John Wise never graduated from college. Instead, John developed 1,000 inventions, mainly racing technologies. These insights later led John to found Loci, a tech company that helps inventors discover if their idea exists. The day of the podcast, John finished raising $8.6 million on behalf of Loci, part of a $270 million round, to launch Locicoins.

Not only has John used his technical chops to develop a stellar company, his hobbies reflect his engineering interests, too. In 2016, largely thanks to John’s technology, he helped his racing team win the 2016 Pirelli World Challenge Championship, one of his 13 total racing championships.

In this episode, John and I discuss, among other things:

• How to decide whether you should go to college
• How to resist the pressures of not going to college
• How to provide value to employers without having a college degree
• How to fail effectively
• How to use the purpose of a resume to land an interview, and thus, land a job 

Stay updated on what John is doing by following Loci and Loci InVenn on Twitter.

Gabe Muller (@gabemuller_) graduated from Ball State in 2007 with a degree in Accounting. In less than 7 years following graduation, Gabe became the Chief Operating Officer at Glassman Wealth Services, a financial company managing $1+ billion dollars.

• How to leverage people skills to break into the corporate executive suite
• How to develop self-awareness without spending $1
• How to “interrupt the pattern” and get the attention of job recruiters
• How to optimize your resume
• The one interview question a student must be able to answer
• How to use curiosity and passion to optimize job prospects
• How “interrupting the pattern” can lead to a job
• How to embrace “interestingness”
• The most fundamental skill a college student can learn
• How to market yourself and story tell effectively

Gabe’s “tweetable” advice: “Show them, don’t tell them” and “You get to, you don’t have to.”

Follow Gabe’s Aviation vlog to see what creating a personal brand looks like!

Gerald Zingraf (@gzingraf) graduated from Virginia Tech in 2011 with a degree in Mechanical Engineering. In less than 6 years after college graduation, Gerald has founded or co-founded 8 companies, including Date To Door and CubeFit. From one company alone—that is, CubeFit—Gerald makes $2 million per year working only 5 hours per week.

In this episode, Gerald and I discuss his story and:

• How to determine the best career when you enter college wanting to be everything
• The skills necessary for succeeding as an engineer
• The power of persistence
• The diminishing value of a 4.0 GPA and the soaring value of side projects
• How to select “Skills Ready Majors” and avoid being 50% of students who are underemployed
• How to embrace “interestingness”
• How to maximize learning by focusing on your own learning style 

Gerald’s “tweetable” advice: “Be curious.”

Connect with Gerald Zingraf on LinkedIn.

Peter von Kahle graduated from Flagler College in 2012 with a degree in Communications.

Shortly after college, Peter filmed the NFL Super Bowl XLVIII, the biggest stage in media. Peter has also filmed projects for the Wounded Warriors Project and travels regularly to Brazil to shoot footage deep within the Amazon. Today, Peter runs his own videography company.

In this episode, Peter and I discuss:

• How saying “yes” to a small video project landed Peter a gig with the NFL at the biggest stage in media;
• How creatives can break through and claim recognition using the advice from famed comedian, Steve Martin; and
• The highest-leverage media equipment students need to begin producing content now. 

Tweetable advice: “Always say yes to your passion; always figure out a way to make your passion work.” 

Check out the portfolio of “DC’s Bad of Video” or email Peter at ([email protected]).

Cory Briggs (@CoBriggs12) graduated from Harvard in 2014 with a degree in Sociology. At college, Cory played for the Harvard Football team, wining the Ivey League Championship in 2011 and 2013. Also during college, Cory worked inside the NFL Cleveland Browns back office – an ultra competitive position, especially for a college student.

Immediately after college, Cory scored a position as an assistant football coach with Tufts University – again, an ultra competitive position. Today, Cory helps to manage a multi-million real estate investment portfolio.

In this episode, Cory and I discuss:

• Why dropping the “H-Bomb” represents every reason why students should attend an Elite College,
• How to network with influencers, such as Facebook’s co-founder, Eduardo Saverin, and
• How to use email to effectively connect with anyone.

Cory's "tweetable" advice: “Follow your passion to happiness, don’t follow the paycheck.”

Check out Cory’s accomplishments on LinkedIn or follow him on Twitter!

Dan Davy graduated from Florida State in 2013 with a double major in Economics and History. Immediately after graduation, Dan worked deep inside the Florida House of Representatives, where he drafted laws as a 22-year old, which are still on the books.

Dan also received the ultra prestigious Fulbright Scholarship, which afforded him the opportunity to travel—for free—to Malaysia. Daniel speaks Bahasa Malaysia and Bahasa Indonesia.

In this episode, Dan and I discuss:

• How to strategically double major and use the power of a non-technical major and a technical major  
• How to score a Fulbright Scholarship 

Dan’s “Tweetable” advice: “Teach yourself to be a curious person.”

To connect and follow Dan, look him up on LinkedIn.

Adelina Longoria graduated from Oklahoma State University with a PhD in Experimental Psychology in 2008, where she immediately enrolled after graduating from the University of Houston with a degree in Psychology. 

In undergrad, Adelina interned through a program funded by the prestigious National Science Foundation, which helped land her at OSU on the acclaimed Robberson Research Fellowship and interned on the Presidential Internship with the Red Cross. 

After graduation Adelina worked for Booz Allen Hamilton, one of the premier consulting firms in the U.S, where she won the Booz Allen Performance Award, and for SAP Success Factors, a company with 45+ million subscribers. Adelina is also a professor, making her an expert in how students should test-take. 

In this episode, Adelina and I discuss her story and:

• How to maximize the marketability of a psychology degree
• The application of a psychology degree beyond psychology
• The one question every student needs to ask themselves ever semester
• Why practical research is gold and how to create a portfolio that matters to employers and grad schools
• How to leverage internships to gain a competitive edge for graduate school admission
• The two most important things students in undergrad should know in applying to graduate school
• The pros/cons of attending graduate school immediately after undergrad
• Why, by itself, having a PhD does not make a student more marketable
• How “analysis” differentiates C students from A students
• How being a musician opens the White House doors

Adelina’s “tweetable” advice for college students: “Don’t stop working.”

Follow Adelina on LinkedIn and Instagram and check out her music that landed her in the White House.

Dave Schools (@DaveSchoools) graduated from Grove City College in 2012 with a degree in Entrepreneurship. At just 27 years old, Dave is a world-class blogger, author, and entrepreneur.

In less than two years after college graduation, Dave founded Entrepreneur’s Handbook (EH), a Medium publication and blog with 22k+ followers, growing at 150+ new members every day. Amazingly, EH took off in less than 3 years from inception. Capitalizing off of EH’s success, Dave recently launched, Brew Projects, a community of students and mentors committed to bringing to life “side-hustles.” While building all these things, Dave is an Inc. columnist and published his first book, Runaway Millionaire.

In this episode, Dave and I dive into his story and discuss tons of actionable advice, such as:

• How to become a world-class writer, even if you hate writing
• How to find a skill and become an entrepreneur
• How to turn a poor grade in public speaking into the best college experience
• How to master relational skills
• How to monetize a 20k+ blog following and make blogging a career
• How to write an irresistibly clickable title to score a top-10 article on Inc.com
• How to launch your own blog and post on external sites without compromising Google rankings
• How “curating” rather than writing can serve as effective community builder
• How to market yourself with a 3.0 GPA
• How to turn leadership in student government into opportunities
• How to write vulnerably 
• How to exploit a “first-mover” advantage in blog building
• How to capitalize on "megatrends" in blogging
• How to (tastefully) draw people in with "clickbate"
• How to be a model in college at a top 3 modeling agency (not kidding)

Dave’s “tweetable” advice for college students: “Once you get to know yourself, get to know others.”

Follow Dave on Medium, his personal site, or just drop him an email at [email protected].

Christian Mijares (@runbrownrun) graduated from Geneva College in 2014 with a degree in Marketing. In just over 2 years from college graduation, Christian manages $60 million as a financial advisor with Morgan Stanley, an elite investment bank. 

In this episode, Christian and I discuss his story and:

• What the world of high finance looks like and what it means to be someone’s personal “Chief Financial Officer”
• Why interpersonal skills are atop the most important skills to develop
• Why persistency is the most valuable element in building a client list
• How to face rejection and overcome being told “no”
• Why “playing the long game” is critical to developing a network
• How to use commonalities to connect with anyone
• How to use the “3-day rule” in professional networking
• How to “play in traffic” and why immersing yourself in your proposed career track is valuable
• How to become class president
• How to use varsity sports in college to build friendships

Christian’s “tweetable” advice: “Get involved and enjoy the time.”

Connect with Christian on LinkedIn or email him at [email protected]. Christian even offered to take personal calls! Hit him up at 703.556.8124!

Danica Van Horn (@DanicaVH) graduated from Virginia Tech in 2010 with a degree in Computer Science and a Minor in Math. At just 29 years old, Danica is a nationally-known jewelry designer and entrepreneur with the technical chops of a STEM grad.

In only two years following graduation, Danica quit her prestigious, safe, and promising job at Dell to found Doxahlogy, a handmade men and women’s jewelry line. Out of her Nashville storefront, Danica sells and designs jewelry for country superstars like Kenny Chesney, Florida Georgia Line, Thomas Rhett, and Dan + Shay.

In this episode, Danica and I discuss her story and: 

• How to optimize finding your passion and purpose through the process of “experimentation”
• How to identify your creativity within
• What to do when you realize you’re not passionate about your major
• What to do when you feel suffocated in your career path and how to determine what makes you “light up”
• Why attending a large state school can give your employment prospects a boost
• Why majoring in STEM makes sense even if you don’t want a career in STEM
• Why STEM students with a 3.2 GPA and other STEM students with 4.0 GPA have almost identical career prospects
• Why it’s a mistake to lock yourself away studying in the library
• Why college isn’t choosing “what you want to do the rest of your life”
• Why designing your college career around someone else’s expectations is dangerous

Danica’s “tweetable” advice for college students: “Follow your passions and listen to your gut.”

To learn more about Danica and her work, check out Doxahlogy on the web (see celebs wearing her jewelry) or on Twitter and Instagram.