Week 8 Reading Reflection

The section that was most interesting and surprising to me in the reading was the highlight box about social lending sites on page 212. I had no idea there were such sites out there specifically designed for individuals to lend money to each other for new business ventures. I think this is a wonderful idea. Often, it can be very difficult to get a loan from the bank because it is ver hard to et them to believe in your idea. They may not see things they way you do or see the possible future implications of the project in the future. These social lending sites can get rid of this by providing the entrepreneur with many options around the world to gain finding for their business venture. This kind of reminds me of crowdfunding sites where charities can get donations from ordinary people. Crowdfunding sites have proven to be extremely popular among the public, so I think these social lending sites would do just as well. 

Something that was confusing to me in the reading was the "Trade Credit" term. The way it is explained in the book was pretty confusing to me. I would like to know exactly how the process works to get trade credit and what specifically it does for the entrepreneur. 

If I were to ask the author two questions, they would be 1) What does trade credit do for the entrepreneur specifically, and 2) What are some tips you would give an entrepreneur who is trying to convince the bank that they can safely loan him money for his business venture?

I didn't really disagree with the author on anything in the reading. I am a Journalism major, so these business terms and processes are sometimes a little confusing to me, however. Over all, I think the author did a good job in describing these processes. It seems like everything he is saying is straight facts about how this system works, so I agree with basically everything he said. 

Half-way Reflection

Here is my reflection of the past two months in this course. It hasn't been easy, but I got through it and I learned so much about how to be a successful entrepreneur!

1) Tenaciousness is a skill.

This course does have a lot of assignments, but they are all geared towards helping us in our journey to fine-tune our entrepreneurship skills. Some techniques I have used to keep up with the course's requirements include making a schedule, writing a to-do list every day, and setting aside time during the day to devote to my assignments. I first make a schedule for the week so that I can plan which assignments I'll work on each day. Then, at the beginning of each day I make a to-do list so I can see exactly what I have to accomplish that day. I set aside a set amount of time to work on it, which really helps me pace myself. I find that this process really helps me in organizing my work load as well as balance other things I have to get done.

2) Tenaciousness is also about attitude

There were a couple of times during this semester when I felt like my work load from all of my classes was really weighing me down, one night especially. I had two assignments due for Entrepreneurship, 2 other exams to study for, work the next morning, and a hurt neck and rib from a car accident I was in recently. I felt like giving up and blowing everything off, but I told myself that if I wanted to fulfill my passion to change the world someday, I would have to start small and get my work done. So I persevered and finished everything I needed to, and still had time to rest and take care of my injuries. I think this was the moment that inspired me to be tenacious throughout the rest of the semester. I realized that every little assignment counts towards my goal, and I would do anything to reach it.

3) Three tips

Three tips I would give about surviving this course and creating a tenacious mentality would be 1) organize your schedule, 2) when you feel like you have too much on your plate, back off for a second and realize your long-term goal, and 3) realize that you are in control of your own work ethic. Organizing a schedule is the first step to becoming tenacious. If you work a little bit every day, you'll eventually reach your goal. The other two tips are a little more difficult to achieve. Realizing that everything you are doing right now contributes to the rest of your life and realizing you are the sole person in control of that can be hard. However, I promise that once you realize this, your tenaciousness and determination will propel you into your bright future.

Week 7 Reading Reflection

Something that really stood out to me in the reading was the section describing consumer habits in the 1960s. During the 60s, it was very surprising to me to learn that consumer habits were basically going in reverse. For example, people with less education were becoming more affluent and therefore demanding better goods. Then, due to lack of creativity in marketing, advertising became boring and monotonous. This dramatically changed in the 70s, which was interesting to me because I don't really know much about the history of advertising.

Something that did confuse me about the reading, though, was why consumer patterns changed so dramatically in the 60s. This doesn't make much sense to me.

Two questions I would ask the author would be 1) Why did consumer patterns change in the 60s and 2) What marketing tactic such as color, music, etc. have the greatest success with consumers?

There wasn't really anything in the reading that I disagreed with. Though I do not have a strong background in marketing, I can definitely understand the logic behind certain marketing tactics in business. A business has to pay special attention to consumer patterns so that they know what is working and what isn't. There is a lot of psychology involved in marketing a product. One has to take into account the tendencies of people's mind and what grabs their attention the best. This article explained very well the process in which businesses study the mind of the consumer and how they can persuade them to buy their product or service in the best way.

Elevator Pitch No. 2

A couple of the main critiques people had about my last pitch was that I was messing with my hair too much and I kept reading off of my notes. I was told that this is distracting, and I definitely agree. I guess I didn't realize it because playing with my hair is a nervous habit and I thought I wasn't being too obvious about reading my notes. However, after I looked back at it I realized it was very distracting from what I was trying to say. This time, I made a conscious effort to not play with my hair and I completely memorized my script.

Another suggestion I received that I thought was a very good point was that there should be a contact line just in case the 5-step process doesn't work in calming the user down. I thought this was a wonderful idea so I adapted it and put it in my service as well as my sales pitch.

Over all, my feedback was very good about my concept and what I am trying to do with my product. Thanks to everyone who gave me such great suggestions! I think everyone can relate in some way to feeling ridiculously stressed, and this app could be expanded to so many more people. I'm hoping to make a difference in the world in some way, and maybe MyCalm will allow me to do that.

Week 6 Reading Reflection

Something that was the most interesting and surprising to me was the section on the Barriers to Entry. I never realized there were so many factors to consider before someone can even put their product into stores. Number 6 was especially interesting to me because if you think about it, you really do have to think about your product placement on the shelves in stores because you want the new product to stand out from the old ones. Price differences, incentives, and intense selling efforts all have to be considered in order to make your product stand out.

Something that confused me about the reading was the section on exit barriers. I would like to know more about the specifics behind exit barriers and how they prevent a company from pulling their product from the shelves.

If I was able to ask two questions to the author, they would be 1) What are some examples of exit barriers and 2) How does the number of substitutes affect how you market your product?

I honestly didn't find anything that I didn't agree with in this reading. Being a Journalism major, I have very little experience in the world of economics. However, I did find this reading to be very easy to understand and it really made sense. I can see now that starting a business and building a strategy takes a lot more planning than I originally thought. The author did a very good job of explaining this process in detail.

Idea Napkin No. 1

1) Me

My name is Morgan Johnson and I am a second-year Communications student the University of Florida. Some of my main skills include website writing, graphic design, and professional social media posting. One of my main goals in this world is to make a difference in some way. I am passionate about environmental issues and hope to one day become a communications specialist for an environmental nonprofit. However, I am also passionate about helping people with their stress. Being someone with clinical anxiety, I can definitely understand the pressure that school, work, and other commitments can have on one person. Because there is a surprising lack of services available to people with anxiety, I want to help people understand that they are not alone and there are ways to get better. My idea to create an app for people with anxiety would play into my life by providing me with an opportunity to educate society about this illness as well as help those who have this illness.

2) What am I offering to customers?
My anxiety-relieving app called MyCalm is designed to help those with anxiety manage their panic attacks and build strong connections that will ultimately help them though their illness. Once someone feels as if they are having a panic attack, all they have to do is tap the app and it will immediately bring the user through a 5-step process to calm down. The app also features nature scenes, classical music, and meditation techniques if one is feeling unusually anxious during that time. The app also features a separate social media function that allows people to connect with others who have anxiety and build a support group. My biggest issue with my anxiety is that I feel like the people who are closest to me still don't fully understand anxiety and how to help. Therefore, I want to provide others with a chance to build supportive relationships through MyCalm.

3) Who am I offering it to?
I am offering this app not only to anyone who may have some kind of anxiety or depression disorder, but to anyone who feels as though their life is being ruled by the stress they bear. Everyone is expected to go to school, have a job, build a family, and worry about finances all the while being happy about it. This is not the reality, especially to those who have been diagnosed with an anxiety disorder. Even those customers who do not have this disorder still expressed to me that they would benefit from some kind of stress-relieving app. Essentially, this app is for everyone because everyone experiences stress in everyday life.

4) Why do they care?
Customers will pay to use my app because there really isn't another app out there with the same kind of services that I am providing. Anxiety is one of the most misunderstood mental illnesses in existence, and because of that there has been a surprising lack of services available to people with anxiety who experience panic attacks. MyCalm provides this very opportunity to let people who have an anxiety disorder know that they aren't alone, and help is just a tap away.

5) What are my core competencies?
Even though there are a couple of apps out there that aim to help people relieve stress, MyCalm is created specifically for those who have been diagnosed with some kind of anxiety or depression disorder. No other app has a social media function that allows people with these illnesses to connect with others or a 5-step process that has proven to calm people down in the midst of a panic attack.

I think over all, these elements do fit together pretty well. Because of my background with having an anxiety disorder, I think I am able to connect with people about what they are experiencing. I also know that I can share my best tactics to manage my anxiety with others. Something I may need to work on, however, is expanding my app to cater to those who do not have an anxiety disorder. For example, I may want to include people who are just stressed in general. I can also expand it to include people who knows someone with an anxiety disorder, but may not know much about it and want to learn more. Other than this, I think my intentions and the effects on customers marry very well together because it will provide the assistance that people with anxiety need in order to manage their disorder.

Week 5 Reading Reflection

The biggest surprise for me in the reading was the text box describing how to be an entrepreneur on eBay. I originally thought in order to make money on eBay you should just sell whatever you have. It turns out that you have to be more specialized and find a reliable product source. You can be very successful on eBay as an entrepreneur, you just have to know how to start.

Something that was confusing to me was the section on investment. I'm not really sure how the whole investing process works, and it would be nice to have that explained.

If I was able to ask the author two questions it would be 1) How does the investing process work and 2) Can you explain further how the growth of sales works in terms of lifestyle ventures?

In the reading, I didn't really find anything that I disagreed with. I don't have any experience with building a business. However, the way the reading explained the process in which someone would have to go through to explore a specific business venture. Your business has to be unique in order to compete in the job market, the investment amount needed has to be considered carefully, and the availability of the product you are provided has to be considered so that your business has security. This reading showed me that there is more to entrepreneurship than ideas and likability. You have to have a strategy in order to be successful in their business venture.

Elevator Pitch No.1

Being someone who has been diagnosed with anxiety, I can definitely attest to the fact that there is a surprising lack of services out there dedicated to helping people remedy their panic attacks. Anxiety can leave you feeling isolated and depressed a lot of the time, and I think there is a profound lack of understanding of this illness in our society. With my anxiety-relieving app, MyCalm, I am aiming to help people with anxiety manage their panic attacks and provide a support service to allow them to reach out to others and know that we are not alone.