Marc Andreessen is a pretty influential dude and a midwesterner. Then he started blogging, which has only increased his influence in tech circles. While Marc is unimpressed by my choice of major, Political Science, he has been posting some interesting thoughts on career planning, which I would encourage you to check out on his blog.

As you know, PlansForUs is working in education because we think that we can help solve a problem for teachers and that education is on the cusp of a major transformation, of which PlansForUs intends to play a significant roll. So, I will set the stage with Marc’s quote and then add a few figures which I think are worth considering.

If you are young and want to have an impact, you want to be in an industry where there is a lot of growth and change and flux and opportunity.

As an industry ages, the vitality drains out until all that’s left is a set of ossified remnants in the form of oligopolostic entities of which you would find being a part to be completely soul-killing.

The exception comes when an industry has gotten so old and ossified that the clear opportunity exists to up-end it and introduce a new order, a new way of doing things, and therefore a new set of companies.

In some industries this happens routinely — e.g. every 10-20 years. This is the case in technology, for example, and financial services.

It doesn’t seem to happen ever in certain other industries which I won’t name for fear of being permanently cut off from my necessary supply of oil, gas, music, and movies.

and this

Once you have picked an industry, get right to the center of it as fast as you possibly can.

Your target is the core of change and opportunity — figure out where the action is and head there, and do not delay your progress for extraneous opportunities, no matter how lucrative they might be.

Here are a few interesting figures and thoughts:

• 2.4 million new teachers in the US by 2012
• Record enrollment in K-12 schools through 2015
• 93% of classrooms are connected to the Internet
• 15-35 million new teachers needed by 2015
• Continuing decline in the cost of computer hardware
• Potential for Democrat led Executive and Legislative branches of the US government
• A major rise in innovative philanthropic/social entrepreneurship engagement in K-12 education

Education is on the road to change and improvement and at the center of that change and improvement is none other than teachers. PlansForUs is happy to be working on the platform that can help teachers. I hope this has provided some insight as to why in the world we have made the choice to be a K-12 education start up company….a sector that has brought down many a talented (and I’m a poli sci major) entrepreneur.

by Tyler, CEO