These days, there’s a lot of pressure to study, do well in your degree and go on to get a good job. Whether it’s us applying pressure to ourselves or our parents wanting us to succeed, sometimes it can all get a bit too much. We always trying to provide you guys with the helpful resources that you need to succeed at uni. I mean, did you see our downloadable revision guide?

We live in a time where it’s never been easier to make a go of something yourself - the tools are literally at our fingertips. Today I wanted to share with you four successful people, including young and old that have done alright for themselves without the traditional methods!

Steve Bartlett

Even if you’ve never heard of Steve Bartlett, you’ll have no doubt have seen content his team of social media pros have put out for us to laugh over. Steve is the CEO of Manchester-based social media agency Social Chain. He dropped out of his university business management degree and in 2014 started his agency which now operates in four worldwide locations and is set to turnover more than £6m this year.

Zoella

Now dudes of the Internet bear with me, you’re probably not Zoella’s target market. However, with nearly 12m subscribers on YouTube and a bestselling book under her belt, it’s safe to say she’s kind of a big deal. Zoella took an apprenticeship in design after leaving 6th form but her YouTube channel which she started around the same time soon took off and the rest is history. It’s said that Zoella earns well over £20k a month in advertising and has gone on to launch her own brand of makeup and cosmetics with massive high street retailers.

Lord Sugar

No business success list would be complete without Lord Sugar. Leaving school at 16, he started out in the glamorous field of selling aerials and repaired TVs out of his car boot. Things could have been very different for Lord Sugar. When he left school he actually failed an aptitude test for IBM, where he wanted to work as a computer programmer. Instead in 1968, he started Amstrad. A company which went on to be one of the largest manufacturers of PCs and which netted him a nice £125m in 2007. He also got his perfect payback on IBM as he now owns their headquarters on London’s Southbank. See also, The Apprentice.

Mary Portas

Ever thought that your weekend retail job was boring and you can wait to get out? Well, try telling that to Mary Portas. Offered a place at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art at 18, Mary turned down the opportunity and instead went on to work for the likes of John Lewis, Harrods, Topshop and eventual Harvey Nichols where she became a member of the board of directors at just 30 years old! She has now had a string of successful television shows on Channel 4 and lectures internationally on retail and business.

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