30A Final reflections

1.) Read through your posts from this semester. Recall all of the experiences you've had a long the way -- the highs, the lows -- the fun moments, and the moments of drudgery, and even the moments of dread.

This semester has been a roller coaster. I really enjoyed this class though and look forward to my journey as an entrepreneur out of college. I had a lot of highs, plenty of lows and some moderate days. Like life though it always keeps moving. The sun will rise again the next day.

2) What sticks out to you as the most formative experience? The experience that you'll remember years later? What was your most joyous experience? What experience are you most proud of yourself for accomplishing?

The experience I will remember most about this class is the lessons I’ve learned and how much I’ve grown as a person. My most joyous experience was being able tot network with my group of fellows entrepreneurs and learning about other great ideas that students have. I felt most accomplished because I never missed a cupcake all semester.

3) At the beginning of the semester, I mentioned that I wanted each of you to develop an entrepreneurial mindset. Now, at the end, do you see yourself as an entrepreneur? Do you think you have moved closer to developing an entrepreneurial mindset?

I know I’ve developed an entrepreneurial mindset. I am definitely prepared to go out after graduation and make my own business. The world is my oyster and I am the pearl. My mindset is the most beneficial thing I have gained from this class and for that I will be forever grateful.

4) What is the one recommendation you would make to the students who are going to journey down this path in the future? What would you recommend they do to perform best in this course? What would you recommend they do to foster 

My recommendation to any incoming people taking this class would be to stay positive throughout the process. Even when times get hard you have to remember that it is worth it in the end. To foster the mindset they should stay motivated and string.

29A – Venture Concept No. 2

1.    My concept has remained the same throughout this class. I still think there is an opportunity to help students who walk to class in the rain. Based on the feedback I still think that my idea is solid and I have changed very little. I have changed the way I could carry out the idea slightly. I think that in order to prevent stealing I would implement some way to stop the umbrellas from being stolen.

2.    Most of the feedback I got was how I would deal with people stealing the umbrellas. To combat this I would put a way to stop people from stealing the umbrellas into the idea. I really appreciated all of the feedback I got from everyone because it helped me to see the flaws I had in my idea. It is sometimes hard to see the flaws in your own ideas because you don’t want yourself to be wrong.

3.    I did not change the concept itself at all I just added onto it.

4.   ☔

28A – Your Exit Strategy

1)      Identify the exit strategy you plan to make. Do you intend to sell your business in the next 5 years for a large return? Do you intend to stay with the business for several decades and retire? Do you intend to protect the venture as a family business, and pass it down to your children?

I plan to sell my business in the next 5 years. I want to start many businesses and sell them for a large return. The plan was always to sell the business.  

2)      Why have you selected this particular exit strategy?

I have selected this strategy because I want to make a lot of money. I love my business but sometimes if you love something you have to let it go.

3) How do you think your exit strategy has influenced the other decisions you've made in your concept? For instance, has it influenced how you have identified an opportunity? Has it influenced your growth intentions or how you plan to acquire and use resources?

I don’t think that my exit strategy has affected  or influenced the way I chose to do business. If anything I think it has helped. It helps remind me that this is a long term business and that I have to take care of it.

27A – Reading Reflection No. 3

1)      What was the general theme or argument of the book?

This book focuses mainly on the psychological processes and how our brains work. I really enjoyed reading this book. Knowing more about how I think helps me understand how and why I make decisions.

2)      How did the book, in your opinion, connect with and enhance what you are learning in ENT 3003?

This book definitely connected with ENT 3003. Learning about how people think can help you start and grow your business. I will take this knowledge with me into the business world.

3)      If you had to design an exercise for this class, based on the book you read, what would that exercise involve?

I would have the class read the book and then do a project on the processes of the mind. I think that this would help the class take in the information better.

4)      What was your biggest surprise or 'aha' moment when reading the book? In other words, what did you learn that differed most from your expectations?

My biggest aha moment was learning about the processes of the mind. I want to read and learn more about this subject.

26A – Celebrating Failure

1.       This semester I failed business finance. I did not work as hard as I needed to and now I have retake it. It was by far the hardest class I’ve ever had to take. I came into the class and underestimated it. I will not do that again next semester and will be able to pass this class.

2.       I learned that you cannot be lazy about upper level finance classes. They are not the same as basic macro and micro economic principles classes. I also learned that if you drop a class you have to pay a lot of money too.

3.       This class has taught me a lot about failure. I learned that it is not the end of the world. Next semester I will do better in that class and get an A. I am much more likely to take a risk now than I was at the beginning of this class.

24A – Venture Concept No. 1 (Gator Umbrellas)

Every student who has to walk to class probably experiences the unpredictable weather patterns. I am one of those students who walk to class and have to deal with the unpredictable weather patterns of Gainesville. The forces that create this is the ungodly beast known as mother nature. She is an unstoppable and predictable force of great power. “When it rains, it pours.” – ASAP Rocky, 2018. This market is geographically isolated being only in Gainesville and only relating to college students who walk to class from their homes. Customers currently satisfy this need by either carrying around an umbrella or having their rain jacket on them at all times. Umbrellas are a hassle to carry around and more often than not it is too hot to be wearing a rain jacket in Gainesville. Customers are most certainly not loyal to these options now which is why I believe my innovation will be a big hit. This opportunity is big. I’m talking like google and amazon big. Like Andre the Giant Big. This window of opportunity is forever. There will always be a need for my business in Gainesville.

My innovation is a business where you can rent umbrellas from all over campus and have locations to return them to. This would be like a zip car for umbrellas. I think that this idea would work very well because they would be connected to a student’s gator one card. All students would use this system.

Customers would definitely switch to this system because it is much more convenient that their current methods. There are no competitors for this market either which means I would have a monopoly and make a lot of money. There is no packaging required and I have a team of employees that can handle all the marketing aspects of the business.

My most important resource is my human capital.

The next business opportunity is expanding the business to other campuses.

My personal next opportunity is starting another business and finishing my degree here at the University of Florida.

23A – Your Venture’s Unfair Advantage

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

1. Human Capital

2. Social Capital

3. Financial Capital

4. Teamwork

5. Communication

6. Investors

7. Friends

8. Family

9. Employees

10. Technology

I intend to create a great organizational culture that is good. My organizational culture would be friendly and collaborative. This will be a great company to work at and everyone will want to work there.

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

1. Human Capital – very valuable, not imitable, non-substitutable

2. Social Capital – sort of valuable, kind of imitable, non substitutable

3. Financial Capital - very valuable, not imitable, non-substitutable

4. Teamwork - very valuable, imitable, substitutable

5. Communication - valuable, imitable, non-substitutable

6. Investors - valuable, substitutable

7. Friends - very valuable, not imitable, non-substitutable

8. Family - not imitable, non-substitutable

9. Employees - very valuable, not imitable, non-substitutable

10. Technology - very valuable, not imitable, non-substitutable

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

My most valuable resource is my human capital. This encompasses most of my other resources. I really would like to expand my human capital even though think that it is already pretty good. I am excited to see how my human capital grows along with my business.

22A – Elevator Pitch No. 3

https://youtu.be/HqcrAqlEi9I

2. I received good feedback from my past video. People really loved how dynamic I was and appreciated my intensity.

3. I changed nothing I did it better this time.

21A – Reading Reflection No. 2

1)    What was the general theme or argument of the book?

I chose to read Innovation and entrepreneurship by Peter Drucker. This book is interesting because instead of having one theme, it is broken up into 3 parts each focusing on a different aspect of entrepreneurship. Part 1 focuses on innovation. Part 2 highlights managerial strengths. Part 3 looks at practices and policies and how they affect company.

2)    How did the book, in your opinion, connect with and enhance what you are learning in ENT 3003?

This book should be the textbook for this class. It highlights the exact themes we talk about every week and explains them in a very understandable manner. I think that it was a nice add on to the course and allowed me to further my understanding of the themes presented in this class.

3)    If you had to design an exercise for this class, based on the book you read, what would that exercise involve?

My exercise would involve the students each presenting on a part of the book in their groups. They would make a video presentation and talk about the specific aspects of that part of the book and why they think it applies to this class.

4)    What was your biggest surprise or 'aha' moment when reading the book? In other words, what did you learn that differed most from your expectations?

My biggest aha moment reading this book was when I read that entrepreneurship never stops in a company. Even after you have an established company you still have to constantly work to make sure that it stays successful and continues to grow.

20A – Growing Your Social Capital

1)    One person must be a domain expert in your industry.

For my contact in my industry I reached out to a fellow young entrepreneur Dominick. He owns a similar business to my idea and wanted his help in figuring out the best way to go about starting a business. I found Dominick through a mutual friend here at the university of Florida and sent him an email. Dominick has been very helpful to me through his knowledge and wisdom and in return he expects me to help his brand awareness by networking. Dominick is a great ally who has a lot of contacts in the industry. They say its not what you know but who you know.

2)    One person must be an expert on your market.

My market contact is named Scott. He is a real veteran who has run his own business locally for over 30 years. As someone who has lived and operated a business in Gainesville for so many years, Scott knows my target market well. I found Scott through an online ad and reached out to him over email. Scott is a very genuine person and did not want anything in return for helping me. He is a great contact to have because he has been around the city so long that he knows the ins and outs of running a business in Gainesville.

3)    One person must be an important supplier to your industry.

For my supplier I reached out to a fiend Michael who orders large quantities of umbrellas on the Internet. He has been doing this for years so his knowledge is vast. I contacted Michael by talking to him because I live with him. He is going to be a part of the business with me so he will get to split the profits with me. Including Michael will be a huge help and will allow me to focus on the marketing while he focuses on the supply.

Reflect

This experience will definitely help me down the line when trying to network. This was different to networking in the past because I had never had to look for such specific people. I cannot wait to network more and grow my network.

19A – Idea Napkin No. 2

1) You. My name is James Davis. I am a third year finance major here at the University of Florida. My talents include communicating, teamwork, and the ability to speak 4 languages. My aspiration is to own my own business one day and make it successful. I see my business playing a large role in my life.

2) What are you offering to customers? I am offering a solution to students who get rained on walking to class here at the University of Florida.

 3) Who are you offering it to? These are students who walk to class at the University of Florida.

 4) Why do they care? They do not want to carry around an umbrella nor do they want to have a rain jacket on them at all times. Students will care because they will appreciate the business.

5) What are your core competencies? I’ve ran the numbers and it looks like my business is unique so I think what sets me apart is that no one else has this business.

I truly believe all of these elements fit together. I think my skills and business knowledge will be helpful getting investors to invest. I also think that what I am offering is so unique that the business will be successful. Students would benefit greatly from this solution.

I took the appropriate feedback from my last napkin idea and applied it to this one. I appreciated everyone who gave me feedback because I was able to really see where my first Napkin idea lacked and how I could improve this one. This was mainly in the way that I saw the business and myself.

18A – Create a Customer Avatar

Create a customer

My customer is a college aged student that goes to the university of Florida. They could or could not have a car but they do not own a scooter. They walk to class every day. They spend their weekends going to football games and spend their weeks studying, going to class, and enjoying all the fun that Gainesville has to offer. My customer is from Florida or out of state, it doesn’t matter. My customer’s race, gender, and orientation do not factor into anything. They could have children. They watch Netflix and have an apple music or Spotify subscription. They use social media like Instagram, facebook, snapchat, and twitter. Their hobbies could range from surfing to hiking to reading to vlogging.

I think I have a lot in common with this customer avatar. I think that most college students are probably similar to this and I think that they could all benefit from my idea. I don’t think that this is a coincidence because a lot of college students are similar.

17A – Elevator Pitch No. 2

https://youtu.be/QVoczyIbgmk

After reviewing the feedback from my previous video I decided I needed to be more dynamic and dress myself better. So for this video I put on a jacket and made sure to be more dynamic. I also thought that my last elevator speech ran a little long so I trimmed this one down a bit. I think this elevator pitch is very good and I hope I can continue to improve on it.

16A –What’s Your Secret Sauce?

https://soundcloud.com/glaashouse/recording/s-2a9Myhttps://soundcloud.com/glaashouse/recording-4/s-jDpOvhttps://soundcloud.com/glaashouse/recording-3/s-d8uUphttps://soundcloud.com/glaashouse/recording-2/s-oZK1Hhttps://soundcloud.com/glaashouse/new-recording/s-Xb8W1

1.    Describe five ways in which you think you have human capital that is truly unique. 

1. I am a very rational person who does not let emotion factor into my decision making.

2. I am a very creative person who can think outside of the box. This allows me to problem solve in unique ways.

3. I am a natural leader. People respect me and listen to what I have to say.

4. I am an excellent team player. I have great communication and team work skills and get along well with others.

5. I am also very resilient. I can take criticism well and do not let it affect my ability to do my job.

2.    Interview the five people who know you the best. 

Hudson: I have known Hudson for almost all of my life. I would venture to say that he knows me the best out of all my friends. He seemed to agree with my list and highlighted my leadership and rationality specifically.

Hayden: Hayden is a friend that I have known since I got to college. He seemed to think that my resilience was the most prominent feature. He knows how much I have struggled in school so it makes sense.

Bennett: Bennett became one of my best friends in high school. In my search for a college he truly saw my creativity. This helped me stand out on my applications from other candidates and thankfully got me into the University of Florida.

Austin: Austin is another friend of mine from college. He is a relatively new friend that I am currently working on a group project with. He noticed my team work and ability to communicate the second he met me.

Chris: Chris is a friend of mine that I played lacrosse with throughout high school. He is aware of my leadership and teamwork abilities. He has also seen my creativity on the field as I was a very good lacrosse player.

3.    Reflect on the differences. 

It turns out that my friends pretty much saw the same things in me as I saw in myself. I thought the interviews I did were correct about me. I don’t think I’d make any corrections to the list.

15A – Figuring Out Buyer Behavior No. 2

3) Begin with alternative evaluation. 

Jordan: I would say in the case of your business style would not matter but quality and price certainly do. The most important factor to me is just that the umbrellas are there whenever I need it.

Sean: Style is certainly a factor that I consider. It would be cool if there was a gator or some kind of Orange and Blue design on it. Quality is not that important to me as long as it works and Price certainly matters but if I really needed the umbrella I would be willing to pay a high price.

Michelle: Quality is the most important factor to me personally. I really need something that is going to protect me from the elements. Price and style do not matter because I would be willing to pay whatever is necessary in the moment.

4) How/where do they buy?

Jordan: In store I guess? Its really not a store bought good. I would be more likely to use my Gator One because that is how the system would work.

Sean: I feel like this question is not very relevant but I would say in store, finance the purchase, and this is not a B2B purchase.

Michelle: I buy most things online but in this scenario I am buying from a vending machine type of thing. I would use my gator one to buy the temporary umbrella so I guess that would be financing it.

5) Post-purchase evaluation. 

Jordan: If the umbrella works and I stay dry then the purchase is right. If I stay dry then I the purchase of a good idea. If it doesn’t keep me dry then the purchase was a bad idea.

Sean: I would say that functionality, the ease of and timeliness of purchase would all be factors when considering the rightness of purchase. If any of these things are not met then it was a bad purchase.

Michelle: I think that if it works well then it was a good purchase. That’s the motto I always live by anyway. A bad purchase is any purchase that I later regret but I don’t see that happening here.

6) Report the findings. 

I have found that in my specific business that a lot of these questions do not pertain to me. However I did learn that many of the individuals in my interview do care about quality, style, and price. In my scenario however most people would be willing to pay a higher price because they are in need of the service very badly.

7) Draw conclusions. 

If my service came to fruition then there would be no alternative. Therefore the customers would no doubt purchase it.

14A – Halfway Reflection

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 had to make time to do the assignments every week. It is easy to put them off until the last minute because the assignments are all due at the same time. You must develop good time management skills in order to do well in this class. 

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?

There was one Friday where there were many assignments due at midnight and all of my friends were going to a concert. I thought about not doing some of them but I decided that I want to be successful and do well in school so I stayed in and did the assignment. This shows the tenacious attitude that I have developed over the course of this class.

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. Do every assignment early.

2. Take your time with them

3. Read the readings provided even if you aren’t assigned them.

13A – Reading Reflection No. 1

What surprised you the most?

Berry Gordy owned Motown records and was for decades the most successful African American business in the country.

What about the entrepreneur did you most admire?

He was a visionary and was responsible for creating the modern music industry in America. He is the reason Michael Jackson, Marvin Gaye, and Diana Ross have careers.

What about the entrepreneur did you least admire?

Berry Gordy was known for giving young artists unfair recording deals and taking advantage of them for his own monetary gain.

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

Berry Gordy was very successful in his business but his personal life was somewhat controversial. He was married 3 times but he channeled his family troubles into hard work in business.

What competencies did you notice that the entrepreneur exhibited? 

He was a ferocious businessman who would not settle for anything less than he thought he deserved. He would not give up in the pursuit of an artist he wanted to sign.

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

I could not understand why Berry sold Motown to Universal records. He lost Majority of the control of the company and is no longer in charge.

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

How did you identify talent? The fact that Berry Gordy is responsible for the careers of many of the greatest music artists ever is unbelievable.

How does it feel to be that successful? I don’t think I will ever be as successful as Berry Gordy so I would just want to know how he feels about being who he is.

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

I think his opinion is was probably that hard work is the most important part of being successful.

12A – Figuring Out Buyer Behavior No. 1

Segment: Students who walk to class

Interviewees: Ryan, Sarah, Chase

Ryan

I have the need to stay dry at all times. When I leave my dorm I always pack an umbrella because you never know whether or not its going to rain in Gainesville. So I guess you could say I have the need to stay dry always. In terms of when and where I guess it would just be wherever I am when it begins to rain and then when would be the same, whenever it rains.

The first thing I do when it starts raining is pull out my umbrella. I guess when I need to buy an umbrella I just search on google “umbrella.” I usually just order one off of amazon. I don’t really discuss with anyone when I buy one. I usually just get the cheapest.

Sarah

So I do not live on campus, I live at the standard so my walk to and from home is already excruciating. I hate when it rains. I always feel as if I am never prepared. It is just not realistic for me to carry around an umbrella or rain jacket every single day because my need is so sporadic. I don’t really have a solution to fix my problems. I just walk in the rain or stay where I am. I don’t think that the information search portion is relevant is relevant to me personally.

Chase

I live on campus and walk everywhere I go. I would say my need to stay out of the rain is constant. It does not rain everyday but when it does it can completely throw off my entire day. The worst part is that when I come prepared and it doesn’t rain I have had to carry around an umbrella all day. Not only do I look silly doing this but it causes a lot more trouble than you’d think.

When I want to solve this problem I usually do not consult anyone and I don’t really use an information search tool. I think it’s pretty self-explanatory.

Report

People who share this need could all be helped out by my idea. I also have found out that it would take a lot of my vending machines to be on campus to render them effective. I also have realized that it does not rain as much in Gainesville during some parts of the year as it does others. The need for my business would be very seasonal.

Conclusion

This segment definitely has a need for my business. Although this need is sporadic and may be seasonal, I still believe that my business would thrive on a campus like Gainesville.

Idea Napkin 1

1.       I am James Davis. I am a third year finance major and am an excellent leader, communicator, and team player. My aspiration is to own my own business. I see my life revolving around my business and it giving me financial freedom to live my life as I see fit.

2.       I am offering a solution for the unpredictable weather patterns in Gainesville. It is a service that would allow students to take an umbrella from one location to the next. It would charge the users a small fee for the service.

3.       Students at the University of Florida who walk from place to place. If students take transportation from place to place then they would not use my business.

4.       No one wants to walk in the rain. Students will pay to stay dry on their way to their next location.

5.       What sets my business apart is that I have done research and my business does not exist yet anywhere else.

All of these points fit well together in my eyes. I know I would pay for this service. Just last week I was stuck in the rain and it ruined all of the belongings in my backpack. I genuinely believe that this business idea would work and make money.

Elevator Pitch

https://youtu.be/Z6kdsUPnh0M

Testing the Hypothesis part 2

Who: Are there certain people or certain businesses that, although they share a lot in common with the others in your opportunity, nevertheless fall outside the boundary? Why?

1. I drive a car so for the most part I don’t need umbrellas.

2. I ride the bus so my walks are just from wherever the bus stops are to my classes so I don’t need umbrellas most of the time.

3. I am in pace so I have all online classes. I barely leave my apartment.

4. I ride my scooter to class every day, even if it does rain I don’t think there is anything I can do. I do bring my rain jacket wherever I go though.

5. I don’t live in Gainesville so I would get no use out of this idea. 

What: At what point does the need you identified differ from another need? (Is thirst the same as hunger? Or is the desire to appear fashionable the same as the desire to be loved by others?)

1. Being rained on is not really similar to another need. Its pretty unique.

2. I don’t think there is any need like an umbrella, maybe a rain jacket or something else that can keep you dry.

3. I think the need for an umbrella is pretty unique. I guess there could be a need for more accurate weather reporting in order to ensure that people know whether or not they will need them.

4. The need for being better prepared for situations is really what it comes down to. Most people are just lazy and unprepared.

5. This need is similar to the need for more accurate weather predictions. If I lived in Gainesville I would know to bring an umbrella if I thought it was going to rain.

Why: Is the underlying cause of the outsiders' need different than people who are inside the boundary?

1. No I don’t think so my circumstances are just different.

2. No the need to stay dry is common across everyone.

3. I think the underlying cause is probably more geared towards the inside people because they are the ones that have to walk and get wet.

4. The underlying cause is the same.

5. I don’t honestly know if there is a difference.

Inside the boundary	Outside the boundary
Who is In: People that walk around campus	Who is Not: People who don’t walk
What the Need Is: To stay dry	What the Need Is Not: to stay dry
Why the Need Exists: IT rains	Alternative Explanations: Thy are inside and aren’t affected

Solving the Problem

The problem: The rain in Gainesville is unpredictable

The opportunity: Students need a way to stay dry walking to wherever they are going on campus

The solution:  Vending machine like devices with umbrellas that you can take after swiping your Gator 1. (they would use flex bucks) Each person that used an umbrella would be charged an undetermined a mount of money to take the umbrella and then when they returned the umbrella to another basket some of the money would be credited back to the users account. The amount charged would be the cost of the umbrella so if someone does take it they are basically just paying for it.

Testing the Hypothesis Part 1

1.)    My campus umbrella opportunity I discussed in my forming an opportunity belief post.

2.)    Students at UF do not like carrying umbrellas because they are burdensome. It rains a lot in Florida so there needs to be a way that students can have easy access to umbrellas on campus.

Who: UF students

What: Carrying around an umbrella is a burden. Students should still have access to them

Why: How to get umbrellas all over campus and make money and make sure they are not being stolen

3.)    Testing the who: Everyone who I have talked to about this need has said it is a good idea. They all agree that when you need an umbrella the most is when you find yourself without one.

Testing the what: This question really made me take a different look at my idea. On the days where its sunny, no one is going to be using my umbrellas. Is it even worth it if it is going to be sunny all the time?

Testing the why: Most people have this need in the same way. This idea serves one very specific purpose which might cause it to be unsuccessful. I still believe that the need warrants a solution though.

4.)    All 5 interviewees had very similar ideas. I chose to do my interviews a little differently and bring up the flaws I had perceived in my own idea and asked them what they thought about them. In terms of having idle inventory when it is not raining the overall response was just to make sure that I was making enough money when it did rain so that the business could be sustained. In terms of theft one idea was to put a tracker in every umbrella but this would be extremely expensive. One of the people I interviewed brought up the point that the whole reason this idea exists is that people hate carrying around umbrellas. So as long as the pickup and drop off locations were accessible then people would be less likely to take them because they never wanted to carry one around in the first place. Overall everyone thought it was a good idea and could see themselves getting a good use out of it.

5.)    After interviewing people I would say that I did not previously know that my idea could benefit as many people as I thought it would. Now I could actually see this coming to fruition.

4 Opportunities

1.       E-Cigarettes could be banned by the FDA which means people will need a nicotine fix somehow.

a. Online more specifically the WSJ

b. Many people are addicted to nicotine products, if they were to ban e-cigarettes then there would be an opportunity to market different types of nicotine products

c. the people who currently use nicotine products everyday are the customers

d. This opportunity is easy to exploit, people will not stop buying nicotine products current alternatives just have to be marketed better

e. In my personal experience I know many people who use e-cigarettes every day and I know that if the FDA were to ban these items they would just look for alternatives to get their fix.

2.       New regulations aimed at cutting diesel fuel may cause oil prices to rise

a. Online - Business Insider

b. If oil prices indeed rise to this level then the average person will be forced to consider alternative modes of transportation and also energy.

c. The customer for this will be normal people who can’t afford skyrocketing oil prices.

d. The opportunity is hard to exploit unless you are already in the energy business

e. I formed my belief that this opportunity existed because I am an avid supporter of environmental regulations. I believe that this regulation is a huge step forward in the right direction and shows that there are still ways companies can be profitable and successful even with new regulations.

3.       Baby Boomers are not retiring

a. Online - WSJ

b. With baby boomers still in the work force and retiring late this means many of them will live less time retired and will have to go into assisted care more quickly.

c. Baby Boomers

d. This opportunity is hard to exploit if you are an outsider but if you already have a business that is in the hospitality industry then you can exploit this opportunity.

e. I know for a fact I am not the only person that has seen this opportunity, a man I worked for in high school sold his home to start a retirement home because he saw this trend. He is extremely successful now and his business will only grow as the years go on.

4.       Global Warming is causing tides to rise

a. Online - Bloomberg

b. This suggests that property that is inland could one day become beachfront real estate.

c. People who want to live beachfront especially Floridians

d. This opportunity is easy to exploit if you already live inland and on property where estimates suggest water levels might increase to, this also allows for investment in long term real estate.

e. Coming from a beach town on the east coast of Florida this is an everyday reality to me that my house might not be there. This is not necessarily a bad thing however because instead of being washed away one day my house may be right on the water.