" It seems like nowadays the only wealth that lasts is being born into generational wealth, which I wasn’t born into and so now I’ve gotta think outside the box."

Comparison is the thief of joy. There will always be people richer, better advantaged than you. If you look at other people you lose sight of your own track. At 21 a lot of people have 0 income, hell even at 40+ some people do. Anything worth having takes time and effort. I like your positivity though, your “disadvantage” can be your fuel source if you harness it correctly. Adversity builds determination. Daddy’s money is a crutch for a lot of people, and trust me anyone who really wants to build a business has to put in the hours and tears regardless of how much $ is in the bank.

My suggestion is to focus on your unique individual worth. Just diving into drop shipping, selling courses or whatever is cool but what’s your unique edge in that? The best way to make money is to start with building your own personal value. Learn skills, languages, soft skills like persuasion and empathy. Study like a sponge, learn to learn, get comfortable with adversity.
As far as “What to do” keep in mind that everything takes time so choose wisely. Picking something you’re not suited for and gonna end up hating is a waste of time Your best bet is to do stuff you love. So if you love software/web design lean into a business model with that, but keep your options open and see what clicks.

I agree, its really hard to find genuine advice. I go one step further to say any advice no matter how well intentioned has a very low value for the person receiving it.

Here are my chief reason.

When someone gives you an advice that solves your problem, they robe you of the skills need to solve such problems in the future. And if you succeed all the credit will go to your advisor. However, in case of a failure it’s you who would fail.

It’s a different journey for everyone. IMO here is what to look out for, and I’ve already seen it in these comments.

People will trip over themselves to sell you courses on Dropshipping. Or hell, anything. They will tell you they make 50k a month doing it and are selling a course for 49.99. Does that make sense?

The true way in my opinion is to dig a little deeper and find a way to serve a community. A group, a niche.

Find a way to add value by being your authentic self. Again, not easy but the only true repeatable way to earn money and be an entrepreneur. Add value. It’s a blanket statement but run anything you want to get into through that lens. Is drop shipping adding value?

Again, everyone is different and you can kill it. Who knows.

Yeah this is a huge issue IMO and it’s something I set out to fix with my online course on finding advice that isn’t a scam and advice marketplace. DM me for a discount codez

Get your MBA, Search where you want to base your operations to be, look for problems, then look to ways to solve those problems. You will find what you want.

Entrepreneurship is a dynamic journey that demands a unique set of qualities for success. Firstly, a visionary mindset is crucial. Successful entrepreneurs possess the ability to see opportunities where others see challenges. This vision fuels innovation and drives the creation of solutions that address real-world problems. It’s about anticipating trends, understanding market needs, and charting a course that aligns with a compelling vision.

Secondly, resilience is an indispensable trait. The entrepreneurial path is riddled with uncertainties and setbacks. Those who weather these storms and bounce back from failures are the ones who thrive. Resilience is not just about overcoming challenges; it’s about learning from them, adapting strategies, and persisting in the face of adversity.

Lastly, effective communication and networking skills are paramount. Entrepreneurs must articulate their vision persuasively to attract investors, customers, and collaborators. Building a robust network opens doors to valuable resources, mentorship, and partnerships. Connecting with others in the industry fosters a collaborative spirit and provides insights that can be instrumental in navigating the complex terrain of entrepreneurship.

In essence, to be a successful entrepreneur requires a blend of visionary thinking, resilience, and adept communication and networking skills. These three pillars form the foundation for turning innovative ideas into thriving ventures in the ever-evolving landscape of business.

Why don’t you work for or with an established entrepreneur for awhile. You’ll develop the mindset and learn important skills it can be a fast track. Environment is important and working in an entrepreneurial mindset will show you the ups and downs of the life. Choose someone who will be a good mentor. You’ll probably need more than one of these roles so you get different perspectives.

Why do you want to do dropshipping?

Lemme tell you something. If you live in America. Then you are born in the gold mine, cause there is simpky no place in the whole world than America where making generational wealth is easier.

It’s amazing how much of foresight you have at the age of 21. When I was 21, I too was desperately trying to get into something where I could make an impact. Although I come from a decent background, I didn’t want to ever feel entitled, or lazy. So first off, congratulations on your mindset. Secondly, you have to work night and day to learn. Learning is the biggest skill in today’s world. And if you’re constantly willing to learn, you’re going to go miles ahead. There are free resources out there. Watch YouTube, read books and listen to Podcast. Pick a field that you believe will make you the happiest, or earn you the most amount of money, given that your goal. Thirdly, instead of focusing on which company to get into, pick a personality you can work under. Most people optimise for a brand name, say for example, working under an Apple or a Nike. Instead, pick somebody great who you can mentor you and show you how things are done. These kinds of people are difficult to access at bigger companies, but at a smaller ones, there’s a big chance that they will take you on. So, start connecting with these people and share your story. I’m sure there are many empathetic entrepreneurs who will help you. Once you start working with such a person, you’re going to get insights into how things are done. Trust me, skills will only take you so far. What’s equally important is process, mindset, structure, organisation and management. These can only be learnt with experience and over a diverse range of situations. As you’re learning and working, you’re also going to land on some money. Keep your expenses low, and save some of that cash. Slowly, look at opportunities that you can exploit. Start a small business online, whether that’s consulting or selling a digital product, or even breaking into the same industry that you’re a part of. Yes, some industries may require a massive investment, but look at ways that you can come in without any investment, say as a consultant or something. Keep your working your way up, and you will reach a place where things start going your way. All of this is again easier said than done. But it’s just a roadmap of how you can start to think about things. Feel free to reach out, I’m more than happy to speak to you as a friend and as somebody who also wants to make it really big in life.

Look, I’ll tell you this from experience, I started out in my late teens to set out to become my own boss before my mid 20s, didn’t work out so well… Doesn’t mean it doesn’t work for everybody BUT I made it in the end in my early 30s and I am financially free but that came with a lot, a heck of a lot of effort and equal amount of pain… The one thing I regret not doing when I had all the time in the world I.e. my teens and my early 20s is that, had I put my effort into learning modern day skills like social media marketing or coding, I could have gone a lot further, I’m doing it now but with so many responsibilities that comes with age, it gets quite difficult to take time out for your own self so my advise, take the time to master one or two skills and then move forward with your business pursuits… I know at this time, you might not feel you have the time to explore skills development… I did too when I was your age but trust me, I had time, so do you… You want to go into drops shipping but you don’t if it’ll be relevant anymore by the time you get there??? Learn social media marketing, once you master that, you can sell anything… I turned $300 into $150k…TRUST ME! Don’t rush it, focus all your free time and then some into learning a new skill first… Best of luck!

It sounds like your primary motivation is money, and if that’s the case, getting good grades and studying something that’s lucrative and will be in demand for the foreseeable future like CS/Math/Stats is the path with the highest expected value. The vast majority of people here are earning significantly less than their counterparts in big tech/finance while working much harder and being significantly more stressed out.

I wouldn’t afraid of start something that others say its a bad idea. Usually this is how good ideas born.

You are in one of the most perfect situation. Young, No experience but already have feelings to build business.

What I would do if I were you is I would spend a few days with my thoughts to find the perfect business idea that I would really love to do. Lets say ecommerce. If I have the idea I would start to work out a plan from the first step until the very last. What I want to sell, where I want to sell it, how my website would look like, who are my competitors, who are my potential customers, how can I advertise, how can buy items that I want to sell and what is the journey of this item etc. there will be a lots of question that you need to find answer.

While Im working out my business plan (Probably takes months to fully finish it) I would try to find a job where I can see all of these in practice. So I would look for job at an e commerce business and I would also write a list what are my goals to work there (what I want to learn) and I would try to be friendly with every department so I can ask questions about their jobs. The smaller the business the closer the people to eachother. Ohh and I wouldn’t care about the payment I dont want to spend my entire life there I just want a 2-3 years of experience to start my own business.

If you stay consistent with your strategy and your goal stays clear you will be already ahead of 90% of the entrepreneurs when you start your business.

Another thing I would take into consideration is to start a “practice” business while I have a full time job. It will be awful and probably cringe aswell but at least good for building experience. Experiment with a lots of thing and when you feel ready you can restart everything with the new brand.

Here is your first piece of genuine advice.

Use paragraphs.

Good luck.

Because people spent years obtaining that information & experience so the real professionals aren’t giving away that knowledge, experience for free.

Most stuff online that people are sharing can be Googled.

You pay professionals in business to get to work and help resolve things plus get things done quicker so you can move on to other things.

Hope you understand.

Try joining networking groups in your area and also check out joinEntre.

joinEntre is a site for Entrepreneurs, Freelancers and Investors.

Best to you

Best to you