Your Side Hustle Looks Way More Impressive on Your CV Than an Internship
In 2020, entrepreneurship is better than an internship.
I always knew I was going to be an entrepreneur.
Perhaps it runs in the blood. My father was a small-business owner before me, and I suspect he did it not for the money and coolness-factor (being an entrepreneur wasn’t cool back in those days, anyhow), but because he loved the freedom of running his own show.
Keeping to the family tradition, I ended up dropping out in University and starting a martial arts events business using nothing but my old iPhone – you can read all about it here:
While it was rocky in the beginning, the business has mostly settled down.
Which was why I decided to apply for a full-time job as a digital marketing executive at a startup.
I did it not primarily for the money, but because I know I can help them grow. And in the process of helping them, I get to apply the skills I learned in starting my own business and refine them, better positioning myself when the company grows bigger.
As Robert Kiyosaki said in “Rich Dad, Poor Dad” —
“Work to learn. Don’t work for the money.”
I aced the first interview and got accepted — solely off the merit of my entrepreneurial portfolio.
And that’s when I realized there exists an unconventional path to get hired.
Starting your own business instead of going for that conventional, 3-month internship.
Here are some reasons why starting a business is superior.
It’s Literally The Easiest Time In Human History To Start A Business
“Entrepreneurs are not necessarily risk-takers; it’s just that they define risk and security differently from the way other people do.”
― Chris Guillebeau, The $100 Startup
This quote was taken from a book I’ve recently read called the $100 Startup.
That’s right — how to start a business with $100 or less.
Just a couple of decades ago, the mere suggestion that you could do that would get you laughed out the door — and rightfully so! In the days of brick and mortar businesses that wouldn’t be enough to even cover rent.
Things are different now.
The 21st century is a brave new world, in many ways for the better. The average age of a startup founder is getting lower and lower, and statistics show that the number of millionaires per capita (at least in America) has increased for the 10th straight year.
It is now possible to work from home, heck, even work overseas and make great money. The internet has changed the game forever.
In fact, I started my company with less than $1000 down, and I do the bulk of my work at home.
What was inconceivable in the age of brick and mortar businesses is now par for the course in the era of internet startups.
Welcome to the 21st century.
You Differentiate Yourself From The Crowd
“In your career, even more than for a brand, being safe is risky. The path to lifetime job security is to be remarkable.”
―Seth Godin, Purple Cow
Literally everyone has internships.
Very, very few can claim to have started their own business from scratch — especially if you’re in your 20s like me.
This may sound like a humble bragging, but most people are impressed that I managed to start up and run a successful business at the age of 22. And you know what? They should be.
Running Singapore BJJ Open is one of the hardest things I’ve done.
And this is coming from a guy who has literally fought other grown men in a cage!
Operating your own business takes a level of skill and commitment that most others cannot begin to grasp, even if they are ultra-successful in other aspects of their lives.
And consciously or unconsciously, people understand that. There is a level of intrigue and respect reserved for entrepreneurs now, and it’s cool. It separates you from the crowd. It differentiates you from the sea of applicants with typical business degrees and internships.
That’s how I landed the job. During the interview, I told the boss of my experience running a business of my own. We hit it off and chatted for hours.
My favourite Medium writer Nicolas Cole wrote:
Your circle of friends will be entrepreneurs and founders themselves, since they’re the only people who truly know what it is you’re feeling and going through on a daily basis.
Entrepreneurs can relate to each other. We speak the same language.
I got a call a few days later and was hired.
Remember, the experience of owning and running your own company, however small it may be, puts you in a different league.
Literally anyone can work for someone else for 3 months doing mind-numbing tasks such as cataloguing excel sheets or pouring coffee. That’s literally what 99% of these internships are all about, by the way. You don’t actually learn anything.
But how many people can claim to have started their own business?
Differentiate yourself from the crowd.
You’re Not A “Paper Tiger”
paper tiger
noun
a person or thing that appears threatening but is ineffectual.
When you start your own business, you’re in the trenches fighting battles every day.
Every. Single. Day.
You’re putting out fires, making decisions and juggling the thousand and one things that go into making the business a success.
There are no teachers to map out guidelines, no bosses to tell you what to do. Life changes when you are the boss.
You can’t hide behind your credentials, bedazzling though they may be. In this aspect, it’s similar to my experience fighting — nobody cares what school or style of martial arts you’re doing. All that matters is if it works.
Business, like fighting, is utterly ruthless, and as real as it gets.
At the end of the day, all that matters is when the lights turn on and the curtains go up, do you have the skill to execute?
In Singapore where I live, there is a huge emphasis on paper qualifications and courses. So much so that the appearance of skill may actually be more valuable than actual skill.
When I was in the Army, I saw utterly ineffective people promoted to leadership positions solely because of their good grades.
Yes, this happens. All the time.
Would you rather be operated on by an actual surgeon who has saved countless lives or some wannabe who got a certificate somewhere with “Dr” written on it?
In the same vein, I would rather hire someone who’s been there, done that.
Wouldn’t you?
Even If Your Business Fails, You Win
There’s an alarming statistic that shows that 90% of all businesses in Singapore fail within the first two years.
So there exists a justifiable fear, the greatest fear of every entrepreneur. That there is a chance, a good chance actually, that your business will tank.
I am of the mind that there is no better time to fail than now.
This ties back to the first point of the article, that this is the best time in the history of the universe to start a business. I started mine for about $1000, and I know people who have started theirs for less.
I was all stressed out about the potential for failure when a good friend told me something that changed my perspective:
“Alvin, treat this like a business course you’re taking. Even if you fail, treat the money you’ve invested as paying tuition fees.”
This line of thinking changed my entire approach.
You see, instead of paying a $50–60k for a University degree, I spent a fraction of the amount on my business. If I fail, it’ll have taught me way more than just studying theory in school and better prime me for future success. If I succeeded, I’ll have a source of income rather than just a certificate.
Win-win!
I can always go back to school if I failed. The institution will always be there. The main thing is to ensure you invest money you can actually afford and gain new contacts and knowledge from your side hustle.
Don’t look at your business as a mere transaction.
Look at it as a learning opportunity.
In Summary
This blog post goes out to all my young, wannabe entrepreneurs.
I was in the same shoes just two years ago. Wondering if I should take the “safe” approach, keep my head down and finish school. Ultimately, I decided not to let a great opportunity pass me by.
Even though the going was, and still is, tremendously hard, I have zero regrets.
The great comedian Jim Carrey put it across very succinctly when he said:
“You can always fail at what you don’t love, so you might as well take a chance on what you do love.”
Especially when you’re young and unburdened with huge debts and a growing family. Take a chance on what you love, and start that business.
Starting your own business will make a purple cow. It’ll set you apart from the crowd.
Should you fail, you’d have learned many valuable lessons. Should you succeed, you have a brand new source of income and a powerful title in your CV that says “founder of so and so.”
And that’s more valuable than any cookie-cutter internship.
Thanks for reading my story :)
