Free Money

This assignment was very intriguing for me. Because I am currently studying abroad in Madrid, Spain, I could not give away dollars; instead I had to attempt to give out 1 Euro coins. I decided to go to two different places on two different days to test out this experiment. The first place I went to was an open cafe where local teenagers go to drink coffee or do homework. Here I attempted to give a 1 Euro coin to a young man who was chatting and doing an assignment with two other girls because they reminded me of my friends from back home. I spoke to him in Spanish to ensure that he could understand me. I told him that I was trying to do a good deed and that it was up to him to pass on this Euro and continue the good deed chain or he could choose to keep it for himself. He questioned my intentions at first but then he accepted the Euro.

To diversify my experiment, I chose to go to a very popular open bar in Madrid. This bar is known for their famous tapas (small dishes) and signature cocktails that are served by waiters while customers are standing. It is a very touristy bar so I decided to attempt to speak to these girls in English. I recognized the American brands of clothes that they were wearing so I decided they would be easy to approach and talk to. I told the girls that I was trying to do a good deed and give away 1 Euro but they refused. After asking them again, and them refusing again, I thanked them for their time and left.

Overall, I was only able to give out 2 Euros. I definitely thought that more people would accept my money but it seems that strangers do not want to owe anything to anyone, especially strangers in Madrid. I assumed that younger people would want to accept the Euro because they typically do not have high paying jobs so I felt that the Euro would help them buy a coffee or croissant later in the day. However, I only asked two young individuals, both of which are shown in my videos, and one accepted the money but the other rejected it. I feel that men are more likely to accept because they typically are not as afraid of strangers as women are. Being a woman myself, I hate feeling like I owe somebody something. A similar situation to this is when I am at a bar and a stranger offers to buy me a drink. I would obviously love a free drink but I do not want the stranger to get the wrong idea or feel like I owe him anything because he bought me that drink. I thoroughly enjoyed this assignment and learned a lot about cultural differences between Spaniards and Americans.

Videos:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PYkRL_ZEC1M
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=siPklreW1g8

30A

The first week of this semester was very difficult for me; I was traveling abroad with no cellular data and no way of connecting to the Internet. To top it off, I was unaware of the fact that Summer C classes had started that week. Therefore, I failed to complete the first two assignments, which consisted of very simple readings and were basically free points. Moving on to the following week, I failed to properly submit the URL for my blog post and did not receive those points as well. By the end of the second week of classes, I had a whopping 2 out of 8 potential points, and I was panicking. After emailing Dr.Pryor and having him reassure me that it was still possible to pass the class with a decent grade, I took it upon myself to make a weekly calendar of all my assignments to ensure that I would not miss a single one. Ever since that moment, I have completed all of my assignments earlier than the due date and have put forth maximum effort into all of them. My most joyous occasion was the videos that my friends had to send in about me explaining what my strengths were. These videos made me very happy and allowed me to realize how fortunate I am to have such incredible friends in my life. I am most proud of interviewing all of these diverse people because it really encouraged me to step out of my comfort zone and talk to some people that I would have never had the privilege of meeting had it not been for this course.

I definitely feel more like an entrepreneur after taking this class. What that means to me is that I see products from a business mindset now. For example, when I go to the supermarket, I look and see where products are placed and how they are advertised. I also look and see what deals are being offered for that product as well as how popular the brand is within that store. Prior to this class, I had never paid attention to those sorts of minute and seemingly irrelevant details. However, now I notice those small things and it has helped me become a more conscientious shopper.

My recommendation to future students is to make a calendar at the start of the semester with all of the due dates for the class. This will help you stay focused and remember the dates to ensure that you do not lose easy points simply because you were unaware of the deadline. Also, I would recommend really taking the opportunities to interact with your classmates. They are very knowledgeable and can give great advice that will truly help you in all of your future business endeavors.

29A

Opportunity

            For the ignition lock, there are numerous different opportunities available. This product is aimed at keeping roads safe, which is something that every driver, biker, passenger, pedestrian, and more use on a daily basis. The ignition lock is an innovative way to prevent drunk drivers from operating vehicles while under the influence of alcohol. Therefore, our product is aimed specifically at alcohol consumers but will benefit a greater population than that.

            If statistics came out to show the number of alcohol related accidents that occur on an annual basis, the demand for the ignition lock would increase as individuals would become more aware of the actual dangers of drunk driving. Furthermore, if a campaign began to increase awareness of this issue, my product’s demand would undoubtedly increase. Demographically, my product is aimed at 21-25 year olds, which is the age group most likely to drive while under the influence of alcohol. In addition, these young adults have just begun obtaining alcohol legally and do not necessarily know their limits. Also, they are all newer drivers compared to their elders so they do not have as much experience operating a vehicle.

            Currently, customers are not satisfying this need in a sufficient manner. Many intoxicated drivers will refuse to believe they are incapable of driving and will get behind the wheel anyway. This is what the ignition lock focuses on preventing. Because there are so many drivers that do consume alcohol regularly, the opportunity for this product is huge. However, we need to increase the awareness of the risks and frequency in which drunk driving occurs. When we do this, it is crucial to play to the emotions of our potential customers as that is what will be critical in selling our product. By appealing to our audience's emotional side, we can ensure that they want to prevent alcohol related car accidents and will, therefore, buy the ignition lock. The opportunity will remain there for a long time but we do not want it to do so. By selling the ignition lock to car manufacturing companies, customers of popular car companies will be receiving the good for free when they purchase their vehicles. Obviously the car would be more expensive with this addition but it will not seem like it to the customer because they only see the car priced at the full value.

Innovation

            The ignition lock is an innovative product because there are very few other companies that produce a service or product similar to it. Customers can either buy the product separately from when they purchase their vehicle or they can choose to buy a car with the product in it already. This means that my company would sell the ignition locks to car manufacturing companies as well as ordinary drivers. We would be able to install the product in any vehicle for a small service fee as well. The ignition lock will have numerous settings but the idea behind it is to prohibit the operation of a vehicle when the driver is under the influence of alcohol.

The way that the ignition lock works is simple. When a driver attempts to turn on their engine, the ignition lock will force them to take a breathalyzer test before the engine turns on. If the driver’s blood alcohol content is above the legal limit, the engine will not power on and the car will refuse to allow the driver to operate it. In order to turn the engine on, someone needs to pass the breathalyzer test. There would be options to turn off the ignition lock but they would need to be turned off 24 hours prior to the time that the driver requests the lock to be off. This would ensure that the driver is fully coherent and sober when he or she decides to forego the product and take their own risk at operating the vehicle.

The cost of the ignition lock would vary depending on a variety of factors. I would like to contact organizations who advocate for safe driving, like Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD), to sponsor our product. This would make it more affordable for our customers to purchase the product. I am hoping that with the numerous sponsorships we will obtain, the price of the product will come out to around $200. Furthermore, because our product deals with auto security, we will attempt to gain some financial aid from the government. If the government supports our product and gives it substantive financial backing, the price of this ignition lock will be even more affordable. The government would be interested in this because they will need less police officers and first respondors to deal with these accidents and, most importantly, it will save the lives of so many citizens.

Venture Concept

Customers are fairly easy to understand from an emotional standpoint. If you pull at their heartstrings hard enough, they will be more understanding and tend to view your product from a more emotional stance. Therefore, it is imperative that my company launch numerous campaigns warning about the dangers of drunk driving, especially in this day and age among young adults. Once they are informed about this lethal issue, I am positive that many of them will be eager to test out our product in order to keep our roads safer than ever before.

There are few other companies that make this same product so competition will not be too large of an issue. However, many of my competitors do not have the option to power off the ignition lock. While this might create a problem in terms of safety, I have established many regulations that come with turning off this lock which will not sacrifice the safety of our customers. This special feature will make my company more successful and more popular than my competitors’ companies.

Our whole product relies on the humanistic assumption that people are kind and want others, as well as themselves, to be safe. Therefore, our entire product and company relies on customer satisfaction and trust. Our employees will be trained in the best manner possible to ensure that they treat all customers fairly and we will include a thirty day test trial of the product. Mainly, our product will be sold online but once the company has more revenue, I plan on setting up stores where customers can go in and converse with our sales representatives as well as test out the product on a company car. While it would be cheaper to solely sell our product online, it is crucial for customers to be able to communicate in the best manner possible with our employees so opening these physical store locations will benefit our product and sales in the long run. I would only hire 5 employees to work at this location per shift and would require them to have customer service experience as well as some previous experience in the automotive industry.

Feedback

The main feedback I received for this assignment revolved around me expanding my resources for financial supporters. Most of my peers told me that I could obtain money from the government to support me in this venture. They recommended to reach out to them and tell them about the long term benefits of the ignition lock. Not only will this product save lives, it will decrease the amount of time that government workers, such as firefighters and police officers, have to spend dealing with these terrible accidents. Another important note that my peers mentioned was to really amplify the emotional aspect of marketing my product. They agreed with my previous claim that drivers will be more likely to buy this product if they feel guilty or want to be considered "a Good Samaritan" so it is essential to advertise this product as a life-saving product that will ensure less deaths across America. Therefore, in my venture concept, I wrote that I would reach out to local government representatives at first to gain their financial backing for my product in order to make this product more affordable and encourage customers to purchase the ignition lock. I also wrote that I need to spend more funds on marketing my product emotionally to really play at the heartstrings of my potential customers and make it feel like it is their civic duty to purchase this product.

28A

Although I have not given much thought to what my exit strategy would be, this assignment allowed me to think clearly on all of my potential options and evaluate which strategy would be most beneficial for me. While I have enjoyed creating and developing this product very much, I feel that it would be best for me to leave this company after gaining a good amount of prestige and recognition for the product itself. My goal is not to only make money, but to ensure a safer future for all drivers and pedestrians. Once my product is established, I plan on selling my company and starting a different venture in a completely different area.

I selected this exit strategy because I want to explore my other options. I feel as if I have much more to offer to the world than just one product but I also want to diversify myself and my products. While it is possible to keep the company I currently have and just choose to expand my product line, I would not want my products to be associated with one another. This is because I plan on creating an entirely different product with no relation to the ignition lock and I do not want customers to be confused by the brand that I will be representing.

Because I did not consider this exit strategy prior to this assignment, I did not realize how it would affect me in terms of future products or business strategies. The networking connections that I have established in the automobile industry will most likely not help me with my new company. Although this is unfortunate, these old partners can become investors if they choose or even promote my product if they wish. Hopefully, many loyal customers will be aware of my new brand and will also be interested in purchasing those innovative products.

27A

1. For this reading reflection, I chose to analyze the book How to Fail at Almost Everything and Still Win Big by Scott Adams. I originally chose to read this book because the title truly intrigued me and it seemed like it would have a comedic aspect to it. The main theme of the book talks about the importance of bettering oneself. Furthermore, it explains that being the best you that you can be is what benefits society the most. Adams further explains this by stating that if you are not constantly on your A-game, you then become a burden to society and create a downward spiral of those around you in your family, community, and, ultimately, the entire world.
2. This book relates to ENT3003 because this course focuses on entrepreneurship. Being the best you that you can be, as Adams mentions is the best way to contribute to society, can be related to entrepreneurship. Excelling at creating and developing new business ideas and products is a way to make yourself useful and a great asset to society. By creating these products, you are giving society something that they need but do not currently have, which is assisting them in numerous aspects of their daily lives.
3. If I had to design an exercise for this course based solely off of this novel, I would choose to have every student determine how they have currently helped society or been an asset to those around them. Then, I would ask them to hypothesize how different the lives of those around them would be if they were not in existence. For example, I would have students respond to how their family dynamic would be different if they had never been born. Or if their friend group would be as sturdy as it currently is had they not been in existence.
4. I was most surprised by the fact that Adams refers to selfishness as a positive thing. He writes about how important it is to be selfish, because one achieves their best life by being selfish and only looking out for themselves. However, I realized the positive aspects of being selfish once he dove into more detail on the subject matter. It is imperative to be selfish because then you are living up to your full potential and therefore being the best asset to society as possible. After reading this novel, I do not believe selfishness is a bad quality to have, but rather a characteristic that we should all have in moderation.

26A

I think failure is inevitable. Although I have experienced many failures outside of the classroom, I would like to talk about a time this past semester in which I experienced failure in ENT3003. This summer, I have the privilege of studying abroad in Madrid, Spain. Furthermore, I was fortunate enough to have the opportunity to travel for New York and New Jersey to visit my friends for four days as well as lead a ten day educational trip to Israel this summer. Because my Madrid classes did not begin until June 4th, I assumed that all University of Florida classes would not begin until then as well. Therefore, I planned my other trips to New York, New Jersey, and Israel to occur from early May until the end of May. Once I returned home from these marvelous places, I decided to log on to m student portal and see if the syllabi for any of my classes had been released early. Then I realized that ENT3003 did not begin in early June, but rather in the middle of May. I saw how behind I was in my schoolwork and had already lost eight points the first couple weeks without even realizing it. I felt very ashamed and embarrassed but, most of all, I felt angry towards myself for not being more vigilant about my studies and deadlines.

From that point on, I made sure to turn in all of my assignments at least one week prior to the deadline and do my best so that I would get full credit on all of my work. This would help me maintain a decent letter grade in the course even though I was already down multiple points. Furthermore, I know there is an extra credit opportunity arising soon so I will complete that assignment as well to ensure a good grade in this course. Because Dr. Pryor is so strict with deadlines, this course made me realize that the real world does not allow mistakes. If you miss a deadline, it is your fault and there is no going around it. There will not be second chances and you must take ownership for your mistakes. Although I wish I could have received credit for the assignments I missed, I realize that Dr. Pryor is not wrong in not allowing me to complete these assignments after the deadline. In the future, I will create a calendar of all the upcoming deadlines I have in order to make sure I do not miss anything and can be on top of all my assignments for all my future classes.

25A

Existing Market

• For the future, I would like to continue searching for ways to make streets safer for all of those around us. I would broaden my horizons to include ways to ensure car safety not only for intoxicated drivers, but also for all types of drivers. Therefore, I would like to create and install new safety features for vehicles. These would also be sold in a similar manner to the ignition lock; either car companies can choose to buy the product and install it in their vehicles during the production phase or drivers can purchase the product and install it themselves or pay an additional service fee to have one of the company's employees install it for them.
• Out of the three people I interviewed in my existing market, two of them told me that I was doing an incredible job and they did not think that I needed to add anything to my product. They felt that I should focus on the path to preventing intoxicated drivers from operating vehicles and stick to that group. They told me to do this because I will have spent so much time and money on figuring out that clientele that it would be a waste to not create more products to benefit that specific group of customers. However, the third person I interviewed told me to expand my market and sell products for all types of drivers, not just those who drive while intoxicated. He told me this because there are only so many products that one customer can buy and the clientele group of drunk drivers is rather small in comparison to all drivers so he recommended I focus more on those customers.
• 
  
• After discussing my future plans with the people I interviewed, I realized that it might be best to start off small and then expand my business as more revenue comes in. This means that I would spend additional funds on research and development to really get to know my current customers and determine what their wants and needs are. I would attempt to develop more products that they deem necessary and would want to buy in addition to the ignition lock. I would also attempt to create a product that these customers could use instead of the ignition lock.
• Once my business gains popularity, I will have a larger cash flow and be able to spend more funds on further research and development. This will allow me get to know a new client pool and see how they operate. Furthermore, I will use this research to determine what products are in high demand in that market. With this new information, I will create and develop new products that will be useful to these new customers and hopefully gain revenue from this new clientele.

New Market

• Rather than targeting intoxicated drivers, I would like to target people who take public transportation. With this new clientele, I would like to create a form of carpooling among people who do have cars that will be paid less than Uber to transport clients to areas near where they work. Basically, a person who owns a vehicle will state where they are traveling to and from where. Also, people who typically use public transportation or do not own cars will state where they are traveling to and from. Then my company will match these customers and charge a very small fee for the passengers that will then be given to the driver. Because the driver does not have to go excessively out of his way to pick up and drop off these customers, the gas fee will not be large and they will still make a large amount of net revenue. 
• I interviewed someone who bikes to work as well as someone who walks to school. Both of them liked my idea in theory but found a few issues in my business concept. They questioned if it would be worth it to spend this money on such short trips. Also, they wondered if the driver would be annoyed having to make so many different stops on his or her usual route to work. They told me that they believe this idea would be great for rides that are 30 minutes or longer but they felt that the idea would not be beneficial for any trips shorter that that. They also questioned how much money the driver would be making if the fees that the passengers had to pay was so small. However, I assured them that they would be compensated adequately and it would be more than enough to ensure their continued loyalty and service to the company.
•  
• I learned that this new market of pedestrians, bikers, and those who take public transportation are happy with their current method of transportation. They enjoy strolling down the streets and listening to their music on the way to school or work. However, sometimes if they are running late or are too tired, they wish they could drive to work or be driven to school but do not want to pay the high costs of Uber. Therefore, I feel that they would use my services under these circumstances, although it may not be as often as I had intended for it to be.
• Although this market is larger than my previous targeted clientele, the other market is much more narrow and, therefore, easier to identify their needs. This new market is so broad and contains to many diverse characteristics that it is impossible to satisfy all of their needs. While I know my older market better, this market would be able to bring in more revenue because of the sheer size of the market. All in all, I think this new market would be costly to research so I would have to wait until my first business venture really takes off before diving into this new one.

24A

Opportunity

            For the ignition lock, there are numerous different opportunities available. This product is aimed at keeping roads safe, which is something that every driver, biker, passenger, pedestrian, and more use on a daily basis. The ignition lock is an innovative way to prevent drunk drivers from operating vehicles while under the influence of alcohol. Therefore, our product is aimed specifically at alcohol consumers but will benefit a greater population than that.

            If statistics came out to show the number of alcohol related accidents that occur on an annual basis, the demand for the ignition lock would increase as individuals would become more aware of the actual dangers of drunk driving. Furthermore, if a campaign began to increase awareness of this issue, my product’s demand would undoubtedly increase. Demographically, my product is aimed at 21-25 year olds, which is the age group most likely to drive while under the influence of alcohol. In addition, these young adults have just begun obtaining alcohol legally and do not necessarily know their limits. Also, they are all newer drivers compared to their elders so they do not have as much experience operating a vehicle.

            Currently, customers are not satisfying this need in a sufficient manner. Many intoxicated drivers will refuse to believe they are incapable of driving and will get behind the wheel anyway. This is what the ignition lock focuses on preventing. Because there are so many drivers that do consume alcohol regularly, the opportunity for this product is huge. However, we need to increase the awareness of the risks and frequency in which drunk driving occurs. The opportunity will remain there for a long time but we do not want it to do so. By selling the ignition lock to car manufacturing companies, customers of popular car companies will be receiving the good for free when they purchase their vehicles. Obviously the car would be more expensive with this addition but it will not seem like it to the customer because they only see the car priced at the full value.

Innovation

            The ignition lock is an innovative product because there are very few other companies that produce a service or product similar to it. Customers can either buy the product separately from when they purchase their vehicle or they can choose to buy a car with the product in it already. This means that my company would sell the ignition locks to car manufacturing companies as well as ordinary drivers. We would be able to install the product in any vehicle for a small service fee as well. The ignition lock will have numerous settings but the idea behind it is to prohibit the operation of a vehicle when the driver is under the influence of alcohol.

The way that the ignition lock works is simple. When a driver attempts to turn on their engine, the ignition lock will force them to take a breathalyzer test before the engine turns on. If the driver’s blood alcohol content is above the legal limit, the engine will not power on and the car will refuse to allow the driver to operate it. In order to turn the engine on, someone needs to pass the breathalyzer test. There would be options to turn off the ignition lock but they would need to be turned off 24 hours prior to the time that the driver requests the lock to be off. This would ensure that the driver is fully coherent and sober when he or she decides to forego the product and take their own risk at operating the vehicle.

The cost of the ignition lock would vary depending on a variety of factors. I would like to contact organizations who advocate for safe driving, like Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD), to sponsor our product. This would make it more affordable for our customers to purchase the product. I am hoping that with the numerous sponsorships we will obtain, the price of the product will come out to around $200.

Venture Concept

Customers are fairly easy to understand from an emotional standpoint. If you pull at their heartstrings hard enough, they will be more understanding and tend to view your product from a more emotional stance. Therefore, it is imperative that my company launch numerous campaigns warning about the dangers of drunk driving, especially in this day and age among young adults. Once they are informed about this lethal issue, I am positive that many of them will be eager to test out our product in order to keep our roads safer than ever before.

There are few other companies that make this same product so competition will not be too large of an issue. However, many of my competitors do not have the option to power off the ignition lock. While this might create a problem in terms of safety, I have established many regulations that come with turning off this lock which will not sacrifice the safety of our customers. This special feature will make my company more successful and more popular than my competitors’ companies.

Our whole product relies on the humanistic assumption that people are kind and want others, as well as themselves, to be safe. Therefore, our entire product and company relies on customer satisfaction and trust. Our employees will be trained in the best manner possible to ensure that they treat all customers fairly and we will include a thirty day test trial of the product. Mainly, our product will be sold online but once the company has more revenue, I plan on setting up stores where customers can go in and converse with our sales representatives as well as test out the product on a company car. While it would be cheaper to solely sell our product online, it is crucial for customers to be able to communicate in the best manner possible with our employees so opening these physical store locations will benefit our product and sales in the long run. I would only hire 5 employees to work at this location per shift and would require them to have customer service experience as well as some previous experience in the automotive industry.

23A

   1.      Financial Capital- Ever since I was a young girl, I was always considerate of when I would spend money and I did the best I could not to overspend. Therefore, I now have a good amount of financial capital that would allow me to realize this dream of producing the ignition lock.

a.      You need money in order to run a company. This money would go towards production costs as well as salaries and advertising costs.

b.      It is rare for such a young student to have a large amount of financial capital but any decent-paid adult probably has a similar amount in savings as I do.

c.       It would be hard to get this amount of money if you did not already have it beforehand.

d.      You can pay your employees with benefits but you will always need money to run a factory.

   2.      Public Speaking Experience- I have taken numerous public speaking classes and was in a program in high school that bettered my public speaking.

a.      This would be important when marketing my company to other businesses and large firms.

b.      It is not rare to find someone with good public speaking skills.

c.       I have this experience from before but others can easily acquire it as well.

d.      One could not give oral presentations but rather send emails. However, this form of communication is less effective than face-to-face communication.

   3.      Event Management Experience- I have planned multiple events focusing on a diverse range of subjects.

a.      This is crucial when planning events to get donors or require skilled employees to your company.

b.      It is rare for a student my age to have this much experience in event management and planning.

c.       This is a skill that takes time to perfect and practice.

d.      You could hire an event planner to do this task for you but that would cost a lot of money.

   4.      Support of Current Organizations- I have many connections with companies that are large supporters of safe driving.

a.      My company would need financial support from these types of donors because we want to make a cheap product so more consumers would be willing to buy it. However, this would not be possible unless the cost was subsidized.

b.      This is not that rare of a characteristic to have.

c.       It is easy to reach out to these organizations and make connections with them that will better both parties.

d.      The alternative would be to raise the cost of the product.

    5.      Social Media Experience- I have worked for a company’s social media department for three months.

a.      This is important because we want to get our product out there and make it appealing to all sorts of customers.

b.      It is not rare for a young, professional woman to have the same social media experience that I do.

c.       Someone can take a social media class and gain similar skills.

d.      The alternative would be to hire a social media consultant to take care of the marketing associated with the product.

   6.      International Relations Experience- I have worked and studied abroad in numerous countries over the past couple years.

a.      This is valuable because it allows one to get to know cultural norms around the world and be able to sell their product internationally.

b.      It is very rare to find any person who has lived, and worked, in a foreign country in the business world.

c.       It would take a long time for someone to have the same experiences that I did while abroad.

d.      There is no substitute for hands-on international experience.

   7.      Social capital (Greek Life)- I belong to the Greek community and have many connections because of it, both in my chapter as well as in other chapters.

a.      This is valuable because I can reach out to my peers and let them know about the product in a relaxed manner.

b.      Many students, especially at the University of Florida, are involved in Greek life so it would not be rare to find another person with this same form of social capital.

c.       One can join other organizations and create a social network that way.

d.      The substitute would be another form of organization but it is rare to find a community as large as the Greek community at the University of Florida.

   8.      Social capital (Golden Key International Honor Society)- I serve as the president for this organization and lead weekly meetings.

a.      This is valuable because other club members look up to me and admire my ideas and leadership.

b.      It is rare to find a president of a student organization, even though the university has over 1,000 student organizations.

c.       It is possible to gain similar experience from serving as a board member on an organization but it is very different to serve as president.

d.      The substitute would be to serve as a president for another organization at the University of Florida.

   9.      Social capital (Jewish Student Union)- I served as the event coordinator and spoke at monthly meetings.

a.      The value I gained from this position allowed me to see everything that happens behind the scenes when planning a large event or function for a large group of people.

b.      Holding a position like event coordinator is very rare and only a few people are up for the challenge.

c.       One can gain this experience by working for an event planning company but no other board positions have to complete the same tasks as the event coordinator does.

d.      The substitute would be to serve as the event coordinator for another UF organization.

   10.  Social capital (University of Florida RecSports)- I work at the gym and teach a hip hop fitness class there.

a.      This job allows me to perform in front of 50 of my peers and lead an exercise class twice a week.

b.      This job is not very rare, as we have a large community of staff members at RecSports.

c.       Any UF student can apply for this job but there is a tedious application, interview, performance analysis, exam and training course that they must complete before getting this job.

d.      The substitute would be to teach a fitness class at any local gym in the Gainesville area.

I think my top resource is the social capital I have from being involved in the University of Florida’s Greek community. There are so many incredible and driven members of this community that will be CEOs and CFOs of large companies within the next few decades. Having the privilege to make powerful connections with these people will allow me to grow my company by spreading my message and reaching a broader network. The Florida Greek community has given me so much already and I am eager to see how it will continue to help me in my professional life.

22A

Link to video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uBbs5E73mgs

The feedback I received the second time I recorded my elevator pitch focused more on commending my skills rather than providing examples of things I can improve. Therefore, I attempted to keep most of the mannerisms I used during my second elevator pitch. Examples of this include a slow yet firm way of speaking, extended eye contact, and a gentle smile. Because this sales pitch was only supposed to be 1 minute rather than the 90 second ones for previous assignments, I had to remove some essential information in my elevator pitch. I feel like the longer videos allowed me to play to my audience's emotional side whereas, in this elevator pitch, I only had time to speak about what the ignition lock truly is. For the future, I would say that 90 seconds to 2 minutes is the ideal length for an elevator pitch so that a businessperson can get their use of their product out as well as some statistics and appeal to the viewers' emotions.

21A

• I chose to read Cognitive Surplus by Clay Shirky and fell in love with the book! The main argument of the book revolves around free time and what to do with those excess hours. Shirky proposes that, if we spent all of our free time attempting to engage with technology, our society would be able to advance like we have never seen before.
• This book relates to ENT3003 in numerous ways. The first way is that, while I do not have that much free time this summer, the free time I do have I spent working on class assignments online. Furthermore, most of the research I conducted about my product, the ignition lock, was done on a computer during my free time. Therefore, I agree with Shirky's statement that free time, when mixed with technological engagement, can result in increased productivity. Also, the book mentions that social media is inherently good and can be very beneficial to the world around us. This summer, I have deactivated all of my social media and I feel out of the loop. The daily articles that pop up on my Facebook feed really educate me about what is going on in the world around me and I almost feel lost without having this information so readily available to me and, furthermore, shoved in my face at all times.
• Based off of this book, I would design an assignment focusing on social media. I would encourage students to write down the pros and cons of each different type of social media site (Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, etc) and then go around interviewing people of all diverse generations to see what they think about these sites. It would be intriguing to compare the different reviews based off of the different age groups.
• I was very surprised to learn that Shirky was so pro-social media. It is very rare to see a middle aged man being so adamant about the benefits of social media but Shirky proved this stereotype wrong in his book. It also made me realize how good social media is, especially in moderation. 

20A

Domain Expert

1. David is a middle aged police officer who works for Trinity College's police department. He is from Alabama but now lives and works in Hartford, Connecticut. He has three daughters and one son.
2. David feels that there is an increasing need for campus safety and, more specifically, substance abuse prevention. He and his coworkers have come up with numerous diverse ways to encourage students to stop drunk driving. One of these incentives are campus safe rides. The way this works is that if a student feels too intoxicated to drive, they can call a police officer and they will pick them up and escort them to their on-campus dorm. This is a smart and effective way to decrease the amount of alcohol related driving accidents.
3. My best friend goes to school at Trinity College and is involved with their campus safety department so he put me in contact with David.
4. My friend is very active in Trinity College so David did not hesitate to talk to me about such an important issue like alcoholic driving safety. All he asks in return is that I spread the message of safety to my university.
5. David is a great contact to have for the future because I know he is committed to the same goal that I am which is eliminating alcohol induced car accidents.

Market Expert

1. Sofia is a 25 year old college graduate who currently lives in Boston, Massachusetts. She has been known to be the life of the party and is very social.
2. Although she hesitated to admit it, Sofia has driven drunk quite often. She claims that she just doesn't want to pay for an Uber home and would hate to leave her car overnight at a random person's house. This is why she is an ideal candidate for my product.
3. I have known Sofia since I was 4 years old and we have grown up together. 
4. When talking with her, she was reluctant to tell me about all of the times she has driven while under the influence. However, because we are such close friends, she opened up to me and was honest about her driving history.
5. Sofia is a good contact because she has many connections and can help advertise my product to the ideal customer which is people just like her.

Supplier Expert

1. Janice is an elderly lady who lives in Boca Raton, Florida and is about to retire.
2. She is a supplier expert because she works for a company that manufactures GPS' and sells them to car manufacturing companies so that they can install them in vehicles. Janice also sells her product to consumers for a cheaper rate if they want to install the product themselves or use it as a handheld device.
3. Janice is a friend of my grandmother's and is always around the house. She is a very sweet lady and very helpful with whatever I need.
4. I told Janice that I needed to interview her for an assignment and she was thrilled. She doesn't have any children or grandchildren so she loves talking to me and my siblings whenever we are available.
5. She is a good contact because she can tell me which car companies would be ideal to sell to and give me an idea of the prices I can charge for my product and the different varieties of my product.

Conclusion: This network experience was a bit difficult but I enjoyed taking the time to get to know more people that could serve as potential business contacts for me in the future. Normally, I market myself in person but I conducted 2 of these 3 interviews over the phone which is different than how I normally speak to business contacts. Going forward, I would like to meet with David and see if there is any way that he would be interested in advertising my product on his campus with a certain type of incentive.

19A

• ·    My name is Iara Dircie and I am a rising fourth-year student at the University of Florida. My undergraduate degrees are in Business Management and Political Science but I am also doing a combined Master’s program in International Business. I am hoping to manage my own company one day and this business concept will assist me in getting to know the life cycle of a business idea.
• ·     The product I am offering to customers is an ignition lock that prohibits intoxicated drivers from turning on the engine of their cars. Upon entering one’s vehicle, the driver would have to use a breathalyzer to determine if they are capable of driving their car. If the driver’s blood alcohol content is below the legal limit, the ignition lock would allow them to turn on the engine. However, if the driver is legally drunk, the ignition lock would turn on and prohibit the vehicle from operating until someone passed the breathalyzer test. There are also ways to turn off the ignition lock at some points during the day but it would be mandatory to have it on during the weekends.
• ·     This product would be sold to car manufacturing companies that could install the product in vehicles before selling them. We would also sell this product to people who already own vehicles. These customers would have to pay for the product itself as well as the installation fees which we hope will be subsidized by organizations advocating for driver safety. This product would be mainly for alcoholics but we also want every person who consumes alcohol to receive an ignition lock.
• ·      Customers should purchase this product to ensure their safety as well as the safety of all their fellow drivers. Statistics show that the highest percentage of car related deaths occur from drunk driving and this ignition lock will help reduce the number as much as possible. Because this is such an important cause to so many people, many organizations that promote safe driving will subsidize the cost of this product, thus making it affordable for all and easy to adapt to. In order to make my customers care more about buying the product, I will focus on marketing the product from an emotional perspective in order to convince consumers of the necessity of this product. By attaching this emotional element, more consumers will feel obligated to buy the ignition lock in order to prevent future heartbreak resulting from alcohol induced car accidents. 
• ·      This product is very different than products that have been created in the past. It offers a service that is so rare to find, safety. By only taking out a minute of their day, our customers can ensure the safety of millions of civilians. Also, I would reach out to numerous sponsors in hopes to reduce the cost of this product significantly so that purchasing this product is not seen as a financial burden to anyone.
• I think that all of these products work nicely with one another because the product that I am offering is something that all customers who own a vehicle can buy and most of them will want to buy it when the realize the positive effects of the ignition lock. For the most part, the biggest reason to buy the product is to create a safer environment and most consumers are determined to realize this goal.
• Although I did not receive too much constructive criticism, the biggest comment I got was to add an emotional element to my marketing in order to persuade the customers to buy my product. If I were to shoot a commercial showing a deadly accident caused by drunk driving and then were to show a different scene as to how this would have been avoided with an ignition lock, it is more likely that viewers will feel an emotional obligation to buy my product. Another point that I got feedback on was the fact that I decided to sell the product straight to car manufacturers. My peer commented on the fact that this was a strategic business move and would bring in more cash flow and popularity to the product.

18A

According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, 34% of all drunk driving deaths are caused by young adults aged 21-24 while 30% of these accidents are caused people aged 25-34. The vast majority of alcohol related driving deaths are caused by young adults operating these vehicles while intoxicated so I conclude that this age group is the prototypical customer for my ignition lock product that aims to reduce the amount of drunk driving.

More specifically, my avatar is named Maddy and she is a 21 year old sorority girl who loves to go out and party. She is the social chair of her sorority and gets drunk approximately three times a week, even on school nights. She attends the University of Alabama which is a big state school with a huge Greek community. She does not have any kids but is the youngest of four daughters. Her father is a doctor and her mother is a stay-at-home mom. Maddy does not like reading or studying but she studies fashion design and always travels to different countries to explore the clothing of that area.

Maddy’s aunt recently passed away because she was hit by an intoxicated driver who ran a red light and T-boned her car. Although Maddy used to drive after she felt sober enough to leave the club, the incident with her aunt made her question if she truly was sober all of those times she got behind the wheel after a night out. Maddy wants to be sure that she won’t hurt anyone or herself by drunk driving so she is the ideal customer for the ignition lock. Because Maddy is sometimes uncertain as to how sober she is, the ignition lock would breathalyze her and prohibit her from operating a vehicle if she is legally drunk.

I relate to Maddy in many ways. Maddy and I are both in Greek life and love to socialize with our friends, usually at a bar or club where alcohol is heavily involved. However, I usually take an Uber to go home after a night out because I know that drunk driving can cause many accidents. Also, I do not think it is a coincidence that Maddy and I both like to party. We both attend large state universities and are around the same age; most students our age partake in these activities as well.

17A

Here is a link to my elevator pitch on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tV2q0kEgJSE

For this assignment, I asked my parents and roommates for feedback regarding my first elevator pitch. They all told me that they thought my presentation was done wonderfully but they also told me that there was a lot of room for improvement. I learned that I need to slow down when I speak and not use my hands as much as I normally do because it is distracting. However, my roommates commended me on my use of eye contact as well as my professionalism when presenting my product. My parents mentioned that they saw my personality come out in the elevator pitch which is very important to me. This is because a businesswoman cannot be one-dimensional and I demonstrated just the opposite of that in my video.

In this second time around, I decided to maintain the positive aspects of my first speech in the second elevator pitch. I included the same facts in both and attempted to use the proper amount of eye contact and professionalism like I did last time. However, I did my very best to keep my hands down by my sides for the majority of the video. I also worked hard to slow down my sentences and truly enunciate my words so that my audience could get a better understanding of what I was trying to say.

16A

5 Ways That My Human Capital Is Unique

1.     Charismatic- Being charismatic is not a skill that can be developed but rather it is something that one either has or doesn't. Whenever I meet somebody, I instantly do my best to form a connection with them and this allows them to trust me.

2.     Agreeable- This quality means that I am open to suggestions from all of those around me. I like to consider all possible options and then do my research in order to find the best solution to whatever task is at hand. Furthermore, this means that I take others' thoughts into consideration and do my best to compromise.

3.     Outgoing- In order to be a successful businesswoman, one must make many connections. Due to my outgoing nature, I am not shy and feel completely comfortable approaching anyone and speaking with them about their life experiences.

4.     Tenacious- Once I set my sights on something, I will accomplish whatever the task is regardless of the circumstances. This is crucial to have as someone in the business world because it is important to acknowledge that, many times, your ideas will be rejected but it is imperative to move forward from this downfall and strive to do better.

5.     Optimistic- Having a positive mindset is very important in the business world. As I mentioned previously, there will be many instances in which a business proposal will not go as hoped but it is important to remain optimistic and try again.

Summarizing the Interviews

1.     My friend Jordan mentioned that I am an uplifting friend and then spoke about the importance of a businessperson having that quality. This is because I would be able to encourage customers to buy my services and allow them to feel comfortable doing so. His mother also spoke about how driven and intelligent I am, which are both qualities necessary to be a successful business woman.
2.      Lauren spoke about how I am very good at making connections with other people. This will help me attract more customers in the business world.
3.      Brett talked about how I am a natural leader and the fact that I know how to take control of a room. In regards to managing my own company, it is important that I am innovative and know how to lead meetings as well as run the company itself.
4.      My friend Michelle emphasized the fact that I am constantly busy and know how to handle a hectic lifestyle. This is because I work two jobs and take an average of five classes every semester but still manage to make time for a social life as well. Although it may seem impossible, being able to manage a good work-life balance is crucial in being a good businesswoman.
5.     Finally, Rachel talked about my sense of humor and how kind I am. These qualities are important for a business leader to have because it is necessary to be a person that your customers can relate to and admire.

Comparing My Own Thoughts to Others

• ·        Most of my friends spoke about the fact that I am very passionate and tenacious, which is also how I would describe myself.
• ·        All of the videos mentioned how great of a friend I am which I never truly realized. I am glad they feel this way and hope to continue treating them properly and my future employees and customers the same way.
• ·        A lot of my friends talked about how nice and friendly I am as well as my great sense of humor. I agree with these and see myself as a very charismatic person so I am glad that others also see me in this light.
• ·        I agree with all of the qualities that my friends listed and would not change any of the qualities I stated in my list because I feel they are all accurate and my friends agreed with me. I am so grateful to have amazing peers like them in my life.