Stay in School if you Want to be a Billionaire

Education Levels of the Forbes 400

To the left is a graph representing the education levels of the richest people in America, the “Forbes 400″. It clearly shows that most super-successful people, have an advanced education.

Frequently reported is the occurrence of affluent members of the population having prevailed over difficult circumstances having followed an unorthodox avenue to achieve their accomplishments. However, an article printed in a recent edition of the Forbes magazine shows that four out of five of the richest people in the US have a degree or greater.

The article clearly shows that although there are some exceptions such as Mark Zuckerberg and the late Steve Jobs who quite famously dropped out of college, the greater number of wealthy members of society have an extreme level of education.

Not surprisingly, the facts imply that education is a substantial advantage in gaining financial success and admiration. The upshot being that if you want to follow in the shoes of the members Forbes´ rich list then obtaining a degree or higher is the way to go, but is it really that easy?

With our countries leaders claiming we are running out of money they are hindering our youth, when they should be assisting them in gaining the highest level of education available to them, but instead their narrow minded delusions affect the country as a whole.

January 27, 2012 William Roberts Personal Improvement, The College Unicorn 1

5 Reasons College is a Waste of Money

Degrees Can't Pay Rent

The average American is conditioned to accept the fact that without a college degree they will achieve nothing in their life and have no chance of building a successful career. Yet it is the colleges themselves who came up with this theory, so how do you explain the fact that eight of the richest people in America do not have a degree?

1. The Cost

Some four years long degree courses can cost up to $250,000, a loan of this size will result in repayments for the remainder of the graduate’s days. The average graduate will change career approximately five times throughout their life so the initial college investment into their original chosen career is never recouped.

2. College fosters learning, not performance

Professors do not have the flexibility to think outside the box and be creative to prepare their students for the real world, they are forced by the system to be narrow-minded and teach worthless information that will never help students gain successful careers. Professors have usually spent their whole career working on campus thus giving them only theoretical knowledge of how the real world actually operates and the skills and experience needed for graduates to be successful. Neither do professors experience the pressures felt in every day careers, how does a student question the knowledge of his professor? In the real world you will always be judged on how you perform and the results you achieve.

3.The “A” student myth: College = well-paying job

Do you really need a degree to be a successful business person, a mathematical genius or a world class contributor to society? Research shows that “A” grade students are no more likely to succeed than “C” grade students once they make their way into society. What is really fascinating is insubordinates who, once they are allowed to pursue their interests in non-academic settings seem to flourish. Albert Einstein held his professors in contempt and was kicked out of school but went on to be one of the world’s greatest Physicists. “Wisdom is not a product of schooling but of the lifelong attempt to acquire it. (A.Einstein, 1954).

4. College brings students from inquisitive to indifferent.

We are brought into this world with the ability to love unconditionally, a yearning for knowledge and an intense desire for all things new. Yet it is quite common once graduates have gone through the education system, their yearning as all but diminished. How much of the information that students spend four years agonising over do they actually use in their careers today?

5. College makes it easier for you to believe what your told.

Life itself is the best education that one can receive, don´t be fooled into thinking that going to school is the only way to achieve your goals. College is perceived as being the stepping-stone to success, but yet it flounders in the ability to provide the knowledge and skills to enable graduates to become entrepreneurs. “Why do we place so much emphasis on young people learning abstract academic stuff, and then don’t give them any way to learn real world things?” (Michael Ellsberg, The Education of Millionaires, 2011). When a graduate is told they will have the promise of a million dollar lifetime earning opportunity, once they are kicked out of their dorms, do they also tell them that these figures do not incorporate the fact that for those students who took a student loan to get through college in the first place will be forced into a 9-5 rat race job just to make the repayments.

Final thoughts

Just for arguments sake, let’s say the average college fees are $20k per year, over the 4 years that’s a total of $80k. Instead of spending that money on tuition what gain would one receive if it was invested in stocks over a period of 10 years? Well, calculations show that the final amount could be well over a million dollars. A good example of this is $80K invested in Microsoft back in 1987 would, 10 years later be worth $42 million, and agreeably this is an extreme model of choice but still proves a powerful and valid argument.

“I am convinced that there is no greater way to learn than the process of self-directed inquiry. I am also convinced that, in America and in many other countries of the world, traditional education continually short-changes its recipients by its familiar to empower them with sufficient knowledge of self to be self-determining. In traditional education we earn about everything but ourselves. Since educators cannot be absolutely sure of the human elements of self-discovery, they ignore them entirely. The logical approach should be just the opposite: that which we do not know for sure should maintain our attention. We spend hundreds of hours in school studying material of questionable utility, and virtually no time in attempting to understand the human needs, drives, motives and emotions that we live with every day.” (C. D. Hayes, Self university, 1989.)

January 13, 2012 William Roberts Personal Improvement, The College Unicorn, Uncategorized 5

Optimistic Excuses = Fear of Greatness?

There’s no difference between a pessimist who says, “Oh, it’s hopeless, so don’t bother doing anything,” and an optimist who says, “Don’t bother doing anything, it’s going to turn out fine anyway.” Either way, nothing happens. —YVON CHOUINARD,7 founder of Patagonia

Note to myself:

If you think that things will get better on their own, they wont. Being optimistic wont change that, but it will provide a comfortable rationalization that will paralyze you from taking the action that you need to take. Every day, there’s something that happens to you to make you think about a better life. Instead of acting on it, people tend to make optimistic excuses.

They sound like this:

Some day, I’ll,…
When this happens, then I can,..
I can’t wait until,..
I know it will work out because,.

If you’re like most people, you’ll consider the problem, minimize it, change the negative feeling to an optimistic plan, and press on. You learn to accept the life you have and you avoid making a change. You procrastinate, because it’s easy and it takes less courage.

When you say to yourself, “Don’t worry, things will work out in the end”, or “Everything happens for a reason” to justify your current situation not being what you’d like, you’re most likely afraid of greatness. I’m not saying that you fear good things happening, but it’s possible that you are avoiding the steps to make them happen because your current situation isn’t causing you enough pain.

Don’t let your fears hide in your optimism.

January 5, 2012 William Roberts Personal Improvement, Uncategorized 10

Remember Anything in 3 Easy Steps | “IL HAS”

IL HAS | Memory System

This is how to remember anything you want to and never forget it.

First, I’m going to tell you something I want you to remember, using the process in reverse. (this blog post for example, I want you to remember it and share it with your friends on social media)

Anytime you want someone to remember what you’re telling them, tell them like this:

my blog’s domain name: iknowyoullremember.com (see the logo in the upper left) image
I live in Wisconsin, It’s in the United States location
I write this post, wearing only boxers and a tee-shirt that has my IKYR logo on it humor

Why did I do that? I wanted you to form an image of my blog. I then wanted your brain to locate or associate that image with a particular location. Last, I wanted to make the image stick by telling you something that’s humorous, an action, or sexy. The crazier, funnier, or more insane the image is the better. Me writing in my underwear might not be any of those, but the first two steps in the process got you 3/4 of the way there.

Memory experts use systems that are similar to this, but I’ve tried to simplify it as much as possible. There are reasons this works so well and books have been written on the topic, but I wanted to share this with you in a condensed form.

If you want to remember something and not forget it, here’s the easy 3 step process:

Mental Image
Past Location
Humor, an Action, or Sex

IL HAS (Image, Location, Humor, Action, Sex)

1. Turn what you want to remember into an image, a photograph (like our logo)

2. Think of the object in a location (example: Kitchen table in the home you grew up in.)

3. Associate that image with something humorous, an action, or sexual in your location

Done (You now can remember anything using this process)

For example, If you closed your eyes and thought of this website’s logo being passionately kissed by your favorite relative underneath the kitchen table at the house you grew up in. That would be enough to remember it forever.

The longer you take on each step of the process; the better it works. If you need to remember make sure you’re coming up with a clear image, a more exact location, and something that’s very funny, attractive, or sexy. When you need to recall the memory, you only need to know the location in which it was left.

Think of any location you’ve ever been and remember as a place to store a memory. Any building you’ve been in, place you’ve traveled to, or even behind the monitor you’re reading this on. Your image can be “tied” to this location with something that’s “memory worthy” (Humorous, Attractive, or Sexy) You can remember that the “L” is for location and is in the middle of I and HAS in “IL HAS”.

Try it if you don’t believe me.

My favorite book on memory: Moonwalking with Einstein

Amazon did an interview with him click here is your interested

December 29, 2011 William Roberts IL HAS, Memory 19

I Read | Chris Martenson

Chris Martenson

After first viewing Chris Martenson’s online “Crash Course” seminar I started viewing the world through “his lens”. If you read any of his, or his contributors posts, you’ll soon see that they hold significant financial weight. Chris Martenson has accurately predicted facets of the financial disasters of 2008 and has continued to be impressive with his predictive insights. His ability to see in to the future is exactly why many investment types make his reading mandatory.

Chris Martenson is not an energy specialist, not an economist, and he’s not a environmentalist. What Chris says he is an American Patriot and an optimist. Most of his writing and material lately doesn’t really paint an optimistic future. Mr. Martenson is most known for his “Crash Course Seminar“

To understand the Crash Course Cult following, The idea is this: The last 20 years, will not be like the next 20 years.

The past is not our servant, it won’t tell us how the future will be. As a county, we’re in a sharp corner in time, a predicament, in which we must make better decisions about our money system. He goes on to explain how resources are running out, how our economy is debt based, and how that relates to exponential growth patterns. In the conclusion of the crash course he offers apocalyptic investment strategies filled with the hope that gold or other precious metals will be re-monetized.

Chris’s entire message is founded in the understanding that there needs to be some serious changes in the very near future. This understanding, or wake up call, has altered his entire live path,

From Chris’s Bio Page:

Before: I am a 40-year-old professional who has worked his way up to Vice President of a large, international Fortune 300 company and is living in a waterfront, 5 bathroom house in Mystic, CT, which is mostly paid off. My three young children are either in or about to enter public school, and my portfolio of investments is being managed by a broker at a large institution. I do not really know any of my neighbors, and many of my local connections are superficial at best.

After: I am a 45-year-old who has willingly terminated his former high-paying, high-status position because it seemed like an unnecessary diversion from the real tasks at hand. My children are now homeschooled, and the big house in Mystic was sold in July of 2003 in preference for a 1.5 bathroom rental in rural western Massachusetts. In 2002, I discovered that my broker was unable to navigate a bear market, and I’ve been managing our investments ever since. Since that time, my portfolio has gained 166%, which works out to a compounded yearly gain of 27.8% for five years running (whereas my broker, by keeping me in the usual assortment of stocks, would have scored me a 38% return, or 8.39%/yr). I grow a garden every year; preserve food, know how to brew beer & wine, and raise chickens. I’ve carefully examined each support system (food, energy, security, etc), and for each of them I’ve figured out either a means of being more self-sufficient or a way to do without. But, most importantly, I now know that the most important descriptor of wealth is not my dollar holdings, but the depth and richness of my community

Everything this guy is talking about or doing makes perfect sense to me, and that’s why I read Chris Martenson.

December 27, 2011 William Roberts I Read 15

21 Ways to Spot a Liar

Do You Swear to Tell the Whole Truth?

Something that has always drawn my attention is the ability to tell if someone is lying to me. This skill really comes in handy during sales meetings, managing employees, and personal relationships.

Most of the time we know when someone is giving us a line of crap, but if we have additional clues, we could maybe get to the bottom of things better. If we know more about how liars act, we can spot them faster. Most people really don’t understand how often lies take place, why they really happen, or even how to detect them.

To become good at spotting a liar, you have to be well versed in the following skills:

Interviewing (asking the right questions)
Body Language (70% of communication is body language)
Deception Physiology (Liars are predictable)

A great way to start learning some interviewing skills is to first study the Reid Technique. The Reid Technique is method of questioning subjects and assessing their credibility usually taught to law enforcement professionals. You can find books on this with a quick Amazon search.

After you understand how to question (or interrogate) correctly, you’ll need to brush up on reading and understanding body language in general. One of the leading books on this subject is written by Joe Navarro and Marvin Karlins called What Every BODY is Saying.

For a well rounded set of lessons on lie Spotting, I recommend Pamela Meyer’s book LieSpotting (she’s a leading expert on truth seeking) I’ve included her TED talk below this helpful list of ways to spot a liar.

21 Ways to Spot a Liar

Liars are more often extroverts
Liars “leak” facial expressions (nervous ticks)
Liars shake their heads no when saying yes (vice-versa)
Liars look down before they answer
Liars touch their face
Liars put objects between themselves and the person they’re lying to
Liars shrug their shoulders
Liars move their torsos less when telling a lie
Liars defend their statements upfront (“What I remember is”,. “As far as I know”)
Liars use long introductions but skip over main events
Liars avoid or confuse pronouns
Lars give OVERLY specific denials
Liars emphasize their truthfulness
Liars point their feet toward an exit
Liars tell their story chronology
Liars tend not to use contractions
Liars take a guarded tone
Liars tend to repeat questions verbatim before answering
Liars use hand motions less when telling a lie
Liars will distance themselves from you when lying
Liars will blink more when lying

December 23, 2011 William Roberts Lie Spotting, Sales Skills, Uncategorized, Videos 17

A Million Dollar Secret that Everyone Misses | Promote Your Mass Media Exposure

I wanted to share a little nugget with you that I discovered while reading Brian Tracy’s Blog with Featured Writer: Nick Nanton. The boiled down version of the post is that there are two primary types of media. You have “Mass Media” (which is basically Television, Radio, or Major Newspaper) and you have “Targeted/Direct Media” (which is everything else, emails, letters, anything with a narrow targeted audience)

So here’s Nick’s “million dollar secret”:

First, get Mass Media attention, then promote your mass media appearances and content through direct media to your core audience of prospects and clients.

Simple right?

It seems obvious, but apparently it’s a missing step that most businesses don’t take once they’ve hit on some Mass Media love. You can read the full article here and sign up for a special class with Nick Nanton and Brian Tracy if you want more information. My “take away” is that I will form an action plan in the event that one of my clients, or myself has gained some mass media exposure.

The Action Plan:

1. Maintain a list of all controlled direct media (meaning direct media that you control) example:

Your Blog(s)
Website(s)
Social Media Accounts
Email/Newsletter Lists
Customer Mailing Lists

2. Maintain a list of alternative direct media sources (basically the same as step one, but owned and controlled by other people)

3. Maintain a list of Mass Media contacts. (You can share your exposure with these contacts who might not be covering your story)

Once these lists are created, you then have an outline to promote future Mass Media events when they happen. I know this tactic is effective because we’ve used similar tactics on a smaller scale. (example: When posting a blog post, also mention it on your social media accounts)

As soon as you have have the mass media event, start going down the list. Make sure it’s mentioned in your controlled direct media, everywhere. Next, ring up your friends, allies, business partners who would lend their direct media to help you promote the event. Lastly, contact all of your Mass Media contacts to inform them of the event (unless they’re already covering it themselves)

More about Nick Nanton (from Nick’s Bio):

An Emmy Award Winning Director and Producer, Nick Nanton, Esq., is known as the Top Agent to Celebrity Experts around the world for his role in developing and marketing business and professional experts, through personal branding, media, marketing and PR to help them gain credibility and recognition for their accomplishments. Nick is recognized as the nation’s leading expert on personal branding as Fast Company Magazine’s Expert Blogger on the subject and lectures regularly on the topic at at major universities.

December 22, 2011 William Roberts Direct Media, Marketing Tactics, Mass Media, Online Marketing, Uncategorized 15

Choosing Between Two Titles | Let Adwords Do it

Test Logo Concept

I’m co-authoring a book that intends to expose the current myths surrounding the institution of a college education. The high level is that a college degree doesn’t mean you’re going to find gainful employment, or any employment at all. In fact, the system is broken and there are few parents that know how to properly advise their pre-college students. The book will also offer a solution to the problem by highlighting a clear path to land your post-graduate in the top 10% of earners.

We’re about 90% done with the writing and we want to start doing what we can to pre-market the publication as best as possible. Before we can do anything of that sort, we need to determine a title. Our focus group came up with two fairly good titles to run a test on:

THE COLLEGE UNICORN | Exposing the myth of college and career planning
4 YEAR MYTH | What 90% of Parents Don’t Know about College or Career Planning

What we did next was build two landing pages that are very similar and focused on collecting the email addresses of our market. We’re in the pre-selling phase and building your following is best started asap. We put the landing pages up on their respective domains:

http://4yearmyth.com

http://collegeunicorn.com

If you take a look at the domains, they’re fairly identical. You will see that we give visitors the option to “pre-order”, register, or subscribe to get more information and a free article. All 3 outcomes result in an email address for our future marketing efforts. We’re not expecting people to actually pre-order at this point, but we didn’t want to exclude it as an option.

The real value of this test is to pit both titles against each other to see which one has better leverage. We’re achieving this through running a Google Adwords campaign that contains the Title & sub-Title exclusively. The campaign is only running two ads and the same pre-researched keywords. The goal is to determine which title converts better by monitoring CTR (click through rate).

This is a simple test and it utilizes a huge market, thousands of impressions, and will cost less than $500 our of pocket. Not only will we know how well the titles perform, but we’re driving traffic to landing pages that will collect those sweet sweet emails of our target market.

Results:

After running the test, we found that the winning title was ”The College Unicorn” with an impressive .40% CTR over the competing title’s .07% CTR. Even thought I personally “liked” the other title better, it even cost more to run as an adwords campaign because it’s quality wasn’t as in-line with our keywords.

Now that this is complete, we will work to test different art concepts for the book.

December 20, 2011 William Roberts Online Marketing, The College Unicorn, Uncategorized 18

I Read | Seth Godin

Author: Seth Godin

You should read Seth Godin’s Blog and books because he’s a trendy genius.

Seth writes short posts about management, marketing, sales, and personal awesomeness.

In preparation for starting IKYR I studied existing blogs to learn how to launch this one. I still read Seth’s blog every day, and you’ll see that he’s listed on my blog roll links.

From Seth’s Bio:

“American Way Magazine calls him, “America’s Greatest Marketer,” and his blog is perhaps the most popular in the world written by a single individual.”

Seth is also a fantastic speaker. In his ”remarkable” Ted Talk he references companies who have effective marketing strategies and their abilities to stand out. I like his opener about Otto Rohwedder and his sliced bread; for the first 15 years sliced bread was highly unpopular, until Wonder was able to spread the idea. He obviously goes on to talk about why, and who else did it. Enjoy.

December 8, 2011 William Roberts Blogroll 16

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