“If you are ready to take control of your learning — and save a bundle of money at the same time — this book will provide you with compelling inspiration and practical information.  You couldn’t choose a better guide to creating your own future.”   Wendy Priesnitz, editor of Life Learning Magazine and author of Beyond School: Living as if School Doesn’t Exist

Yes, the waiting is over!   Today is the launch of Blake Boles’ fabulous book, “Better Than College:  How to Build a Successful Life Without a 4 Year Degree”.

I cannot tell you how relieved I am that this book is now published and available, because it means I can quote from it!!  As some of you know, I had the great good fortune to read an advanced copy  and it has basically been burning a hole on my bookshelf ever since.

But you know what?  I want you to read it in its’ entirety, so I’m not going to quote from it too much.  What I am going to do is copy an excerpt which Blake also chose to print on “Better Than College” bookmarks, and it goes like this:

What could you do with $20,000?  You could spend it on a year of college, or….

$4500 for six months of living expenses

$3000 for 100 hours of private life coaching, tutoring or mentoring

$2500 for a three-month budget backpacking trip

$1500 for new software, a new laptop, or equipment needed for your learning projects

$1000 in startup funds for one or two business ventures

$1000 for plane tickets, train trips or an epic road trip across the country

$600 for a literary feast; a one-year university library membership and 40 new books

$500 for smartphone service, $200 for high speed internet, $100 for online portfolio hosting

$100 for a pair of athletic shoes

$5000 to invest in a mutual fund

Follow this budget for four years, add $5000 to your mutual fund each year, and you could actually end up with a $22,000 nest egg–almost the amount of debt with which the average college student graduates.

Then there are the activities you could do that cost nothing:

-Interning, volunteering, or working for an organization that you admire.

-Seeking the mentorship of friends, family and other trusted people.

-Interviewing, shadowing, or apprenticing with experts in your fields of interest.  Reflecting, journaling & meditating.

By focusing on these low-cost and high-value activities, you don’t need to spend even $20,000 per year on your higher education.  With creativity and resourcefulness, you could spend $10,000, $5,000 or nothing and earn money along the way.

I know, I know, it’s not the education but the community experience of college that you simply can’t see yourself or your kids missing out on (even at a price tag of $100,000).   “Better Than College” addresses this issue in the section titled “Finding Peer Community” (p. 79).   You’ve simply got to read it.

No really,  the book covers it all.  If I’d had this book when I was in high school, I would now be telling you stories about the year or two I spent backpacking across Europe (which was what I’d intended to do had I not been accepted at the ONE college to which I applied) and what an amazing life and learning experience that was.

So the book is out.  How do you get it?  Here are the options.  Pick the one you like and go for it!

1.  Amazon

2.  Barnes & Noble 

3.  Goodreads

4. Better Than College website  Even if you are not purchasing the book right now (Why?  Why aren’t you purchasing it right now?  Do you have something better to do?  Priorities, people. Priorities)  you should check out the Better Than College website.

5.  Finally, you can get a copy from me for free.  An e-copy, to be precise.  But I only have one, and to be fair, it will go to the first person who requests it.  Please – if you can well afford to buy a copy (or two) then do so – but if you or someone you know would LOVE this book, BENEFIT from it,  but can’t afford to go out and buy it (food does come first) then send me a comment or a private message and I’ll slap a stamp on my free e-copy postcard and send it out asap.

Finally, pass it on.  Those of you who read my blog are already part of the ‘choir’ and I know you’ll all read Blake’s book, if you haven’t gotten a copy already.   However, there are many, many people out there who think college is the only path to learning and success in life, and those people need “Better Than College”.   Let’s make sure they find out about it.

Are you with me?