Nathalie's Blog

This semester in this class has been interesting and there were plenty assignments that were fun to do. Yet, there were also some assignments that were less exciting to do. I think the thing I’ll always remember learning in this class is that creating a business can only be planned so much, better to just get out and do it. My most joyous experience would have to be  putting my pitch together for the first time. That was the moment when I had to really think about how I wanted other people to view my product. This is the experience I am most proud of for accomplishing (my last pitch assignment), because I felt very comfortable in front of the camera and felt that I expressed myself well.  Furthermore, I do not consider myself an entrepreneur yet because i have not actually created anything yet. however, I do consider myself on my way there. This class aided me in developing an entrepreneurial mindset. One recommendation that I would give future students is to really think out of the

Opportunity : -         The culture of binge-drinking is becoming a popular description of college students especially during the Football season due to tailgates and Fraternity parties.  -         This binge drinking phenomenon is not only including college students. Research has shown that people ages 18-34 are also participating in this manner of drinking the most. -         I believe that young college students are in more of a desperate need for a solution because they are still relatively young at this point of their lives and do not have the experienced knowledge that other older people might have. -         While college students are the ones who are experiencing the need, they are not my potential customers. Organizations led by affluent people that care about the safety of students are my target market. Organizations that fit this description are universities and Interfraternity organizations. These organizations are funded mainly by parents who send their kids to co

I never saw this business venture as a business that I would pass down to my children or keep for decades.My exit strategy for this is to sell my business in 5-10 years to the highest bidder.  As a young entrepreneur I know I am bound to make mistakes and find greater competitors. Since this would be my first business venture, I intended this to be a great learning experience for myself where I can earn some profit or at least break even and be debt free. This exit strategy would hopefully allow me to recuperate the money I have invested and leave debt free.   I think knowing that this business venture was never going to last a lifetime helped me make decisions that would benefit me in the present. The opportunities and decisions I would take I did with only a 5-10 year plan in mind.  

I chose to read a book from the second half of the reading list. Specifically, the book: How to Fail at Almost Everything and Still Win Big by Scott Adams. The overall theme of this book was to live your life like a system. By doing this, you will find more success no matter how many times you fail. Adams uses his unfortunately funny life to give examples of how failure won’t stop you from eventually becoming successful.  This book helped me get more comfortable with the idea of failure. I feel that this class has already helped me understand that failure is part of the process to success. However this book reinforced that idea. Adams emphasizes for readers to get used to being uncomfortable and that people should take risks to become a better version of themselves. If I had to design an exercise for this class based on what I learned from this book, it would be to have an assignment where you would list 10 mediocre skills that you have and why each can still benefit you. Adam

This semester I hit a roadblock in one of my classes, Operations Management. It is one of my final classes for the business major. I think I have a case of Senioritis and have been slacking in studying. This class has had two exams so far and I did okay in the first exam. However, the second exam was much harder for me and did not do as well as expected. I was very disappointed in myself because I know I had earned that grade because I didn’t put enough effort into studying.  That experience served to teach me (or reinforce the idea) that all success comes from effort. Without trying and determination, success is hard to find. Failure is hard to be honest. Its very hard to not feel disappointed in one’s self especially if you know that you could’ve done otherwise. Failure forces one to reflect to think about what changes need to be made. When I fail, I am hard on myself. Depending on the importance of the matter, I may be down in the slumps for a few days and want to be alone. I am

Existing Market: 1.      I think the next step in my product/venture is to create an entire line of products that have the same goal as my original venture. My product line would come in smaller/bigger and cheaper/expensive dimensions. 2.      After interviewing three people that are in my market, I came to learn that (person a) believes that I should start a bigger social campaign for the issue and try to branch out to other businesses that are outside my target market (person b) believes that I should bring this product international and (person c) thought I should keep doing what I am doing and create the same product but in smaller version. After I told them of my idea of creating a bigger product line of similar products with the same goal, (person a) said that “oh that would be good. That way you can sell smaller devices to other people outside your market”, (person b) thought that my idea was great and that that is a different route than the one he would’ve taken but a pr

Opportunity : -         The culture of binge-drinking is becoming a popular description of college students especially during the Football season due to tailgates and Fraternity parties.  -         This binge drinking phenomenon is not only including college students. Research has shown that people ages 18-34 are also participating in this manner of drinking the most. -         I believe that young college students are in more of a desperate need for a solution because they are still relatively young at this point of their lives and do not have the experienced knowledge that other older people might have. -         While college students are the ones who are experiencing the need, they are not my potential customers. Organizations led by affluent people that care about the safety of students are my target market. Organizations that fit this description are universities and Interfraternity organizations. These organizations are funded mainly by parents who send their kids to co

Resource List: 1.       Human Capital- Design : I believe that my productive will be one-of-a-kind because I have yet to hear of anyone selling anything even somewhat similar.  -         Valuable: extremely, my product will have a better chance at selling since it is unique. -         Rare: yes, one-of-a-kind. -         Inimitable: yes, unless I get a patent. -         Non-substitutable: no other service or product provides what I am offering with my product.  2.       Human Capital- Creativity : The innovative manner in which I am instilling the information is unique for the moment.  -         Valuable: extremely, this makes my product stand out making it unique. -         Rare: yes, no one else has invented something like this. -         Inimitable: someone can copy or modify the design. -         Non-substitutable: no, unless someone comes up with a cheaper version than mines. 3.       Social Capital: I am regarded as a respectful and an easy to work with pers