For many people who have started their own home-based or small business, the ability to start your own company immediately without the need to get a university degree or any other qualifications can be one of the most appealing things about this job. Anybody can start their own business despite their CV; whether you do not have any further education or are educated in something completely different, business ownership is an opportunity that anybody can take advantage of. Many successful business owners didn’t finish university and others have a background in something else, proving that your skills, risk-taking, and ability to network and build good relationships with others in the field can be more important than any degree when it comes to running a successful company of your own.
However, these days, getting started with a business might be easier, but being successful is not. There is more competition than ever before and with nine out of ten small businesses failing in their first year of operating, an increasing number of aspiring business owners are considering getting an official education in business before getting started or while running their company. The rise in online degree programmes is also making it easier than ever for business owners to study, with options to study at home in a flexible way while building their business at the same time.
Why Online Business Degrees are Great for Business Owners
Before the rise of online learning, students in the past would have had a harder time getting a degree while running a business at the same time. The amount of time that you need to dedicate to building and running your business would make it pretty much impossible to attend full-time classes as well, if you did not have somebody that you could leave in charge of running your company while you focused on getting a degree. Today, the rise of popularity of online degree learning has made it much easier for small business owners to fit in studying around running a business. An online DBA from Aston University, for example, can be a flexible option that business owners can study from home at times that suit them best.
Business Skills You Can Improve and Develop
To run a successful business, you do need a certain skill-set. Soft skills like communication skills, leadership skills, and good critical thinking and decision-making are key to getting a successful business started and moving towards success. However, if you don’t have any formal business education or training before you get started with building and running your business, it may reach a point where you struggle more. A business degree will help you develop important business skills in a variety of different aspects of business like marketing, accounting, business management, human resources and more.
Improve Your Business Leadership Skills
One of the biggest challenges for many new small business owners is managing other people and building professional relationships as a business leader. When you get a business degree, the majority of programmes offer a lot of training and skill development opportunities when it comes to improving your business leadership and management skills, helping you build the necessary skill set to be a more effective boss to your team and anyone else that your business works with. Most small businesses are very passionate about their company and their vision for the future but may lack the skills needed to effectively lead and inspire other people to follow them. With a business degree, you will be in a better position as a leader to personally inspire the success of your business.
Get a Different Perspective
Along with the business-specific skills and knowledge that you can gain from getting a business degree, you will also be able to see things from a different perspective when you get this education. As a student, you will learn things that give you a new perspective on your business and make it easier for you to understand different sides to things. With this, you are then in a better position to understand why certain things might happen and what can be done to change things that you are not satisfied with. Many advanced business degree courses like the MBA or DBA give you the chance to develop your ability to see the bigger picture as a business owner.
Improve Your Current Strengths
Most business owners have a lot of strengths and skills already that they can take with them into their business ownership venture. Knowing your own strengths and weaknesses and being self-aware is often key to being a successful business owner. When you have the chance to improve your strengths and figure out where your weaknesses are, this can have a big impact on how you choose to delegate tasks and which tasks you decide to outsource to others instead. Getting a business degree will help you learn more about where your strengths currently lie as a business owner, giving you the chance to improve them even further.
Make Connections
Another great reason for business owners to consider getting a business degree is the chance to network and make new connections that you may not have had the chance to make otherwise. You may wonder how easy this is going to be with an online degree where you are studying from home rather than in the classroom, but the truth is that many online business degree programmes today take a lot of steps to make networking a priority. Online business students have access to a range of virtual networking options and many universities also run local networking events where students who live in the same area or are willing to travel can get together and network in-person. With online business degree courses attracting business professionals and students from around the world, it can be an ideal way to meet and build professional relationships with a wide range of influential and successful people.
While you don’t need to have any qualifications to start your own business, getting a business degree online can be a great investment in both yourself and your company.
