find ways to earn money.

School > College > Start earning. Why follow the convention and wait for college to get over to start minting money ?
“I can’t afford it” shuts down your brain. “How can I afford it?” opens up possibilities, excitement and dreams!
College kids have “N” number of legal and illegal expenses. Figure out ways to sustain your lifestyle all by yourself.

Earning money teaches you a lot about life and adds a motive to what you do. No, I don’t want you to engage in illegal things to earn some money.
Build skills >> Apply them practically. — You will figure out ways to make money yourself.
Suggestion : Read RICH DAD POOR DAD by Robert Kiyosaki.
If you start earning early, it gives you financial freedom, broader perspectives and new ways of looking at the world.

10. NETWORK — Networking is not collecting contacts! It’s about planting relations.

You have no sugar at home, you are sick, you can’t go out, you knock neighbor’s door and ask for help, and hear you have sugar, and she comes down to even help you with a tea.
Now take this case, your business needs some cool posters, you reach out to people you know and then you get some amazing designs made which boost your business really well.
Somehow, you could have designed it all by yourself, it would definitely be a great learning experience for you. But knowing people who are good at things and seeking their help only makes it easier.

Building a network is not just about TAKING. It is a symbiotic relationship. Before you take, you should learn to give. College is the best place to meet people who share different passions. Collaborate with them and work on something constructive, building an awesome network will be automatic.

The important point to note here is, people will only come for help when you build a relationship with them, not when you connect with them on social media.

College is where LIFE happens, either you MAKE it or BREAK it.

Set a goal for yourself — “ After ‘X’ years of college, I should be capable enough to take my passion full time and I won’t depend just on college placements for finding a source of livelihood.

Spend your time experimenting, making mistakes, learning, building skills, meeting people, making friends, partying with your buddies. College happens only once. Make the most out of it.

All the best! If you like this article, please share it with people who might find value in this.
Thanks for reading!