Starting my journey and how entrepreneurship chose meI just graduated in May. I have very little cash or assets to my name and I have my fair share of debt. The perfect situation to start a company? Hardly.
So why even attempt to start a business with circumstances stacking against my favor? Throughout my last two years at university, I was told that all of my external efforts should be focused on landing a job, maybe even starting a career. For most people, this is why they pursued a higher education: higher paying salaries, job security, stock options, and the works. What I came to realize was that I wasn't like most people-- the idea of being employ #1,326 just didn't appeal to me, regardless of the pay scale.
Who I Am:
I suppose some background information is in order. Hi, my name is Frank Pobutkiewicz and I attended Boston University and graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in International Relations, cum laude, and a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration, cum laude. I grew up on the beautiful Jersey Shore and currently live in Boston, in the same apartment I lived in my last year in school. In many ways, BU was the perfect fit for me: I wanted big, diversified, international, and opportunity. Luckily, I found all of that at my alma mater and in particular from an organization that I dedicated a majority of my effort towards building (in retrospect, probably more than my "job search"), Model United Nations, later to be renamed the International Affairs Association.
My First Entrepreneurial Experience:
I got hooked on MUN, as it's affectionately known, my freshman year when the club was relatively small, about 25 dedicated members and co-hosting a 1000 person high school conference. Over the years, I held a variety of roles within the organization, but the abridged version is that my senior year I was elected to serve as President and renamed the organization the International Affairs Association. By time I graduated, the organization had over 180 staff and volunteers, hosted 2 fully-owned conferences, and published an international relations magazine.
I always knew that I loved running and building organizations, but the IAA was my chance to really make a difference in people's lives; whether it was giving opportunities to travel and compete, discuss a topic otherwise not mentioned in classes, or teach the next generation of students. This was my first entrepreneurial venture and I deem it a success, both in this regard but also financially. We grew from cash flows of $60,000 to over $150,000 in just four years; not bad for a not-for-profit.
The organization is left in great hands for the future as I now begin my own journey without them. For the past eight months, I have developed a new idea for a business. Basically it continues within the industry that I've deemed "classroom co-educational." This is an emerging industry. Students continue to become more competitive for college admissions, they continue to participate in more co-curriculars, and they continue to demand more from an educational perspective (just going to "school" is becoming far more incomplete than it once was).
The Idea, The Venture:
And so My Foresight Education was born-- an online environment where aspiring high school students can explore and learn from a vast number of sources and topics. In addition to being able to take courses on topics not typically available in most public high schools (did I mention, affordable too?), students can list these courses of their college resumes in order to show a dedication to learning and a pursuit of knowledge. We are currently working on getting more universities to officially recognize our service.
So why start this blog? Like I said, unfortunately, I'm a starving-recently-graduated-college-student. Ok, maybe not starving, but I think you get the point. In this economic climate, there are far fewer resources available for start-ups than ten years ago. Further, banks will hardly consider loaning such a "micro" amount to start a business, particularly to someone with college-debt.
I'm here to appeal to you! This blog is meant to keep my investors and the public aware of the development of My Foresight Education. If you are interested in joining ownership, explore the Invest Now page or if you would like to donate, visit Donate Now.
Please, Contact Me!
If you have any question, please feel free to contact me or leave a comment. The more interactive we are, the more we can accomplish. While it's true I believe this venture can succeed financially, I also believe it can help reshape the education value-chain and create better students for a better tomorrow.
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