Skylar's Entrepreneurship Blog

1. Upon reviewing my Entrepreneurship blog posts from this semester, I think the most challenging part of this course was having to record myself for the elevator pitches. I don't mind presenting in person, but the act of recording myself speaking for over a minute was nerve-wracking and just honestly super awkward. I didn't enjoy this at all. However, I did enjoy the assignment about embracing failure because it truly allowed me to reminisce on a time that I failed multiple times only to pick something special up. 2. If I am being honest with myself, I am only taking this course because it is a requirement and I never have seen myself as an entrepreneur. I do not think I have moved closer to becoming one, however I have learned a lot about what it takes to be one. In my opinion, relying on more corporate careers is safer as you are guaranteed a steady income, and benefits. I do not have the entrepreneurial mindset, and I am fine with that. 3. To a student that is taking th...

1. Opportunity      The opportunity that I decided to look further into has to do with ink pens bleeding through to the other sheet of a piece of paper when you are writing. This is an issue whether you are writing an important document for work, or if you are an artist using an ink pen to create something. I'd say customers are currently satisfying this need by using pencil instead of ink pen, but I wanted to create. a product that would change that. A product that would take the "ultimatum" away: ink pen that will bleed through, and pencil that won't show up. My product would utilize a mixture of both ink and gel ink so that bleeding wouldn't occur. 2. Innovation       My product uses a balanced mixture of gel ink and liquid ink to fix the issue of leaky, smudgy ink pens without forcing customers to compromise. My pen will allow people to continue using their pen of choice- a smooth ink pen without having to ruin their project with ink bleeding. My ...

1) I plan to either sell my idea to retailers or patent it and have it in stores. Ideally, I'd like to sell my business for a large return. 2) My main goal besides being passionate of my work is making a profit. This is my plan because I want my product to make me money- of course. The need for the SmartPen is important to me as I feel the idea has potential 3) I feel maybe if I was slightly more confident with my product I would not even think about selling my idea for a large return. However, since I know the SmartPen is not one of my best ideas I wouldn't be as opposed to selling the idea off for a good sum of money.

1) What was the general theme or argument of the book? I chose to read Coco Chanel by Lisa Chaney. The general theme of this book is basically that anything is possible with hard work and dedication. Gabrielle Chanel truly started from the bottom- from a little girl suffering childhood abuse and neglect to a very successful entrepreneur and business owner. 2) How did the book, in your opinion, connect with and enhance what you are learning in ENT 3003? Similarly to how we learn in this class to not give up after failure, Gabrielle resonates with this too. Failure is a part of success, and you cannot have success without failure. Her perseverance is a skill that we learn is crucial to be a successful entrepreneur. 3) If you had to design an exercise for this class, based on the book you read, what would that exercise involve? Since what stuck out most to me was Gabrielle's rise to success in spite of all odds against her. I would like to see an exercise where stude...

1) Earlier this semester, my nephew was born and I decided I wanted to learn how to knit. My great grandmother used to knit all of the newborn babies their very own hand knitted blanket, and when she died, unfortunately so did that tradition. When I met my nephew for the first time I fell in love and I felt if someone in the family didn't pick up this tradition again, he would be cheated, and all the new babies in our families future would be as well. So I went to the craft store and I picked out some needles, and some yarn- I had absolutely no idea what I was doing. Beginning to learn the steps of knitting was frustrating and I had to put the project down and revisit it at least 10 times before I picked it up. The learning process didn't stop there. Once I realized what my preferred knitting needles were and which types of yarn I liked I thought I was set. That was until I royally screwed up the blanket that I worked so diligently on for my nephew. It was uneven, it had holes....

Existing Market- students  First Interview: an art student at UF -She says she could see my next venture having to do with other issues in the art industry because I'm clearly passionate about. -Says that advertisements with a clear view of my product and what makes it different would be beneficial for sales. -Suggests beginning to talk to retailers about the need for a product such as mine. Second Interview: a law student at UF -He says my next venture could have something to do with what's going on in the world right now with the coronavirus. Although this doesn't have anything to do with my idea I found it interesting because that is obviously a very relevant-real issue we are facing right now. -Says that The Smart Pen may be seen as "just another pen brand" so it is important to explain what makes my product different. Why do others need to replace their old pens with mine. Third Interview: a freelance artist -He says my next venture should bounce ...

1. Opportunity      The opportunity that I decided to look further into has to do with ink pens bleeding through to the other sheet of a piece of paper when you are writing. This is an issue whether you are writing an important document for work, or if you are an artist using an ink pen to create something. I'd say customers are currently satisfying this need by using pencil instead of ink pen, but I wanted to create. a product that would change that. A product that would take the "ultimatum" away: ink pen that will bleed through, and pencil that won't show up. My product would utilize a mixture of both ink and gel ink so that bleeding wouldn't occur. 2. Innovation       My product uses a balanced mixture of gel ink and liquid ink to fix the issue of leaky, smudgy ink pens without forcing customers to compromise. My pen will allow people to continue using their pen of choice- a smooth ink pen without having to ruin their project with ink bleeding. ...

1. Creativity Valuable: My creativity is helpful in making my venture successful because I can easily find ways to work through a problem that other people maybe wouldn't think of. Rare: Fairly, yes. Inimitable: One cannot teach themselves to be creative. I am just a creative person by default. So this trait is not inimitable. Non-substitutable: No. Creativity is its own thing. 2. Networking/Connections Valuable: Knowing people who would benefit from my product, or that could help improve my product is a valuable resource. Rare: No, you just have to look around and put yourself out there. Inimitable: No. Non-substitutable: No. 3. Critical thinking Valuable: Being able to think critically is valuable in problem solving during my venture. Rare: Fairly, others can think critically. Inimitable: Yes, but that is not necessarily a bad thing. Non-substitutable: No substitute. This is an important part of being an entrepreneur. 4. Patience Valuable: Business ventures don...

https://youtu.be/Uyvo6p3kX8U

1) What was the general theme or argument of the book? I chose to read "How To Fail at Almost Everything and Still Win Big" by Scott Adams. The general theme of this book is the importance of failure- and why it is needed to succeed. As a society, we reject failure but the author seeks a different approach: embracing failure to later use to your advantage. Throughout the book, Adam discusses how some of his greatest successes stemmed from the most embarrassing failures. 2) How did the book, in your opinion, connect with and enhance what you are learning in ENT 3003? I felt this book connected perfectly with the skills we use in this class. To be an entrepreneur, you must fail multiple times before you succeed. It is part of the process, and instead of using those instances of failure to feel sorry for yourself, we learn in this course to be proactive and fix the problem instead. Those same principles are illustrated in this book. 3) If you had to design an exer...