How are the characteristics of a business owner similar to that of a professional athlete?

Will the Ivies be impressed that I am a business owner, investor, and forex & penny stock trader?

• The one thing I am a little worried about is my extra curricular activities. I'll be honest, I don't like volunteering and I don't like school leadership clubs and I am not a varsity athlete but I have other talents. This isn't to say that I haven't done these things - I volunteered 6 months at the hospital, trained in Martial Arts for 7 years, played Piano for 9 years, and played on the basketball team one year, but my real interests lie in business, my investments & trading, and politics and economics which I follow and research daily. I hate to sound arrogant but I think it takes a lot more to trade the Forex & penny stocks successfully than it does to play sports on a school team, and I think owning my own legal business shows far more initiative than school leadership groups or volunteering. Do you think they will recognize my talents and accomplishments even though they may be different from what they normally look for, or do I need to go back out and start volunteering and join a group?

• Answer:

  I've been an alumni reviewer for college applicants. I would be extremely skeptical of any claimed success in penny stocks or forex. Both areas include a fair amount of scams, and the vast majority of participants exaggerate their results. Are you prepared to provide brokerage statements to back up any claims? Expect any claims to be evaluated by someone whose investment experience vastly exceeds your own.