Want to be a successful entrepreneur? There are some essential courses for entrepreneurs and you must pursue them.
Well, apart from being millionaires what do Steve Jobs, Bill Gates and Mark Zuckerberg have in common – they’re entrepreneurs who have been very successful despite dropping out of college.
The value of a college education for entrepreneurs has been debated for years. Whatever your take on it, there are some classes that can be very beneficial for entrepreneurs. After all, being successful isn’t just about having a good idea.
So, whether you’re a full-time student with an entrepreneurial dream or looking for courses to improve yourself while you work on your dream, here are a few classes to consider.
Essential Courses For Entrepreneurs
- Marketing And Sales
You’ve got an idea- great. Now you need to know how to design it so that it solves a problem and meets a consumer need. Then you need to know how to design a marketing campaign for your brand and how to engage with your audience.
You need to know how to open and close deals and how to convince people to invest in your product. These are core skills every entrepreneur needs. If you’re not born a good salesman, consider a course to learn the basics.
Three top universities for a Masters in Marketing are
2. Finance And Accounting
As a business owner, you will be handling many transactions. You will also be responsible for the salaries of your team. While you may hire an accountant to handle the day to day affairs, you too should have a general idea of managing finances. You should be able to balance budgets, manage cash flow, calculate and pay taxes, etc.
You need to know where and how to invest money for your company’s future and assess the company’s financial health by looking at your assets and liabilities. A course in financial management covers all of these topics and gives you essential skills for your business’s success.
The top universities for finance and accounting are:
3. People Management
As an entrepreneur, you need to be a good leader. You need to be able to hire the right people, keep them motivated and help them grow as individuals as well as team members.
Management classes can teach you important communication skills on how to push your team to do better. You will learn how to show appreciation as well as give criticism in a positive way.
Some of the best courses in human resource management are offered by:
4. Communication And Public Speaking
You can’t afford to be shy as an entrepreneur. You will be called on to speak about your company and brand and need to be able to do so confidently. A course in public speaking is great for people who don’t typically like being in the spotlight.
Look for a course that teaches you how to be concise and clear with your communication, how to debate and present your side in an argument, how to present yourself and modulate your voice to make an impact. Public speaking courses may also cover body language.
You may also want to participate in a communication course that covers verbal as well as written communication. After all, you are going to be doing a lot of writing – emails, business plans, press releases, investor pitches, etc.
The top schools for business communication are:
- University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia
- Massachusetts Institute of Technology in Cambridge
- University of California – Berkeley
5. Networking
Your success as an entrepreneur is directly proportional to your network. As your network of friends, acquaintances and customers grows, so does your company.
You can build a network online or offline and networking courses cover both. You’ll learn how to make an impression quickly, how to present yourself in the best way and how to reach out to people.
You can learn how to network online at
6. Stress Management
The difference between being an employee in someone else’s company and being your own boss is that you alone are responsible for your successes and failures. Over the years you are sure to see both. Hence, stress will probably be something you become familiar with.
To ensure that it doesn’t overwhelm you, you need to know how to deal with stress. A stress management course will give you the tools and techniques you need. When you eventually have a large team, this course will also give you the skills needed to regulate your team’s stress levels.
Check out courses on Coursera for stress management by
These courses may have nothing to do directly with your business idea but will go a long way in your overall growth as an entrepreneur. They help build a strong foundation for your business and will be instrumental to your success.
Also See
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- COVID-19 Impact – What’s Ahead For International Students?
- Canada International Student Support – Relaxed Norms During Covid-19
- Top 20 Colleges For Aspirational Entrepreneurs Based The PitchBook Ranking
