<p>I previously posted information about me and asked if I have a decent chance to get into Stanford undergrad. Everyone said that my academics and grades are good but I was lacking a luster EC. Therefore, I decided to create a business this summer because that what I was always interested in. However, I am having some trouble starting.</p>
<p>Does anyone have any ideas about starting a business? I'm not looking for an amazing business which will become super successful but just something that will impress colleges like Stanford. Sciences and math are subjects which I'm also interested in if that makes any difference.</p>
<p>As I said in the other thread, I’d recommend doing something you are truly passionate about, rather than just what you think Stanford will like on your app. If you want to start a business, you might choose something you are especially interested in and something you are extremely knowledgeable about and can add new insight that will separate it from the other similar businesses. I recall from the other thread that your interests and ECs focused on medicine, so you might choose something related to medicine.</p>
<p>For example, a few years ago, I started a website about my main hobby at the time. There were plenty of other sites on the topic, but I made mine unique by applying my strengths that few other site owners had – general knowledge about the hobby, statistical/logical analysis, organization, and programming. I started the site as a hobby without any expectation to make significant income, yet it grew to be the biggest site of its type (for awhile) and a bigger source of income than my day job in engineering. Creating and operating the site cost me an average of less than $10/month for the first year since I did the programming myself. Websites or app type businesses often have low overhead like this, making it fairly easy for a HS student to get started.</p>
<p>“just something that will impress colleges like Stanford”</p>
<p>This is not a good place to start. You should start a business not because you want to start a business but rather because you want to create products that the world needs and that will make the world better. In addition, it would be good if you had a passion for the products you were making. Mark Zuckerberg, for instance, has a passion for both “making the world more open and connected” and programming. His successful company stemmed from these two passions and now contributes to society. One of my Stanford classmates started a clothing company and another started a music company. Each of these people simply loves what he does (designing clothes and producing music, respectively) and simply wants to share this love with the world as a whole. Given these points, you should begin by identifying what people today need and want to buy. Then you should see how your own passions relate to these needs. </p>
<p>By the way, you don’t need to start a business to get into Stanford. A vast majority of Stanford admits haven’t started a business. What most of them have done, however, is take their passion for something (i.e., theater, debate, social service, politics, physics, computer science, basically anything you can think of) to the next level. In order to get into a highly selective college, you need to find and do what you love. The rest is easy. Plus, you shouldn’t do things just to get into Stanford because (a) it’s unlikely that you’ll get in given the recent numbers (5.7% admit rate) and (b) the Stanford admission committee does not like people whose passion seems to be getting into Stanford.</p>
<p>If you are really interested in creating a business, don’t try to follow trends. Find something you are passionate about and build it off of that. For me personally, I love to bake so my choice of business would most likely be some sort of bakery with an innovative twist (maybe I locate it in a college town and sell late night as well). </p>
<p>After you’ve come up with your idea, you’ll need some funding and for that, since I am assuming you are not backed with cash, you’ll most likely use a crowd sourcing technique where you get funding from a variety of different sources. For funding you can go to a venture capitalist (which would give you a lot of cash but you’d have to give up equity) and this would only be used if your idea is truly innovative. Second, you can look into receiving an SBA backed 7A loan because you will be a small business once it is created. Finally, you can use friends and family to invest in your business (make sure it will be successful) or you can use Kickstarter which is a website where new businesses and movies are able to get funding for their ventures.</p>
<p>Once you’ve obtained the funding you need, you’ll need to get your business’s name into the public and seeing as you won’t have millions of dollars to start putting your name on the radio or television, I’d recommend a “grassroots” marketing campaign where you start by publicizing at local fairs and events (building your name in your local town and increasing public relations) and once customers see how great your product/service is, they’ll use word of mouth to expand your geographic reach. Also make sure to have a website and fully utilize social networking to your advantage.</p>
<p>Finally, I really do hope you’re not starting a business because you want to please Stanford because what will most likely happen is that your plan will backfire. You’ll find yourself pouring so much time into making the business successful that you won’t have as much time for school or other extracurricular activities so make sure you know what you’re getting yourself into.</p>
<p>If you’re wondering what I’ve done to obtain this sort of information about starting a business, I don’t have any first hand experience starting a business. Most of it is luck as to whether or not it will launch. However, I’ve won 1st place at the national and international levels in FBLA and DECA (two business clubs) so I know theoretically the keys to starting a business and how to make it successful.</p>
<p>They are not only looking for future world changing “entrepreneurs” but rather the top musicians, scholars, athletes, and socially responsible individuals who want to make an impact in the world…</p>