My Exit Strategy

1) My plan for MyCalm in the future would be to stay with it until I retire. If my company takes off as much as I think it would, I would want to stay committed to it.

2) Because of my passion for helping people manage their anxiety, I would want to stay with it and continue to work help as many people as I can. I wouldn't want to sell MyCalm because I think it would do best if it was run by someone who can connect with customers. Because I have anxiety, I know what works for people and what doesn't, and I can understand their needs.

3) My strategy has definitely influenced other decisions I have made about MyCalm. For example, I have decided to expand it to include doctors who can use the app's "calming log" to check on their patients and see how they are doing in terms of managing their anxiety. This way, it can have a lasting impact on the patient's life. It has also influenced my decision about my opportunity because I have expanded it to not only include people who have anxiety, but to include people with depression disorders as well.

Week 12 Reading Reflection

The section I found particularly interesting in the chapter was the section about flaws entrepreneurs often have in their business venture. The one that stuck out to me the most was the "failure to explicitly communicate the venture's strategy to employees." It is extremely important to let all employees know what the strategy is so that they can form their work to that strategy for the good of the company. Communication is key in any new business venture.

Something that was confusing to me was the section about the entrepreneurial strategy matrix model. It wasn't clear to me exactly how the model works and how it explains entrepreneurial strategy.

If I were to ask two questions to the author, I would ask 1) what are some tips on how to strategize properly, and 2) how does the matrix model explain the entrepreneurial strategy?

There really wasn't anything in the reading that I disagreed with. Starting on any business venture can be a very overwhelming experience. Entrepreneurs often make mistakes by not informing others who are involved or failing to completely grasp everything they need to do. Over all, the reading was very interesting when considering the beginnings of business building.

Venture Concept No. 1

Approximately 40 million adults in the United States today have been diagnosed with some kind of anxiety disorder. Basically anxiety is a mental illness that causes the brain to release adrenaline in the body at random times, which can cause panic attacks. These panic attacks are scary, and often make people feel isolated and alone. Among college students, the diagnoses of anxiety and depression disorders are skyrocketing, mostly due to the increased amounts of stress from school work. There have even been reports of college students whose anxiety developed into schizophrenia. As of right now, people with anxiety are relying on doctors and therapists to manage their illness. This illness will always be in existence, so this opportunity will always be there. In addition, being someone who has been diagnosed with an anxiety disorder, I can definitely attest to the fact that there is a surprising lack of services out there dedicated to helping people manage their illness. My business concept centers around this question: What if there was a mobile application that will allow these millions of people all over the country to manage their illness at their fingertips?

My innovation to answer this question is an app called MyCalm. MyCalm is an anxiety-relieving app that is dedicated to helping people with anxiety disorders manage their disease. Upon opening the app, the user encounters a menu with all the options available. Options include: a 5-step calming process, a 24 hour help line, classical music, nature scenes, calming games, and a social media function to allow people with anxiety to connect with others and build a support group. The app is tailored to any kind of help the user needs. Therapists will be on standby on the help line in case the user needs to be talked through a panic attack, the 5-step calming process helps people in the midst of a panic attack, and the other functions provide the user with a more laid-back stress relieving experience. The app will cost 99 cents in the App Store. There will also be advertisements to help with making money as well, with an upgradeable version that will cost $1.99 without advertisements.

MyCalm will help people with anxiety in major ways. Often, people who have anxiety will feel lost because they do not know how to control their thoughts. MyCalm not only provides ways to manage their illness, it provides them with a support group as well; something that they would not normally have otherwise. Customers will switch to this product because there really isn’t another comparable service out there. MyCalm is a simple and organized way for people to manage their illness effectively. Because of this need, I don’t think it would be very hard at all to get people on board with my product. Competitors are slim, and none of them have 24 hour help lines or social media functions, which is a big weakness on their part. Packaging and the business location won’t play a huge role in my venture because it is a service. However, customer support would play a huge role because the services we provide are tailored to people’s specific needs in terms of their illness. Customers will have a chance to submit reviews on the app as well as contact a customer service representative in case the services are not to their liking. My business forming from this app would include coders to provide maintenance on the app, researchers to keep up with trends in mental health, and directors and other leadership positions to implement changes to the app. Numbers of employees could reach pretty high depending on how popular the app would get.

I think my most important resource is my passion. Being someone who has anxiety, I am able to connect on a personal level with my customers. I know exactly what is proven to work and what doesn’t. I know exactly what it feels like to feel alone with your illness, and I want to eliminate this terrible feeling for as many people as I can. This passion fuels my business venture in that I will do whatever it takes to help my target customers in any way that I can.

The next step for the venture would be to add a separate function in the app for doctor use. Here, the doctor can make schedules for breathing exercises, or even keep track of the patient’s progress as they continue to use the app. Making the app compatible with doctors can be a huge help because the doctor can more effectively understand the patient’s day-to-day calming practices.

In five years, I would really like to be reaching at least 1 million users. Through extensive outreach and advertising to doctors and patients alike, I really think I can reach this goal. In the next decade, I would really like to be reaching 5 million or more users. As an entrepreneur, I would like to be running MyCalm at a national level with my app available across all kinds of devices. In the next decade I would even like to have the potential to expand this internationally so I can continue to help people manage their anxiety around the world.

Week 11 Reading Reflection

Something that I found interesting about the reading was the section about the different types of innovation. The different type of innovation are disruptive, radical and architectural. It was interesting thinking about how different kinds of innovations affect the world in different ways. For example, in disruptive innovation, someone who invents something new in the market will disrupt the business of others in that same market. This is something I just never really thought of about innovation.

Something that was confusing to me in the reading was the section on managing trade-offs. Reading this section, I wasn't quite sure how to manage these trade-offs as much as I understood what exactly they were.

If i were to ask two questions to the author, they would be 1) how EXACTLY do you manage the trade-offs you described, and 2) what are some tips for people who want to be able to become more innovative?

Something I disagreed with about the reading was when the author said that only senior leaders in the organization can set the innovation strategy. I think any and all members of an organizations should have the opportunity to be innovative and contribute their ideas on what should be done next. My reasoning is that even the people at the very bottom could have incredible creative abilities. Everyone should be given the chance at being innovative.

Amazon Whisperer

1) Revenue drivers

The main revenue drivers I have for my company include in-app purchases and advertisements. For example, people could pay to upgrade to a version without ads or that has more games available.

2) What's next?

The next thing my customers might want is a log on the app so they can keep track of their favorite calming exercises and their progress.

3) How will that enhance it?

I think that adding an option to log their progress, customers will feel more accomplished when trying to manage their anxiety. Keeping track of calming techniques will also help people figure out what works best for them.

4) Similar Product

Because my product is an app, I went to the Apple App Store instead to find a similar service to mine. Here is the link to an app I found called "Relax: Stress and Anxiety Relief": https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/relax-stress-anxiety-relief/id409665681?mt=8

Here is an image of the app as well:

This service is similar to mine in that it offers calming music and a log for people to track how they manage their anxiety. This app also features mediation and breathing patterns, which mine does not. However, my app includes a help line and a social media function for people to get real-time help. 

5) Customer Reviews 

Over all, the reviews on the app were pretty positive. However, I did find a couple of things that people seemed to want to change. One person said they would like the app to be able to rotate when used on a tablet. Another said that there were some glitches when hooking it up to bluetooth speakers.  Another said the home icon constantly disappears after a day or so. 

6) Changes

I would definitely add a social media function on the app. I think being able to connect with other people who have anxiety is key in managing the illness. Feeling like you are alone is one of the main struggles with people who have anxiety. I would also add in calming games because challenging the mind can also be a big stress relief. 

7) Good addition?

I think this product would make a good addition to my business idea because it seems to have some well-thought-out breathing tactics. I think knowing how to control your breaths is extremely important in relieving anxiety, and this app has gotten it. I would love to incorporate that into my service. 

My Unfair Advantage

Resources in my Venture:

1) Passion

Valuable: My passion is valuable because being someone with anxiety, I have a passion to help others cope with it which fuels my business concept.

Rare: Though having anxiety isn't rare, someone wanting to create a business to help people with anxiety is.

Inimitable: It isn't very inimitable because it's hard to find someone with as much passion about this.

Non-substitutable: It is non-substitutable because you can't replace passion.

2) Large target market

Valuable: Having a large target market is really valuable because it means the longevity of my business venture is very good.

Rare: Having a large target market really isn't that rare, but not many companies specifically target my customers, which are people who have anxiety.

Inimitable: This is pretty inimitable unfortunately.

Non-substitutable: You can't really substitute a large target market for a smaller one with the same idea.

3) Creative idea

Valuable: Having a creative idea is very valuable because people will be intrigued by the idea and want to invest or check it out.

Rare: Creativity isn't necessarily rare, but my specific idea is rare because there is a surprising lack of services out there dedicated to people who have anxiety.

Inimitable: Creativity can never be copied, so this isn't very inimitable.

Non-substitutable: There is not substitute for creativity.

4) Tenacity

Valuable: Tenacity is very valuable because that means that the venturer will stop at nothing to make sure the business is successful.

Rare: Tenacity is kind of rare because it's a skill that some people possess and some people may not.

Inimitable: Since tenacity is a skill, it can't really be copied.

Non-substitutable: You can't really substitute tenacity and hard work with anything else.

5) Experience 

Valuable: My experience in having anxiety is really valuable because I can understand the needs of my customers and tailor my app to them.

Rare: This is kind of rare because not many venturers are also part of the target customer base.

Inimitable: You can't really copy personal experiences.

Non-substitutable: You can't replace you personal experiences with other experiences.

6) Contacts

Valuable: Having contacts in your field is very valuable because they will be able to help you along the way in your venture.

Rare: Sometimes it can be hard to find good contacts that will help you in your venture, so this is kind of rare.

Inimitable: This can be copied because everyone has opportunities to network and establish contacts.

Non-substitutable: You can't really replace the fact that you have great contacts to reach out to for help.

7) Empathy

Valuable: Having empathy for your customers is very valuable because you can understand their needs and how to fix that.

Rare: Though empathy is not a rare quality, companies establishing empathy for their clients can be.

Inimitable: You can't really copy the quality of empathy.

Non-substitutable: Empathy for your customers can never be replaced.

8) Leadership Skills

Valuable: Leadership skills are very valuable in any venture because you have to be able to lead and motivate a large group pf people in order to meet your overall goal.

Rare: Though leadership skills are not rare, some qualities of a good leader are, such as kindness.

Inimitable: Having good leadership skills can be copied, but every leader is different.

Non-substitutable: There is no replacement for good leadership skills.

9) Funding

Valuable: Access to people who want to invest in your company and having access to your own fund is extremely valuable because any venture needs financial capital to get started.

Rare: Funding can sometimes be rare, especially when considering college students because we often don't have enough money to eat that night much less invest in a business idea.

Inimitable: You can't really copy funding, but you can go after the same investors that your competitor did.

Non-Substitutable: You can't ever substitute funding for anything else.

10) Communication/Marketing

Valuable: My skills in communications and marketing is valuable because I know how to specifically target marketing strategies to specific audiences.

Rare: Communication skills are pretty rare, especially in a world where technology is becoming more and more prevalent.

Inimitable: You can't copy communication skills. They are learned.

Non-substitutable: There is no replacement for good communication skills.

Most Important Resource

I think my most important resource is passion. Living with anxiety for 10 years, I definitely know what works and what doesn't to help me cope with it. I know exactly how people feel when they get diagnosed as well as when they need to figure out ways to help cope with the illness. Because I felt so lost for so long, I want to eliminate this feeling for the millions of people around the world who struggle with anxiety. I don't want anyone to feel like they are alone or there is nothing out there that will help them. This passion is what is fueling me to complete this venture. Therefore, it is more important than any other resource that I have.

Elevator Pitch No. 3

Over all, the feedback I received from my Elevator Pitch No. 2 was very positive. One of the main suggestions I received was to make sure my pitch stayed around a minute so that I can keep the viewer's attention. I cut down the pitch by 20 seconds this time by combining sentences and not going into too much detail. I also altered my app so that it won't automatically bring you through the 5-step process of calming down as soon as you tap the app. I figured a lot of people may not even need this function and would like to go straight to the other services available. Another critique I received from not my Elevator Pitch No. 2, but from the comments on my Idea Napkin was to add a 24-hour help line in case the 5-step process does not work in calming the user down. I also added games to the app because I think distracting your brain helps tremendously with stress. So, all in all I made changes to the product itself as well as shortened my pitch to hopefully retain the viewer's attention. Thanks everyone!