1. I think that my exit strategy will be protecting my venture and keeping it in my family to pass down to my children if it takes off the way I think my venture will. However, if the venture experiences a brief period of growth and then a substantial decrease, I will sell the company and move to something else. I understand my creative abilities and how to build a company so I can use my skills to realize another opportunity.
2. I have selected this particular exit strategy because I feel that the ultimate goal is to create generational wealth for your family so that no one ever has to struggle in life and can make the absolute most out of their opportunities. A successful company that acts as a cash cow would enable my children and grandchildren to always have a place to work and money to live their lives with. If the company is not successful, then I will sell it and put the money into a new venture.
3. I think that my exit strategy has influenced other decisions that I have made in a way that shows that I am willing to take risks but understand that there is a point at which risks are not beneficial and could be harmful to my venture. I use this mentality in all things, including acquiring resources and making decisions on how far to push a concept.
Friday, 12 April 2019
27A reading reflection 3
Thinking Fast and Slow - Daniel Kahneman
1. The main theme of the book is that your brain uses two methods of thinking, a conscious system and an automatic system. He explains the differences between these two systems and that your brain doesn't use the full capacity of its intelligence. He explains the "gut feeling" that we all get and when to trust it and when to ignore it. The object of this book is to learn ways to understand your brain and eliminate errors in judgement.
2. This book connects to what we have learned in this class by explaining the way the brain works and how it wants to expend the least amount of energy. When making the important decisions that an entrepreneur has to make, the book explains that we need to be able to slow down and make the correct decisions by activating the conscious systems in our minds. Another big theme in the book is to "keep your emotions at the door" when making decisions about money and act rationally rather than emotionally.
3. One exercise from the book involves a math problem where a baseball bat and ball cost a combined $1.10 and that the bat costs a dollar more than the ball. How much does the ball cost? The activity would be to think of the answer quickly and write it down. Once you realize that the answer was wrong, re think about the question and you will see that the ball costs $.05 rather than $.10 which is what everyone initially thinks because of your brain's tendency to be lazy. If the ball were to cost $.10, then the bat would have to cost $1.10 which would make the combined total $1.20. Write down your reflection and how you can try to eliminate these intellectual errors in the future.
4. I think my biggest aha moment from the book was the activity and how I completely fell for it even after reading about how to watch out for intellectual errors like that. I didn't really know what to expect from the book when I read the title but I think that it definitely surprised me to learn that both the automatic and conscious systems fight for control during every thought that humans have.
1. The main theme of the book is that your brain uses two methods of thinking, a conscious system and an automatic system. He explains the differences between these two systems and that your brain doesn't use the full capacity of its intelligence. He explains the "gut feeling" that we all get and when to trust it and when to ignore it. The object of this book is to learn ways to understand your brain and eliminate errors in judgement.
2. This book connects to what we have learned in this class by explaining the way the brain works and how it wants to expend the least amount of energy. When making the important decisions that an entrepreneur has to make, the book explains that we need to be able to slow down and make the correct decisions by activating the conscious systems in our minds. Another big theme in the book is to "keep your emotions at the door" when making decisions about money and act rationally rather than emotionally.
3. One exercise from the book involves a math problem where a baseball bat and ball cost a combined $1.10 and that the bat costs a dollar more than the ball. How much does the ball cost? The activity would be to think of the answer quickly and write it down. Once you realize that the answer was wrong, re think about the question and you will see that the ball costs $.05 rather than $.10 which is what everyone initially thinks because of your brain's tendency to be lazy. If the ball were to cost $.10, then the bat would have to cost $1.10 which would make the combined total $1.20. Write down your reflection and how you can try to eliminate these intellectual errors in the future.
4. I think my biggest aha moment from the book was the activity and how I completely fell for it even after reading about how to watch out for intellectual errors like that. I didn't really know what to expect from the book when I read the title but I think that it definitely surprised me to learn that both the automatic and conscious systems fight for control during every thought that humans have.
26A- Celebrating Failure
1. This semester, I failed by missing a couple of cupcakes and a one assignment in this class. It was very frustrating because I had gotten very caught up in doing too many things at once and studying for important exams that it slipped my mind and I wound up forgetting about the assignments.
2. I learned that I need to be able to step back and realize that it is ok to take a break and to say no sometimes. I had bitten off more than I could chew that week and I learned that I have to be able to gather my thoughts and not become frazzled and forgetful.
3. The way I see failure now is drastically different from the way I used to see failure. In the past, I would be very hard on myself any time I failed and I would diminish my own confidence. I now focus on small wins and learning from my failures. I adopt the attitude that says "ok, that didn't work, let's try something else". I am grateful for my failures as they have taught and will continue to teach me many great lessons in life. This class has only helped my understanding of failure and how to overcome it and make it a teachable moment. I am much more likely to take a risk now than I would a couple of months ago because I understand that trying for something and failing is better than doing nothing at all.
2. I learned that I need to be able to step back and realize that it is ok to take a break and to say no sometimes. I had bitten off more than I could chew that week and I learned that I have to be able to gather my thoughts and not become frazzled and forgetful.
3. The way I see failure now is drastically different from the way I used to see failure. In the past, I would be very hard on myself any time I failed and I would diminish my own confidence. I now focus on small wins and learning from my failures. I adopt the attitude that says "ok, that didn't work, let's try something else". I am grateful for my failures as they have taught and will continue to teach me many great lessons in life. This class has only helped my understanding of failure and how to overcome it and make it a teachable moment. I am much more likely to take a risk now than I would a couple of months ago because I understand that trying for something and failing is better than doing nothing at all.
Friday, 5 April 2019
25A - What's Next?
Existing market
1. I think that the next step for my venture is to expand my product line for lockers for different events where people need to leave their things unattended. If I was able to expand it to things like music festivals and gyms, I think that it would greatly benefit the community.
2. All three of my interviews went pretty similarly. Since my product and venture are pretty one-dimensional, the people I interviewed said that "you should add them to gyms and stuff like that" which I said I had already considered and the fact that they suggested it affirms the fact that it is a good idea.
3. I think that the next step for this venture is to expand it so that it is in universities and schools all over the country. I want to to be adopted my colleges and public library systems so that it can gain exposure and then people could get them in their houses to hold their things in a secure place in a home office. In this existing market, I feel like there is a large opportunity for grown in this existing market.
I think that expanding a product line as well as expanding the growth of the company is beneficial in the long run. I don't want to have this product be a fad, and since it is a one time purchase product, I want to have an extensive service department to help maintain the products. I will commit to increasing quality constantly and making it more efficient to produce the product line.
New Market
1. Since my market is normally targeted towards young college students, I could change the locker to hospital rooms so that when people are asleep or being cared for, they have personal lockers that they could use for their belongings because all hospital rooms are usually unlocked so it makes it easy for thieves to steal things from sick people.
2. I think it would help offer a lot of value to people in hospitals. When someone is in the hospital, the last thing they want to worry about is someone taking their things while they focus on recovering.
3. I interviewed two people that work in hospitals and they said that this addition to hospital rooms would keep the guests much more at ease while recovering. They think that if I added some spots for it to have chargers for standard phones in them that it would help guests to keep their mobile devices powered.
4. I learned a lot about this market and how different it is from other markets. Hospitals are very different from other areas because people are generally feeling the absolute worst when they are there and they aren't super inviting places. However, the ability to make people feel more at ease by securing their belongings could drastically decrease the amount of stress involved with being at a hospital.
On second thought, I don't think that this market is as attractive as my first market but it definitely has room to grow and as I think about it more and speak with industry professionals, I can get a better idea of how to improve it and make it more lucrative. Hospitals are different than libraries but I can change my product line to help it fit better.
1. I think that the next step for my venture is to expand my product line for lockers for different events where people need to leave their things unattended. If I was able to expand it to things like music festivals and gyms, I think that it would greatly benefit the community.
2. All three of my interviews went pretty similarly. Since my product and venture are pretty one-dimensional, the people I interviewed said that "you should add them to gyms and stuff like that" which I said I had already considered and the fact that they suggested it affirms the fact that it is a good idea.
3. I think that the next step for this venture is to expand it so that it is in universities and schools all over the country. I want to to be adopted my colleges and public library systems so that it can gain exposure and then people could get them in their houses to hold their things in a secure place in a home office. In this existing market, I feel like there is a large opportunity for grown in this existing market.
I think that expanding a product line as well as expanding the growth of the company is beneficial in the long run. I don't want to have this product be a fad, and since it is a one time purchase product, I want to have an extensive service department to help maintain the products. I will commit to increasing quality constantly and making it more efficient to produce the product line.
New Market
1. Since my market is normally targeted towards young college students, I could change the locker to hospital rooms so that when people are asleep or being cared for, they have personal lockers that they could use for their belongings because all hospital rooms are usually unlocked so it makes it easy for thieves to steal things from sick people.
2. I think it would help offer a lot of value to people in hospitals. When someone is in the hospital, the last thing they want to worry about is someone taking their things while they focus on recovering.
3. I interviewed two people that work in hospitals and they said that this addition to hospital rooms would keep the guests much more at ease while recovering. They think that if I added some spots for it to have chargers for standard phones in them that it would help guests to keep their mobile devices powered.
4. I learned a lot about this market and how different it is from other markets. Hospitals are very different from other areas because people are generally feeling the absolute worst when they are there and they aren't super inviting places. However, the ability to make people feel more at ease by securing their belongings could drastically decrease the amount of stress involved with being at a hospital.
On second thought, I don't think that this market is as attractive as my first market but it definitely has room to grow and as I think about it more and speak with industry professionals, I can get a better idea of how to improve it and make it more lucrative. Hospitals are different than libraries but I can change my product line to help it fit better.
24A Venture Concept No. 1
Opportunity
My product gives those who use it the unique sense of peace of mind that is not largely found in today's society. When hardworking students go to the library, the last thing that should happen is for their belongings to get stolen when they leave to use the restroom or get a drink of water. My product, a locker that attaches to the bottom of desks, would mitigate this issue by enabling people to get up from their study area without being fearful of the looming threat that is theft. The people that have this need could really be all ages because people of all different ages use the library. However, I am targeting my product more towards college-aged students because the library is most frequently used during that age. This is a big opportunity and the window of opportunity will be there for a long time because as the digital age continues to develop, more and more students will adopt using expensive computers that could be easily stolen. This small change to libraries will protect students from losing potentially thousands of dollars and sensitive information that can be found on computers. Customers are currently satisfying this need by studying with someone else so that they can watch their things or they pack up all of their belongings and bring them with them everywhere they go, even in the library. Other customers just leave their things and hope for the best while taking a quick study break. This market is not really defined geographically but it is defined demographically by primarily being catered towards academically inclined young-age students.
Innovation
My product uses a simple combination locker that enables students to leave their belongings in a protected area for a temporary period of time while they use the restroom or get a snack during a study break. This locker attaches to the bottom of the desk and is big enough to hold computers, phones, textbooks and any other expensive school materials. I would make deals with the administration of universities to have them installed in all libraries and study areas. I would price them at $75 per locker to make them affordable for large universities and institutions. The cost to make this product would not be over $25 and installation will come at an added fee as well.
Venture
I think I could get customers to switch to this product because it is unlike anything they've ever been exposed to before and it would drastically help them decrease the fear of theft and they would be able to keep their belongings secure. It would be on option that they didn't have access to before so I think they would definitely be interested in using the lockers. There are no competitors which makes this product a gold mine and there aren't any weaknesses either. The way my product will be presented will be custom for each university with their university colors and symbols. They will be installed by one of my technicians at a certain labor fee and can be attached in whatever way that the university wants. There would be employees dedicated to installation and repair of the lockers and then there would be employees who make sales calls to universities and libraries. As that company increases in size, I will add more and more employees.
Three Elements
My secret sauce is the fact that my product helps people protect their assets and gives users one less thing to worry about while studying and trying to further their academic success.
The next step for this venture would be to expand this temporary locker concept to all areas of society, including gyms, music festivals, sporting events, etc. The possibilities are truly endless!
In the next five years, I hope this product is adopted in many different institutions and that it has evolved into something bigger than what it started as.
Thursday, 4 April 2019
23A - Your Venture's Unfair Advantage
My product is a locker that attaches to the bottom of a desk
1. My understanding of how the product can be marketed
Valuable: It is valuable because I am able to understand how to make people aware of my product in the most efficient way possible.
Rare: Not everyone understands the science behind marketing their own products and how important it is.
Imitable: Sure, it is imitable because marketing can be imitated but it is hard to do well.
Non-substitutable: Not substitutable at all.
2. My ability to work well with partners
Valuable: I am able to forge relationships with business partners to ensure that everything runs smoothly.
Rare: Not that rare because working teams is not an uncommon occurrence.
Imitable: Yes.
Non-substitutable: Not really, other resources can provide this effect but this resource works best.
3. Willingness to work hard
Valuable: I am willing and able to work hard to accomplish something that is important to me.
Rare: Somewhat, not a lot of people work hard these days.
Imitable: Yes.
Non-substitutable: Yes, you can't replace hard work with anything.
4. I have an understanding of budgeting:
Valuable: Yes, it is important to be able to understand how much money you can spend and where to allocate it towards.
Rare: No.
Imitable: Yes.
Non-substitutable: No.
5. I have good presenting skills
Valuable: Yes, the ability to present effectively helps a lot in the long run with getting people on board.
Rare: Somewhat rare.
Imitable: Yes.
Non-substitutable: You can replace this with having good content that doesn't need to be presented.
6. I am very comfortable with technology
Valuable: Yes, being proficient in technology makes it much easier to make your business grow faster.
Rare: In today's society, this is not that rare.
Imitable: Yes.
Non-substitutable: Yes.
7. I have a great understanding of my product and how it should fit in society.
Valuable: By understanding everything about my product, it will help me to be able to find a place for it to fit in society.
Rare: Yes, it is rare to be able to see the niche of a product before it has been realized.
Imitable: No.
Non-substitutable: Yes.
8. I have accounting knowledge
Valuable: Yes, to have an understanding of accounting is important because it allows you to make sure that there aren't any discrepancies.
Rare: No, it isn't rare to have a knowledge of accounting.
Imitable: Yes.
Non-substitutable: No.
9. My product gives people peace of mind.
Valuable: Yes, helping people to remain calm is one of the best ways to keep a customer or gain a new one.
Rare: Yes, a lot of other products don't do this.
Imitable: No, only some products can help people to feel more secure. Mine is done in a unique way.
Non-substitutable: No.
10. I have a great communication skills.
Valuable: Yes, this is valuable when working in teams so that everyone is on the same page.
Rare: Not really.
Imitable: Yes.
Non-substitutable: No.
My top resource is the fact that my product gives people peace of mind. This is something that is not too common for a lot of people and the ability to provide this for people is unique and will get a lot of business. This resource is more important than all the other resources because it is what makes my product unique and sets it apart from others.
Friday, 29 March 2019
22A Elevator Pitch #3
1. https://youtu.be/I6JStCUxsG4
2. I was really surprised on the feedback that I was given. I didn't think I had improved my elevator speech as much as everyone said I did and I was really happy to see that people thought that I had become more dynamic and fluid.
3. I changed the beginning of my pitch from the feedback that I was given and began with a story that a lot of students like myself could relate to. Hopefully it made my message more effective.
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