14A – Halfway Reflection

Webster defines "tenacious" as "not easily stopped or pulled apart" or "very determined to do something." One of entrepreneurs' most important competencies are their tenaciousness. They persevere, despite all odds, despite waves of negative feedback, and despite failure and rejection. 

Now that we're at the half-way point of the course, you've definitely demonstrated tenacity, too! Tenacity is also an entrepreneurial competency. 

For this exercise, I'd like you reflect on the past two months. In your post for this exercise, pretend that you're talking to a student from next semester's course. What would you tell them?

1) Tenaciousness is a competency. What are the behaviors that you have used (or developed) to keep up with the requirements of this course?
I have utilized time management more than any other behavior for this course. There is a lot of busy work for this course, that's just the nature of it. In order to stay on top of my assignments and not procrastinate, especially for the assignments that require interviews. 

2) Tenaciousness is also about attitude. Talk about a moment or two when you felt like "giving up." What pulled you through? Do you feel like you've developed a tenacious attitude during the past two months? What experience or experiences most contributed to this?
Honestly, after the first assignments were due, I felt like giving up. I felt like it was unfair how I completed the assignments but didn't realize how to properly upload the URL in order to receive credit for my work. It was annoying and made me want to get out of the class while I had the chance. However, I reread through the syllabus more thoroughly and watched the lectures in order to learn how the professor would like us to submit our work and learned from my mistake.  

3) Three tips. What are three tips you would offer next semester's student about (1) fostering the skills that support tenacity and (2) developing the 'tenacious mindset' ?
1. Invest in time management skills - No matter where you are or what you're doing, this skill will prove successful every time. You can tell people apart from whether they are able to manage their time properly or not.
2. Find a bigger "why" - What I mean by this is that you can no longer coast on your intrinsic knowledge or smarts that got you through high school. Congrats on getting into UF - it's a lot harder to get in now then when I got in - but it's not enough to glance over the study guide the night before and get an A. You get what you put in. I was a straight A student in high school and got a rude awakening on my first exam freshman year of college, but it was a good learning experience.
3. Create a solid support system - Whether that's your family, friends, colleagues, or professors/teacher assistants, create a group of people you can go to and rely on for any questions or concerns, or even a pick-me-up when you need it. They will help you stay on track and remind you important things when you need them most. 

Assignment 13A - Reading Reflection No.1

I read Mary Kay Ash’s Miracles Happen.

What surprised you the most?

What surprised me the most about Mary Kay was the values she held. She transferred these values into her company’s values, and they are values her company still holds to this day. Ash realized that the success of her company would depend on the type of principles it was founded on, and they would distinguish Mary Kay Cosmetics from their competition. Being a woman who enjoys wearing makeup, I know how overpriced and vain certain brands tend to be portrayed, I appreciated to read that she realized the impact her moral foundations would have in the future.

What about the entrepreneur did you most admire?

I truly admire her commitment to her religion.  Mary Kay Ash’s personal motto was “God first, family second, career third” and it rang true in her personal and company values. Social responsibility has become more important over the past couple of decades, but back in her time, there wasn’t much pressure for a company to have strong moral values.

What about the entrepreneur did you least admire?

I didn’t necessarily like that the book was written by Mary Kay herself. I tend to think people who write about themselves are vain and self-centered, which at times, I got that vibe during the book. At times when she was praising herself, it felt a little exaggerated and pushy. I tend to believe stories about influential people when they are written by others.

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

Mary Kay Ash definitely faced adversity during her lifetime. Being a woman in the 60s must have been hard, but attempting to make it as a business woman must have been the biggest uphill battle she had ever faced. The men she trained were promoted before she ever was promoted. She was not recognized for her extreme dedication and success and was stuck with her entry level position. All of these struggles resulted in her starting her own company, so there was a happy outcome to her adversities.

What competencies did you notice that the entrepreneur exhibited?

Mary Kay Ash was an entrepreneur for over two decades, and developed incredible sales and communication skills. She also had exceptional people skills - her business started off by throwing house parties (which is still a practice that continues today) and she relied on these skills to connect with others which resulted in them buying her products.

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

I was intrigued to find out that Mary Kay Ash did not originally decide to sell make up as her product, but rather was trying to fill in the gap of women in the business market. Her intention was to change the world of business and allow women to enter that world, and the result of this change was her creating a make up line that would allow her to do so. 

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

First, I would first like to ask her for her truthful opinion of how she was treated in the 1960s as a women trying to enter the business world. Second, I would like to ask her if at anytime she felt like giving up or quitting this dream she had. I know it is very challenging to make it in the entrepreneurship world, and she made it look so easy.

For fun: what do you think the entrepreneur's opinion was of hard work? Do you share that opinion?

Mary Kay Ash had a personal motto to constantly improve and strive to reach her goals. Her need to be successful didn't disappear after she proved herself, but rather she created new goals and accomplished those as well. She encouraged personal and professional growth in herself and others. I definitely share these opinions with her.

11A – Idea Napkin No. 1

1)    You. Who you are. What your talents are. What your skills and experiences are. Also: what are your aspirations? Specifically regarding your business concept, how do you see this business (if you were to start it) playing a role in your life?

My name is Meredith and I am a senior marketing student at UF. I plan on moving to New York City after graduation to start a career in digital marketing. I have a talent for leading groups and public speaking, and I like to work with other people to solve problems. I have a passion for traveling and exploring new countries, and would love to find a career that allows me to do so.  It would be easy for me to be passionate about starting this business concept because it is something that directly impacts me, and I feel that having a connection to your work allows you to invest yourself more fully.

2)    What are you offering to customers? Describe the product or service (in other words, how you'll solve customers' unmet needs). 

After reading Ms. Messner announcement and struggling to finish this assignment with the current opportunity I was focusing on, I decided to reevaluate my idea. I think I was focusing too much on my immediate surroundings and not thinking about what affects other people. My new product/service I will be exploring is a grocery delivery service. When I lived in New York City this summer, I saw tons of advertisements for this type of service, but I have not seen that service offered anywhere else. I know for myself as a student, grocery shopping can be a pain and hard to do if you don’t have a reliable mode of transportation. My service would be in the form of an app, similar to Uber, where you would request specific grocery items and pay a fee to have them delivered to you.

3)    Who are you offering it to? Describe, in as much detail as possible, the demographic and psychographic characteristics of your customers. Think especially of this question: what do your customers all have in common?

My “clients” are college aged individuals, both male and female, who attend UF or live in the Gainesville area. Geographically, all of my customers live very close to one another, so that is something they all have in common. They also either don’t have a reliable mode of transportation or do not have the time in their day to go grocery shopping.

4)    Why do they care? Your solution is only valuable insofar as customers believe its valuable to them. Here, explain why customers will actually pay you money to use your product or service. 

Convenience plays a large role in why customers would find this valuable to them. Food delivery services and driving services have become popular because they have created a way to make their customers lives more convenient.

5)    What are your core competencies? What sets you apart from everyone else? Also: what do you have that nobody else has? 

This service does not exist in the Gainesville market, so that is something that sets my idea apart from others. Just like Uber and other apps that have taken off, it will allow individuals to make money on the side or during their free time, as well as provide a service for a market.

I believe that after reconsidering my opportunity and answering these questions, they seem to fit together nicely. The only question that was difficult to answer was number five. I don’t think this is a unique or new idea, because it is playing off a service I saw in New York City. However, since this is a completely different market, it would be new to these customers. I think to make this idea work, I would have to do a lot more research to ensure that a city like Gainesville could sustain this opportunity.

9A – Testing the Hypothesis, Part 2

Who: Through my interviews, I found that there a a good amount of people that fall outside my boundary. These individuals are UF students who don't have their car up at school and individuals who have a car at school but don't use it regularly (more than once a week). Also not included within the boundary are individuals who own or rent their own parking spots through their apartment complexes. Two girls I interviewed lived in apartment buildings near sorority row, so the issue of finding parking was not a problem for them. They could sympathize because one used to live in her chapter house last year, but moved out due to the lack of parking. They both agreed UF should step up and take initiative to correct the parking problem around that area. 

What: At a certain point, there is only so much solution you can offer to fix a problem. There is only so much land available in that area (Sorority Row and Norman) to convert into parking spaces. In addition, the number of cars being brought to school each year will most likely increase with the increase in student population, while the amount of parking spots will not. 

Why: Yes, those inside the boundary have the need to find the solution, while those outside of the boundary don't because it does not affect them. 

Inside the boundary	Outside the boundary
Who is In: Individuals who live around Sorority Row/Norman and have cars at school	Who is Not: Individuals who live around the area but do not have cars at school or own their own parking spots
What the Need Is To provide more parking for the individuals who own cars and live in this area	What the Need Is Not Redirecting traffic to another parking lot/parking area
Why the Need Exists: People receive parking tickets for parking in "illegal" spots (spots where they don't have the correct decal) People are unable to park near their homes because there aren't available spaces

8A – Solving The Problem

8A – Solving The Problem

• My product will have to do with solving the traffic and parking issues that plague Gainesville, specifically the parking around Sorority Row and the apartments near Norman. 
• I think the solution with this problem is extremely important in satisfying the needs of UF students. There are a lot of complaints about parking citations and feeling as though concerns are not heard by the students. 
• In order to address this problem, I have a few ideas - 
• First, have UF invest in more parking spaces in this area. They are already purchasing land near University in order to expand their campus, so why not invest some time and money researching how to improve their existing parking. I think this is the most responsible option to do from the university's perspective. 
• Second, create a free or reduced price (maybe include it in tuition? Ask Student Government to include it in future legislation?) shuttle dedicated to allowing students to park their cars in larger parking lots (Hume garage, Fraternity Row, South West parking lot) and get back to their homes. This is not ideal, because that is a pretty far drive and inconvenient for students who need to access their cars regularly.  

7A – Testing the Hypothesis, Part 1

Gainesville parking and transportation

• Opportunity
• In Gainesville, there is an increasing demand for parking both on campus and in city parking.
• The Who:
• On campus - UF students
• City parking - UF students & any city decals users
• The What:
• There are not enough parking spots available for the amount of car drivers
• The Why:
• City planners and builders did not allocate enough parking space, and also would rather build high-value investments (such as apartment buildings) rather than more parking spaces
• Testing the Who:
• In any populated city, parking can be a huge issue. I don’t think the “Who” is limited to just the Gainesville area. I know from living in New York City this summer, parking is a huge issue there. Many people don’t own cars because of the price of owning a parking spot. The level of severity definitely varies from region to region, but it is an issue nonetheless. I think the “who” in this situation is mainly the people who live near sorority row and Norman, but it can affect many others.
• Testing the What
• While the number of students who attend UF and housing options around campus have increased, the number of parking spots has remained the same. This is the main cause of this issue, because more and more people are bringing their cars to school and creating a larger gap between number of cars and available parking spots.
• Testing the Why
• People need parking spots for their cars because they need a safe place to park their cars while they are not using them. They need to be accessible and keep your car safe. However, they do not generate any revenue after they are built, so it doesn’t occur to developers to create more areas for parking spots over apartment buildings or rental spaces.

Interview #1

In this interview, I found that my interviewee did not share as strong of feelings as I have about the parking situation in Gainesville. However, she also mentioned she does not have a car here at school, so this problem does not affect her as much. She did state that she thought it was unfair for a school this large to not make parking more easily available to its students, and asked if Student Government had any jurisdiction to address this opportunity. She did not offer any ideas or suggestions to combat the issue.

Interview #2

This interview was conducted with the lady I used to babysit for last semester. She lives about 20 minutes from campus, but teaches a class at UF on Wednesday nights from 6-9pm, so she is familiar with UF campus parking. Since she is a professor at UF, I wanted to get her opinion and see if it was just a generational thing or an issue that bothers people of all ages. She said she was so thankful she does not have to deal with trying to park on campus during the day because “it is miserable at night sometimes, I can’t even imagine during the day”. She shared that she felt the people who designed UF parking and Gainesville city parking weren’t prepared for the amount of people who would be going to this school and living in the city.

Interview #3

I interviewed a girl in my sorority who lives off campus, and she had some very strong opinions that confirmed my opportunity hypothesis. She has had a car at school for the past two years and has had both a UF parking decal and a city parking decal. She believes it affects UF students who drive their car to school and depend on them to get to campus the most. This need for more parking spaces has been an issue for quite some time, both on campus and on the streets. To avoid this problem on campus, she normally must arrive on campus extremely early in the morning to find a parking spot. She said if she doesn't get to the parking lot before 9am, it's basically impossible. To avoid this problem with street parking, students will find a spot and avoid using their car for as long as possible to not lose their spot.

Interview #4

I interviewed a guy in my other class to get a male perspective. He has had his car at school for the past three years, since freshman year. He lived in Hume and then his fraternity house, so he never really had to deal with the congested parking lots on the other side of campus. However, he said he felt bad for the people who lived over by sorority row, because he knew how awful it could be finding a spot there. He is a busboy for a sorority, so he rides his scooter to avoid having to find a spot for his car. “It’s really bad there (sorority row/Norman garage) at dinner time because parking is lifted and everyone is trying to park there car,” he said. He said he has also avoided this problem by attempting to take the bus.

Interview #5

After my last interview, I decided to interview one of the busboys for my sorority. He was a little more pessimistic than the previous interview, because he only owns a car. He tries to get a ride from a friend or get dropped off, but most of the time he must endure the 5pm traffic around sorority row and Norman. I could tell it really bothered him. "It's annoying because you see the university put money into a lot of other areas that don't seem as important as this issue that affects a lot of students," he said.

Given your interviews, what do you know about the opportunity that you didn't know before?

• Each interview gave me a new perspective. I noticed that the people this issue directly affects are those that live near Norman and Sorority Row.
• Interview #2, with the UF Professor, was the most interesting to me. Although she only comes to campus once a week at night, she noticed the difficulty of finding adequate parking even at that time. I figured it would only matter to people who utilized UF parking during the day, but I guess the timing of when she needs to be on campus makes this issue relevant to her.
• I could relate to the end of my interview with #3, because I often park my car on sorority row and wait as long as possible to move it until it I absolutely have to use it. I've even gone as far as walking to Publix because I was too scared I wouldn't find a spot when I got back. She confirmed my hypothesis that parking is definitely an issue on that side of campus. 
• Interviews #4 and #5 were informative because they were conducted with two men who don't live near sorority row, but still travel there frequently. I found that it wasn't as much as an issue for them as I thought it might be, but it was definitely an inconvenience in their lives. I think that's a very important part of this issue - how inconvenient it is for the students who have to deal with parking their cars.