Education and Entrepreneurship: How Young People Like Andrew Hristo Are Changing the System

Education, learning, and the transfer of knowledge have been around for as long as humans have. However, it was only around the 1800s that our current, modern education system was established. Most education systems around the world focus on professional teachers teaching an organized curriculum of basic content followed by students taking competency assessments based on what was taught. 

In some areas, this structure works well. In others, it falls woefully short. There's little room for innovation, creativity, and learning via discovery. Students have vastly different personalities and, as a result, they have different ways of learning, too. Focusing on one teaching method only caters to a specific section of learning abilities and even those who are catered to aren't taught to think outside of the box, to be risk-takers, or to work with their money and business acumen.

This is clear when anyone looks at people like Andrew Hristo. Andrew is an anomaly, but what he's been able to do should be accessible to everyone. At 13 years old, Andrew started his own business. He shipped products from China and flipped them on eBay. It was a stroke of genius for the South Australian native. He made almost $20,000 in his first year. We're seldom taught to believe that a teenager could do this. Instead, we go to school every day, spend hours there, perform well in exams, go to university, perform well there, too, and then go on to work for someone else. With sheer determination, the lack of inhibitions that only a child could have, and the skeptical support of his parents, Andrew was making thousands of dollars before he'd even graduated.

Andrew has always had a natural entrepreneurial fire. The rest of his teenage years were spent running various online businesses in between classes. He started an online personal training business, an influencer marketing company, and a social media marketing company. He's 25 years old now and one of his businesses focuses on helping people who are interested in following the same path he took. Over 500 people have created online companies and now live that enviable travel and laptop lifestyle, all thanks to Andrew's advice.

It's admirable for people like Andrew, who have the knowledge and experience, to share what they've learned, but our education systems should be doing this, too. Not everyone has a raging innovative spirit. Some people need a little spark to start things off, and if we can help young people realize that it's never too early to start, then we'll have an explosion of new companies and job creation.

To learn more about Andrew's work and businesses, you can follow him on Instagram at @andrewhristo.