Post: #1

Hey RVF.

I'm a student in my early twenties, almost finished college (only got my thesis to do, it's like halfway done) but it's in a field that I don't really know if it's useful or not. The degree essentially guarantees fluency in Russian, conversational Polish and a couple of courses in economics and management, but these are too generic (I won't even mention the Soviet History and Literature classes as these are utterly useless today.)

I live in a highly tourist-visited country in Europe, and I'm planning on taking advantage of some family property to put on AirBnB to rent, which I predict will make me some really good money. The thing is, I can effectively start this in mid-late spring, so I've got 9 months that I don't want to just waste sitting around living off of my parents' money.

I'd love to get my foot in the door in investing, and I've made another thread asking about advice on that, but to invest I do need some capital. But I don't want to work as a waiter to get that, I'd like to do something that will get me some respectable experience. But I get the feel that this is impossible without a relevant degree.

Is it?

I hope I made sense

tl;dr
I have no degree and feel like there are 0 opportunities out there

Post: #2

It sounds like you are 90% done with your degree so make sure you finish that even if you don't think you will need it or use it.

Is the investing related to the AirBNB idea or separate? Usually people invest (in say stocks, property, crypto, etc) after building an income. If the AirBNB is a separate idea to the investing I would dedicate my time and resource to that (after the degree of course) and get that ready to get customers. Then from there use that income to invest.

Post: #3

(09-24-2018 12:55 PM)username Wrote:  It sounds like you are 90% done with your degree so make sure you finish that even if you don't think you will need it or use it.

Is the investing related to the AirBNB idea or separate? Usually people invest (in say stocks, property, crypto, etc) after building a income. If the AirBNB is a separate idea to the investing I would dedicate my time and resource to that (after the degree of course) and get that ready to get customers. Then from there use that income to invest.

The investing is unrelated to the AirBnB idea. I was thinking about gathering some capital through the AirBnB rentals and then use some of that to invest in REITs since they seem rather safe, but I don't know. I haven't researched crypto well enough.

Post: #4

I've done well with American REITs this year and many are still well below their peaks. They were hit pretty hard at the beginning of 2018 because of interest rate fears but most have recovered a bit but many still offer nice returns. My REIT portfolio has a 7.1% return on dividends while the stocks have gone up 13% since I bought them in March through May.

I think you are on a good path man. The AirBNB plan sounds exciting and could be a good foundation to a successful entrepreneurial career. From their you can decide if you want to push yourself in the direction of more properties or rentals, services to other property owners (like prepping their property for rental or offering a cleaning service), maybe a direct to consumer booking service, or pivot in a new direction.

Post: #5

100% vital you get your degree, don't drop that.

You can do translation, tour guide, copywriting on the side for now.

Air BNB is a great idea as well.

Post: #6

(09-24-2018 07:48 PM)RatInTheWoods Wrote:  100% vital you get your degree, don't drop that.

You can do translation, tour guide, copywriting on the side for now.

Air BNB is a great idea as well.

I endorse these suggestions and would like to add hostel work on a paid or volunteer basis. It's an opportunity to get exposure to tourists and the hospitality industry that can pay dividends if you want to do your own extended travel in the future.

Anyways, money is better than not having money. Have you considered dishwashing or cooking if you don't want to wait tables? A well rounded person ought to work at least one shit job in their life to relate the story to their hypothetical future children.

Post: #7

(09-24-2018 08:20 PM)BBinger Wrote:  

(09-24-2018 07:48 PM)RatInTheWoods Wrote:  100% vital you get your degree, don't drop that.

You can do translation, tour guide, copywriting on the side for now.

Air BNB is a great idea as well.

I endorse these suggestions and would like to add hostel work on a paid or volunteer basis. It's an opportunity to get exposure to tourists and the hospitality industry that can pay dividends if you want to do your own extended travel in the future.

Anyways, money is better than not having money. Have you considered dishwashing or cooking if you don't want to wait tables? A well rounded person ought to work at least one shit job in their life to relate the story to their hypothetical future children.

This.

I worked 2 shitty jobs in my teens, one in a museum and another in manufacturing.

After my degree in Computer engineering did a variety of good jobs and I'm now considering a rtw trip in which I'll have to do some shitty jobs to help the expenses, and I look forward to work in hostel, farm etc... all those jobs will teach you something and you might get some flags in return.