Getting your money's worth out of school

The cost of going to school is tremendous.  Obviously.  The increasing cost of tuition and books regularly make headlines. Many people are deciding that college isn't worth the high cost.  Those that choose to attend are left feeling pressure to minimize costs and increase the returns on their investment.

When I was in school, I had two friends that were clearly trying to get their money's worth out of their investment.  We'll call them Stan and Miles.


Goods and Services
Stan had an approach that still makes me laugh.  When he realized how much he was paying for every day at the university, he decided to reclaim the price of his tuition in goods and services.  Every time he

Effective Networking Part 1

Every good opportunity has come from people I knew

Starting with my first job in my career, every new opportunity has come from a relationship with someone I knew.  The best jobs, the kind of jobs you really want, don’t make it to the job listings.  The interesting, challenging jobs that require thinking will never be listed in the Help Wanted ads or recruited for at career fairs.  The open-ended jobs that require responsibility and innovation will always be given to someone with whom the hiring manager has a relationship.

That sounds unfair to people that don’t have any contacts.  It did to me when I was a student and my classmates were being offered internships from friends of their parents.  “Must be nice,” I’d think to myself as I spent my afternoons online applying for summer positions.  But the reality is, there’s no point feeling bitter about it or feeling left out.  Networking is the great career equalizer.   Anyone can do it and everyone should. 

I'll give one example... after the jump.