29

My idea is to provide a mobile water bottle delivery truck for Puerto Ricans. I plan on investing around 5000 dollars into this venture. Depending on the success I may invest more. However, I don’t see this lasting for more duration than a few years. I am going to describe the opportunity, the innovation, and the venture concept. Furthermore, I plan to describe smaller elements like what my most important resource is and the future for not only my venture but also myself.

There are many opportunities in the world that people can solve. The opportunity that I ended up attempting to solve was the fact that Puerto Rican citizens and Puerto Rican grocery stores have a lack of clean fresh water to drink after the devastating Hurricane Irma. The potential customers are people that have particularly high levels of water usage and would be willing to buy clean water from any place. Furthermore, my customers will be particularly lower income because they did not have enough money to stock up on water before the hurricane. Water is needed for basic human needs like drinking and cleaning. Without water people may die or resort to unlawful behavior to get their hands on water. It appears America is not doing enough to give aid to Puerto Rico. This forces people to find solutions themselves. Currently many people drink dirty water and complain on social media about water treatment plants and running water systems not working. Shifting gears, the officials of Puerto Rico have declared months ago that water problems are diminishing. The residents beg to differ, as many complaints on social media contradict what the local government is saying. Taking what the government says is true as a conservative estimate of how big the problem is, around “72% of Puerto Ricans now [have] running water.” The population of Puerto Rico is 3.337 million people as of 2015; therefore, doing some simple calculations 934,360 people have issues with water.

My innovation to solve this water issue is to have a truck that acts like an ice cream truck for residents of Puerto Rico but selling water rather than ice cream. This is not a radically innovative idea, which is an advantage. People know what ice cream trucks are and don’t need to learn how they operate. There won’t be any learning curves associated with my innovation which translates to a quicker rate of adoption than more complex innovations. I plan to buy bottled water in bulk. I can purchase each bottle at 86 cents. I plan to buy $3,237.20 worth of bottles. If I sell the bottles at $4 a piece I can make a profit of $3.14 per bottle. I can ship the bottles directly to Puerto Rico, so there will be no costs for transporting them from the mainland. I also need to rent a truck which will be costly. If I were to purchase this, it would be around $3000-$8000. This is more capital than I currently have so I am going to rent one for as cheap as possible. I would expect this to be around $750.

I plan on being a mobile water salesman in Puerto Rico. I think that customers will switch to my product, at least for the short run, if they have an absolute need for water. My prices are high to take advantage of their inelastic demands. Someone is going to pay all the money they can if that means they protect their family. I don’t think it will be hard for them to switch in the short run, but in the long run when the water supplies are fixed I don’t see the practicality of my service. The competitors are the water utility companies, other people who have my same idea, grocery stores the have water supply in Puerto Rico. The distribution of the water is huge for my business plan. I plan on bringing water to people so it is convenient and easy for them rather than having them go out and scavenge. They will be more likely to pay higher prices if they have water right in front of them because people are risk averse. They can take a higher price now or gamble and try to find limited supplies at grocery stores or in supply drops. I plan on this company only being myself.

My most important resource will be the truck. With the truck I can find new people easily, I can transport water directly to people, and I have a safe place for my water storage

.

I don’t see this venture lasting in the long term. This is supposed to be a quick profit where I have no strings attached and nothing holding me back. I want to be in and out of Puerto Rico as quick as possible making money in a short amount of time.

In five years I want my venture to be completely finished and making a profit around $50,000. As an entrepreneur in a decade I want to continue doing small, quick, and easy to pull off ventures like I did right here because I make money for little effort. This venture helps me achieve my vision because it gives me a taste of what a fast paced business looks like.

The feedback for my previous venture concept description was generally positive, however, there were a few points that stuck out in my mind. For one, people thought that my idea was going to have lots of competition. I agree, my idea will have lots of other people doing the same as me. However, I do not plan on being in the business for long. I want to make a quick profit and then get out. An additional comment I had stated that I could expand the products I sell to include other necessities like food and electrical generators.

I did not change anything from the feedback because I do not want the hassle of buying extra inventory in bulk like food and generators.

30 Final Reflection

30

The thing that will stick out most in my mind is the entrepreneurial mindset. Instead of thinking about how to be rich quick, think about how to solve peoples problems. If one finds an idea that is great and capitalizes on that idea, they have a chance at making significant amounts of money. For example, Facebook capitalized on the internet and humans social needs to create one of the largest business in the world.

I do consider myself an entrepreneur because I have been 'solving problems' this semester. I reached out to my apartment complex to solve their residents problem of not having a personal trainer available. I think that I am an entrepreneur because I am in the middle of this process. I am not sitting back thinking about it or reading a book about what entrepreneurs are. I am in the front line going out and making moves.

I would recommend students start thinking about the world in terms of problems that need to be solved, and then think about unique ways to solve that problem.

For the class I recommend working ahead and staying on top of the assignments.

My recommendation for the journey is to realize failure is going to happen, but it will only benefit you to fail. You learn more when you fail which leads to success later on.

28A

28A

Your Exit Strategy

I intend to leaving my business and selling all assets to people in Puerto Rico. I do not plan on employing anyone other than myself, so there will be little issues with discontinuing the company. I want to sell in Puerto Rico rather than in mainland America because I wouldn't have to transport the truck back to America.

The exit strategy has influenced my growth intentions. I purposely wanted to have a small, quick moving business that doesn't have too many employees. I wanted this type of structure because I wanted to be able to shut down my business as soon as possible whenever I want it to be shut down.

27

27A

How to Fail at Almost Everything and Still Win Big, Scott Adams

1.       The general theme of the book is self-improvement through systems rather than through goals.

2.       The book connects with and enhances the startup process that all entrepreneurs go through. Every entrepreneur has failed at some point during the start up process. Over time, people may fail less because they are gaining skills from past failures. This is the crux of Scott Adams book. It doesn’t matter how many times you get knocked down, it just matters if you pick yourself back up and LEARN from that, so it doesn’t happen again. Relating more to the class, this reminds me about the point made that entrepreneurs who start off rich tend to have success in the short run, but eventually everything tends to equalize because the skills needed may not be developed in the rich entrepreneur.

3.       The design for the class would be to have everyone dream up their ideal situation in life and divide their situation into skills. For example, many people’s dream would be to become a fitness model on Instagram. This dream may be not a possibility for some (based off looks), but this doesn’t change the system that everyone must go through to achieve this. You can divide this into a few aspects. First, one must have the knowledge needed about the human body to build their body through nutrition and the gym. Secondly, one must have their basic life choices down (getting enough sleep, positive mentality, low stress levels, attitude is on point). In both scenarios one can find small wins constantly and feel good about themselves rather than being in a constant state of failure.

4.       My biggest surprise was the fact that I am in a constant state of failure without realizing it and that I could completely change this by implementing Scott’s recommendations. If I systematize my life I could change everything.

26

26A

1.       There was an assignment that asked me to talk about a time I failed and I misspelt the word fail without realizing.

2.       I learned that I need to spell check better when spelling words.

3.       It depends on each scenario how I react to failure. There are times where I fail and I am determined to succeed. Generally these scenarios are scenarios where I am emotionally attached to the outcome and I find passion in what I do. However, if I don’t feel very attached to what I am doing and I fail I do find myself giving up. I know that failure is good for learning, so I embrace it as much as possible.

25

Interview three customers who are already part of the market you have identified and ask them what they believe is next for a venture like yours. Describe to them your business, and simply ask "What should we be doing that we aren't planning to do?" Next, ask them about your ideas of what customers might want next. 

 Based on your own expectations and the feedback you received from customers, set a path for the future. In two to three paragraphs, describe what makes the most sense for your venture in terms of growing in your existing market.

I didn’t expect to get very substantive advice from people. I didn’t think that they would be as helpful as they were. They gave me advice that people would likely buy in bulk water from me, rather than one bottle at a time. They are especially likely to buy in bulk if the prices are lowered. What makes sense for the future would be also to distribute generators. I could help people with not only water in the short run but also electricity.

 Again, describe to each interviewee what your concept is. Then, ask them how they think your business might be helping to meet customers like them. What kinds of adaptations to the product/service mix do they think you should make to be successful in this new market? 

Reflect, in two to three paragraphs, on what you learned about this new market. What surprised you the most? Were any of your expectations/assumptions correct? Does this new market, on second thought, appear to be as attractive as your existing market? And so on. 

I didn’t think that people would be interested in ‘higher quality’ water like smart water. People that have higher income are less likely to want ‘lower quality’ water. Apparently even in circumstances of dire need people are still wanting higher quality water.

24A

24A

Venture Concept Write-Up Guide

My idea is to provide a mobile water bottle delivery truck for Puerto Ricans. I plan on investing around 5000 dollars into this venture. Depending on the success I may invest more. However, I don’t see this lasting for more duration than a few years. I am going to describe the opportunity, the innovation, and the venture concept. Furthermore, I plan to describe smaller elements like what my most important resource is and the future for not only my venture but also myself.

There are many opportunities in the world that people can solve. The opportunity that I ended up attempting to solve was the fact that Puerto Rican citizens and Puerto Rican grocery stores have a lack of clean fresh water to drink after the devastating Hurricane Irma. The potential customers are people that have particularly high levels of water usage and would be willing to buy clean water from any place. Furthermore, my customers will be particularly lower income because they did not have enough money to stock up on water before the hurricane. Water is needed for basic human needs like drinking and cleaning. Without water people may die or resort to unlawful behavior to get their hands on water. It appears America is not doing enough to give aid to Puerto Rico. This forces people to find solutions themselves. Currently many people drink dirty water and complain on social media about water treatment plants and running water systems not working. Shifting gears, the officials of Puerto Rico have declared months ago that water problems are diminishing. The residents beg to differ, as many complaints on social media contradict what the local government is saying. Taking what the government says is true as a conservative estimate of how big the problem is, around “72% of Puerto Ricans now [have] running water.” The population of Puerto Rico is 3.337 million people as of 2015; therefore, doing some simple calculations 934,360 people have issues with water.

My innovation to solve this water issue is to have a truck that acts like an ice cream truck for residents of Puerto Rico but selling water rather than ice cream. This is not a radically innovative idea, which is an advantage. People know what ice cream trucks are and don’t need to learn how they operate. There won’t be any learning curves associated with my innovation which translates to a quicker rate of adoption than more complex innovations. I plan to buy bottled water in bulk. I can purchase each bottle at 86 cents. I plan to buy $3,237.20 worth of bottles. If I sell the bottles at $4 a piece I can make a profit of $3.14 per bottle. I can ship the bottles directly to Puerto Rico, so there will be no costs for transporting them from the mainland. I also need to rent a truck which will be costly. If I were to purchase this, it would be around $3000-$8000. This is more capital than I currently have so I am going to rent one for as cheap as possible. I would expect this to be around $750.

I plan on being a mobile water salesman in Puerto Rico. I think that customers will switch to my product, at least for the short run, if they have an absolute need for water. My prices are high to take advantage of their inelastic demands. Someone is going to pay all the money they can if that means they protect their family. I don’t think it will be hard for them to switch in the short run, but in the long run when the water supplies are fixed I don’t see the practicality of my service. The competitors are the water utility companies, other people who have my same idea, grocery stores the have water supply in Puerto Rico. The distribution of the water is huge for my business plan. I plan on bringing water to people so it is convenient and easy for them rather than having them go out and scavenge. They will be more likely to pay higher prices if they have water right in front of them because people are risk averse. They can take a higher price now or gamble and try to find limited supplies at grocery stores or in supply drops. I plan on this company only being myself.

My most important resource will be the truck. With the truck I can find new people easily, I can transport water directly to people, and I have a safe place for my water storage

.

I don’t see this venture lasting in the long term. This is supposed to be a quick profit where I have no strings attached and nothing holding me back. I want to be in and out of Puerto Rico as quick as possible making money in a short amount of time.

In five years I want my venture to be completely finished and making a profit around $50,000. As an entrepreneur in a decade I want to continue doing small, quick, and easy to pull off ventures like I did right here because I make money for little effort. This venture helps me achieve my vision because it gives me a taste of what a fast paced business looks like.

22

1) The pitch. Same as last time, 1-minute long. No Web cams. No sitting. Be dynamic! Upload the video to YouTube (as you do with all of your videos) and post the link.

2) A reflection on the feedback you received from your last pitch. Describe what stood out to you as important, what feedback surprised you the most, what feedback you think was outright wrong or silly or amazing and inciteful. 

I found that I should talk clearer. This makes sense because it helps people understand me better.

I thought that acting like the camera is a person is silly.

3) What did you change, based on the feedback?

Third time's the charm, as they say. I bet you find a few things different from the first time, including: (a) it's almost memorized, (b) you're far more comfortable in front of the camera, and (c) the pitch itself is better. If this is or isn't true for you, please include this in your reflection!

I tried to enunciate better in this pitch.

23

23

·         Generate a list of all of the resources in your venture (produce a list of at least 10 resources that you already possess). This can include your human capital, social capital, financial capital, and capabilities. You may also discuss the organizational culture you intend to create (but, obviously, it's not a resource that you have, now.) 

·         Conduct a "VRIN" analysis for each resource. That is, describe, for each resource, how it is valuable, rare, inimitable (how hard it is to copy by others), and non-substitutable (are there other resources that can provide the same benefits?). 

·         Remember, not ALL resources will measure up well. That's OK. You just need one. 

·         After conducting the VRIN analysis, determine what your top resource is. Explain why it's more important to your venture than all of the other resources.

Resources:

1)      Cash Asset

Valuable? Yes
Rare? No
Imitable? Yes
Organization? Yes

2)      Truck Asset

Valuable? Yes
Rare? No
Imitable? Yes
Organization? No

3)      Friends who have knowledge of Puerto Rico and its people to help

Valuable? Yes
Rare? No
Imitable? No
Organization? Yes

4)      Basic Spanish knowledge

Valuable? No
Rare? No
Imitable? Yes
Organization? Yes

5)      Good relations with past Spanish teachers

Valuable? Yes
Rare? No
Imitable? No
Organization? Yes

6)      Access to professors that are familiar with Hispanic culture

Valuable? No
Rare? No
Imitable? Yes
Organization? Yes

7)      Access to Puerto Rico club at UF

Valuable? Yes
Rare? No
Imitable? No
Organization? Yes

8)      Creativity

Valuable? Yes
Rare? No
Imitable? No
Organization? Yes

9)      Drive

Valuable? Yes
Rare? No
Imitable? No
Organization? Yes

10)   Understanding of how to start organizations from the ground up (created own club at UF)

Valuable? Yes
Rare? Yes
Imitable? No
Organization? Yes

According to VRIO analysis my understanding of how to start organizations from the ground up is my most valuable resource. I have created a club and am the Vice President of it. We grew from 3 members to around 20 active members in a semester. Currently we are working on international microeconomic development. I think this is my most valuable resource because it is hard to replicate this and it provides me with lots of lessons on how to start a new organization and how to run an organization well. For example, it has taught me perseverance when times are difficult. It has taught me to trust the process. And it has also taught me that good things come with time and dedication.

17

I didn’t change anything from last pitch because I never did the first pitch. However, I did attempt this pitch a few times and changed certain aspects around. For one, I changed my intro to be more unique. At first I wasn’t sure what to start off with so I just started talking about the company. I changed it to highlight how many people are being impacted by Irma. This does two things for the person listening to the pitch. One, its a conversation starter that keeps everybody on the same page. We don't assume the person knows anything so we tell them exactly what happened. Secondly, it lets the person know the scope of the market I am attempting to tap into.

16A

1)      I have a unique ability to make sacrifices. If something will inevitable benefit, I am willing and able to make sacrifices to achieve that.

I can talk to anybody at random, it isn’t hard for me to make friends with strangers. For example, I can go out and talk with random people in class or random people walking down the street and develop positive relationships.

I am extremely observant, which helps me understand social situations well.

I am competitive, if I set out to do something I will try my hardest and do what I have to do to complete that goal.

I am hardworking. I have an inner drive where I always want to improve myself and be the best at whatever I do.

Mom

Analytical mind, good inner drive, natural business mind. Carry yourself with confidence, shrug off defeat, attitude.

shawn
(sorry about poor sound quality.) "driven in a different kind of way." "can talk with anyone even if they hate it"

Jimmy (blogger didn't allow length)

Time-management and driven work ethic, keep in mind important things and ignore the small petty things

Dad

Possess leadership qualities, honest, work with people, straightforward, dependable, cooperative, ambitious, caring, loyal, independence, (and apparently a big head according to my mom).

Nick

Hardworking compared to the rest of the crowd, honest, dependable, people can trust you

How do you see yourself vs how do others see you?

People had many different things to say about me, but there was a common theme that I noticed. Every person stated something about hardworking or ambitious. I think this shows because I am always striving to be the best version of myself. Furthermore, they tended to say something about being personable. I know I can talk with anyone, its something that I used to not be able to do so I took time to develop the skill. Finally, confidence was another somewhat prevalent thing among friends and family. I have confidence because I constantly practice and constantly fail so I can get better at what I do. I seem confident now because I have failed so many times that I get used to it. 

18A

Name: Juan Pablo
Age: 24
Height: 6’0
Weight: 180lbs
Birthplace: Aguadilla, Puerto Rico
Living currently: San Juan, Puerto Rico
Favorite Sport: Soccer
Favorite Food: Taco
Favorite Party Game: Pin the tail on the donkey
Job: Farmer
Kids: None
Hobbies: hanging out with friends, watching sports, playing video games
Social life: active on farmersonly.com
Favorite drink: water
Favorite beer: Natural Light
Education: high school degree
Car: ford pickup truck

I have a few things in common with Juan Pablo. First off my favorite drink is water, and I am also an avid soccer player. I feel like that is a coincidence because many people like water and play soccer. That is not unusual to enjoy that stuff.

14A - Halfway Reflection

14A - Halfway Reflection

1) Some behaviors I have used to keep up with the requirement is to try to complete the posts as quickly as possible and knock them out of the park. Furthermore, by looking at what is needed a few days ahead, I can start planning out what I would do in the assignment. I am planning and working efficiently when I do work

2)  I wanted to give up commenting on others posts because sometimes I was lazy. Sometimes I felt like I was stretching comments out to make the word count because I couldn’t think of great information to add. What made me pull through is that I realize that this journey is important to not only actively do the assignments well but also analyze others situation and help them out. Just because this may not be a huge deal to me doesn’t mean that others won’t benefit from my input.

3) Three tips I would offer next semester’s students is to work ahead if you feel like you’re a busy person. These assignments, if done efficiently, can take very short time to do. And if you’re in a period where you’re feeling particularly motivated, work hard and work quickly so you don’t have to later Another tip is to make sure you are passionate about your idea. This will help you do the assignments because you will want to think about it and want to share your ideas. Finally, make your idea small scale and feasible in the short term. You don’t want to be working on an opportunity if it will take you years upon years to see any progress. Set small goals in your entrepreneurial journey.

13A - Reading Reflection No. 1

13A Reading Reflection No. 1

Grinding it Out: The Making of McDonald’s

Ray Kroc

1.

What surprised you the most?

I didn’t realize that he was initially a salesman. I had no idea what this mans background was but it gives me hope that you don’t have to have the best education or the most elite job to be a billionaire. You just have to be at the right place at the right time with the right work ethic.

What about the entrepreneur did you most admire?

I admire his business philosophy. He had a tough-minded business philosophy and he stuck with that his whole career. He never strayed from his values of courtesy, cleanliness, and service while creating his fast-food empire.

What about the entrepreneur did you least admire?

He seemed to take advantage of the brothers in almost an evil or vicious way. He definitely was cut throat.

Did the entrepreneur encounter adversity and failure? If so, what did they do about it?

He encountered adversity initially from his wife. She did not believe that he should give up his job in order to pursue selling Multimixers to dairy bars throughout America. He followed his dream anyway and sold Multimixers to bars to start his business adventures.

2. What competencies did you notice that the entrepreneur exhibited?

He is extremely curious. This curiosity led him to be extremely observant of the world which actually led to him finding out about this new restaurant called McDonalds that was an efficient and effective business. From there he took the things he observed and was social and confident enough to talk with the owners that he learned from them about their business.

3. Identify at least one part of the reading that was confusing to you.

The reading was done in a first person perspective years after the events happened. I am not sure if the thoughts and conversations are as accurate as the book makes it seem.

4. If you were able to ask two questions to the entrepreneur, what would you ask? Why?

What was the most significant turning point in your professional life?

What was the most important piece of advice someone has given you?

These questions would help me in my entrepreneurial adventure the most.

5. What do you think the entrepreneur’s opinion was of hard work? Do you share that opinion?

He embraced hard work and believed that anyone in the United States has the ability to reach their reasonable goals. I believe I share that opinion because I feel exactly the same way about reaching reasonable goals. I am a goal oriented person and I have set goals consistently for myself throughout my life. For example, my goal of becoming a personal trainer is a month away from completion. If you would have asked me if I could have done this a year ago I would not have thought I would be able to. But I embraced the grind just like I embrace the grind for any other goal I set for myself. If I want something, I go and get it.

12A Figuring Out Buyer Behavior No. 1

12A Figuring Out Buyer Behavior No. 1

Segment: Residents living within 10 miles of San Juan, Puerto Rico whose water supply has been impacted by the hurricane.

Summaries: I found in my interviews that many people have created unique ways to save water. Some people have issues bathing because of the significant amount of water it uses. For most they limit showers and baths as much as possible to conserve their fresh water for drinking. Other people have gone to a rationing system because they are not sure when the next supply of water will come to the market. Furthermore, once this water gets to the market there are large lines to get to it, thus making the opportunity cost of searching for water huge. This is undoubtedly a horrible way to live.

Conclusions: This may actually hurt my profits though, if people are willing to go to this extent to save water they may have a better supply of water than I realized. I didn’t take into account the fact that people will adapt their lifestyles as best as possible to give them the best opportunity to survive. I initially thought people would live normal lives with less water. I now realize that this hurricane hits every aspect of someone’s life. 

11A Napkin

11A Idea Napkin

You - I am a people person, I know I can strike up a conversation with anyone and it can usually go well if they want to talk. I also have a background with Hispanic people as I am a member of the Hispanic Student Association here at UF. This will help me when I go to Puerto Rico because I understand some aspects of their culture and I can use that to my advantage when selling water bottles. May have a sales internship this summer. I aspire to be a personal trainer and physical therapist long term. I know I want to work in the gym industry to help people better themselves. I know this business will help me in my life because there are many opportunities to help people in Puerto Rico. Furthermore, many skills that I can’t even imagine happening will be developed because of this business. For example, one may learn how to accept rejection better by starting a business, and one can discover how they react to challenge.

What are you offering to customers - I am offering a mobile water distribution service They do not have enough clean water to survive, often finding themselves in long lines at grocery stores not knowing whether there will be water.

Who are you offering it to - to people in Puerto Rico that are struggling from the most recent hurricane.

Why do they care - They do not have enough clean water to survive, often finding themselves in long lines at grocery stores not knowing whether there will be water. They need water to survive

What are your core competencies - People may not have the ability to relate to Hispanics like I do. It takes a great salesman to standout from the competition, and I know I can do it. Furthermore, I believe the portable distribution service would set me apart so that smaller towns and villages can be supplied better.

I think the part that most sticks out would be me, because I am not fluent in Spanish. It may be difficult to communicate with Puerto Ricans. However, I can use google translate and I know common phrases that will make communication somewhat possible. On the other hand, the Who What and Why all fit together. They are all related to one another because of the fact that a hurricane hit Puerto Rico and devastated their infrastructure. This impacts water availability to the people of Puerto Rico.

9A - Testing the Hypothesis

9A - Continuing Your Opportunity Research

Who: People that are in areas that have sufficient water or weren’t extremely devastated by the hurricane. Although the may need water eventually, they might not want it right now because their money could be going to other options (Food, energy, etc.). People that have cheaper sources of water to purchase from.

What: the need I identified differs from another need based on a basic level. For example, people will not consume water if they are not thirsty. They may stockpile it, but nobody drinks unless they need the water. Another example relates to hunger. Nobody would drink water to satisfy their hunger, they would eat food. People eventually want a long term solution. Things like an infrastructure renovation. I wont be able to provide that.

Why: The underlying cause of the outsiders’ need is different than those on the inside because the outsiders have less of an immediate need for water. They may be using it for safety or a safeguard in the future. For example, when hurricanes come and hit Jacksonville my family stocks up on water for the short term. We don't have much plan for the long term. If our stockpile was sufficient, our most persistent need would be a fixed water infrastructure, not short term clean water.

Inside the Boundary	Outside the Boundary
Who is in Puerto Ricans that have had their clean water supply impacted by hurricane. People that are running low on their water supplies	Who is not Puerto Ricans that have not had their water impacted by the hurricane. People that already have help from the government or other entrepreneurs.
What the need is Need for an immediate relief in the water supply of an area.	What the Need is Not Need for a long-term supply of water. This solution is only for short term problems.
Why the Need Exists Life relies on water, without water these people do not satisfy their physiological needs and could lead to other dangerous implications: crime, looting, etc.	Alternative Explanations People may not want water from me specifically, could be that I am a poor salesman or there is some bias against me.

8A - Solving The Problem

8A - Solving The Problem

Selected Opportunity- people in Puerto Rico do not have enough clean water for consumption because of the recent hurricane

Product/service that will solve the opportunity- bottled water packages could be used to satisfy the opportunity. Plan to fly out to Puerto Rico with bottled water and renting out a truck to transport the water to high population areas.

7A– Testing the Hypothesis, Part 1

7A - testing the Hypothesis, Part 1

1)      The opportunity I plan on pursuing is sending water to Puerto Rico and selling it to the residents and businesses

2)      Who: The people and businesses in Puerto Rico

What: do not have necessities like water

Why: Hurricane destroyed their economy and infrastructure and the help from America is starting to die down.

3)      Testing the who: Animals need water (pets), farmers need water for crops, resorts need water for clean swimming pools, people who like to garden cannot garden, people who are not close to supermarkets need water because they may have run out of their stockpile.

Testing the what: people need clean water, not dirty water

Testing the Why: some people may have poor water saving habits (they could be wasteful) and they may have poor storage (water could evaporate more than they want)

5)      I found that many people have stopped doing their hobbies that are water intensive (like swimming, gardening, etc) and tried to save their water as much as possible for drinking. They didn’t want to waste any water because they were not sure when they would be getting more. I think that my water plan may actually have potential because the demand is high right now and people may not want to have to go through what they’re going through right now so they will buy lots of extra water. 

6A - Identifying Opportunities in Economic & Regulatory Trends

Regulatory

Opportunity 1:

Solar Panels tariff

Where I found it: https://www.greentechmedia.com/articles/read/forecast-shows-how-tariffs-will-hurt-solar-growth-state-by-state#gs.XAbQJGQ
What leads you to believe that this information suggests an opportunity might exist: solar panels are expected to decrease in prominence because of the tariff, alternative energy systems may gain in popularity (like wind power)
Who do you think is most likely to be the customer with the opportunity: middle class individuals that are wanting to protect the environment
Is the opportunity relatively easy or relatively difficult to exploit, why? Relatively difficult, need to choose an energy source and focus on that. Most likely would be wind power based on affordability. I have no experience with developing wind turbines for personal use.

Opportunity 2:

Washing Machines

Where I found it: https://www.nytimes.com/2018/01/22/business/trump-tariffs-washing-machines-solar-panels.html

What leads you to believe that this information suggests an opportunity might exist: the price of washing machines will go up because we have a tariff on them. There is an opportunity to make washer machines at a low price.
Who do you think is most likely to be the customer with the opportunity: The customer is most likely to be someone in a family that is in a suburban or rural area where they do their laundry not at a laundromat. Most likely mid to high income.
Is the opportunity relatively easy or relatively difficult to exploit, why? Pretty difficult to start a washing machine business because I have no idea how to make one and the time and effort it would take to get deals for the parts would be ridiculous.

Economic

Opportunity 1:

Puerto Rico struggling to obtain necessities of life.

Where I found it: https://thinkprogress.org/fema-puerto-rico-aid-4bf6fda50ca3/
What leads you to believe that this information suggests an opportunity might exist: Utility companies are running out of supply. Demand > Supply. Doesn’t look like the mainland will be stepping in to help Puerto Rico anymore
Who do you think is most likely to be the customer with the opportunity: I think that poorer individuals in Puerto Rico will be desperate for water, they will not be able to stockpile water from the store when the supermarkets open back up. Also businesses may be willing to buy my water and sell at higher price to locals.
Is the opportunity relatively easy or relatively difficult to exploit, why? Very easy to transport water bottles to Puerto Rico as it is a territory. Living in Florida means flights won’t be too expensive. Water is very easy to transport. Problem would be to transport water around Puerto Rico

Opportunity 2:

Greek life in Florida is falling apart, lack of parties and social life on campus.

Where I found it: https://www.news4jax.com/news/local/jacksonville/unf-greek-life-events-suspended-indefinitely

What leads you to believe that this information suggests an opportunity might exist? People want to go out and party/spend money on drinks for fun. With social atmosphere falling apart from Greek life being irresponsible, there is a demand for social activities.
Who do you think is most likely to be the customer with the opportunity? Customer would be social minded individuals at universities. Need to be older than 21 to drink
Is the opportunity relatively easy or difficult to exploit, why?  Very easy to rent out buses and get drinks. Can set up a party bus type of situation and 

4A - Forming an Opportunity Belief

4A – Forming an Opportunity Belief

I believe there are lots of people in Gainesville that are looking to get into better shape for the future.

I think that people have an unmet need to change their bodies and get more confidence in themselves for the future. The typical person that has this need would be an middle aged person that may be obese or overweight. Other people may be college students attempting to make a change in their body and lifestyle. This need comes from personal reasons like health, social reasons like trying to impress others, and demographical change like the rise of obesity in America. Some, but not all, are attempting to make changes in their body but it may not be long lasting. I am 100% sure this opportunity exists.

The prototypical customer could be obese people or people that are unsatisfied with their bodies. They could range from college aged students to older men and women.

Questions:

What is the exact nature of their need? I want to feel lighter, healthier, and I want people to look at me better. I don’t want waste my life away.

When did you become aware of this need? When I looked down and I realized I couldn’t see parts of my body that I wanted to.

How long have you had this need? Since I came to college (Freshman forty-five)

How are you currently addressing this need? I am cutting back on my pizza consumption, only half a pizza per day. I switched from ice cream to frozen yogurt. And I am attempting to do 45 minutes of exercise per day.

Are you satisfied with the solution? Yes, I am satisfied currently, I am losing weight, but I can still eat some of the things I want.

I learned that people that are obese need to change their lifestyle for my opportunity to be successful.  My opportunity relies on people that may not want to dramatically alter their lifestyle. This could hurt the success of my opportunity.

My new prototypical customer would be determined and motivated to change their lifestyle or better their bodies. This could be college athletes trying to gain an edge over other athletes through rigorous training. 

What is the exact nature of your need? I want to be able to physically out compete others.

When did you become aware of this need? When others were physically beating me.

How long have you had this need? New recruits were brought in and I am on the bench now.

How are you addressing this need? Taking steroids

How satisfied are you with your solution? Not satisfied because I could get caught and banned.

I learned from this prototypical customer that college athletes are already dedicated to becoming more physically fit, and that they are willing to do anything (even steroids) to get an advantage. When other recruits or other players start dominating those on the field, the competitive nature of athletes will make them want to train with experienced professionals to better their body.

Summarize

My original opportunity is still there partially, but it doesn’t rely much on people that are getting obese in the first place. I believe that my new opportunity may not be more accurate than when I started because college athletes may go to other people to train, like coaches. I think that entrepreneurs should adapt their opportunities based on overwhelming customer feedback. Every person is different and while their input is valuable, they may not fit your market. If you stay firm, you could eventually break through the market.

5A- Identifying local opportunities

1.

Shon Smith and Zully Rivera-Ramos: Stepping up for social justice in Gainesville
http://infoweb.newsbank.com/resources/doc/nb/news/169AC9758CD3A548?p=WORLDNEWS

Gainesville is not immune to social issues. Just like the rest of the country there are issues that are a huge issue for citizens. One of these issues is racial inequalities. To try to help ease these tension, Gainesville is holding an event called “Social Justice Summit: For the Gator Good”.

The problem presented is that society is not as equal as we would like it to be. There are still underlying issues that are impacting people. These people being affected are typically minorities.

2.

Consumers Can Find Low-Cost Checking, Despite Bank of America Move
http://infoweb.newsbank.com/resources/doc/nb/news/169AC9740047ABA8?p=WORLDNEWS

Bank of America dismantled their eBanking checking accounts. These accounts were used to avoid monthly fees on their accounts. There are other options like turning to credit unions and online banks.

Bank of America clients no longer have the ability to avoid monthly fees on their account by using eBanking. If this is a major issue for them, they maty have to switch where they bank.

3.

Would village of tiny houses work in Gainesville?
http://infoweb.newsbank.com/resources/doc/nb/news/169AC974B9A11510?p=WORLDNEWS

Tiny homes have villages in places like Austin, Texas. These villages are low cost and low maintenance, with community volunteers living in these villages to keep order. Because they are such low cost, homeless people have started living in them. This article is analyzing the risks and benefits of the homes in Gainesville now that there are an increasingly large amount of homeless people.

The problem is that Gainesville is struggling to find places for homeless people to live. The homeless people affects Gainesville citizens and business owners because some may be intimidated by the homeless and not want to go out to public.

4.

4 suspended players rejoin UF program

http://infoweb.newsbank.com/resources/doc/nb/news/169A751FEDED04E0?p=WORLDNEWS

Some players are returning from a suspension the team placed on them for doing the credit card fraud last season. The team is emphasizing higher standards for their players to ensure this doesn’t happen again. The remaining five players either transferred to other colleges or declared for the NFL draft. All the players are facing felony charges, while some are attempting to resolve some of the problems they face.

The problem is that the Gators football team has issues with their players conduct. This conduct issue impacts the universities revenue generation, and it impacts the fans’ game-experience because these players are impact players.

5

Local solar companies brace for tariff

http://infoweb.newsbank.com/resources/doc/nb/news/169A751FB6883098?p=WORLDNEWS

Donald Trump is placing a tariff on solar panels to protect American jobs and American people. This tariff will impact Gainesville solar company owners and the whole industry will be shaken up. The tariff is a whopping thirty percent. People don’t think it will help jobs, it will only raise the price of the products being sold, thus slowing the industries growth. It can also impact the consumer’s cost of around five percent.

The problem is that this tariff will hurt consumers and business owners. Prices will rise for consumers slightly, and the growth of the industry will slow which can hurt business owners.

The people who are trying to be environmentally friendly are going to be hurt most by this tariff, whether it be the companies or the business owners. People who don’t care about the environment will not be impacted because they don’t buy solar panels anyway.

3A - Your Entrepreneurship Story

Your Entrepreneurship Story 3A

In the summer of 2014, I noticed that many people went on vacations and had left their homes alone. I realized that people may want some security by having someone look over their home. Furthermore, they would appreciate coming home to a nice, well kept lawn and pool and a happy pet. To fill this need in the market, I started and ran my own business called “Mitch’s Va-care”. I started off small and saw some growth, but not as much as I would’ve liked. It grew from helping homes in my neighborhood, to nearby homes in other neighborhoods, and eventually across town. I gained lots of skills, and worked hard, but I feel like I could’ve done much better with a more sophisticated plan.

I took this class to hone in on some of my entrepreneurial potential and further develop skills that will help me out later in life. I may not become an entrepreneur, but I want to have the skills and develop a mindset so that if I have options for doing things that I love later in life. 

Bug List 2A

Bug list

1. Every morning at 8:00 and afternoon during rush hour the East beltway 295 is jam packed with bumper to bumper traffic
   • Why does this exist
     1. There are not enough lanes on east beltway 295 for the amount of traffic. This is one of the only routes to move north and south in Jacksonville and is jamming too many people into two lanes

2. Apple iPhone extension products like headphones or chargers are so fragile and break/malfunction constantly
   • Why does this exist
     1. Apple either doesn’t use the highest quality materials when making chargers and headphones. May want customers to continually buy new headphones to make more money

3. My Phone charge doesn’t last the whole day and I am forced to constantly charge my phone
   • Why does this exist
     1. The battery in the iPhone wears down over time and loses its length that it keeps iphones alive

4. The internet around UF doesn’t always work, certain routers (around the dining halls, in my dorm kitchen) seem to be malfunctioning and forcing me to use data without me realizing
   • Why does this exist
     1. The system may be extremely complex and hard to manage, the routers may not be the best quality routers, too many people may be using the router at once

5. THERE IS NOT ENOUGH PARKING ON UF CAMPUS
   • Why does this exist
     1. There are not enough parking spots designated for people to drive on campus, high demand for spots, low availability

6. The dining hall phone app shows certain foods being served and in reality seems to always have something else
   • Why does this exist
     1. The apps are not being up to date by whoever runs them, poor management of the apps

7. It takes me too long to be able to use the weights in the student rec center during peak hours
   • Why does this exist
     1. The student rec center gym has more than half of the gym dedicated to treadmills and cardio equipment that are rarely used, while the other half is spread over all strength machines.

8. Apple iPhone forces me to set up apple pay, AND I DON’T WANT THAT
   • Why does this exist
     1. Apple wants people to use their new feature and doesn’t let you reject it. They keep bothering people with notifications that they cannot remove if they reject the new feature

9. Apple iPhone gives me irremovable notifications that I need to backup my iPhone, and then a secondary notification that my iPhone cannot be backed up because I don’t have enough iCloud space. What even is iCloud storage
   • Why does it exist
     1. Apple wants people to use their new feature and doesn’t let you reject it. They keep bothering people with notifications that they cannot remove if they reject the new feature

10. The dorm driers never fully dry my pants/jeans and I have to air dry them an extra day before folding them
    • Why does it exist
      1. The dorm driers do not have enough power or enough heating potential to fully dry my clothes

11. My brand new keyboard already has squeaky keys that cause a nuisance when playing and typing
    • Why does it exist
      1. The keys may be faulty because it is a cheaper keyboard, they may have a mechanical issue

12. The student health center takes an extraordinary time to see patients. Usually around a week wait to get in
    • Why does it exist
      1. They are not efficient at seeing patients in a timely manner

13. There is always a massive line for Business advising that makes It impossible to schedule an appointment
    • Why does it exist
      1. They are not efficient at seeing students in a timely manner, there are not enough advisers for the amount of students trying to get advising

14. It is nearly impossible to find an outlet in Marston Science Library during peak hours
    • Why does this exist
      1. Marston Science Library doesn’t have enough outlets at tables in the middle of the third floor, so people hug the walls where the outlets are

15. The apple iPhone keyboard characters are too small
    • Why does this exist
      1. Small screen means you have to cram the keyboard in a small window

16. The call of duty video game servers are extremely inconsistent and take a long time to respond to player input
    • Why does this exist
      1. There was not enough preparation of the servers, didn’t anticipate the amount of people trying to play the game (poor planning on their part)

17. Nearly impossible to tell how much gas is left in the lawnmower
    • Why does this exist
      1. There is no fuel gauge on the lawnmower, I have to look into a dark capsule and try to gauge it myself

18. My special mojo golf balls blend in to the environment and get lost
    • Why does it exist
      1. The golf balls are a color where if I miss the fairway I can’t find it

19. I want to be able to do a real time data analysis of players in game (like speed ran, place on field, time spent on ball moving or off ball moving), not have to wait until the game is over
    • Why does it exist
      1. Software hasn’t developed enough or services aren’t being provided for people that want this type of analysis during games

20. I can’t always tell who scores points in certain sports like basketball.
    • Why does it exist
      1. The names on the jerseys are small, and they don’t have a system where it shows the name when they score the points.

I found it difficult to come up with certain bugs after around number 16. I think that there are many reasons why there was some difficulty coming up with this bug list.

First off, it is human nature to come up with solutions to issues. Lots of these issues people come up with makeshift solutions that could be improved upon. Once humans come up with makeshift solutions, they may forget about these issues thinking that they are not issues anymore.

Also, as one changes and progresses through life, issues change as well. For example, one may have issues as a child, like not being able to reach the top shelf of the pantry because they are short. As they grow older, that issue is solved because they get taller. Different people have different issues.

As for the ‘why does it exist’ section, I think that people may not realize what specific issues are bothering them. Personally, an issue I deal with is that my low back hurts after sitting for a while. I never realized that my posture when I am sitting was causing that issue, I just knew that my back hurt. It may be hard to pinpoint the specific reasons of what is causing these issues.