Looking for advice/insight on my RE decision

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Hey BP community!

I'm currently 18 years old and finishing up my first year of college. Over the past month, I've had more time to think and question myself than I've ever had; I've really been able to assess my current situation and thoughts that I've been having for the past year or so. But I'm in dire need of advice and need to hear other peoples' opinions and thoughts before I let my ambition get the best of me. I know that this post is probably going to be pretty lengthy, but I just want to give the whole story so that whoever's reading this can get a better picture of where I'm at...

Just for background, I'm the son of two eastern-European immigrants who came here 20 years ago to provide a better life for themselves and for their kids. My mom's a teacher, so growing up, there was a heavy emphasis on my education and my dad's a small business owner so I was able to also grow up through his journey of opening up his business and dealing with the obstacles that came with. My whole life has basically revolved around my education and sports. I graduated high school with over a 4.0 gpa and I'll be finishing up my first year of college with a 4.0. I don't say this to brag but rather to emphasize the point that my education has always been something that I took very seriously.

Instead of going away and getting the "traditional college experience", I decided to stay home and commute to school. The motivating factor for this decision was the fact that I'm paying basically nothing right now due to scholarships and grants, so I figured I might as well stay home for 1 or 2 years and save tens of thousands and then transfer to a bigger school where I can party, meet new people, go to a bigger and more renowned business school, etc. I was confident that I wanted to major in business but wasn't sure what exactly I wanted to do in business.

To be honest, this past school year has really sucked. Seeing kids my age living on their own, having a lot more fun than I was, really took a toll on my happiness/well-being. And not only was I not having fun, but I also didn't know what exactly I wanted to do. Beginning in high school, I became obsessed with figuring out what I was going to do to be successful, and this has become more apparent now since I'm an adult in college. So throughout this past year, the thought of being successful popped up in my head every day. I started to ask myself, am I doing enough? Is this the only path that I need to take in order to be successful? Having my own business and not having to rely on the system has always been my ultimate goal; however, I just didn't know what business I could start to be profitable in the long run. And on top of that, nothings guaranteed. So, I decided that I was going to transfer after this year and go to a bigger school, where I'll be happier, apply to their business school, and eventually get a good-paying job after college to support me while I figure out a way to not rely on the system. So I applied, got in, accepted it, and just a month ago I had my mind made that that's what I was going to do for next year.

If you're still here, thanks for bearing with me! Here's the real estate portion of it.

So a couple of weeks ago, I started seeing some posts from a real estate mogul on instagram and listening to what he had to say regarding the current situation and how it's creating a once in a lifetime opportunity for investors. So I did my DD and looked into REI and found out enough to know that succeeding in the RE industry requires an immense amount of planning, determination, perseverance, and knowledge, but it also comes with a lot of risks. The more I read and researched, the more I became interested and realized that this is exactly what I've been looking for. Everything aligned with my interests, skills, goals, etc. So I started to question whether or not a degree would even benefit me at this point. What if I dopped out and fully committed my time and energy to RE. I sat down with my parents and told them everything I've been looking into and how I could achieve my goals and get to where I want to be in life through REI. They didn't completely disagree with my vision but didn't fully agree with me dropping out. They've always supported me in everything I wanted to do, as long as I had a plan, but they feel that furthering my knowledge by getting a degree is something that isn't crucial but doesn't hurt to have, which is a fair point. So I reconsidered college and decided that transferring wasn't going to align with my plan now, and it would just be an extra $60k to have to worry about. However, if I stayed at the school I'm at right now, I wouldn't have any debt and graduate a semester early due to my credits accumulated from high school.

So as of right now, I'm considering these two options:

a) Continue commuting to college (maybe major in finance to gain the essential knowledge that will help me in REI? Possibly minor in entrepreneurship?) while dipping my toes in the world of RE by wholesaling and eventually open an llc for my rental properties with which I'll start off small and then eventually work my way up to commercial properties

b) Everything I mentioned above but drop out of school and commit fully to gaining real-world RE experience and building my business

The reason why I would drop out is that I don't think that a business degree is all that worth it. Whatever I learn in class I can learn online. And in this case, it isn't about the monetary value of the degree, but rather the time that I'll be putting into school which I could be putting into building my business. And on top of that, I never really felt like I fitted in. I've always been more mature than everyone around me, always saw things differently, always one step ahead, always been able to adapt to any situation, which is why I strongly believe that I would be able to drop out of school and still succeed.

What I want to make known is that I'm willing to work my butt off, whether I drop out or not, to make this possible. I'm going to have a well thought out and detailed plan so that I know exactly what I have to do in order to succeed. I've never been more determined to do something then I am right now. I just need guidance and advice so that I can start off on the right foot.

I appreciate any feedback or thoughts, thanks!

[Scott Mac]

....................................

 Hi Andrei,

A man has to do what he thinks is best.

(and) Asking opinions of others (who are successful) is intelligent,

(and) Asking options (note I did not write opinions here)  of the most successful people you know, is also intelligent,

(and) also KNOW YOURSELF.

The best way to know yourself (know what you want) I believe, is to read and do the written exercises in Tony Robbins book "Awaken the Giant Within".

It may take you 2 months of work to finalize yours plans using this method, but when they are done--they will be customized to YOU by YOU.

You are a unique person who is seeking happiness in life (only you can define what that is for yourself).

Doing the exercises in the book will give you more information about yourself, and with more information comes better decisions (remembering the "Ands" from above).

Then when your done book number two should be Rich Dad Poor Dad.

And my second piece of advice is "A man is the Average of The 5 People he  spends the most time with".

So choose who you spend time with--birds of a feather so to speak--and it's who you know (as well as what you know) so make sure to Know who you need to know, and make them your 5 people.

Good Luck!