The internet was possibly the greatest invention since the printing press, giving mankind the ability to instantly gather and contribute information and send it worldwide to anyone, anywhere and at anytime. There is no doubt that the business world is a lucrative and rewarding field, both economically but emotionally and spiritually as well. In the hierarchy of business, however, entrepreneurship reigns supreme. It is nice to contribute to the world economic engine by working for a large bank, manufacturing plant, or clothing store. But when all is said and done, there is nothing quite like creating a business with your own hard work and creativity, and subsequently seeing it flourish.

Think for a minute about combining two great things: the power of the World Wide Web along with the power of an entrepreneur. The world is addicted to the internet, and it is never going back. We will continue to utilize the wonders of the information superhighway and those entrepreneurs who can use the internet to their advantage will benefit enormously and surpass their competitors. With a class like Internet Entrepreneurship, students are given the skills they need to tackle the two big challenges they will face upon graduation: starting a business and using the power of the world’s greatest invention to their economic advantage. Subject like ‘content marketing’, ‘mass collaboration’ and ‘search engine optimization’ will no longer be technical buzzwords but real life topics that can be relevantly applied to a business setting.

The internet is our greatest tool as the world economy continues to morph and grow, and those entrepreneurs who buck the trend and decide to set off on their own will be the greatest beneficiaries of what the world has to offer. Entrepreneurship is not just raw talent, however. The secrets to success involve real and tangible lessons that can be learned in a classroom, provided the right professors teach the right topics. In a nonconformist school such as Grove City, there is no better place to learn about the great benefits one can gain from striking it on their own while at the same time understanding how the world revolves around the continuing growth of the internet.

In our digital citizenship class we each have the ability to create a blog with whatever topic we want. For mine I have decided to give a review of various cities around the United States and the world that I have traveled to, with a ranking for nightlife, safety and cost of living. Check it out at http://ericwuelfing.wordpress.com/2010/01/28/hello-world/

Hugo Chavez has been a controversial figure in world politics. It was only a time before he entered the blogoshere. His reasoning?

“The opposition thinks it owns the social networking sites – they think Twitter and Facebook belong to them.”

Chavez’s first official tweet?

“Hey, how’s it going? I appeared like I said I would: at midnight. I’m off to Brazil. And very happy to work for Venezuela. We will be victorious!!”

Always trying to grab attention, Chavez once went on the air with his radio show for 8 hours and 15 minutes without resting. Will he gather a massive following online? What do you think?

Creative Commons is a nonprofit corporation dedicated to making it easier for people to share and build upon the work of others, consistent with the rules of copyright. The internet is an incredible invention, and the ability to share information with anyone around the world is one of the greatest tools in the history of mankind. Creative Commons creates free licenses for creative works and gives users the ability to revamp, edit, and add onto currently existing works.

Is this a great idea, or should creative works be solely the property of their original owner without the ability for others to change? What do you think?

We can’t all dedicate the time to join greenpeace, habitat for humanity, or the Peace Corps, but whats a few dollars transferred through the internet here and there? Kiva.org aims to alleviate the fight against global poverty by making it easy for members to transfer money to people in third world nations who aim to start their own businesses. Capitalism is one of the best ways to fight poverty, but many people in the developing world don’t have access to the necessary funds to pursue their goals. Microlending sites such as Kiva make it easy for people all over to world to help those less fortunate. The fight against poverty may seem like it is never ending, but sites like Kiva help us come just a little closer to ending it.