I think it really depends on your specific circumstances, current interests, etc. There have been successful people who went through any order/combination of yo

I think it really depends on your specific circumstances, current interests, etc. There have been successful people who went through any order/combination of your three options. There have been highly successful founders who dropped out of university, others who became founders after doing PhDs, someone like Martin Kleppmann who became an academic after selling a few successful businesses, etc. I'd suggest doing whichever of three peaks your interest most at this stage.