Customer Interviews No. 1

The opportunity I chose was a transportation method for college students going home for the holidays.  Trying to find a ride home from college can be stressful and expensive.  I asked 5 strangers if they thought that a service that provides reasonably priced rides would interest them at all.
The questions I asked were:
"What mode of transportation do you use when you are going home from Gainesville?"
"Would you be interested in a service that can provide you a ride with a stranger for a reasonable price?"

 After talking to them, I am now unsure if the opportunity would be viable.

I learned a lot about interviewing customers from this exercise.  At first, I was very nervous to talk to 5 strangers.  However, by the fifth interview, I was very comfortable asking a stranger questions.  I also learned what kind of questions to ask someone during an interview.

Week 4 Reading Reflection

The biggest surprise for me in the reading was when the author stated that researchers believed entrepreneurship and bureaucracies were mutually exclusive and incompatible with one another.  This surprised me because I think that the two could actually be compatible with one another.  Entrepreneurs could help bureaucracies by giving them new ideas.

I was confused by one of the Corporate Innovator's Commandments.  One of them said that a worker can ignore their job description entirely if that is necessary for the innovation of their work.  I don't think it is a smart idea to tell workers that they do not have to do their job.  Innovation is important, but is it worth the cost of ignoring one's duties.

I would ask the author, "Do you think it's worth it for a worker to ignore their job description for innovation?"  I would ask him this because this was what confused me the most.  I would also ask "What are some examples of bureaucracies that contain entrepreneurs?"  I would like to more examples of these types of companies.

I did not really disagree with anything the author had to say in this chapter.  This information was new to me, so I felt that the author actually taught me a lot.

Top 5 World Problems

Top 5 Problems:
1. Terrorism is a huge problem the world is facing right now.  ISIS has been terrorizing the world and killing innocent people.
2.  War is a huge problem in the world today.  Countries go to war which leads to many innocent people dying.
3. Nuclear weapons are a problem in the world.  These weapons of mass destruction have the potential to destroy entire cities.
4. Hunger is a huge problem in places like Africa.  There are starving people with nothing to eat.
5.  Racism is a huge problem in the world today.  There are still many people that are prejudice against minorities.

Top 5 Solutions:
1. A solution to terrorism would be to destroy ISIS.
2. A solution to hunger would be to keep donating to charities that provide food for these poor people.
3. A solution to racism would be to keep educating our children about human equality.
4. A solution to nuclear weapons would be to stop the manufacturing of these weapons.

5. A solution to war would be to try to resolve conflicts without violence.

I listed terrorism as the number one problem because terrorist deaths have increased by 80% over the past year.  This problem is growing and needs to be stopped.  Even though racism is huge problem, I still put it at number five.  We are getting more tolerant and accepting as a society of different races.  The solution to terrorism is also the most feasible.  The whole world is against ISIS.  I believe if we all come together, we can definitely defeat them.  War is much harder to solve.  War has been around since the dawn of time.  Unfortunately, that problem may never go away.

Week 3 Reading Reflection

The part that surprised me the most in the reading was when the author talked about the psychological risks of being an entrepreneur.  Being an entrepreneur is very mentally demanding.  I did not realize that it could cause severe psychological problems to people.  I now understand that this is a stressful career path, and it is not a joke.

The part that confused me the most were the different types of personalities.  I think the author could have done a better job at explaining the difference between the two and giving more examples of them.

I would like to ask the author about more ways that entrepreneurs can relieve stress.  Entrepreneurs have stressful lives, and I would like to know how they live their lives happily.  I would also ask the author how he would classify type B personalities in terms of successful, efficient leaders.  Once again, I would like to learn more about the types of personalities because that is what confused me.

I actually did not disagree with anything the author had to say.  He made a lot of good points, and many of them were new to me.  This chapter definitely taught me a lot of the lives of entrepreneurs.

Identifying Local Opportunities

1.a. What bugs are lurking in your home?
b. http://www.alligator.org/news/local/article_35d9df74-bf37-11e5-899f-1b7855d8fca6.html
c. The article is saying that a study found up to 10, 000 species of insects throughout 50 North Carolina homes.
d. Most of these bugs are harmless.  However, these bugs could pose a threat to people who are allergic to the protein that arthropods carry.
e. Homeowners have this problem because they do not know what kind of organisms are living in their houses.

2.a. Research shows hookah may not be the safe alternative to cigarettes after all
b. http://www.alligator.org/news/local/article_37317cb6-be69-11e5-9b6c-1f1681e728f3.html
c. According to a recent study, hookah may create 25 times more tar than a cigarette.
d.   People think that smoking hookah is a safe alternative to cigarettes because it is evaporated through water.  However, this is not the case.  Smoking hookah can definitely lead to serious health problems.
e. The people that have this problem are those that are unaware of the dangers of smoking hookah.  It is not a safe alternative.

3.a. Police say unnamed man flashed genitals on Sorority Row
b. http://www.alligator.org/news/crime/article_b0e6afbc-c0c7-11e5-a026-5f1c1c6e1789.html
c. A man flashed his genitals to women in a parking garage.
d. The problem is that this is sexual harassment.  The women were minding their own business, and when he committed this act.
e. Everyone in the city of Gainesville is affected by this problem because this man is still on the loose.

4.a. A look at sexual misconduct in local law enforcement
b.http://www.alligator.org/news/local/article_438e5f9a-9e36-11e5-bd98-6b7bdc37f12c.html
c. An 18 year old woman reported that she was sexually assault by an officer after being arrested for shoplifting.
d. The problem is that there is a lot of corruption in our local law enforcement.  Police officers are abusing their power.
e. The city of Gainesville has this problem because this happened at our local Target.  The city needs to do a better job when they are hiring these officers.

5.a. University investigating death of UF freshmen, no foul play suspected
b. http://www.alligator.org/news/crime/article_3a9e3f9c-ba86-11e5-b406-b7171b8c1b11.html
c. A UF freshmen was found dead in his car Wednesday morning.  Police do not suspect that he was murdered.
d.  The problem is that he may have been depressed, and no one knew about it.
e. Students suffering with depression are affected by this problem.  Help and support needs to be provided for them.

Very Short Interview No. 1

Veronica Vidal is a yoga instructor in Key Biscayne, Florida.  She has been teach yoga for 22 years now.  She started her own business called Vero Yoga.  I sat down with her and asked her a few questions about entrepreneurship.

Tyler:  What does it mean to be an entrepreneur?
Veronica:  Being an entrepreneur means having the motivation and enthusiasm to start something from scratch and take risks while doing it.
Tyler:  What do you think I should learn in an entrepreneurship course?
Veronica:  You should learn all aspects of forming a business and running it on a daily basis, so that it is successful.
Tyler:  What do you wish you had been taught in school before setting out on your own path as an entrepreneur?
Veronica:  I wish I had learned more about finances, marketing, and accounting.

I learned a lot during this interview.  Veronica taught me that you can be very successful with a business of your own.  I also learned that even if you are successful, there is still always more you can learn.

World's Biggest Problems

1.  War is a huge problem in the world today.  Countries go to war which leads to many innocent people dying.  A solution to this problem would be to try to resolve conflicts without violence.
2.  Hunger is a huge problem in places like Africa.  There are starving people with nothing to eat.  A solution to this problem would be to keep donating to charities that provide food for these poor people.
3.  Illegal immigration in America is a huge problem.  People are pouring through the border undocumented.  A solution would be to build a huge wall at the southern border.
4.  Unemployment is another huge problem.  Many people are looking for work, but there are no jobs available.  A solution would be to create more jobs.
5.  Terrorism is a huge problem the world is facing right now.  ISIS has been terrorizing the world and killing innocent people.  A solution to this problem would be to destroy ISIS.
6.  Racism is a huge problem in the world today.  There are still many people that are prejudice against minorities.  A solution to racism would be to keep educating our children about human equality.
7.  The spread of infectious disease is a huge problem in the world today.  Some diseases are being spread that are fatal.  We need to do a better job at controlling these diseases and trying to find a way to possibly cure them.
8.  Global warming is a problem that the world is facing today.  Humans are polluting the air, which is destroying the ozone layer.  A solution would be for humans to start taking better care of the environment and stop polluting it.
9.  Gender inequality is a big problem that the world is facing.  Women are still seen as subordinates to men.  The average man tends to get paid more than the average women.  The solution to this problem is to start viewing men and women as equals.  A woman should not be paid less than a man for the same job.
10.  Nuclear weapons are a problem in the world.  These weapons of mass destruction have the potential to destroy entire cities.  A solution to this problem would be to stop the manufacturing of these weapons.