My First Million
The best business ideas come from noticing what's working and doing it better, faster, or for a different audience.
Traditional universities will be disrupted by trade school-style institutions focused on specific, monetizable skills within the next decade
The Reasoning
The gap between what universities teach and what the job market needs is growing, while student debt makes ROI calculations more critical
What Needs to Be True
- Employers must value skills over credentials
- Students must prioritize ROI over prestige
- Alternative institutions must achieve some form of credibility
- Technology must continue creating new job categories
Counterargument
University prestige and networking effects are too strong, and employers will always prefer traditional degrees for signaling purposes
What Would Change This View
Evidence that university graduates continue to dramatically out-earn trade school graduates, or that employers double down on degree requirements
Implications for Builders
Focus on skills-based education with clear job outcomes
Build relationships with employers who will hire graduates
Create measurable outcomes that prove ROI
Target industries where skills matter more than credentials
Example Application
“Content creation university graduates get hired at higher rates than traditional film school graduates because they have portfolios of real, successful content”
Related Knowledge
Create a prestigious content creation university that becomes the Harvard of digital media education
10,000 students paying $25K/year, graduates highly sought after by companies and successful as independent creators
High Authority vs Delegated Authority Model
Binary leadership approach where you either operate with complete top-down authority or delegate full decision-making au
Passion Project Connection Strategy
A relationship-building approach that focuses conversations on people's current passionate interests rather than their well-known achievements, creating deeper engagement and authentic connection.
Three-Stage Currency Adoption Framework
A currency must pass through three distinct stages to become truly functional: store of value, medium of exchange, and unit of account.
Systematically improve content creation skills through deliberate practice
By video 100, your content quality has improved dramatically through conscious iteration, and you no longer need external advice because you've developed your own judgment and skills.
Agency and Permission Mindset
Most barriers to action are psychological rather than structural.