This document summarizes advice from successful college student entrepreneurs on balancing school, relationships, and starting a business. It provides 12 steps for launching a college startup, including assessing motivations, validating ideas, locating resources, and balancing classes and relationships. Entrepreneurs discuss developing laser focus through minimizing distractions, using productivity tools like Asana, and protecting one's network by spending time with entrepreneurially-minded friends. The document advocates seeing classes as complementary to a startup and using school resources and students for a business. It prompts reflection on what one is willing to sacrifice to focus on a startup.

1. Balancing Classes, Relationships and Your Startup…
Dave Gee

3. Sales Sherpas LLC – Proprietary – 800-287-7198

4. Questions I receive from students…

5. “Gee, I have a
startup idea what
do I do next?”

6. “Where can I find
money to fund my
startup?”

7. “Gee, I am
bombing my
classes because I
am spending so
much time on my
startup”

8. “Should I drop out
of school and
focus on my
startup?”

9. “I don’t have time
for a boyfriend,
my startup is my
boyfriend.”

10. “Should I go to
grad school so I
can launch my
startup?”

11. “You need to create
a step-by-step book
for college student
startups.”

12. “I guess it’s time to write
another book.”

13. July 2, 2019
Official Kick-Off
CEO Global Conference
October 31,2019
davidralphgee@gmail.com

15. 12 Steps To
Launch a
Successful
College Startup
Step 1 - Assessing your True Motivations
Step 2 - Validating your Startup Idea & Building Your Business Model
Step 3 - Balancing Relationships, Classes and Your Startup
Step 4 - Locating Helpful Resources for Your College Startup
Step 5 - Branding and Marketing Your Startup
Step 6 - Law School for Your Startup
Step 7 - Raising Capital for Your Startup
Step 8 - Pitching Your Startup
Step 9 - Building Your Startup Team
Step 10 - Creating Your Launch Plan & Pilot
Step 11 - Cash Flowing Your Startup
Step 12 - Should I Stay Or Should I Go

16. Balancing Classes, Relationships and...
Your Startup…

17. Insights From Successful College
Student Startup Founders…

18. Managing Your Most Precious
Resource…Time

20. Time
Management
“I was 100% focused on my startup and frankly not
school. I was in my senior year and basically doing
a victory lap after we got funding [$400,000]. But I
still needed to keep up with school. Having my
startup while in school forced me to develop
incredible time management skills. Those skills
have helped me grow, Bird.”
Jake Smith, Bird

21. Asking the Tough Questions…

23. Questions from
College Student
Startup Founders
1) Should I quit my part-time job?
2) Should I study for this exam?
3) Should I break-up with my boyfriend/girlfriend?
4) Should I keep the same friends?
5) Should I sit in the back of class and work on my
startup on my laptop?
6) Should I pitch at this competition?

24. Making The Sacrifices…

26. The Sacrifices
What are you going to sacrifice for your “Startup
Time?”
● Social Relationships?
● Classes?
● Outside jobs?
● Social time?

27. 5S Model –
Not The Phone
What Are Your ”REAL” priorities?
5S Model – Exercise
Prioritize 1-5 (1=Highest Priority, 5 = Lowest Priority)
___ Social Relationships
___ School (Classes)
___ Startup
___ Salary (Job during school)
___ Specific Situation_______________

28. Classes and Startups in Harmony…

30. Startups
and Classes
In Harmony
“Rather than seeing college classes as an obstacle
to building a successful startup, I saw them as
complimentary. Mobcraft needed a logo and
designs for beer labels. I talked to my graphic
design professor about having our logo designed
and beer label designed as a project for graphic
design students. Two of these students still work for
us today.”
- Henry Schwartz, Mobcraft

31. Protecting the Network…

33. Protect The
Network
“I think the most helpful piece of advice I could
provide college-student entrepreneurs would be
to make a very conscious decision about the
kind of people you spend time with. I found a
group of friends who were all entrepreneurially
minded and focused individuals. We studied
together, launched a startup together and
supported each other.”
- Brandon Fong

34. Developing a Laser Focus…

36. Laser Focus
“ It is easy to waste time as a student, here is how
I developed my skill of laser focus...
1) Focus on no more than one task at a time
2) Pause text and message notifications while
working
3) Take frequent breaks (5 minutes for 25 minutes
of work). Download an app or set a timer to notify
you when to stop.
4) Use a personal productivity tool, like Asana.”
Austin Beveridge, Marketing Manager, Bolt

37. Driving Team Productivity…

39. Team
Productivity
Tool
“We couldn’t run at the pace we do at Blue Line
without Slack. Email is so slow, and to be
honest, most of us only use it to communicate
with customers. We can DM team members,
send group messages, manage projects and
store files with Slack. It saves us time and helps
us focus on growing the business.”
- Kristen Holtan, Marketing Director, Blue
Line Battery

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(Conference Discount)
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