[B] Jan Bednar | What college students need to know before starting a business [ PRACTICE ]

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⏱ 00:10 - 04:15

LET'S UNLOCK WORDS AND PHRASES 🔐

immigration

[ im-i-'grey-shuhn ]

noun

- the process of coming to a country in order to live in it permanently

Current immigration levels are driving the U.S. population to double this century.

resonate

[ 'rez-uh-neyt ]

verb

- if an experience or memory resonates, it makes you feel an emotional connection

Her experiences resonate powerfully with me, living, as I do, in a similar family situation.

sophomore

[ 'sof-uh-mawr ]

noun

- a student in the second year of a program of study in a college, university, or high school

He was his class president from sophomore through senior year.

stick with someone/something

phrasal verb

- to stay close to someone, or to continue to do something

Once Stephen takes up a hobby, he sticks with it.

paved with gold

idiom

- used about a city to mean that it is easy to make money there

Unemployed graduates still come to New York thinking that the streets are paved with gold.

LET'S TRY IT IN SECONDS!

FIRST CUT ⏱ 00:10 - 02:15

Let's read...

A couple of years ago, I visited the Immigration Museum at Ellis Island, New York. I saw a quote on the wall that somehow stuck with me until this day. And it goes something like this. Before I moved to the U.S., I've heard that the streets are paved with gold. When I got here, I found out three things. First, the streets were not paved with gold. Second, the streets were not paved at all. And third, I was expected to pave them. The reason why the quote resonates with me so much is because it reminds me of how difficult a life can be when you move into a foreign country without speaking the language, having any friends, or having any... knowing the culture. When I was 17 years old, I had a huge dream of moving into the U.S., finish school, and start a business. And now I am happy to say that I finally fulfilled my dream of starting a business, as I've run my business for about a year. I now employ 15 people, and we've just hit $1.5 million in revenue. I'm not the most seasoned entrepreneur out there, but I do want to share three key pieces of advice that have helped me succeed as a college entrepreneur. The number one thing to starting any business is to find a problem. Might... It might sound easier than it is. But finding a problem is the key ingredient to starting any business. Now, you might wonder, how do I find a problem? Well, start with yourself. Start with your hobbies and the things you like to do. Do you like traveling? Do you like sports? You like video games? Either one of these things, there's a bunch of challenges that surround that particular hobby that might be waiting for your business idea. When you do come up with a solution, you want to talk to the community and your friends, and see if they would use it, if they would like that business, and how much they would pay for it. Once you get to that point, you've got something.

Let's follow Jan Bednar...

A couple of years ago,/ I visited the Immigration Museum/ at Ellis Island, New York. // I saw a quote on the wall/ that somehow stuck with me/ until this day.// And it goes something like this. // Before I moved to the U.S., / I've heard that the streets are paved with gold. //When I got here, / I found out three things. // First,/the streets were not paved with gold.// Second, / the streets were not paved at all. // And third, / I was expected to pave them. // The reason why the quote resonates with me so much is because it reminds me of how difficult a life can be when you move into a foreign country without speaking the language, having any friends, / or having any... knowing the culture.// When I was 17 years old,/ I had a huge dream of moving into the U.S.,/ finish school, / and start a business. // And now I am happy to say that I finally fulfilled my dream / of starting a business,/ as I've run my business for about a year.//// I now employ 15 people,/ and we've just hit $1.5 million in revenue. // I'm not the most seasoned entrepreneur out there, /but I do want to share three key pieces of advice that have helped me/ succeed / as a college entrepreneur. // The number one thing/ to starting any business/ is to find a problem.//// Might... It might sound easier than it is. // But finding a problem is the key ingredient/ to starting any business. // Now, you might wonder, / how do I find / a problem?// Well, start with yourself.// Start with your hobbies and the things you like to do. // Do you like traveling? // Do you like sports?/ You like video games? / Either one of these things, there's/ a bunch of challenges that surround that particular hobby / that might be waiting for your business idea. // When you do come up with a solution,/ you want to talk to the community / and your friends,/ and see if they would use it,/ if they would like that business,/ and how much they would pay for it. // Once you get to that point,/ you've got something.//

SECOND CUT ⏱ 02:15 – 04:15

Let's read...

I was lucky. When I was a sophomore in college, I was approached by a friend of mine who's asked me to buy an Under Armour t-shirt for him here in the U.S. and ship it to the Czech Republic. I didn't really understand why he's asking me to do this, so I started doing some research. It turns out there's a lot of businesses here in the States that don't ship products internationally or don't accept foreign payments. On the other hand, I knew there's millions of people that don't have access to the same products, and so I started a business. I paid a friend of mine a hundred dollars to create a very basic website for me that would basically explain to people how to buy from the U.S., and I would ship it to them overseas. I ran that business for a couple of months, and it wasn't until four months before graduation where I've heard of the FAU Business Plan Competition and the $250,000 prize pool that you can win. At that point, I knew I'm in. The problem was I had no idea how to write a business plan or how to present in front of a large audience, so I knew I needed to get help. I found out about the free seminars that Florida Atlantic University was offering to young startups to help them write business plans. So I started attending these seminars, and that's where I came across a very strange term to me at the time that's called mentorship. The reason why I say it's strange is because mentorship is a concept of experienced business people that have been there, they have done it, they have successfully started, launched, exited businesses, and now they want to help people, young people like myself, to get their business to the next level for free. Now that's the biggest catch. That's the thing that I couldn't understand. I couldn't understand how somebody would volunteer their time for free and not want anything for it. The reason why I don't understand it or didn't understand it was because coming from a post-communist country, you get nothing for free, and then when you do, there's usually a catch.

Let's follow Jan Bednar...

I was lucky.// When I was a sophomore in college, / I was approached by a friend of mine who's asked me / to buy an Under Armour t-shirt for him/ here in the U.S. and ship it to the Czech Republic.// I didn't really understand why he's asking me to do this, / so I started doing some research.// It turns out / there's a lot of businesses here in the States that don't ship products internationally/ or don't accept foreign payments. // On the other hand, I knew there's millions of people /that don't have access to the same products,/ and so I started a business.////I paid a friend of mine a hundred dollars/ to create a very basic website for me / that would basically explain to people / how to buy from the U.S., / and I would ship it to them overseas. // I ran that business for a couple of months,/ and it wasn't until four months before graduation / where I've heard of the FAU Business Plan Competition / and the $250,000 prize pool/ that you can win. // At that point,/ I knew I'm in. // The problem was / I had no idea how to write a business plan or how to present in front of a large audience, / so I knew I needed to get help.// I found out about the free seminars that / Florida Atlantic University was offering / to young startups / to help them write business plans.// So I started attending these seminars, and that's where I came across/ a very strange term to me at the time/ that's called mentorship. // The reason why I say it's strange is because /mentorship is a concept of/ experienced business people that have been there, they have done it,/ they have successfully / started, launched, exited businesses, / and now they want to help/ people, young people like myself,/ to get their business to the next level/ for free.// Now that's the biggest catch. / That's the thing that I couldn't understand. // I couldn't understand / how somebody would volunteer their time for free / and not want anything for it. // The reason why I don't understand it or didn't understand it / was because coming from a post-communist country, you get nothing for free,/ and then when you do, /there's usually a catch.//