Customer Interviews No. 1

This week I was asked to interview five random people that I have never met before in my life, as such I made contact with a friend of mine to interview brothers at the Delta Upsilon fraternity. I asked them regarding what I saw as a possible opportunity in the local food industry. The unmet need I saw was that of an alternative restaurant to the Greek, Fast Food and house food served at Fraternity houses. College students as a whole usually eat pretty cheap or try to eat food at the best value to stretch their dollar.

The Questions I wrote illustrate some of these ideas:

What food do you usually eat?

Where do you eat it?

Why do you eat it?

If an alternative existed would you eat there?

What makes you want to come back to a restaurant?

Interviews are posted below:

https://youtu.be/zXOJKriyAdo

https://youtu.be/rEJNNnkvI4k   (Interview 2 and 3)


https://youtu.be/TmiRK9OQRLA


https://youtu.be/NUA8Sww3u2E

I think this opportunity has some potential yet, not that much as much of the existing market has already been saturated and has a stable client base. Interviewing customers teaches you to be on your game to not stutter or lose your train of thought, which looks unprofessional. I need to improve upon my interviewing skills to better relate to possible customers.  

Week 4 Reading Reflection

1) What was the biggest surprise for you in the reading? In other words, what did you read that stood out the most as different from your expectations?  

The biggest surprise in the reading came about with the introduction of functional perspectives and seeing how everything had a connection. To be honest, I expected the same old company line of making a want look like a need in a person’s life. Instead, I am treated to an in-depth explanation on how to create alternatives to satisfy a need and put money in my pocket so to speak.

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

One part of the reading which brought on a brief bout of confusion was the creative exercise as it is something that is so foreign to my own way of thinking about things. A new methodology based solely on brain hemispheres is in reality, something that contrasts my own established methodology for creativity. I simply just write the solutions based on economic and political feasibility.

3) If you were able to ask two questions to the author, what would you ask? Why?

I would ask the author why they listed those idea killers in particular. The reason is because they all seem to be said by other people while many ideas are actually killed by their own creators via laziness or amount of work needed to be put into it. My other question to the author would be why they put some many examples in the creative process aside from those needed to better understand the explanation. Too many examples might create a process in people’s minds that revolves around the examples in the book.

4) Was there anything you think the author was wrong about? Where do you disagree with what she or he said? How?

I think the author was completely wrong about the idea that Left and Right hemispheres of the brain are so different and only the corpus callosum connects them. Truth is they actually both have elements of one another thus, Right side in theory could help facilitate left-side ideas and vice-versa as such is human physiology. 

Top 5 World Problems

The following list will be an ordering upon importance of the world's problems.

1. Communicable Diseases

2. Drinking Water                                      

3. Famine

4. Drugs

5. Police Brutality


The reason why I listed communicable diseases at the top of the list is the very real possibility that a third or more of humanity could be wiped out in a pandemic. Worst case scenarios can have diseases arising that could wipe out a whopping 60% of all people infected. Drinking water is another major concern as it provides two needs: hydration as well as to create food. Without enough potable water then, there will be less food. Famine has historically killed billions over the years, yet, new solutions in terms of food creation make this problem less severe than a water shortage. Drugs result in billions of dollars in lost revenue each year as people have to help pay for overdoses as well as measures to combat the drug trade. This leads into the fact police brutality is made more severe as a direct result of the war on drugs resulting in thousands of deaths over the years.

      (Dexedrine)




To contrast, I have created a list of solutions based solely on their possibility of implementation to solve these crises.                                                                                                 (Cocaine)

1. Drugs

2. Police Brutality

3. Communicable disease

4. Drinking Water

5. Famine
                                                                                                 
Drugs are the easiest thing to solve since, people can simply switch to a better high that does not require going to an illegal source such as a drug dealer. Similar highs can be manufactured through new scientific
innovations as well as making marijuana legal to bring more revenue into the pocket of the citizenry and government. Police brutality would go down as result of less people going to illegal sources cutting off the power of criminal organizations and resulting in less militarization of police. Private police would also be an option for citizens in areas fed up with existing bias and ill treatment by the authorities. Another easy solution to implement as people can just expand an existing industry. Communicable disease can be wiped out through the concentrated effort of governments and medical corporations. It will take a lot of time and money to accomplish but, it is possible as shown by the eradication of smallpox. Drinking water can be filtered from the ocean through expensive plants that only the most advanced countries can afford thus making it a problem to be dealt with tens of billions of dollars. Famine would require a complete overhaul of corrupt and failed states which is nigh-impossible as these areas have no effective centralized bureau to deal with crises such as shortages or mitigate the risk of them occurring.

Week 3 Reading Reflection

1) What was the biggest surprise for you in the reading? In other words, what did you read that stood out the most as different from your expectations?

The biggest surprise for me in the reading was the absolute bluntness that the author has for the risks that come from being an entrepreneur. Everything that I have read on the subject of being an entrepreneur was always positive yet, they take a dark turn and talk about the very real possibility of failure and what happens.

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

I was confused when it came to the idea of all of these so very specific requirements to be an entrepreneur while there is great variance in how successful ventures establish themselves. Each of these aspects do not have to apply to a specific entrepreneur like high energy level when such examples to the contrary exist.

3) If you were able to ask two questions to the author, what would you ask? Why?

I would ask the author if he believed in an idealized version of the entrepreneur because much of his writing talks about things that are required to be one yet, some success stories lack some of these elements and replace them with others. Another question I would ask is why would he talk so in length about morality if most firms by their very definition are above board and are ethical as only around 5% of firms actually do anything truly criminal.

4) Was there anything you think the author was wrong about? Where do you disagree with what she or he said? How?

The author was definitely in the wrong about the idea that psychic or mental issues are the biggest problems to an entrepreneur as many have actually nothing left. This usually means paying back loans and all sorts of debts back for the rest of one's life forcing them away from ever being an entrepreneur. Mental states can be overcome but finances cannot.

Identifying Local Opportunities

Seminole residents push for a new cellphone tower

http://infoweb.newsbank.com.lp.hscl.ufl.edu/resources/doc/nb/news/15A7EB551206CAB8?p=AWNB

Residents in a remote part of Seminole county are trying to get a cellphone tower installed to improve their reception around their homes. This plan is going to be proposed to the local county board for final approval. With the addition of the cell phone tower, poor reception will be a thing of the past allowing for better long-distance communication between that area of the county and the rest of the world.

Universities smart to accept jobs challenge

http://infoweb.newsbank.com.lp.hscl.ufl.edu/resources/doc/nb/news/15A83F20B440CCF0?p=AWNB

The Governor of Florida Rick Scott along with every state university and college have been pushing for students of non-vital career paths like the liberal arts to take additional classes.

These classes will make them stand out when employers try to hire them as in today's sorry job market, it is a constant fight for people fresh out of college to get a job.

Seminole begs for laws against begging

http://infoweb.newsbank.com.lp.hscl.ufl.edu/resources/doc/nb/news/15A8936B267590D8?p=AWNB

Seminole County has an endemic issue with panhandling forcing the hand of the residents there to have laws written up stopping the practice. Many of the non-homeless residents of the county are actively trying to dissuade people from giving money to panhandlers as they are becoming an eyesore.

Bill would ban red-light cameras

http://infoweb.newsbank.com.lp.hscl.ufl.edu/resources/doc/nb/news/15A8936B1180A2F8?p=AWNB

Motorists and many lawmakers are sick of having to pay fines whenever they run a red light. As such, the Florida Senate wants to completely ban red-light cameras from being used by municipalities as a way to get rich at the expense of their citizens. This will be a cause of much debate in the Senate for weeks to come.

Hospital takes steps after Legionella tests

http://infoweb.newsbank.com.lp.hscl.ufl.edu/resources/doc/nb/news/15A8936B469E80F8?p=AWNB

The bacteria that causes Legionnaire's Disease, Legionella, was found in Florida Hospital in Orlando. This prompted a systemic purge of all contaminated water sources as well as an investigation. Patients were at risk of infection by this bacteria as well as the fact that this would have caused an outbreak that would have become a health crisis. 

Very Short Interview No. 1

Recently, I had the opportunity to sit down with the newly minted Dr. Roger Austen to discuss entrepreneurship. Dr. Austen operates an independent political advising company that is affiliated with many of the campaigns in North Central Florida.

What are the important skills that have brought you success in being a political consultant?

Apart from all the political know-how and connections with different political figures; it is really just a matter of actually seeing an opportunity and taking it. I have been at this ever since I went off on my own in the 90’s and it has all been about making yourself stand out from everyone else.

What skills would you have liked to learn if you were in my position as a student taking an entrepreneurship class?

If I were in your shoes, I would learn how to get a business off the ground through getting venture capital. What I mean by that is that all the money that was put up for my business came from years of working at other firms. If I could have the chance to sidestep those years through investment capital, I would in a heartbeat.

Being an entrepreneur means what exactly to you?

The personal definition for Roger Austen is as follows: not having to deal with anyone above me, having complete control in the direction of my company and finally, helping my clients win elections and get into office.  

What surprised me during the entire interview was Roger’s common theme of being able to do what he wanted and how he wanted it to accomplish his goals both political and financially. Another facet of surprise was the fact he built himself a one-man operation through years of acquiring capital on his own and making connections with different lawmakers throughout the state.

World's Biggest Problems

The world is plagued by a myriad of major issues that are equally important and demand correction at the soonest possible moment. I have taken the liberty of listing ten of these critical areas and suggest some realistic solutions to these problems.

1. Police brutality
In the last few years, police have been implicated in a number of violent incidents on camera. Many of these incidents have resulted in wide-spread mistrust of police forces across the nation as well as riots in cities like Baltimore. This issue has polarized people causing political disagreement between significant portions of the population.

A solution to this problem is by offering afflicted communities, an alternative in the form of private police. This solution is already being implemented in several areas of the country already to great effect as people have more power over an enterprise that is beholden to them as opposed to the public police. Public police may have their own agendas and biases that may go unchecked despite multiple warning signs because of a lack of transparency in some departments. Private officers can be fired with ease as can the enterprise providing the service thus, encouraging a deeper relationship with the community.

2. Famine
Since the beginning of time, starvation has been one of the greatest threats humanity faces on a daily basis as it is synonymous with fatigue, sickness and eventually death. Many in the developing world still face this specter on a daily basis. The Green Revolution brought food to billions, yet, here we are with millions still being undernourished.

Hence, I propose a solution to this problem: grow more food, and bring the rule of law into developing nations. This two pronged approach will work by, instead, of giving millions in food aid that money will go towards developing local farmers. Stable governments are usually the best equipped for handling drought-like situations which will minimize crop loss during crisis times. Rule of law also allows farmers to have larger yields by ensuring their physical and financial safety. More food will mean cheaper prices so that more of the population can eat.

3. Oil Cartel
OPEC is literally by its very definition a cartel of oil producing states that holds sway over the vast majority of the world's oil reserves. Many of these states are horrible dictatorships that employ their vast wealth towards subjugating their populations while using their position as oil producers to get away with their crimes. In addition, they also spike the price of oil and have used oil as a weapon to attack countries that disagree with their agendas.

Solution: The only way to disband a cartel of states is by taking away the very source of their power, oil. Alternative energy sources should be investigated such as nuclear power to provide electricity as well as to shift from using cars running on fuel to using exclusively electricity. Private enterprise is the only way these matters can effectively be accomplished to finally rid the world of OPEC.

4. Drinking Water
Like famine, lack of drinking water is a pressing issue for many throughout the world. Overall, this has become a much larger problem in recent history with pollution taking a high toll on existing fresh water reserves. This problem affects every nation on Earth to some degree as shown with the Flint Water Crisis.

Solution:
The only way to secure more water for an ever-growing human race is through filtration of salt water, that is in no short supply. The main issue with this process is that it is expensive; hence forcing a more of a commercial enterprise to extract water from brine. As time goes on, the process will become cheaper and more efficient solving the world's water crisis.

5. War
Inter-state warfare is a thing of the past, yet, intra-state or internal conflicts still persist as powers within nations strive to the control the state. Many of these conflicts are in the Middle East such as the Syrian Civil War and the Israeli-Palestinian conflicts. Much of this is fueled by religious hatred among various groups as well as the lack of an effective mediators for peace.

Solution: United Nations should not get involved at all in the Middle East as it is merely the plaything of powerful nations to pit against each other. Instead, a private third-party should originate from a neutral country to help bring peace. Most peace talks are conducted by biased nation-states supporting one of the sides in a conflict.

The War by Tadeusz Cyprian (1949)

6. Corruption
Governments are prone to corrupt whatever they touch in some form or another in the Third World as shown in Latin America, presidents have and still are stealing billions of dollars from their countries. Likewise, a lot of major projects in the United States and other developed nations suffer from kickbacks and favoritism according to the terms of contracts and the like.

Solution: Transparency in contract formation as well as third-party controls on monetary resources will go a long way to stem the tide of corruption. Another thing is the prevention of having former lawmakers lobby on behalf of large corporations as they use what influence they gained in office to get deals for their new employers.

7. Communicable Diseases
Another parasite from before civilization are communicable diseases. It creates massive amounts of chaos whenever it is not reined under control and has led to the deaths of billions. Many of these aliments have been curbed in recent decades like smallpox, polio and typhoid. Yet, new ones keep being discovered and posing a new threat to humanity.

Solution: Vaccines can eradicate diseases when the entire world agrees on a singular course of action. Unfortunately, some ailments don't have vaccines while others that are easily treatable are ignored. A way to counter this is to produce generic medications for the poor to use against these diseases. Cheap medical treatment via remote conferencing with doctors could help eliminate this problem once and for all.

8. High-Seas Piracy
Somalia is infamous the world over for the high amounts of pirates operating off its shores. These pirates are violent criminals, who only wish to extract money through ransom, outright theft and murder. They are a plague upon the seas as such that shipping routes are diverted and billions are lost each year because of them.

Solution: Navies from around the world patrol the area, yet, cannot protect every ship that passes through. The only effective measure for ships is the use of armed guards to dissuade any would-be pirate. A secondary measure would be to improve economic prospects in pirate-ridden zones to permanently end the practice once and for all.

9. Drugs
Chemical reactions have been used for thousands of years to solicit a chemical "high" in their users. Such recreational drugs are illegal in most parts of today's world, however, are frequently used because of the effects they have. Outlawing these substances has resulted in a loss of quality and growth of the modern prison system. Many deaths can be traced to the use of these chemicals.

Solution: An alternative to this would be the use of non-chemical highs to achieve the same effect. This line of research has already produced such products as the thync headband and will eventually lead to more effective ways to get high through direct electrical brain stimulation. End result will be a non-dangerous high conducted within the confines of the law.

10. Barriers to Trade
Economic growth within countries themselves can be tapped out as the lack of trade opportunities will cause a nation to falter. Most nations have tariffs in place to avoid being overwhelmed by a country's superior goods or inexpensiveness to protect their own industries. This protectionism usually leads to inferior goods and less jobs as foreign business need offices within a country to operate their effectively.

Solution: A lifting of all tariffs would help bring much of the struggling nations of the world out of their economic slump. There would be chaos for awhile yet, the system would stabilize and result in a economic growth unrivaled by any time of history. With free trade, developed nations will get cheaper goods while developing nations will lift themselves out of poverty.

Week 2 Reading Reflection

1) What was the biggest surprise for you in the reading? In other words, what did you read that stood out the most as different from your expectations?

 The biggest surprise for me in the reading was the important role that entrepreneurs play in the economy causing it to grow. I did not expect entrepreneurship as something so vital to the very fabric of global economic stability and advancement. Beforehand, I believed the entrepreneur was a loner in the economic sense, who only helps themselves and everyone associated with them as opposed with the community at large.

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

The one part of the reading that was confusing was the various definitions for the same term, entrepreneur, as there are so many different aspects to be explored for the term. One aspect was a job creator while another was a person that had to deal with the intricacies of an economy. The further I got into the chapter, the more difficult it became to comprehend the comprehensive definition.  

3) If you were able to ask two questions to the author, what would you ask? Why?

What prompted you to write an entire book on the subject of entrepreneurship? It is always interesting to see someone’s motivation behind doing something as lessons imparted differ on the person’s viewpoint.

Has there been a case where a company that should have failed, for not adopting innovation? I ask because if there is the case of a company surviving without adaptation then, it would mean either the free market doesn’t work or there is another factor at work aside from the invisible hand of the free market.

4) Was there anything you think the author was wrong about? Where do you disagree with what she or he said? How?

I think the author was wrong on one count of saying that certain people are born with entrepreneurial talents. There have been cases where people with little education have created successful companies and ventures with only their wits and talents. Very little was learned by these people in terms of entrepreneurship to make their companies successful. 

Bugs List

Everyone has their pet peeves, otherwise known as what bugs them. When it comes to entrepreneurial pursuits the best way to advance is to recognize and exploit solutions to solve these daily inconveniences.

Below I made a list of twenty such bugs that annoy me on a daily basis and why they bother me.

1. False marketing when ordering a product online from such sites as Amazon and Ebay.

Reasoning: I was deceived by the manufacturer's claims of additional capabilities that did not accompany the actual product being sold.

2. How slow commercial aircraft are in service, as opposed to available capability of flight speed. Example: Bankruptcy of the Concorde aircraft.

Reasoning: People don't want to fly as a result of 9/11, and one-off accidents involving super-sonic aircraft thus stagnating the airline industry.

3. Luxury brands hiking up their prices over 100% of production costs, making knock-offs much more attractive to the average consumer. Example: Clothing brands like Lacoste, Versace and Chanel.

Reasoning: These brands are a tightly controlled market by a number of firms in which ever case is examined causing a cartel-like mentality toward prices.

4. The rejection of logical economic decisions because of cronyism and favoritism in many aspects of public contracts in various countries across the world. Example: Panama Canal expansion in Panama.

Reasoning: Corruption is rampant in governments the world over, making more attractive alternatives less desirable with the prospect of kickbacks for overly expensive construction endeavors.

5. Manufacturers making a defective product, yet, pushing it out onto the market despite having an inherent danger to it. Example: Hoverboards with their exploding lithium-ion batteries.

Reasoning: Manufacturers in foreign countries like China don't care about American regulations. Nor are any manufacturers in the United States to create a less dangerous product as all have left to other cheaper nations with less regulative control.

6. When companies replace their normal goods with more expensive "eco-friendly" alternatives forcing people to shell out more money for the same good. Example: recycled paper products, and all those publix bags.

Reasoning: Companies will over time find a reason to make money in any way possible including replacing products through the guise of being eco-friendly when they really want to make more profit off the consumer.

7. Traffic jams that occur on the road from Miami to Orlando and Ocala to Gainesville on a near weekly basis.

Reasoning: Congestion on the roads as a result of so many cars traveling at the same time. A lack of a comparable rail service to these locations exacerbates the problem.

8. People smoking e-cigs and other vaping machines inside buildings, where they would otherwise not be allowed to use them in.

Reasoning: Time has to be taken to study the harmful effect of these devices as well as to update all the existing signs in buildings, which there is a monetary and time cost associated with it.

9. Society's reliance on oil is a horrible addiction which causes people to spend thousands of dollars a year on fuel. Example: Automobiles, Generators and many other devices.

Reasoning: Few people wish to invest the heavy amount of capital to develop an alternative to petroleum-based fuel sources.

10. Governmental enterprises' failure at adapting at the pace found in private enterprise in almost all cases. Example: SpaceX, AmTrak.

Reasoning: Most of the people in state enterprises of any substantial talent are always lured away by the private sector while governmental organizations are filled with bureaucrats with no business experience.

11. Law enforcement is usually inefficient and biased as well as not having much transparency in their departments allowing for a continuation of mediocre behavior. Example: Ferguson, Baltimore, etc...

Reasoning: There exists no nationwide private alternative as of yet, to government-provided law enforcement.

12. A veritable lack of diversity between video game companies in terms of technical specs of consoles. Example: XboxOne and PS4.

Reasoning: Both consoles are the same exact machine with many of the same pieces of hardware created by the same manufacturers. The lack of innovation only extends to the platforms themselves and not to the exclusive games.

13. Emotional commercials on television which guilt-trip people to donate to their causes.

Reasoning: Most people cannot claim the moral high ground as they feel bad at their lack of contributions toward charity.

14. Money gathered by the state via its Sunpass system and its expansion over recent years being used frivolously on other projects.

Reasoning: Florida gets a lot more money from its sun-pass system than it is putting into its allotted role of maintaining the roads.

15. Private information being sold to companies for commercial gain to pester people into buying their product.

Reasoning: People get so sick of these groups calling them that they eventually say, yes and agree to buy whatever they are selling.

16. Charities being in bed with certain political organizations and using their databases for political advancement.

Reasoning: Some charities find it expedient to align themselves with political organizations, thus guaranteeing patronage.

17. Applications that take your information in exchange for free service or access to their application. Example: Facebook.

Reason: People are short-sighted enough to not care what happens to their information and then have to deal with the consequences of the solicitation of their information.

18. Airline companies skirting the law by not providing food to their passengers by falsely claiming their flights are 2 hours and 59 minutes instead of actually being 3 hours.

Reason: Airlines don't wish to have an added expense, so much so that they would save large sums of money in exchange for passenger dissatisfaction.

19. Companies don't sell certain products in countries because of the fear of a cultural backlash at the level of Disneyland Paris.

Reasoning: Much of this fear also denies for the chance for a willing customer base to readily enjoy an imported luxury item.

20. Firms giving massive bonuses to their executives when their companies are doing poorly at the expense of their employees.

Reason: Much of the money provided for these bonuses are from what little money the firm makes that can be reinvested to create a profit.

The difficulty with making this list is because of the sheer amount of things which bug me on a daily basis as well as a difficulty concerning my personal frustrations in a communicable manner. At the conclusion of this list, I feel that I have vented much of my frustration with these bugs and have found various opportunities.

My Entrepreneurship Story

How I first got involved with Entrepreneurship was when I studied abroad in Ireland in Fall '14. It was my first semester of actual college and it was infused with a healthy dose of exposure to a number of different ventures. Many of these ventures were startups, hatcheries and existing corporations.

All of these different encounters gave me a different lesson to learn about being an entrepreneur, one talked about how they had to deal with skepticism; while another showed us they marketed themselves and took advantage of their unique geographic position in the world.

Keeping along this theme is the reason why I enrolled for this course, I did it because it was required for IA and I know it will help me in the here and now with my venture. The more information I get on how to be an entrepreneur, the better my venture will do in the next coming years.

Inside the Google Building, Dublin, Ireland Fall '14

My formal introduction

Apologies for forgetting to properly introduce myself in week 2, I am Michael Thomson. A political science major from Ciudad de Panama, Panama. Overall, I enjoy being in UF's Innovation Academy program as well as being a part of Greek life on campus.

My family dynamic is quite typical as at home, I live with my mother and step-father as well as my half-sister. Family life is pretty dull and the only interesting bits are the holidays we take around the world. I have been to locales such as Easter Island (on Easter, I might add), Italy, Mexico, Turkey, Morocco, Canada. Never have I gone around the world before to Asia or Australia.

Cliffs of Moher, Ireland (Been here twice)

Entrepreneur's Mantra

This is a post to link to a video I did for my class.

https://youtu.be/RUEvyY3HBGA

First Post

This is a test of my new blog to see if it can actually work or not.