Many graduates are unsure of what their lives should lead up to and the direction they should steer it early in their careers. They went to school most of their lives, and from one moment to the next all of that stops. What should they do now? No one will blame them if they have not figured out life, their dreams and ambitions at an age of say, 23 years old. The scramble for a steady, good job puts a lot of pressure on young people nowadays. This stress can materialise even before they started a career, in their studies. Full-time contracts are still hard to come by, and that does not seem to change. The competition for jobs is crazy, especially in big cities. There is an option to not give in to this rat race and drive an Uber all day and night. But then there are those self driving cars that might in the future snatch your livelihood from under you. So young people slave away in internships to prepare them for a supposedly steady career, hoping all of that will make them more appealing to employers.

The stress of not going to have a job while having worked hard for those degrees and work experience can be so great that it risks turning people off from starting a career in the first place. That is why many ex-students hang around in the dead end jobs that they had in college. It saves them stress and shields them from the pressure to succeed. It is the safe way to go, the way out. But the problem with that is that this kind of living will lose its appeal quite quickly when you studied hard for most of your life and are fond of an intellectual challenge now and then. Is there any other way tot think of for young people to not have to succumb to this rat race? A different path to success maybe? One of an equal intellectual challenge and riches?

Have you thought about starting your own company? Not for the sake of being seen as an entrepreneur, but with a goal in mind of creating something new and helping others and yourself along the way. There are many benefits of having your own company. I will list a few ones here.

Stand up to monopolization of industries by big companies

In tech nowadays, big companies rule the seas. Smaller competitors are being swallowed up and any new ideas that gain form are hereby internalised into large, creativity stifling, bureaucratic organisations. Working in tech and trying to come up with new, big ideas is like being useful to society and making a lasting impression when working in government: pretty impossible. Big companies make tons of money and are hereby able to spend big on marketing. These marketing budgets are hard to compete with. When you find yourself having created something special and unique, will you say no to the millions that they will offer you? If you are a strong willed person, this will mean that you have to keep working hard for years to come while big companies will try to seduce you and try to copy your products. If you are able to survive and thrive, you show big companies and the world that they are not able to control you and rule over everything while paying a minimal amount of taxes just to give large bonuses to their CEO’s. If there is any competition in a market, the customer will win because prices will go down and the quality of products will go up. People like to see smaller companies stick it to the big ones. The national mood is on your side. When big companies feel the pressure of a lot of smaller companies, the need to evolve and offer more affordable products increases.

Create jobs for young people your age

Big companies offer only so many jobs to the young, the ones that just entered the job market. They want only the best and the brightest, and can make these demands because there is a large contingent for them to choose from. Plus, they like to stay as fit and slim as they can as an organisation, which means not having too many employees. This way they can cut costs, so they can spend it on buying up smaller companies and paying their management. If you have a small and thriving company, you will want to increase your staff after a while. This means you are essentially a job machine, even though you will be a small one in the beginning. Young people, their parents and the community will be grateful that you created jobs for them, or offered them internships where they can learn the skills of the 21st century so they do not have to depend on dead end jobs for pay or big companies with their assessments and large amount of competition for the few jobs available each year.

Make the kind of money you deserve

Someone is getting paid when you are slaving away those minimum 8 hours a day. A big part of your initial salary must go to the state. But this excuse is not good enough if you find some boss hinting at it in a job interview to make you feel better about the salary he is offering. Did he create that company where you are applying and is he reaping all the benefits? Good for him. Another reason you should not slave away under his command. Never mind the nice atmosphere of girls, hipsters and good coffee at the office. That does not mean anything. Are you friends with your boss on Facebook because everything is so friendly and nice at work? Check out the life he is living, what kind of car he is driving and what the inside of his house looks like. 9 out of 10 times someone is getting screwed. Most likely you, your colleagues and the interns. Your boss and one of his stooges probably told you that the amount you are making is the normal amount they pay people like you in your industry. Don’t be fooled. You are being taken for a ride. So catch a ride the other way. The way to success.

Be remembered

No one will remember you two weeks after you left your job where you slaved away for over two years. Yeah, you were a nice guy, friendly, and you kept it professional. Who cares? Workers come and go, companies stay. Be brave and be part of something enduring by creating your own company. Be remembered by contributing to society this way and leaving something substantial for the next generation of young and ambitious people when you choose to quit the business. Sell your company when you are sick of it. But remember to get rich.

Be in the driver seat of your own car on this road called life. Don’t be the one hitchhiking on the side of the road, slowly going nowhere.