My parents are forcing me to study, so I need to choose something. What do you think?

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They want me to study something, just to have something more than highschool behind my name.

So I was thinking of doing a short marketing course or coding course. The problem is when it comes to marketing short courses, pretty much everything is covered within the Crash Course.

I suggested them to give me the $2k and I'll invest it into my site but they aren't buying into it lol.

What do you think, in terms of languages to learn?
 
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Aren't you like 22 dude? Seems pretty ridiculous to do something based upon your parents expectations. Not that going to college is the worst thing, it's just a very expensive use of 3 years...

They're presumably just fearful that you're not 'going' anywhere in life. So if you really want to appease them then spend the next month making huge steps. If you can earn a few grand from your site and show clear progression then they're more likely to relax.

Noone here is going to be able to tell you what to do with your life, but eventually you have to realize that family expectations can't cloud your decisions forever.

But if YOU want to do a course then go for it. Just don't do it for someone else's sake.

What do YOU want to do @built ?
 
Prentzz said:
Aren't you like 22 dude? Seems pretty ridiculous to do something based upon your parents expectations. Not that going to college is the worst thing, it's just a very expensive use of 3 years...

They're presumably just fearful that you're not 'going' anywhere in life. So if you really want to appease them then spend the next month making huge steps. If you can earn a few grand from your site and show clear progression then they're more likely to relax.

Noone here is going to be able to tell you what to do with your life, but eventually you have to realize that family expectations can't cloud your decisions forever.

But if YOU want to do a course then go for it. Just don't do it for someone else's sake.

What do YOU want to do @built ?
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I just turned 21. But the problem is because I still don't have enough cash to get my own place I have to abide by their rules.

"So if you really want to appease them then spend the next month making huge steps. If you can earn a few grand from your site and show clear progression then they're more likely to relax."

Pretty much my only option, will get them off my bank for a little while longer.

I mean I wouldnt mind doing a coding course because its only going to make my site better in the long run, so I'm going to do that. But i have a feeling its not going to be "good enough" for them
 
Going with php, html and css. Should be fun, so I'm going to end this thread
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Honestly my advice is to set yourself free from the limiting family situation. Even if you have a good month, when you have a bad month they'll be seeding you with negative thoughts and being a general pita about what you're up to.

Get a job that will tide you over and do what Gary Vaynerchuk suggests to budding entrepreneurs: grind those night time hours like crazy, live like crap, sleep on a buddy's couch, whatever it takes so you can focus on getting your business off the ground. Heck they might even let you stay there (if you can stand it...) and not really say anything about your evening hustle if you're out working all day and so on. But generally my advice is move out sooner rather than later, I think being on your own and having to pay your own way is a great motivator to be successful.

There's no shame in it - a few years ago after a disastrous and rapid end to my first business venture I took a job for 12 months to tide me over and give me the time to lay the foundations for something new and I'm REALLY not a suitable personality for the whole 9-5 thing. I did overshoot by 2 months though so I could go on holiday to New Zealand but after that I was out and back to this world.

[edit - sorry didn't read the comments before replying to OP - gl with the php etc should be useful stuff :smile:]
 
@built I understand perfectly what you are facing, faced the very same thing... move out & get great results to silence them!
 
Well if you're going to go the college route then my advice would be an STEM degree. Though the only way you'll have independence to do your own thing is to move out and find a job to pay for your place and build what you want on the side.
 
To be honest with your skillset you could probably make some side cash right now by doing work for other people's sites. You know outreach, can make awesome infographics. Hell, I may need your help for some of my personal projects if you're down to make some extra cash soon.

I'd suggest doing the course as well if your parents are paying for it.

And yeah the 30 day crash course is awesome, but you could do something really in depth like Digital Marketer's stuff. I just got their lab subscription and its pretty damn good. Already got some very awesome information from those guys.

Btw I had something similar with my parents, as soon as I showed them that I was making good money they got off my back and are pretty much letting me live rent free. It came down to me telling them that if I didn't have x,xxx saved up by mid Jan I'd go back to school. Thankfully I made it happen a week in advance through some hardcore hustling.
 
I still get this shit from my parents... (Even when I'm not living with them and I'm paying my own bills for almost 2 years).

I think I'm the same age or a bit younger (1994), I didn't go to a university because I don't want to waste 4 years on education that doesn't give me any practical things what I can use afterwards.

Even if you end up needing to do a 9 - 5, who in the FUCKING HELL DO YOU FUCKING THINK THE EMPLOYER WILL HIRE? The one that has been grinding for a year in digital marketing and has made some serious cash or the green tomato that just rolled out of the university?

If the answer is not obvious, listen to your parents and go to university.

If I would find a university, where I would see actual practical value, I would definitely take it (and work on my project on the side), but until I haven't seen one, NO THANK YOU!

So my advice comes down to: "Don't go to university just because your parents tell you to! If you don't see anything that you would actually enjoy studying just don't go there, you will be wasting your parents money and your time! Get your shit together, move out from your parents (you can make enough cash in 2 - 3 months if you don't fuck around) and live your own life."
 
At the end of the day it's really about how much risk you want to take and if you're willing to listen to your parents. I agree with the other posts here that say you can get a job and then work on the side.
 
Sometimes university is just not about profesional knowledge / boosting career / making more money, etc... Nowadays you could make it without a formal education.

But try to look at it from slightly different angle - it's actually a vehicle to you as a more educated and wise individual. It's not about a profession. It's about your intellectual power, broader interests, comprehension capabilities. Again, it might not be needed for making money - it's investment to yourself as a person.

When you see yourself 10, 20, 30 years from now - you never know where all of your ventures will bring you - and at certain point in your life you might be well grateful for yourself for taking that step long ago and having a university education. If someone is paying for it or if you get it free (moneywise, not time) - why not take it. As a bonus you'll find yourself in an idea generation hub and have huge networking capabilities.
 
HTML, PHP and CSS is a solid choice.

I'd add Javascript (a little bit), to make it well rounded.
 
Your parents come from a generation where formal education was the most valuable thing you could have. As we all know, these days things are different. Unless you come out of college with a marketable skill, or you went to a top Ivy League institution, then your degree is pretty much worthless. Especially as an entrepreneur. And other than law or medicine, most marketable skills can be learned quicker and cheaper elsewhere.

Your parents are concerned that you are 22 and you can't support yourself. This is pretty reasonable. Unfortunately they think the solution is formal education, which is incorrect.

I'd suggest you give them (and yourself) a deadline. Tell them "If I'm not making $xx,xxx by xx date then I'll take your advice." Make it a realistic deadline, and enough money to support yourself in your own apartment comfortably in your area. Once they start to see that you can support yourself then they will get off your back. You shouldn't submit to their plan to get you formal education, in any way shape or form. As soon as you are done, their next plan will be a 9-5 for you.
 
JamesMurphyCopy said:
You shouldn't submit to their plan to get you formal education, in any way shape or form. As soon as you are done, their next plan will be a 9-5 for you.
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I agree totally. If you let someone control you, they'll continue to attempt to do it. They'll meddle till the day they die until you establish independence and create healthy boundaries.
 
@built I'm going through the same issues right now and the advice from everyone on here has been helpful. I'm going to use @Island suggestion and say if I don't have xxxx built up by June I'll enroll in college for fall semester.

As a way to show progression during the time frame I'm going to get some certifications from Adwords, Analytics, and HubSpot and build a LinkedIn profile to tide my parents over.

Good luck!
 
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