1.) How can I find a good college for studying business?

There are lots of colleges that offer business programs. But there are many things that factor into what the best school is for you, besides just the major. For example, the cost of tuition, how close you want to stay to home, and so forth. Try going to Peterson's College Search. Click on "Start Search" and it will guide you in finding colleges that meet the criteria that are important to you.

2.) How do you know what to major in, and whether you're making the right choice?

There is no "right" thing to major in. I started off college "undecided", and then joined the teaching program, and then changed my mind and studied Communications (TV, Film, Radio). What I learned along the way is that college is about learning how to think more than it is about what you are studying. Actually, most college graduates end up doing something entirely unrelated to what they studied. The people hiring you are also not usually very particular about what you majored in. The most important thing really is that you are studying what you are interested in right now, because then you will be more motivated and enjoy getting your degree.

To give you a little preview... In this series, I am going to show you how you can can pay for college even if you aren't at the top of your class, a star athlete, or particularly strong in the area of community service. I'm going to share some advice on what to do when all the scholarship applications you diligently sent out are answered with letters that begin with, "Unfortunately, you were not selected as a recepient..." and usually include something along the lines of "We had an overwhelming number of qualified applicants.", or worse - remain entirely unanswered!

In this series, I am going to take you beyond the advice you're used to hearing to the real-life, down and dirty, detailed, step-by-baby-step things that I actually did to pay through four years of $30,000+/year NYU tuition, room & board, books, food and so forth, entirely on my own. And trust me, these are things that ANYBODY can do. Stay tuned...

Over the summer, Sheena Lindahl and Michael Simmons began working full time on Extreme Entrepreneurship. Their focused attention has been a catalyst for some exciting developments – from a more developed business model to the establishment of key partner relationships.

The company is focusing on three channels through which to fulfill its mission of helping students plan, prioritize, and pursue their vision for life: books, speaking engagements, and an online community. Significant progress has been made in each of these arenas.

Extreme Entrepreneurship is currently working with a book packager and literary agent, who is helping them to improve the quality of and relaunch of The Student Success Manifesto and The Student Success Manifesto Workbook. Additionally, the packager is assisting in the development and sale to a publisher of a flagship book and workbook, Extreme Entrepreneurship and All or Nothing, Now or Never, as well as an extended series of “pocket mentors” – practical guides to achieve the goals in one’s life plan.

In addition to speaking engagements that Michael and Sheena have been taking part in, they are currently planning The Extreme Entrepreneur Tour (EET) in partnership with Advantage Networks. EET is a collegiate entrepreneurship tour traveling to 150 college campuses throughout America starting in the Fall of 2006. EET brings together America’s top young entrepreneurs to spread the entrepreneurial mindset to their peers at a grass roots level. Young entrepreneurs who've made, earned, and sold their company for millions and/or made a huge impact before 25 have already been recruited as speakers.

Lastly, Extreme Entrepreneurship is in the process of developing an online community to be targeted at college students and purchased by colleges. The community features the ability for individuals to post and receive feedback on their life plan and goals, as well as to send surveys to help them get feedback on the tough questions they face on their journey. This community facilitates communication between individuals and their mentors and peers. Rahim Fazal, an MBA Candidate at Richard Ivey School of Business and young “dot-com millionaire” who started and sold his first business while completing his last year of high school, is assisting in the market research and creation of the community.

Rollercoaster of Confidence and Doubt. In past months, I have experienced some of the strongest self-confidence and the strongest self-doubt I have ever had. I am becoming a much more modest person as a result of going from thinking I’m a genius to feeling entirely incompetent in the span of hours.

Self-Knowledge. My lowest point on the rollercoaster was when I dared to be fully in the presence of my self-doubts. In one of his speeches, David Hawkins, author of Power vs. Force, says that if you accept yourself fully, for both your strengths and weaknesses, then you become immune to criticism from others. He suggested writing down all the criticism you have of yourself to identify and then accept them. I tried this exercise one night and was ready to give up the company. I felt like I was holding it back, that I wasn’t strong enough to help it succeed. But this feeling of inadequacy slowly went away and I began to realize that all these fears that had been festering at the back of my mind were false. I was strong enough and competent enough. I could see my strengths and weaknesses for what they were and I began making plans for how to manage them.

Deepening Relationships. Michael too has been coming to know himself better. And as a result, we are able to work better as a team – both inside and outside of the business. Inside the business, we’ve taken responsibility for the tasks we’re most naturally inclined to do. We’ve identified each others strengths and weaknesses without judging them, and used this information to our advantage. Outside of the business, we are supportive and accepting of each other, which provides a sublime environment for the growth and the energy needed to reach our goals.

Discipline. I have always been an incredibly disciplined person. When I was entering the workforce and paying my way through college, this was probably my greatest competitive advantage. I was dependable. I would produce quality work ahead of schedule. It has always amazed me how much doing this alone sets you apart from the crowd. But building a business and relying on its income to survive requires a whole new discipline, foreign even to me. It means getting up early every day and working through the day consistently instead of retiring to the comfortable looking bed in the other room. It means being willing to get your hands dirty with the detail tasks you feel are below you. It means making scary and significant decisions multiple times a day. It means constantly checking in on yourself to make sure you are staying true to your values and goals. And it means facing your deepest fears of failure and rejection. Every day.

Facing Fears. There are so many fears that I have had to face in this endeavor, I don’t know where to begin. Sales calls are one. I never want to make sales calls. I suppose it is a fear of rejection, and I am working on my skills in this area. But there is no way to be profitable without sales and one thing I’m definitely learning is that following up by phone is a key way to get sales. Another fear is that I’ll run out of money. Having struggled with money for most of my life, being financially comfortable is no doubt at the top of my goals. And this threatens that in a big way if it fails. I believe I can build myself up again if that happened, but it would mean more years of struggling to get by.

Acceptance. All of the above has led me to a greater understanding of myself, the world I live in, and how I want to live my life. As Helen Keller said, “Life is either a daring adventure, or nothing”.

Growing up, I had a strong believe in a vague and blissful picture of “happily ever after”. Coming to college, I told my roommate that I believed people have two romantic loves in their life: a high school sweetheart (where they learn what love is) and a true love (who they live happily ever after with, because they don’t make all the mistakes they made with their first love). So far this has been true in one aspect – there have been two men I have loved in my life. It has been utterly false in that solutions to all problems were learned with the first one.

When Michael and I first shared with each other those three scary words (saying them slowly and simultaneously so that neither of us had to say it first) it was one of the best feelings in the world. But I eventually learned that my definition of love was not the only definition out there. Differences in our beliefs about the idea of ‘soul mate’, ways of supporting each other, and ways of wanting to be supported have led to much reflection on what it means to love and commit to another individual. Now I think love is almost equivalent to growth.

Michael’s mother once told me “no one can hurt you like someone you love.” It resonated very deeply. Love is remarkably precise in its ability to expose both what is most blissful and most painful within us. This is why I think relationships are the most direct route to self-discovery and growth. The problems they bring out are the demons within ourselves. And we are forced to work through these things in order to continue the relationship. Love causes individuals to become better people.

In summary, Michael and I will have our 5th anniversary on the 27th of this month. Over the past five years, we have risen above challenges ranging from sharing a one-room apartment to infidelity. And we have experienced the indescribable peace in a glance filled with love. The intimacy of knowing what another is thinking without words. The comfort in sharing your dreams and fears with someone who understands you. And the significance of knowing that you will forever be connected through that love.

The pictures I have now are mostly of him sleeping, even though he doesn’t seem to do that enough. (On his third night home, he learned to climb onto the bed, and Michael and I are regularly awoken 3-4 times a night. I was so excited that he had slept through an entire night a couple days ago…until I learned that Michael had pulled an all-nighter and the only reason Samurai hadn’t woke me up is because Michael was keeping him distracted!) I’ll get more action pictures soon.

I identified this limiting belief in college, and made many positive changes in my life as a result. Still, every once in awhile, I notice it coming to surface. I’m aware, for example, that by working on my business full time, I am putting in my full efforts. Thus the danger arises that if the business fails, I cant blame lack of time or a distracted mind. I cant say that if given the chance, I would be a great entrepreneur. The business either will be successful, or it will not. And the fascinating thing is, I’m genuinely more interested to just live it the process of trying than to worry about what the outcome will be.

I’ve asked myself the question a lot. Here are some of my rational observations:

I have tons of ideas of what to blog about, but…