There are no hard-fast certifications and degree requirements to start a business or to become an entrepreneur. An MBA, bachelor’s, associate’s, or master’s degree enables a strong foundation that benefits a career and helps earning potential rather than promoting entrepreneurship. Academic programs help learn facts, know where to find knowledge, meet people, and develop a network and interpersonal skills that are vital to running a business in future. However, it does not give wisdom and self-actualisation.

While there is no specific ”business owner degree,” many successful entrepreneurs have earned an MBA or a degree in relevant fields such as engineering, science, economics and computer science. Regardless of the degree program, successful entrepreneurs can attest that owning a business involves trial and error alongside on-the-job learning and experience. 

An entrepreneur must be willing to make mistakes, take risks and learn to understand what works and what does not. For instance, Thomas Edison failed 999 times before getting the idea of the light bulb, and when asked why, his response was, “I have not failed 999 times, I have only learned 999 ways of how not to make a light bulb”.

Today several graduates and degree holders are not able to start a business because the skills required in the modern world to get started are not taught in schools and institutions. However, there are several avenues to obtain the best education necessary to succeed in a business venture. When an entrepreneur is not certain of the skills requirements as a business owner, the best degree programs to consider are;

• Budget, finance, and accounting
• Marketing and sales
• Project Management
• Networking
• Leadership and delegation
• Communication
• Corporate Law 

Entrepreneurs should develop a keen interest in reading as much as they can, about anything and everything that comes across their way.

The future will be governed by automation, Artificial Intelligence; and this implies that jobs will look vastly different in a short time, but the above skills will guide the entrepreneur to do the correct thing at all times. Studies have shown that the most important skills to acquire for entrepreneurship in future are understanding how to find and get knowledge, and learning to be creative and innovative in the application of skills. Consequently, people who are only equipped with skills found in the classroom will be a misfit in an ever-changing world. Skills like critical thinking, creativity, people skills, software engineering, and complex problem-solving skills are central to living a more comprehensive and productive life.

In conclusion, my advice to entrepreneurs, and graduates is to think wide, deep and outside the box. When in school and college it is important to take voluntary jobs and navigate fields that are different from their familiar grounds. Entrepreneurship in future will require a pool of information from many different fields to come up with creative solutions to problems. 

Entrepreneurs must not limit themselves to their special field of study, it is important to be versatile, in all aspects of knowledge, and it will pay off in the long run. Doing something pragmatic and practical will help develop resilience, creativity and an innovative approach to problem-solving. Entrepreneurs should always look out to taking a leadership position, start a business and fail to learn entrepreneurship ropes. 

Budding entrepreneurs, should think less of becoming an expert in their special subject areas, but think more of becoming an excellent person. Knowing and understanding oneself is the beginning of successful entrepreneurship, and not make the subject your world, but rather make the world their subject. Always try something extra by thinking out solutions to problems.

Entrepreneurs should always invest in something they believe in because real financial security and freedom are not in employment or office jobs but in the passion, gifts, talents, and the ability to see and seize opportunities.