I am sitting here chuckling to myself about all of you saying 'college is a waste of time', blah blah blah. What is so funny? None of you, who didn't go to college, even bothered to learn the true purpose of college. For those intelligent enough to recognize its purpose, college has NOTHING to do with education. Everything I have learned in my bull shit Ivy League Education, I could have learned on my own. Know what I got out of my bull shit Ivy League degree? Many, many a connection into the investment management industry. The parents of the people I met, as well as the kids who have gone on to be very successful, are only a phone call away. It is about playing the game boys (or girls). Same goes for all you self-motivators and go-getters -- all you born entrepreneurs -- it is all about playing the game and meeting the right people to be able to acquire the venture capital for whatever you are trying to achieve. Yes, you CAN do it without a degree -- but sometimes a bullshit degree is enough to show you the door. You still have to walk through it, but that door can be a lot, lot more difficult to find without people showing you the way and turning on some lights. Now, if you want to be a trader -- well, that is a different story. If you are entirely self reliant and don't care about any industry or any connections because you never want to manage money or anything like that -- then a degree probably isn't important. And for you guys with a great track record after 10 years, then yes, that will replace a degree if you want to manage money. But I know plenty of kids who used their fancy-degree connections to get accelerated training in the money management industry and are now making cash hand over fist managing other people's money. Also, realize, that people like the idea of being in an 'exclusive club'. Those in power tend to favor those of the same 'pedigree'. Is it bullshit? Yes. But if you recognize it, you can use it to your favor. Of all the money managers I have met, I would say 75% of them have ivy league degrees. So for those of you who are claiming that a college degree is worthless -- if you are talking about the 'education', I would agree. But I honestly believe you are missing the point.
That's good, glad you got a chuckle out of it. Yeah again, if you want to manage people's money, remember you are WORKING FOR THEM. Let me say it again, YOU ARE WORKING FOR THEM, NOT YOURSELF. My original premise was that yes, a degree is great if you are planning on working for someone else. To be a trader and trade your own money requires no connections, no hook-ups, no politics, nothing but balls, brains and DISCIPLINE. Gotta be a ten percenter. Not arguing with your point..if you're into networking and shaking hands with people and asking people for things, then yes a degree might very well suit you. But the important thing is that I was able to help give you a chuckle on a boring Saturday. Glad to be of help.
As I said, Reaver -- if you want to trade for yourself, and yourself alone, absolutely no degree is necessary. Personally, I think any entrepreneur is a slave to their clientèle -- that is the nature of the business world: 'The customer is always right.' If you are just going to manage your own money, then the only education you need is experience. To get any further, unfortunately, you have to play the game. This doesn't mean you can't start playing without a degree -- but a degree sure does make it a lot easier. It is the only reason I bothered getting an Ivy League degree. People tend to tell me that I have been served life on a silver platter -- and yes, I did get certain advantages that others haven't had -- but I was smart enough to recognize them and take advantage of them. I know plenty of people who wasted away their Ivy League degree because they weren't smart enough to realize the doors it can open. Their loss -- one less competitor I have. I also know plenty of people who didn't get a great degree and still persevered. Ten %s, as you said. You can, however, be a 10% and use your degree as a means to achieving an end.
That's the point of Ivy League system, it's pure nepotism. That's why sons and daughters of the elite get special placement into Ivy Leagues while the rest fight against the odds to try to get in. But then, Ivy League girls are ugly and the party scene is a joke, so there is a trade-off. Regardless, the most value of college is the social atmosphere, not the education. The education is just conditioning for the corporate machine.
university education can really be a good thing. I can totally relate to all the people that say - university is bullshit and a large waste of time and money. I am from Canada and pay very little for university because the government covers a lot of it and I was able to get quite a few scholarships. So my opinion might be a lot different from someone that has to pay a ridiculous sum of money for university. Anyways, I feel that university can be a good thing because I believe it exposes you to a great deal of concepts and ideas that you might not ever be exposed to. This is most definitely a positive and something young minds often overlook. I am in a pretty intense program at a solid school and they throw a lot of stuff at you. In order to truly internalize and learn the concepts you have to work hard. I have found that this really creates discipline which can be very positive for your future endeavors. I seek truth and will be a life long learner. Though what I am learning isn't always truth and won't be very useful to me, I still think I am laying a foundation for my future learning and truth pursuing endeavors. Lets face it - learning and internalizing concepts is not easy - getting these skills down early in your adult life can be very beneficial. So I have shown you why I think university is beneficial for me. That doesn't mean its beneficial for everyone - but on average I would say it does much more good than bad.
Good on you Corey, At least you're smart enough to realize what a degree can be used for instead of thinking you were on a pedestal just because you have it. Kind of like being a Navy SEAL...once you make it through BUD/S and STT, you don't go home and tell your friends you're a SEAL and that's that... Nope, the fun's just getting started. You are now going to have to work even harder than you ever did in BUD/S and STT. Just like a degree, the degree isn't the destination, it is merely a stepping stone to a much larger goal. Many people just think they get a degree and go sit on their ass and be fed grapes and fanned with palm leaves while sitting on a bed of money..... I can't tell you how many people I know of that have degrees that sit around doing unskilled labor like working in call centers. They thought a degree as their meal ticket...and it wasn't. I respect the effort it took to acheive your degree. I am sure it involved lots of time and effort, especially at an Ivy League school. Not saying it was easy for you, just so you don't get the impression I'm knocking you for what you've done.
I'm 19. I trade the open from 9:30-11:00 AM every morning. At 12:00, I play ice hockey until 1:20. Then it's 1:20 in the afternoon and I have the rest of the day to do whatever I want with myself. I see live music a lot at nights. I get to hang out with my comrades and the ladies. Go to a movie if nothing else is going on. I don't have a college education but I have freedom and good income. Even with reviewing my trades it's at most 10 hours/week of work reach 2-3k/week. Any job - or trading position- that requires a college degree does not have the benefits of my "job" trading my own prop account. Nothing does. Freedom. That's why I got into this business, to be free and to be my own boss. I f that's why you're in, then don't get a college degree if you don't want and instead learn to watch price. Best time investment ever made.
My wife and I call them professional indoctrination centers. That you.. the unsuspecting, ill-informed and too strung out with debt.. Parental unit pays for. After all... You want your child to have a GOOD education. BAH!!!!! I argued with all my psychology teachers my entire time in that brainwashing center. I refused to be brainwashed. Them and their unfounded, failed theories....
Sometimes (especially if my self-employed career isn´t going well) I wish I finished college so I easily could land a cushy 9-5 job. Other times I realized I ain´t fit for/aren´t interested in a 9-5´er anyway, and gotta do things my own way.
You won't listen but the reality is that it won't last. I have been there, and it was more than 2-3k a week for trading the morning then going for drinks during lunch. Don't portray your current situation as the life of daytrading. Everyone who rode his/her current easy wave as the norm ended up getting hit hard with reality. In fact, since you have so much free time, you might as well get a degree, or learn a skill or even start a business on the side. Because in a couple years, you will be starting a thread very similiar to this one.