Keith Rabois of Khosla Ventures Explains if an MBA is Worth It

These Questions originally appeared on Quora - the knowledge sharing network where compelling questions are answered by people with unique insights.

Answers by Keith Rabois, Internet entrepreneur, investor & contrarian. General Partner, Khosla Ventures., on Quora.

Q: Is going to business school a good idea?

A: Whether business school is a good idea or a folly depends primarily on your objectives in life, and secondarily on your pre-existing experiences. I have hired many MBA's, nevertheless.
Insofar as your objective is to succeed in entrepreneurial endeavors, I would normally recommend against it.
1. The opportunity cost is way too high: Entrepreneurs are often in the prime of their career in their 20's. Too difficult to justify two years off during that period, akin to a professional football player skipping two years after college, although Roger Staubach managed to miss 5 seasons and qualify for the Hall of Fame.
2. The key levers in technology startups are almost never general management and rarely "strategy" qua strategy. Technology and design are usually the most important, perhaps marketing/messaging/framing and data analysis as well. Business school is a waste of time for virtually of these. See the Management Myth.
3. Most elite business schools teach directionally wrong advice.
4. I suspect MBAs also adversely attract people who value credentials. Entrepreneurs normally thrive by ignoring conventions.
For other fields, this advice may vary.

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Q: What were some of your key takeaways from your time at PayPal?

A: 1/ The importance of assembling a critical density of talent.
2/ The importance of focus.
3/ The importance of learning how to evaluate people w limited "data" on their resume.

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