Hi Martha, Boy, that is a heavy subject! First of all, I would like to say that I agree with you. I feel the same way about the kids. However, a very, very important aspect in achieving success as an entrepreneur is "sticking with it". Also, even though it sounds like he believes he is not learning anything to help him in online business building, Isn't he learning things that will help him apply himself better to the task of building any type of business? Not only that. Many people online as well as off look for experience, training and credentials when trusting someone to have the knowledge they say they do. The diploma he would recieve upon graduating well help move him along in whatever business he chooses. Good luck and I hope you get a great post from Gary, Linda and others here. Your Friend, Angela

Hi Martha; First of all, I am deeply touched by your post. It makes me feel so good about what we've built here. You said a few very pertinent things that I want to mention and share my thoughts on... : ) ============================================ he read Rich Dad Poor Dad and it changed his goals in life. Of course that caused static between him and his Dad. My husband is of the "Go to school and get a good job" mindset. Which is fine for most... He thought he was in luck when he found a college that catered to entrepreneurship and was blown away by what he thought the school was going to be. Now he is in his third year and has yet to find a reason to stay there. He mentions suicide and I don't think it would come to that but I still hate to hear it. He feels he hasn't learned anything but what he's read in books and thinks it is wasting his time being in a place he hates when he could be building his business. I'm a mother who just wants her son to be happy but my husband wants him to stick it out. I need objective thoughts so I can handle this situation a little better. ============================================ The very first thing I want to say is that when a person talks about suicide, while it might not come to that, it is an indication of frustration level. I believe that suicidal thoughts and talk are an indication that frustration level has exceeded coping ability or is close to doing so. There are two ways to deal with it. One is reducing the frustration and the other is increasing the coping ability. Personally, I think that if teachers in business college actually DID understand business and entrepreneurship, they'd be out running their own businesses instead of working for a teacher's salary. I find it somewhat ironic that they "teach" entrepreneurship while relying on their teaching salary to fill their own financial needs. Many people of our age group have the "get an education and get a good job" way of thinking. But the honest truth is that life might have worked that way in our youth, but it doesn't apply anymore. There is NO job security out there and a college diploma is no guarantee of good wages or job security. The very first thing I'd suggest is to see if you can convince your husband to read Rich Dad, Poor Dad. Speaking frankly, he's a Boomer aged male, so I highly recommend using a leverage to convince him. Tell him that his son is unhappy and talking about suicide - reading a 200 page book isn't too much to ask of a parent to try understand your child's frame of mind. I'd suggest you read it, too. As for your son, if it was me, I'd suggest that he start building his business on the side (if he hasn't already) and ask him to consider finishing this year. That way he doesn't have an unfinished year and gains the credit for the time he's already spent at school. After that, I really don't see anything wrong with a one year hiatus to give his business a shot. I mean - think about it - there are tons of people that take a one year break to take care of an ailing parent or other personal situation, and finish later. Many of the world's foremost business people dropped out of college. Bill Gates is the most well known, but if you check the Forbes list of the 100 wealthiest people in America, and look up the bio of the top earners, you'll find many of them are college dropouts. They felt like your son did... that school was getting them no where. As the saying goes, "the times, they are a'changing'" -- What applied in our parents day and our day doesn't necessarily apply to our children. With company downsizing and exporting jobs overseas because wages are lower, job security doesn't exist. It used to be that if one had a diploma, we could work for the same fatcat for 35 years, slowly climbing up the wage scale ladder with incremental raises every year - and then retire with our gold watch and retirement pay. Our kids have NO such guarantee. Most of today's youth will have lost their jobs and changed companies several times before they even consider having a child or buying a house. That is their reality. The promises of "get an education and you'll do okay" don't hold water anymore. Today, "job security" goes in the same folder as the Tooth Fairy, Easter Bunny and A.D.D. They are things grown ups shouldn't believe in anymore. I truly believe that, as parents, we need to educate ourselves about what's happening out there (in the work force) today so we can help our kids make sound decisions - or we need to step aside and encourage whatever decisions they do make, without criticizing them, and hope they've learned what we've chosen not to. I really hope you find something useful in all my ramblings. At the very least, if both you and your husband read the book Rich Dad, Poor Dad, I think it will give you a better idea of where his mindset is. I've read it and immediately told my daughter to read it, too. In the face of job insecurity, high taxes, high cost of living and lack of finances that we all deal with, it was one of the most encouraging books I've read. : ) Linda

"The very first thing I'd suggest is to see if you can convince your husband to read Rich Dad, Poor Dad. Speaking frankly, he's a Boomer aged male, so I highly recommend using a leverage to convince him." Linda, Actually I bought "Rich Dad Poor Dad" for my husband. I saw him on Oprah and thought it would make a nice fathers day gift because he was always talking about retiring early. Ended up I was the one to read it and suggested it to Levi. He loved it and we bought some of Robert K's other books plus whatever else we could come up with. Your thoughts were so much my thoughts and I just wanted some vindication for them. Everything you have said is right on with what Levi and I talk about. He has started his own business and that is why he is so frustrated. He wants the time to grow it and right now feels he's wasting precious time. I'm sure he plans on finishing this year. Martha

Out of curosity Martha, does he have his business to a place where he would be self sufficient at this point if he left school? (even if only scraping by) If not, I think he should certainly consider getting it to that point before he "quits" anything. I guess the line I'm thinking along is, who does he think is going to support him while he builds his business? If he can't support himself then he'd have to take on a job anyways so he's still no further ahead than where he's at now. Actually, he'd probably be even more restricted in time.

Hello Martha, You didn't mention the current age of your son so it is a bit difficult to frame any definite ideas. However, as soon as I read that Levi had read Robert Kiyosaki's "Rich Dad, Poor Dad" several things crossed my mind. First, and foremost, one thing that rankled me throughout this book was the way that Kiyosaki continually denigrated his "real" father in his quest for life lessons. From memory, I think the real father was a teacher. The "adopted" father was some multi-bazillionaire guy who always gave advice on money matters. A young mind reading this might easily come to the conclusion that REAL fathers aren't good advice givers. That could be a cause of the "static" that you mention. In other words, if Dad doesn't have a Ferrari sitting in the driveway then how qualified is he to give advice? I agree with others that maybe hubby should read the book. It will allow him to see how Levi has been influenced plus it might expand hubby's mind. The trouble with many books on wealth, as I see it, is that the people reading them are often at what I call "Base Camp Zero" while the authors are orating from the pulpit of Everest. There are many rungs on the ladder of success. Young or inexperienced readers sometimes think that they can skip the first twenty rungs. It doesn't happen that way. Success in anything is built one rung at a time. Natural talent, of course, will enable the rungs to be ascended more quickly. The trouble for most people is that they really have no idea what they are best suited to. That is why so many people are stuck in the 9 to 5 drudgery of work. A small handful of society find out very quickly what they are suited to and it becomes a life mission. Success and financial reward comes to them. From memory, I think Mr Kiyosaki made a lot of money at a very young age from mass producing velcro surfer wallets. But I can stand corrected on that. Some of the most successful people I know are not the most intelligent people I know. Conversely, some of the most brilliant people I know are also not the most successful people I know. However, having said that... ... ALL the successful people that I know have accumulated vast knowledge in their focussed areas of interest. They have become experts in their chosen fields. They are NOT the types who would win quiz shows. Perhaps if I knew more about Levi I could be more helpful with my comments. For now, I could say that he needs to follow his area of interest in a focussed manner and only take the relevant excerpts from these books that will take him forward. Success is not a shotgun approach. It does not come from trying to hit all the targets. Just one will do. The sooner he begins his focussed quest in his selected profession the sooner he will ascend the rungs on the ladder of success. Best Wishes Gary Simpson