When I told my parents that I was skipping college to start my own company instead, they saw it as a somewhat reckless decision.

Instead of rites of passage usually associated with your late teens, I spent my Friday nights cold-calling clients and calculating ROI. For a long time, it felt like an unconventional choice. Six companies and hundreds of employees later, having only ever worked for myself, I know that it was the right one.

Today, a university degree no longer guarantees a job. More and more young people are beginning to question whether college is worth it. Student loans are rising, graduate jobs are being decimated, and AI is threatening to make essay writing a redundant practice.

The gap between what is taught in school and what is needed in the workplace is widening more quickly than most institutions can keep up with. A degree won’t necessarily set you up for success in the workplace of the future. For anybody questioning how to navigate a career without going to college, this is what I’ve learned.

1 – Change is non negotiable