Can going to school make you an entrepreneur? It’s a burning question for people deciding whether to jump straight into business or spend years — and a lot of money — on a degree from one of more than 2,000 U.S. colleges and universities that offer entrepreneurship courses. While there’s no shortage of opinions arguing both sides, there’s no consensus. So we sat down with two researchers to get their take.

Heidi Neck is the Jeffry A. Timmons Professor of Entrepreneurial Studies at Babson College in Wellesley, Mass., and director of the Babson Entrepreneurship Experience Lab. She is co-author of Teaching Entrepreneurship: A Practice-Based Approach.

What do students get from entrepreneurship programs?

Things are changing, and students are finding that what they learn has transferability to organizations of all types and sizes. When you look five or 10 years out, that’s when students have a greater propensity for starting businesses. We have a glamorized view of what entrepreneurship is; in profiles and magazines we’re seeing a small percentage of really successful entrepreneurs who are living the good life now. In the education setting, students realize just how difficult it actually is. I like the realism we can bring to it.

Are students failures if they don’t start a business right after graduation?

We teach entrepreneurship in the context of starting a business, but we have students who graduate and don’t start a business, and I don’t think that’s a failure of the program. They’re coming out with a more integrated mindset around business instead of some functional expertise. Some go into consumer products companies, some go into consulting, some go to Wall Street. Years back, students were afraid to say they were focusing on entrepreneurship. Now corporations are looking for students like that.

How has the view of entrepreneurship education evolved?

Historically, if you look back at the 1980s and ’90s, the focus was on small-business management and the traits of entrepreneurs. Now that researchers are giving up the idea that there are character traits that separate entrepreneurs from others, it has evolved into more of a process view: What is the process of starting a business?

I would say in the last five years there’s been more emphasis on acting in order to learn—getting out there, testing your ideas—not simply making a business plan. I like to say we’re teaching students how to practice entrepreneurship, which circles back to the question of the value of entrepreneurship education. We’re giving students an environment in which to practice different aspects of entrepreneurship where the cost of failure is not as great as it would be outside on their own.

Are there other advantages to studying entrepreneurship?

I think it’s meeting peers, which helps students with networking and with filling out their teams. Students are also looking to the faculty for guidance and access to faculty networks. The institution’s role is not only to connect them inside but to connect them to the appropriate networks outside. And of course there’s the alumni network. Our alumni are always coming back to find out how they can help in the classroom or to find students to bring into their organizations.

So you don’t really believe someone can become an entrepreneur by reading a book?

It all goes back to the practice. As we get more comfortable with doing something, we learn more about it. Doing it may tell a student that they don’t want anything to do with entrepreneurship, or that they would be more comfortable working in a corporation with an innovation arm. They won’t ever get that feeling by reading a book. I’m a huge proponent of doing in order to learn vs. learning in order to do. I think this generation is expecting to be engaged around entrepreneurial education, and if they’re not, there’s very little return on investment. At Babson, it’s a campus-wide thing. We don’t tolerate passive learners very well.

Vivek Wadhwa is a fellow at the Stanford University Rock Center for Corporate Governance, research director for Duke University’s Center for Entrepreneurship and Research Commercialization and vice president of innovation and research at Singularity University. He is the author of The Immigrant Exodus: Why America Is Losing the Global Race to Capture Entrepreneurial Talent and Innovating Women: The Changing Face of Technology.

Is entrepreneurial education worthwhile?

I would have answered this question differently a while ago, but I realized living in Silicon Valley, you can skip school, because this is school. Everyone around you talks and walks and thinks about entrepreneurship. You can join a startup in downtown Palo Alto or San Francisco, and you’ll learn it on the job. If you live anywhere else, you’d better go to school, because you don’t have the people around you; you don’t have the sharing network you have here. It’s really that simple.

What’s the problem with entrepreneurship education?

Most of the schools are still backward. They are still teaching business plans and how to raise venture capital and stuff like that. That’s ’90s stuff. Now it’s about lean startups, iterations, using exponential technology, and it’s about building apps. If you can find the right school that teaches these things, you’re all set. But I would not go to a traditional school, and I would look at the curriculum. If they have “business plan” or “business plan competition” on there anywhere, dump it.

These days, people can learn most of it online. You have access to so many resources. You don’t have to go the traditional route anymore. I would do some education because you need it, but I wouldn’t go overboard and think, If I go to school for three or four years, I’ll come out an entrepreneur. No, you can’t.

Part of being an entrepreneur is having the ability to take risks and having a burning passion in your heart to change the world, and if you’re ready to take the risk, you’re a real entrepreneur. If you want to go to business school and take the traditional route, you’re hedging your bets. I’m not against going to business school, but for most people it doesn’t make sense. It’s not the risky thing to do.

Undergrad is foundational, and my advice is always to do a degree in whatever field you’re excited about. But you do an MBA if you want to join an investment bank, not if you want to launch a lean startup.

Are you saying some people are just born entrepreneurs?

No. Anyone can become an entrepreneur. You’re not born an entrepreneur. You could have advantages depending on where you’re born, but you learn by doing. That’s the best thing. You can learn a lot of things in advance, but there is no experience quite like doing it.

What kinds of people make successful entrepreneurs?

In my research we documented that the average and median age of a tech entrepreneur is 39. There are twice as many entrepreneurs who are older than 50 than younger than 25. Age provides a distinct advantage. The young may be able to build some silly social media apps, but you need experience to achieve success. That’s what I documented, and it hasn’t changed. In Silicon Valley, you meet lots of people in their 40s, 50s and 60s. Facebook is a bunch of “old” people. Google is a bunch of “old” people. It’s an advantage to have already achieved success in life. Learning on the job is the most valuable thing in entrepreneurship.

November 25, 2015

Far too many people dismiss thought leadership as a buzzword devoid of real substance, which is unfortunate — because it’s not just a buzzword. But, what is it really? When should you consider using it, and how do you balance the talent and experience of your team with the humility and authenticity that today’s audiences demand?

Related: How Thought-Leadership Content Can Help Your Company Attract Funding

Let’s start by getting on the same page with these four questions:

1. What is thought leadership?

At its core, thought leadership is a type of content marketing where you tap into the talent, experience and passion inside your business, or from your community, to answer the biggest questions on the minds of your target audience on a particular topic.

The source is not as important as the content. Thought leadership doesn’t mean a big name from a big school, it means you provide the best and deepest answers to your customers’ biggest questions in the formats your audience likes to consume them.

Thought leadership is a key component of content marketing, but it’s important not to fall into the unique-point-of-view trap. I have heard more than a few executives delay betting on content marketing by focusing on the unique point of view. They say, “There is so much noise in the marketplace. We can only compete if our content is differentiated.”

Your audience isn’t looking for your content to be differentiated all of the time. They are just looking for the best answers to the questions. Or as Bryan Rhoads at Intel likes to say, “You have to win the internet every day.” Of course you want to differentiate your point of view when it’s appropriate. Differentiate with your visual design. But mostly, differentiate by becoming an authority and by helping your customers with different types of content, every single day.

We have to be careful with how we use the words thought leadership though.Wikipedia actually calls it business jargon and defines it as content that is recognized by others as innovative, covering trends and topics that influence an industry.

Related: 5 Steps to Becoming a Thought Leader in Your Industry

2. When should you consider a thought leadership approach?

One of the best ways to establish authority on your topic is to produce deep research on the subject. You have to present a depth of knowledge that no one else has.

You also have to define all of your customers challenges, and define the best ways to overcome them. Many brands think this is an opportunity to talk about their products and how they are better, but this isn’t an effective approach. As soon as you start promoting yourself, your audience will start to tune out, and you will lose the trust you worked so hard to build.

3. What are the benefits of thought leadership?

The benefits of thought leadership start with brand affinity. By communicating thought leadership, you become part of the conversation early in the consumer journey. You allow your audience to get to know you.

Ultimately, thought leadership is one of the outcomes of a solid content strategy. And content is bigger than marketing. Leaders are everywhere. Expose your thought leaders, and you begin the process of becoming a social business — real people with real faces talking to real customers and buyers.

4. How do you create thought leadership that drives results?

Identify a topic that is closely associated with your brand. Are you an authority on that topic. A simple Google search can help you answer that question. Often we find that brands are not just competing with their direct competitors. You are competing with everyone. Anyone who publishes content in your space is competing for mind share and authority.

You also need to identify the questions your customers are asking. Identify them all, make a list and prioritize them. Answer those questions across multiple formats and multiple channels in a way that adds value to your audience. Start with the most important and work your way down the list. Seek to be the best answer to those questions.

Finally, create your thought leadership content in an engaging way. Viral cat videos and listicles are great, but you shouldn’t dismiss any content types that your audience might be interested in. You need to educate them, but we are all human and none of us mind a little humor. Use lots of examples, facts and quotes. I love the idea of interviewing customers to create content or curating content from other sources while adding your own perspective.

Your audience is looking for help. Are you willing to give it to them? And tell me, what do you think? What does thought leadership mean to you?

Related: 6 Reasons Why ‘My Way or the Highway’ Management Doesn’t Work Anymore

Motivating employees and helping them do the best job possible takes time and experience. But as  a business owner, there is nothing more rewarding than helping other people — as well as yourself — work to their fullest potential. The keys to being a good motivator are: clear communication, training, and appreciation. If you use the following tactics, you will become a better leader.

1. Communicate.

Make sure that your employees know exactly what you expect of them. Describe the job and your expectations before hiring, and then reiterate these expectations on a regular basis. With a new employee, this may be a daily necessity. Later, it can be done less often. Never be vague or generalize. Always be direct. Employees want to know exactly what you expect of them.

2. Train.

Take the time to train your employees in your methods and way of doing business. Create a training process that is replicable.  It may be time consuming at first, but it will pay off. And be flexible. No matter how long you think it will take to train someone, it often takes longer, even with experienced employees.

Related: ‘Gamified’ Employee Training Works Brilliantly but Is Loved Little

3. Assume people want to do a good job.

Nobody on your team is making mistakes because they think it’s fun, want to spite you or make the company lose money. I’ve seen entrepreneurs become livid over an employee’s simple mistake, as if the employee did something wrong on purpose. Don’t take an employee’s mistakes personally.

4. Show employees you appreciate their contributions.

Employees should feel that what they’re doing is important to you and makes a difference to the company. This means everyone, including the person at the front desk, needs to know that the way he or she deals with people on the telephone, by email or when they visit the office is vital to establishing a courteous and professional image for the company. Everyone counts.

5. Create an efficient, attractive, comfortable workplace.

Consider your employees’ health, time and happiness when buying furnishings and equipment. Don’t skimp on what will make someone’s job easier, whether it’s about replacing a copier machine or a computer. Don’t forget their comfort. No one wants to work in a cold or stifling office. Make sure the heating and air conditioning work properly.

Create an attractive workplace that gives employees a sense of pride. I’ve found that painting office walls bright colors, instead of boring gray or beige, increases energy levels. Buying attractive furniture, whether it’s from IKEA or a top designer, gives employees a sense of pride. They tend to keep their workspaces neater and thus find it easier to be productive.

Related: How Much Is the Noise in Your Open Office Costing You?

6. Banish fear.

Encourage employees to ask questions and make suggestions. Listen to their ideas. Implement the ones that make sense, improve productivity, increase sales or add to a general sense of well-being in the work environment. Make sure they feel comfortable telling you early on whether they are having problems getting the job done. You want to have as much time as possible to work with them to find solutions.

7. Lead by The Golden Rule

If in doubt about how to treat an employee, ask yourself, “Is this the way I would like to be treated?” Create the kind of workplace where you would like to work. Sometimes that’s difficult to do in today’s fast-paced, constantly changing environment. When the going gets rough, take a deep breath and a minute to reflect. Put yourself in your employee’s shoes. Think about the bigger, long-term picture. Treating your employees well is always the best option.

8. Share the excitement.

Let employees know when things are going well. Don’t keep them in the dark when there are problems. There’s no reason to notify them about every glitch or setback, but you can tell them when cash flow is tight and you need their help keeping expenses down. Celebrate each meaningful success, even the small ones, with something as simple as ordering a couple of pizzas (or whatever your team likes to eat). Praise an employee publicly, so that everyone knows that you mean it.

Sharing the excitement goes a long way to keeping employees engaged and happy.

Related: Celebrate the Little Successes as a Salve Against the Bruises of Entrepreneurship and Parenthood

Entrepreneurs are a rarity. Just over 1-in-10 adults within the U.S.. engage in entrepreneurial activities.

That low number is not a surprise in light of the complex array of challenges that entrepreneurs face. According to a joint study last year by the University of Michigan and Stanford University, more than 70 percent of entrepreneurs who launch a failed venture do not try again. The vast majority of entrepreneurs researched adopted a “one-and-done” mentality in the face of failure.

However, the same study identified an elite subset of entrepreneurs — serial entrepreneurs — comprising 29 percent of those researched who went on to launch other ventures with great success.

Marc Preston is just such an entrepreneur.

He’s had dozens of money-making ventures over the past two decades and sevenstand-alone companies ranging from web design, mobile apps, hardware andsoftware development to retail storefronts.

“I have profitable business ideas that offer something new under the sun, every single day. In fact, we have six or seven viable business concepts in our pipeline that are in early stages but are already in motion,” said Preston.

Preston has several colleagues and friends who are also serial entrepreneurs. He identifies the following five traits that they all exhibit.

1. Time management.

The single most valuable asset for each of us is our time because it’s the only asset that can’t be renewed. As a result of that fact, Preston stresses the need for aggressive, intentional time management for anyone who wants to be a serial entrepreneur.

“Where you’re directing your time is critical. How much you spend on email or getting lost on time-consuming projects that should be outsourced or delegated to employees — that’s the single most important factor in the success of every serial entrepreneur I know, including me,” said Preston.

Related: Why You Should Never Start Just One Business

2. Drive to scale.

Serial entrepreneurs have the ability to quickly advance a business through the start-up phase into a sustainable growth trajectory.

“You can’t continue to develop new businesses or ideas as a serial entrepreneur if you’re unable to scale those businesses quickly, which enables you to move on to the next project or idea. That’s a key difference between repeat entrepreneurs and a typical person in business,” he said.

3. Strategic relationships.

Preston stresses that not only do serial entrepreneurs need a strong team of advisors, partners and employees, they also must develop other strategic relationships where they give to others.

“I believe that someone in a serial entrepreneurial role needs to be mentoring someone else’s business for free. I’ve helped several other individuals pro bono because I’ve received mentoring along my path, which was invaluable. It’s important to pass that on and help fuel the entrepreneurial fire in others,” he said.

Related: 7 Ways Successful and Fulfilled People Think Differently

4. Insatiable curiosity.

Another factor that distinguishes serial entrepreneurs from other business executives is an inherent drive to ask questions, seek out new information and connect ideas, all of which can be summed up in the word “curiosity.”

“I’ll read physics papers, technology manuals — I’ll read all kinds of things — and there’s an ‘ah ha’ moment where there will be a connection I’ve never seen before. Ironically, many of those connections and my ideas are generated when I’m sleeping. I tend to have those ‘ah ha’ moments in dreams where I’ll wake up with new ideas and insights. You have to be ready to capture those moments when they happen,” said Preston.

5. Know when to move on.

Dogged determination and perseverance are part of the entrepreneurial DNA, but Preston says it’s equally important for a serial entrepreneur to recognize when a project is not working and moving on to the next thing.

“The key is to identify failure fast and then let it go. Many entrepreneurs hold on too tightly to a misguided idea or project that exhausts them as well as their resources. It’s important to know when to cut your losses. I know exactly what it’s like to fight for a project while trying to drag it from the brink of failure. But what I’ve learned is that once it’s clear something is failing, it’s much better to just be done with it and move on within 24 hours,” he said.

Perhaps the most interesting aspect of Preston’s business philosophy is what he doesn’t do as a serial entrepreneur. He eschews business plans and describes them as a “cumbersome inconvenience” when trying to quickly scale a business.

“It’s been my experience that it’s more beneficial to identify the problem customers have, develop the solution and then hit the ground running as fast as you can,” said Preston. “At that point, a 70-page business plan with projections for 2017 isn’t going to help you. For serial entrepreneurs like me, executing and delivering results are what matter most.”

Related: 4 Attributes of the World’s Most Successful Entrepreneurs

Millennials are quickly outnumbering the rest of us: There are now more than 75 million Americans between the ages of 18 and 34, according to Pew Research, and that figure outnumbers the numbers for Generation X.

Related: Why Millennials Are Immature, Entitled and the Best Hire

Besides the numbers millennials offer, they’re coming into their own in the workforce at a time when older workers are leaving. Indeed, this younger cohort will be in demand to fill the shoes of baby boomers and even older workers aging out of the workforce. And that’s a good thing: Millennials are bringing to your business technology know-how, multitasking skills, social media savvy and an intimate understanding of what your younger customers need.

First, however, you have to get them on board — and keep them there.

Just as millennials offer unique benefits to your company, they expect in return a unique recruiting approach and workplace environment. Many millennials have expectations of an employer that differ from the expectations of earlier generations — and some of those things they want may be easier for you to provide than you might think.

So, if you want to attract these younger workers, make sure your workplace offers four key elements:

1. Be a competent boss. 

More than half of the millennials responding to a recent survey by Millennial Branding and American Express said that a mentoring relationship would help them become better and more productive contributors to their companies.

Takeaway: Invest in leaders and management programs that foster strong working relationships and emotional intelligence training to get the best work from your millennials.

2. Show a willingness to listen. 

Millennials have a fresh perspective that can often offer new solutions or helpful ideas. And they want to be heard. That doesn’t mean supervisors have to implement every idea a millennial worker suggests, but giving these younger workers a voice — rather than making them wait years to “pay their dues” to be heard — will increase engagement and make them more likely to stay put.

Takeaway: Encourage millennial workers to share their voice across social channels, which in turn may boost your own employer brand’s status, from aworkplace transparency perspective.

Related: 5 Ways Millennials Are Like No Generation Before Them

3. Create opportunities to make a difference.

Millennials want to feel like they’re doing something that matters. Make an effort to present your company’s work in a way that shows how it helps the community, your customers or the world. Or highlight your company’s community service outreach projects. According to the Millennial Impact report, 39 percent of millennials surveyed said that a company’s volunteer policy affects their decision to apply and 55 percent said it affects their decision to take the job.

Takeaway: Make community service a regular part of your company’s culture.

Related: The 7 Positive Qualities of Millennials That Can Help You Improve Your Business

4. Offer fair pay.

According to the Workforce 2020 study conducted by Oxford Economics on behalf of SAP, 68 percent of Millennials surveyed said they consider compensation the most important factor, compared to this rating by 64 percent of other generations surveyed. While younger workers shouldn’t expect to be compensated at the levels of those with more experience, they do expect pay that is consistent with the amount of value they bring to the company.

Takeaway: Research and implement the pay that skilled millennials receive elsewhere.

These workplace changes may feel more like overhauls than tweaks, but focusing on what attracts today’s workforce will position your company even better to intrigue the workers of tomorrow.

Related: This Is How Millennials Want to Be Managed