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I'm about 9 months from graduation with my Bachelors in Information Systems...

I have had a ton of experience already working for a variety of different companies within my industry: Information Tech.

I'm at a bit of a crossroads:

  1. I have met a team of 2 others that want to start a business. The CEO of the business has been working in industry for 20+ years, one is a recent college graduate, and the other guy I would be working with (who isn't a founder) worked for 3 years for Yahoo!

Ever since the age of about 12 or 13, I've always wanted to either 1) run my own business or 2) partner up and run a business in IT.

  1. Since I'm graduating from one of the best schools in the nation for my degree I have organizations like the IRS and many big firms calling me to interview.

I'm about 2 months away from finishing ( a second of two ) 6-month internship. Then I go back to school for a few quarters.

What do ya'll think!? Should I go big and work p/t right now on this business (while still in school) then make the leap and work f/t on it in 9 months? We already have atleast 300k that investors are willing to give and we haven't tried too much yet? Or should I go do what majority of people do is... go for the steady paycheck every 2 weeks?

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2 Answers

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I agree 100% with the first answer provided. Here's an extra 2 cents:

Go with your gut. You are your own best advisor and you know best what will make you happy. Understand that not only is it OK to fail but most often it is good to fail. You'll work like a dog, learn more in 6 mo. than you ever did in college, and be happy as a clam. I'm speaking from 1st hand experience with my first job out of college.

By first understanding it is a high risk proposition, then accepting that risk, you'll be miles ahead of the game. Develop a Plan B and a Plan C, this covers the bases. As life unfolds before you all your plans will need to be tweaked every once in awhile and this is good. Always having a Plan A, B and C keeps you grounded and heading in the right direction as long as you understand these get tweaked along the way.

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up vote 1 down vote

It sounds like you have a tremendous opportunity to try and create something awesome. I think it's a good time to take a risk if you are young and don't have a family to support, etc. Once you have those kinds of things in your life it's a lot harder to take a big risk.

That said, go on the interviews as well. Figure out what's going to make you happy. Even if you don't accept a job offer, maybe you just made a new contact. You still have 9 months to go, and if you can work on the startup now, part-time, you can get a feel whether it is the right fit for you or not by the time you are ready to graduate.

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