Yahoo Finance How I Started Making $115K After Dropping Out of College
The traditional college degree path isn’t the be-all and end-all for success anymore. Higher education certainly offers invaluable knowledge and opportunities, but an increasing number of people are choosing to ditch the degree and forge their own paths — often by dropping out to chase their dreams of owning their own business.
Dropping out of college isn’t a decision to be taken lightly. Education plays a huge role in personal and professional development and the challenges faced by those without a degree can be significant. But with the right skills and strategies, it’s totally doable to start raking in $100,000 or more sans degree.
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Steven Pivnik, who dropped out of Baruch College in September 1988, is a prime example of someone who took the unconventional route and made it work. Just five years after he dropped out, Pivnik went on to found Binary Tree, an enterprise software and services company.
Developing an In-Demand Skill
While a traditional college degree can open doors, sometimes the quickest path to a lucrative career is developing a specific, in-demand skill. This hands-on approach can allow you to gain practical experience and start earning money sooner. After dropping out, Pivnik zeroed in on a skill that would make him an attractive hire to employers.
“I attended a computer programming course to learn how to program mainframe computers,” Pivnik said. “There were no personal computers in the 1980s. The skills I learned by taking the course allowed me to land my first job at Reader’s Digest and start my career, which continued to progress from there.”
By putting in the work to learn computer programming, Pivnik was able to secure a job at a reputable company. He not only got a head start in the workforce but also picked up valuable, practical skills that employers actually wanted.
“Learning a specific skill set via trade school allowed me to jump into a career over three years sooner than waiting to get a college degree,” Pivnik said.
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Starting His Own Business
After gaining real-world experience in programming, Pivnik felt motivated. He wanted to take the plunge and start his own business. He knew that leaving the stability of a full-time job would be risky, but it could also unlock even greater opportunities.
“A few years later, after learning a lot more about the industry I was now in, I was motivated to quit my full-time job and branch out into business on my own,” Pivnik said. “That is when I started Binary Tree.”
Before starting his own company, Pivnik did his homework. Because he had worked in the industry, he was able to identify an opportunity and develop a solid business plan.
“I believed that there would be greater opportunities for me and my family if I left the comfort of a paycheck to start my own firm,” Pivnik said. “So I did. After two failed attempts the third one was more successful than I imagined it could be.”
After he first started Binary Tree, Pivnik was soon earning $115,000 a year.
A Successful Exit
Over the course of nearly three decades, Binary Tree closed multimillion-dollar deals with companies like IBM and Microsoft. And in 2020, Binary Tree was acquired by Quest Software.
“After 27 years as the founder and CEO and then Executive Chairman of an international technology company that grew to 200 employees, I had a rewarding exit event and now find myself writing the next chapter of my life.”
Today, as the founder of AIP Advisory, Pivnik advises other entrepreneurs on similar paths. He is also the author of “Built to Finish,” which tells the story of his company Binary Tree, as well as the story of his journey into the world of the IRONMAN competition.
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This article originally appeared on GOBankingRates.com: How I Started Making $115K After Dropping Out of College
