I’m graduating from the University of Utah in May, and, as a senior (with a decent amount of free time), I’ve given a lot of though to my college career and the things I have and have not done.

I am majoring in Political Science, and I couldn’t be happier about my choice. People give me a hard time about it being a cop-out, or too easy, or a cesspool of future lawyers. While some of these may be true, I feel like it has taught me skills that are not easily learned in other departments. Things like thinking logically about an issue and being able to communicate those thoughts through writing.

All this leads me to believe that undergraduate general business degrees are becoming irrelevant, and in fact leave those with majors in business administration at a significant disadvantage when it comes time to find a job. Not because business knowledge isn’t important, but because it is more important than ever. To get a job, I need to know the things that undergrad business majors know. And I do. I’ve learned them outside the classroom.

To be certain, I’m talking about the non-specialized business majors. Finance, accounting and IS teach marketable, specialized skills. Management, I believe fits into my theory, but only because no one is going to hire someone without any experience out of undergraduate school into a position where the skills learned are actively used.

Back to the point at hand, however. General business degrees leave individuals with those degrees at a disadvantage because they have no differentiation or specialization. They have the basic business knowledge that everyone needs to get a job – and nothing more. While my social science degree may not be specialized, it differentiates me from the masses of general business majors, and also lets someone know that I have gained extensive training in logic and writing.

From what I can tell, this is a relatively new phenomenon, and I believe that everyone knows that major has little correlation with success. I am writing strictly about the utility of an undergraduate general business degree when finding a job.

So am I right? For those of you that hire, are undergrad general business degrees actually a disadvantage when it comes time to find a job? Or is this just to make myself feel better because my GPA was too low to get into the business school?

(Dean Brittain, your thoughts would be very appreciated!)

I’ve made the case before that the word “entrepreneur” is an abused term misunderstood by most people. I keep coming across people and their blogs who claim to be “entrepreneurs”. In most cases I would beg to differ (but hey, who am I anyway?). I work in a start up and I consult on the side. I would say that neither of those things make me an entrepreneur although my consulting practice is, by definition, a small business. I’m just starting to podcast and expect to soon be paid for doing that podcast. That probably doesn’t make me an entrepreneur. I teach entrepreneurship and that certainly doesn’t make me an entrepreneur. 

I would say that there have been times in the past when I have been an entrepreneur and I would like to think of myself as an entrepreneur. I certainly think like an entrepreneur - there is an entrepreneurial mind frame that never leaves.

Below are several types of businesses. In your expert opinion, is the owner or founder of the business an entrepreneur or not?

1. Dry cleaner with a one store operation that the owner does not intend to expand
2. Pre-revenue Internet company building revolutionary search technology that could unseat Google
3. Franchise owner (single or multiple operations)  
4. Non-franchised ever expanding gas station and convenience store company
5. Podcasting start up
6. Management consultant
7. Large commercial construction company
8. Doctor in private practice
9. MLM distributor
10. Single mom doing eBay drop shipping for a living

There are a lot of smart people who read this blog. There are a lot of people who claim authority on what entrepreneurship is that read this blog. So what do you think? Tell me who is and who isn’t the entrepreneur and why. Or perhaps your opinion is being an “entrepreneur” has nothing to do with the type of business you own or run but instead its a time frame or some other factor.

Please let me know your thoughts in the comments.

A while back, I received an email invite from both my wife and a colleague of mine. The request was for me to share five things you may not know about me on this here blog. I believe the meme phenomenon was called "blog tagging" or something. Well, here's number one (others to follow periodically... maybe). First off, I don't drink alcohol. So after turning sour on coke, juice, and other soda varieties all the time, I decided to ask for a virgin drink while dinning at a restaurant a few years back. The only kiddie cocktail they offered was a Shirley Temple, so I obliged and have been in love with them ever since. So much that just last weekend I bought a bunch Sprite and grenadine and having been sucking down the cherry-lime goodness to no end during the busy first months of the year. It's gotten so bad, that I drink the things at all hours of the day. Just listen to what my wife said as I prepared yet another Shirley Temple over brunch this morning: "Blake, it's 10 in the morning!!??" True story. So yeah, I love Shirley Temples. If they weren't virgin, I'd be a drunk.

I recently spoke with a client about a promoter that apprached them trying to raise money for a $6m deal and he was $2m short.  He was seeking investors to generate the $2m.  His promise was an 18% return on investment and security by having a lien on the land which was the purpose of the deal (of course the lien is shared with all the other investors).  My question to my clinets is why would anyone who has the land to use as collateral seek a pool of investors and offer them an 18% return on their money when he could go to a bank and get a loan for the $2m for far less interest.  Read the paper, watch the news and you learn that there are way to many examples of these promoters scaming people and taking their life savings.  It’s always a better move to aviod these “to good to be true” deals and avoid being the next story in the paper. 

Grow Utah Ventures' new issue of Launch Magazine has hit the web.  You've almost certainly heard, but I encourage you to take a few minutes to read the latest issue on-line. The technology used to display the magazine is awesome.  It preserves all of the look and feel of a magazine, while allowing you to readily view it on-line.  Very cool. My favorite part of each issue is the entrepreneur to entrepreneur interview which you can either read or listen to on-line. This month's interview is between two of Utah's greatest entrepreneurs, Will West of Control 4 and Amy Lewis of Mediconnect.  Note that this is a photo of Amy Lewis, not Will West.  If you had a choice, whose photo would you want to see? 

In an effort to be a better human being while attempting to do what countless others have done for me, I'm launching two new social features on Smooth Harold. The first is the Smooth Harold Helpdesk. If you have a specific question you think I might be able to answer (business, web, personal, etc), don't hesitate to ask via email, phone, or in person. I'll usually respond same day when possible and free of charge. If I don't know the answer, chances are I can refer you to someone who does. And no, this isn't quid pro quo (really), it's just a genuine attempt to share the little that I've learned from talking with people smarter than me, reading good books, and seeing what sticks. The second offering is perhaps an extension of the first; it's an open invitation to share lunch with any one either living in or visiting the greater Salt Lake area regardless if I know you personally or not. I remember a little over a year ago being down and out in business. I had just become a first-time father and hadn't taken home a paycheck in over three months due to slow sales. Swallowing my pride, I asked an individual whom I respected but didn't know if he'd be willing to go to lunch and answer some of my questions. It was one of the most helpfully and motivational experiences I've had as an entrepreneur in progress and was just the antidote I needed to keep going. (Thanks, Josh!) All you have to do is ask, and there are plenty of other people out there willing to do the same. So have your people call my people; we'll do lunch! Of course, I don't have an entourage of people, so you can just contact me or have your entourage contact me. See the updated sidebar for complete details on both.

Although my career has been in traditional universities, I am a big proponent of education alternatives for individuals who do not have access to college because “life gets in the way.” I am a first generation college graduate and have siblings who were unable to attend college, and I know they struggle to get additional training in order to become eligible for better jobs and to get promotions. I also saw my father struggle to become a supervisor with only a high school education. With five kids to feed, bringing home a paycheck took most of his time, and he and my mother put enormous energy into their volunteer service as scout leaders, which was a contribution to our entire community.

Dad was always taking correspondence courses by mail. Today he would be taking online courses. When I was in graduate school, he was taking a management course, which is my PhD concentration. Curious, I took a look at what was in the course, and I was dismayed to see how out of date the content was. This was in the late 1970s, and the content in the materials he was studying was from the 1950s. He was paying a modest amount of money for the course and putting a lot of effort into studying and doing the exams, and I am sure he was learning the material. But what was he learning? This was the “opportunity cost”: what he was not learning that he should have been learning.

Human beings are learning machines. They will learn in every circumstance, and they will learn things in every “education program,” regardless of the cost, quality of materials, or how good the instruction is. A motivated individual will get something of value in every learning opportunity. The opportunity cost is what is not being learned because the learning option includes out of date materials, the instruction is poor, or expectations are low. In addition, unlike Dad’s correspondence course, many current “alternative formats for working adults” are more expensive than higher quality options from traditional universities. Pay more and get less is not a great value proposition.

The good news is there are now many options for working adults that did not exist 30 years ago. Many AACSB-accredited — the standard for business education accreditation — business schools offer programs in the evening with schedules convenient for fulltime working adults. Yes, they are a lot of work, but most allow a motivated student to complete a graduate degree in two years taking classes two nights a week. Undergraduate degrees take more time, but there are more options because much of the lower division material for the degree can be taken at a community college and transferred to a university. For someone who can maintain the discipline of staying on top of the material and taking courses every semester, these are great options.

I know family responsibilities can make it difficult to attend classes at night, but think about the role model you are for your children. Some of the most inspirational stories I know about individuals finishing degrees are parents hitting the books with their kids every evening. This has a huge impact on a child at every age. When a kid sees a parent, or both parents, devoting evenings to studying and writing papers, the kid sees just how important education is. The example is worth a thousand lectures. I also know of parents who are attending school at the same time their kids are in college, and the bonding that comes from the shared experience can transform the parent-child relationship into an adult relationship of great depth. Just do not go to the concerts with the kids and expect to sit with them at football games. You are, after all, still the parent.

Another option worth considering is taking concentrated short-course programs. While these do not result in a degree, they do allow individuals to pick up the basics of accounting, finance, and management in courses taught by fulltime professors in a classroom with other working professionals. These programs are typically 2-3 full days and are sometimes organized into several modules that result in a certificate of completion that shows employers you are familiar with basic business concepts and have skills that may well be equivalent to those of current employees (who may well have attended the same short course program). A certificate program is a fraction of the cost of a full degree program, and it is a good supplement if you already have a degree in an area other than business.

Individuals can also pick up a lot of business knowledge, and especially a lot of business vocabulary, by regularly reading business periodicals. Fortune and Business Week are very accessible, well written, and they cover a lot of topics over the course of a year. Utah has several good business magazines like Connect and Utah Business that cover companies and industries that are likely familiar to you. The Wall Street Journal also has a lot of meat, but because it is a daily, it is a big commitment. Still, it is worth subscribing and reading the sections that deal with general business topics if you want to get more depth. Finally, the daily newspaper typically has a few articles about business, but the articles tend to be just the news, so they are not enough to build a real foundation. They are, however, good for keeping track of what is going on in the local community.

There is no shortage of companies and providers willing to offer business education. These range from outfits that will send you a diploma based on “life experience” for $59.99 to very expensive programs that feature residential sessions at luxury resorts coupled with online group-based learning. Expensive is seldom an indicator of quality in business education, however. What is? First, go with an AACSB accredited institution. There are many “agencies” that provide accreditation, and most schools have the regional accreditation required to offer federal financial aid. AACSB is the only accreditation that really matters for business education. Many employers only recognized and reimburse degrees from AACSB accredited institutions, so make a choice that you know will serve you for your entire career.

Second, talk to individuals who are currently in the program and find out what their experiences are. You will find those currently in a program are brutally frank and will tell you the positives and the negatives.

Finally, visit a class if possible. You are looking at a major commitment of your time. Spend a few hours making sure your time will be well spent over the long haul.

There are a lot of advantages associated with finishing up a college degree from a university when you are young. But if for some reason this passed you by, there are other learning options that can enhance opportunities for career progression. If nothing else, your motivation to pursue these options is a signal to current and potential employers that you are going to work hard to achieve career success.

Later.

As you may or may not know, there are 10 candidates for mayor in Salt Lake City this year. The mayor’s office has a significant impact on small businesses in the city, with areas ranging from Redevelopment Agencies to city purchasing.

I work with a local organization called the Vest Pocket Business Coalition. Together with Local First Utah, we are sending out a survey this week to all the mayoral candidates in Salt Lake City to ask them about small business issues. The press release is on our website - slcmayor.com. Check it out and let me know your thoguhts.

The results of the survey will be available March 15th.

Update: Local First Utah has decided they will not participate in the survey with us, so it is just Vest Pocket administering the survey. 

This week Venture Wire reported that Sequoia Capital took a Google, Inc. (Nasdaq: GOOG) stake worth $504 million, more than either of the co-founders, Chad Hurley and Steve Chen, who each received $326 million of Google stock. Since the deal closed, however, the $1.65 billion purchase price has effectively declined with the stock price of Google to merely $1.5 billion.  Poor guys. The video below was made by Chad and Steve when they inked the deal with Google several months ago.