30A – Final Reflection

1)     My favorite moments in the class were when the assignments were very simple and straightforward. The ones that were much longer and required a lot of my time weren’t my favorite to do. Overall, the class was a nice experience and wasn’t that difficult, just a little time consuming.

2)     I liked doing the elevator pitches a lot. It challenged me to give my best effort. I was very proud of myself for doing those assignments because I typically hate talking in front of cameras as I get nervous and anxious.

3)     Now that the semester is over, I don’t know if I’d fully say I’m an entrepreneur. However, I will say that I’ve definitely developed an entrepreneurial mindset. I look at things differently now and I’m always looking to maximize any opportunity given to me.

4)     I’d say to any future student to stay on top of the class. The class isn’t hard, but you need to stay on top of things to make sure you lose no points. Watch lectures to ace the cupcakes. Also, get assignments done early in order to have time to revise it later on. Do all those things and you’ll be fine.

29A- Venture Concept No. 2

Opportunity

High school athletes see their dreams of playing college sports come to an end every day because they get offered 0 scholarships to play in college. An underlying reason for this is that these athletes aren’t getting enough exposure to even get a chance at a scholarship to play at the next level. When it comes to athletes not getting scholarships, it can be for a variety of reasons such as they’re simply not good enough to play at the next level and sometimes its injuries. However, I’m going to focus on the not getting enough exposure as the main reason why. To combat athletes not getting enough exposure, I planned to create a website in which it allows them to upload they’re high school highlights. First off, they would obviously need their parents or friends to film them during games and practices. However, once this is done, all they would need to do is upload the videos to their respective account. This platform would allow individuals share their accomplishments with the sports world. By having a website that exposes college scouts to these high school athletes, it gives them a better shot at being noticed and ultimately a better shot at receiving a scholarship. In defining who has this need, it’s obviously high school athletes. In defining the nature of the need, its in place to help high school athletes get more recognition. I think this opportunity could be a huge game changer in that in could help so many people out.

Innovation.

So basically, with the website, athletes create a profile and add all their details they want. (Sports they’ve played, position, dreams and aspirations etc.) However, it is 10 dollars a month for an anyone to have a page of their own. I think this fee is more than do-able and if these athletes end up getting significant recognition from the website, I find it to be such a good deal. Furthermore, once athletes make their respective profiles, they can then start uploading all their highlights and game tapes. From simple drills, to full game tape, to a neatly put together highlight real, anyone will be able to show off their skills. Once everything is uploaded, athletes can give scouts a link to their profile and hopefully good will come from it. Additionally, by giving the website link to their head couch, their head coach can then email your profile to all their different connects they have. In turn, this will be very beneficial to the athletes as they will be getting a lot of exposure.

Venture Concept.

As previously stated, my innovation will do the best job possible at trying to solve the problem of high school athletes not getting enough recognition. Customers will buy my innovation as it will give them a great opportunity to gain recognition in hopes of landing a scholarship at the collegiate level. If a high school athlete is already getting recognition from colleges with offers, they won’t need my website. However, the low-key athlete whose very goof but hasn’t gotten much recognition will find comfort in my service. I think they’d use my website in a heartbeat. The only competitor I know of would be the website Hudl. They offer similar benefits to my innovation. My overall business concept is pretty straight forward and simple as everything runs online. I think once a few athletes start getting some recognition from using the website, the customer support will skyrocket as they’ll see the website has many benefits. I hope all customers have a great experience. If they don’t like the website after using it, they can cancel their subscription any time they want. In total, I’d have a few employees in order to keep track of all the new users registered and what not. The other employees would be making sure that the customers are paying with a valid credit card. In total, I’m very excited about my venture concept and I think it could very successful.

Secret Sauce

I think my ventures secret sauce is that it’s the best bang for your buck. If an athlete is struggling to get recognition, and they see my website, for only 10 dollars a month they’ll basically be investing in their own future by giving themselves a great shot at getting some much needed recognition. You cant beat that and they can cancel whenever they want. It’s simply too good of an investment to pass up.

 what’s next for the venture-

My main goal with the venture is too successfully get these athletes the recognition they deserve. I hope at least 35% of my users get offered a scholarship or some sorts to play at the collegiate level.

Next for me-

I plan to have the company for a very long time. I hope I can help many athletes over the years. After 10 years or so, if I receive a lucrative offer, I will probably take it.

2) I didn’t submit any initial venture concept, so I didn’t have any feedback to go off of.

3) This is my first venture concept officially submitted.

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 within 7 years in hopes of a large return. If 7 years have passed and a large offer doesn’t appear, I’ll likely hold on to the business till get an offer I like. If that big offer never comes around, I’ll leave the business to my children for them to take over.

2)     Why have you selected this particular exit strategy?

I selected this strategy as I’m an adventure seeker. I have no desire to have a business for like 50 years because that’s boring to me. I like to switch things up and try new experiences (within good reason). If my business is booming for a long time and I sell it for a good price, ill take my family on a nice vacation where I’ll then plan my next course of action.

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?

My exit strategy hasn’t influenced much. I’ve always known my plan so with every decision I’ve made, I’ve had the long term goal in mind each step along the way.

27A – Reading Reflection No. 3

Mindset: The New Psychology of Success, Carol Dweck

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

               The main theme in here is defining the 2 different types of mindsets and explaining why they’re good and bad. With a fixed mindset, one thinks talent is everything. With a growth mindset, one thinks they can do anything they set their mind too, no matter the circumstances.

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

               This book only enhanced what I learned from this class. Having that entrepreneurial mindset to take risks and be the best version of yourself ties in with this book neatly.

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

I would create a multiple-choice questionnaire involving many different scenarios and based off everyone’s answers, they would be either identified as an individual with a fixed mindset or as an individual with a growth mindset. With these results, the people will be able to reflect on themselves and make changes to their life if they want.

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?

I didn’t know there were multiple types of mindsets. I also came to the realization that a fixed mindset really isn’t ideal and that individuals should strive to develop a growth mindset.

26A – Celebrating Failure

This past semester I dropped the ball when I didn’t study well enough for my midterm in my other class. I started studying too late and ended up getting a 72 on the midterm. Although I later recovered by getting an 85 on the final and scores of 97 and 95 on the 2 main papers in the class. However, I only ended up with an 87 B+. Even though that’s not a bad grade at all, I think of it as a failure as I thought I’d get an A in the class and I came up short because I didn’t study well enough. Through this I learned sometimes things don’t go as planned and that’s okay. I changed up my study habits after the midterm and did much better in the class. Lastly, although no one likes failure, I also think it plays a key role in being successful. Failure humbles individuals and challenges them to rise to the occasion to overcome a challenge or obstacle. The individuals who fail only gain experience and new skills and eventually it’ll all pay off and it’ll be the reason they end up being successful one day. This class has only enhanced my outlook on failure and I will definitely take risks when I feel it's the right choice.

25A – What’s Next?

Existing Market. 

My next step regarding my venture would be to see if Chick-fil-wanted any additional food products/meals to be tested on the open market. If Chick-fil-a isn’t interested in doing business anymore, I’d have to come up with different food options to pitch to other potential fast-food restaurants.

I interviewed all 3 of my roommates. They all eat Chick-fil-a regularly and when I told them about my idea, they were fully supportive. When I asked them what should be my next move, my first roommate said that I should my relationship with Chick-fil-a by officially joining the company in some fashion as a worker. Whether that’s working for an individual franchise somewhere or by working behind the scenes in some corporate level position, my roommate urged me to stay with the company in some fashion. My second roommate thinks that I should start advertising new food products to other fast food restaurants like Wendy’s, McDonalds, BK etc (rather than staying with Chick-fil-a). My last roommate offered the biggest plan in that he thinks I should just open up my own restaurant and then I can sell whatever I want. Although that idea is tempting, it’s also expensive to do that so maybe when I’m a little older I can look into that.

In terms of growing my existing market, I’d like to continue working with Chick-fil-a by continuously always pitching new foods to sell to the public. If they aren’t interested, ill need to bring my talents elsewhere.

New Market

Rather than focusing on the fast food restaurant business, I’m interested in learning more about the bakery industry. I love all kinds of desserts and bakery style food items. If I could create some new dishes and pitch some of my ideas to already established bakeries for them to possibly sell to the public, I’d be happy.

I interviewed 2 of my classmates.  Both of them have experience in working for Ice Cream shops so they know what I’m talking about. My first classmate said that I need to be outside-the-box in pitching new desserts to the already established bakeries because they are always looking for new creative dishes to sell to the public. My other roommate fully supported my idea and was even willing to get me a meeting with one of her old bosses (who owns an ice cream shop) to discuss some potential ideas.

Overall, I learned that the bakery industry isn’t that easy to be successful in. However, I’m willing to try and see what happens. I still think my existing market is more attractive as I have so much more foods to work with in pitching new meals. Whereas in the baking industry, there’s a very limited selection of foods that they make and sell so its way more restrictive in that sense I’d say.

23A – Your Venture’s Unfair Advantage

1)     Having access to individuals who know how to make these quality meals

Value: Very valuable.

Rarity: This is not rare because a lot of people have a variety of worldwide connections.

Imitability: imitability is high as anyone can make a chicken alfredo meal. However, the key distinction is the QUALITY in the individuals who know how to make it.

Non-Substitutability: The only other way to provide this is to get another chef of less-quality.

2)   Having access to individuals who know how to market new meals to the fast-food restaurant consumer

Value: Very valuable.

Rarity: I think this is sort of rare as most people don’t know people like that on a first-name basis.

Imitability: Imitability isn’t high.

Non-Substitutability: Yes, other people can do the job but how well will they do it?

3)     Willingness to accept failure

Value: Very valuable. Some can’t accept this, and it ends up costing them their whole business

Rarity: While not extremely rare, I do think most will keep their doubts in the dark rather than being open about it.

Imitability: This mindset can be copied.

Non-Substitutability: No.

4)     Start-Up Business Experience

Value: Very valuable.

Rarity: Not very rare as many people have experience in starting up businesses whether they end up good or bad.

Imitability: I highly doubt someone is pitching the same idea as me

Non-Substitutability: Sure, other people have experience but I doubt there are other alternatives.

5)     Unique Idea

Value: I think my idea can be very valuable, only time will tell.

Rarity: Unique= rare.

Imitability: A competitor could replicate my idea; however I don’t see the success rates being high.

Non-Substitutability: Don’t think so

6)     Being Able to Learn on the Fly

Value: Very valuable. Helped me a lot in school growing up.

Rarity: I think it is rare as many people have many different great skills. However, a lot of people can’t just learn things and then do them

Imitability: This is a very hard skill to imitate because for a lot of people, it takes time to learn and process things

Non-Substitutability: Being good at other things can take the pressure off being a fast learner. (i.e being a fast reader, or a good listener)

7)     Having People Who Support my Idea

Value: Very valuable.

Rarity: Not very rare as a lot of people have support from their friends and family

Imitability:

Non-Substitutability: Support can come from anyone and can come in a variety of ways.

8)     Simple Idea Being Pitched

Value: Very valuable to me because I think the benefits could be great.

Rarity: I think my idea is rare as I’ve never heard about it in the real world.

Imitability: Many ideas can be replicated

Non-Substitutability Nope.

9)     Everyone Loves Chick-Fil-a

Value: This is very valuable because almost any new product that Chick-fil-a tests on the open market, it usually always gets much attention from consumers. This trend will only help me in my idea to pith new chicken related meals at Chick-fil-a.

Rarity: It is rare for an establishment to get so much recognition for its food and service.

Imitability: Very hard to copy the love Chick-fil-a gets in comparison to other fast food restaurants.

Non-Substitutability: Perpetual industries could be substituted with just a long-lasting one or a very short-lived industry, both can be profitable like a perpetual one.

10)  Being a Risk-Taker

Value: This is valuable because if one doesn’t take risks, success may never be found.

Rarity: 50/50. Some play it safe and others take risks all the time within the business world.

Imitability: You either take risks or don’t.

Non-Substitutability: You either take risks or don’t.

I think my top resource is my willingness to accept failure if I gave it my all. If my idea pops off and is a great success, then great for me. If my idea doesn’t do as well as I thought it would, I’m okay with that because I gave it my all and wasn’t afraid to take a chance.

22A – Elevator Pitch No. 3

 This is my 3rd elevator pitch. In this one, I cut out a lot of the fluff from the last one and got great straight to the point. I was also much more confident this time around as I knew what I wanted to say due to much practice and rehearsal. Hope you enjoy.

21A – Reading Reflection No. 2

***The Art of Social Media: Power Tips for Power Users, Guy Kawasaki***

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

I’d say the main argument of the book is that if you want your social media account to be a pivotal part of your career, you have to treat it as a business. No more posting drunken party pictures or posting rants about celebrities or political figures. Figure out what your audience wants to see while also creating content that you enjoy yourself.  Try things out to see what sticks. To use social media to be successful is very much possible. However, you’ve got to stick with it and treat it as a business.

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

One of the main tips within the book is to always try to think of alternate solutions to problems. Thinking outside the box also plays a pivotal role in the book. These 2 lessons tie in with our class as most of our assignments require us to think creatively.

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

If I were to create an exercise, it’d be for each member of the class to post a collage of all their pictures on Instagram and to explain why they post the way they do. Whether ones Instagram is filled with dog pictures or pictures filled with friends, I’d like to know why their Instagram is crafted the way it is. Is it simply to meet people? Is it to share pictures with friends and family? Or do they post pictures trying to promote their families business or something like that. I think everyone would have varying answers which would make for a lively discussion.

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?

After reading this book, I realized how important cross promotion can be in promoting one’s company. Whether its Instagram and Snapchat, Twitter and Facebook, or YouTube and LinkedIn, a company should have a combination of some these sites. By posting different but similar content on both platforms, it keep the audience interested while also nudging them to keep up to date with both platforms. Cross-promoting can lead to a wider audience and it can also speed up the process in gaining new followers quickly. This overall statement seems quite obvious, but I never really thought about how true it is. For example, former Miami Heat basketball player Hassan Whiteside uses his Instagram to post about his endorsement and other celebrity type posts. However, his snapchat account is very personal and he often posts everyday of him hanging out in his house or out and about with friends. This cross-promotion style keeps his fans engaged as they know they’ll get entertaining content on multiple platforms.

20A – Growing Your Social Capital

Domain Expert-

My stepfathers friend Jasper owns an Italian restaurant in Miami. I also worked there during high school as a part time job. Jasper is an expert in restaurant ownership and knows all the ins and outs on how to successfully run an Italian restaurant efficiently. When I asked him about my idea about pitching new chicken products at Chick-fil-a to spice up the menu (chicken alfredo, chicken parm etc.), he definitely liked the idea but he also wasn’t so sure that Chick-fil-a would be willing to sell these products as some of the dishes I pitched “take a while to cook…doesn’t fit the fast food restaurant mold, but you never know”. Jasper is my domain expert because if Chick-fil-a would be open to testing some of these products, Jasper would be the guy to talk to in explaining how to efficiently make a quality meal to customers.

Market Expert

My aunt owns part of a Panera Bread establishment in Orlando, Fl for the past 5 years. The company has been nothing but a success. My aunt is a market expert as even though Chick-fil-a and Panera Bread aren’t exactly the same, they both serve similar products and have a common group of customers. My aunt knows exactly how to advertise products and really knows the fast food-café market really well based off her experience of being an owner. If Chick-fil-a was willing to try out my ideas, my aunt would be an incredible help to me in plans regarding advertising and targeting the right group of customers.

Industry supplier

As previously mentioned, my family-friend Jasper owns an Italian restaurant. However, he gets most of his foods from one of his friends who owns a company that makes chicken, pasta, lasagna etc. His friend is responsible for supplying many different foods to a variety of restaurants in the south Florida area. Although I don’t know the man directly, Jasper said he would definitely refer me to him to ask more questions. I haven’t had a chance to speak with him yet, but if the idea ever came into the picture, Jaspers friend could potentially be a supplier as he sells most of his products to various Italian establishments within the US. Chick-fil-a obviously isn’t an Italian restaurant establishment, however if Chick-fil-a were to venture into Italian style meals (chicken alfredo, chicken parm), this could be the way to go about it.

Reflection

Overall, talking to people that are family or family friends isn’t that hard. I can freely express my ideas to them and I know I wont be shut down or ignored because they’ll actually listen to me. However, in example, I haven’t talked to the potential guy as my industry supplier mentioned above. Talking to him may be a little more intimidating as he doesn’t know me so he might not be willing to hear my ideas out like I would hope.

19A – Idea Napkin No. 2

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 Connor Brennan. My talents are pretty simple, but I think of myself as a hard worker with great learning and listening skills. Basically, I feel I can do anything I can set my mind too. My previous aspirations for this business idea were to make the life of Chick-fil-a customer’s easier by adding a third driveway. However, this idea was cut short as there was too much uncertainty regarding whether it’d be successful. My new idea still involves Chick-Fil-A, but this time it has to deal with the food options. It’s already known that everyone universally likes Chick-fil-a. However, I’d like to spice up the menu and add further products to the menu. Some of these new food items include a chicken alfredo meal, a chicken parmesan sandwich, and other chicken related food meals. I’m not sure how this proposition would affect my life, however I do think it would satisfy customers which in turn would satisfy me.

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

I am offering an idea to add new chicken products to the Chick-fil-a menu. Although this need isn’t a high one as most people are satisfied already with the menu, by adding these additional food items, I believe it can draw in new customers and it’ll only make Chick-fil-a even more revered among society.

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?

I’m offering it to everyone and anyone. Who doesn’t enjoy chicken parm? Or chicken alfredo?  Most people like these delicious foods and by having a more diversified menu, Chick-fil-a will only gain further recognition for being a great food establishment.

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. 

Customers will pay for my food ideas because Chick-fil-a produces quality food. Most people enjoy trying new foods and by adding these unique items, customers will definitely be willing to try them since Chick-fil-a has such a good reputation for its food and service among society.

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

What sets me apart is my willingness to make a change. If the idea fails and it’s not as effective as I thought it’d be, it’s just another lesson to be learned. I try not to fear failure, and in this case, I’d be happy I went forward with my idea. If the new food items aren’t popular with customers, no big deal. However, if they are, then that would be great.

I believe all these elements will fit together. By potentially adding these new food items to customers, it could possibly attract a new variety of customers. By adding new customers, it would also improve sales for Chick-fil-a as well (even though I doubt their lacking in that department).

In my previous idea napkin, I got some good feedback in that my idea wasn’t as clearly explained like how I though it was. I feel my new idea is pretty simple and one can understand why it would be successful. It’s clear the benefits it can possibly offer to society and to the Chick-fil-a as a company.

18A – Create a Customer Avatar

The population segment I’ve chosen is a typical college student who eats at Chick-fil-a often. The avatar I created is a prototypical freshman student at UF who eats Chick-fil-a often since there are so many of them in the city of Gainesville. My avatar usually grabs it for lunch as he lives at Cypress Hall which is near a variety of Chick-fil-a establishments. The one at Broward Hall, the one near the Hub, and lastly the Chick-fil-a at the Standard (on west university ave) are all his go-to options. In deciding which one he’ll eat at; it simply comes down to where he’s at on campus. He uses a bike to get around and since his classes are all over campus, having the many locations is beneficial as he can always get a quick bite to eat no matter where he is.

Me and the avatar are similar. Although I’m not a freshman and I don’t use a bike, I do eat at Chick-fil-a quite often. Last year I lived at the Standard apartments and having a Chick-fil-a on the first floor was so convenient to get a quick meal before or after class. After bringing up my car for sophomore year, it made my life way easier as I could drive anywhere and eat whatever I wanted. However, when I was a freshman and didn’t have a form of transportation, it definitely made my food options limited

17A – Elevator Pitch No. 2

This is my elevator pitch on how I think Chick-fil-a should spice up their menu by adding further chicken related food products. Hope you enjoy.

Based on my feedback from my last pitch, I tried to look into the camera more and tried to be a little smoother in my talking points.

16A –What’s Your Secret Sauce?

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

-I’m very dedicated to my schoolwork and I always put forth my best effort.

-I’m friendly and I feel I can make anyone laugh.

-I take risks when I truly think I can do it and I don’t let other people’s opinions get in my way.

-I’m a positive person and try to see the best in everyone.

-I’m caring and will do a lot for my friends and family.

2. Interview the five people who know you the best. Ask them what they think makes you different.

***I’m currently volunteering at a sleep away camp in another state as a counselor, so I decided to call/text these 5 people that actually know me best from back home. ***

My mom Erin:  “You brighten everyone’s day when you walk into a room”

My stepdad Tony: “You’re extremely hardworking and can do anything you put your mind too”

My little brother Liam: “You’re smart and funny and a great big brother”

My best friend Chris: “One of the best people I know”

My grandfather: “You’re smart, and not afraid to take chances”

3) Reflect on the differences.

After completing this exercise, I definitely felt the love. Calling all my friends and family from back home and hearing them say nice stuff about you can truly brighten your day. In seeing how my family looks at me and how I look at myself, I’ve noticed I can definitely be hard on myself. I’ve got to learn to let things be and if I can’t control a situation, then I shouldn’t let it affect me. I look forward to more exercises like this in the future.

15A – Figuring Out Buyer Behavior No. 2

For my segment, I’ve chosen 3 individuals who eat at Chick-fil-a a somewhat regular basis.

In the first interview, it was done with my friend who goes to school in Jacksonville at UNF. We discussed my idea and he thought it was interesting and anticipated that it would improve customer satisfaction significantly if that 3-lane drive thru worked. Chick-fil-a is one of his favorite places to eat for lunch. However, he asked me how much would be to install the third drive thru lane? How much would it be to install the new system at all the Chick-Fil-a’s across the United States? I didn’t know the answer to these questions, so this interview definitely helped open my eyes regarding my idea in that I don’t have all the answers yet.

My next interview was done with my friend who goes to FSU. His main reason for eating Chick-fil-a so much is that his dorm on campus is literally 50 steps from the main Chick-fil-a on campus. It’s super convenient for him as all he needs to do is simply walk outside of his dorm and it’s there. He supported my idea heavily as he thinks the 3-lane drive thru will be good in spacing out cars and speeding up order times. However, he also brought up the point in that there’s no evidence that the idea will work, so that many trials need to be dome before the idea is implemented statewide.

My last interview was done with my uncle who lives in Orlando. He lives like 3 minutes from a Chick fil-a so he often stops there to get dinner for his family whenever they don’t cook. He told me that the drive-thru lines are usually worse during the days so most times he’ll wait to eat it for dinner. Once I told him idea, he was immediately interested but he did have concerns. If all the Chick-fila-a restaurants around the US implemented the 3-lane drive thru, it would significantly affect the architecture for a lot of the restaurants. Most of the restaurants would need to be upgraded or knocked down entirely in order to create space. This in turn could cost a lot of money on Chick-fil-a’s end. My uncle is right to have these concerns, and I had never considered that factor in thinking of my idea.

Summary: Although all of them liked the idea, it still isn’t 100% that the 3-lane drive thru will ultimately be beneficial and efficient.  The cost of adding this third lane is still unsure and it overall may not be effective in the long run as many of the established restaurants may need to upgrade its facility which will only cost more and more money. To figure it out if it works, a few test runs should be done at some of the already existing locations that are larger than most of the other restaurants. Once these results are gathered, it will be clear whether the plan works or doesn’t work.

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? 

To keep up with the requirements of this course, I usually do all the assignments a week prior till when they are due. Sometimes my commitment to my other class gets in the way of doing this. However, by doing all my assignments early it gives me the best chance to turn in all the assignments with the best quality of work.

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?

In the beginning of the semester, I almost gave up and dropped the course. My other class seemed very demanding from the initial look of its syllabus and I wasn’t sure I was going to be able both classes in addition to having  a job. However, I found a way to balance it all and I’m glad I didn’t drop the class in the end.

    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' ?

Tip #1: Get assignments done early

Tip #2: Ask questions if confused

Tip #3: Watch lectures to do well on the Cupcake assignments

13A – Reading Reflection No. 1

1) You read about an entrepreneur: Steve Jobs, By: Walter Isaacson 

• What surprised you the most?

What surprised me the most is that the name Apple had a very specific reasoning. Jobs gave the company the name Apple because it;s alphabetically in front of the company Atari. Jobs previously worked at Atari and didn’t want his former company  and now competitor to be ahead of Apple in a phone book or in any kind of listing when people were looking up computer companies.

• What about the entrepreneur did you most admire?

I admire Steve Jobs for truly changing the world. Although many hiccups along the road, Jobs has always persevered to strive for his goals. His success is unmatched and his determination to see his vision through is inspiring stuff.

• What about the entrepreneur did you least admire?

What I least admire about Jobs is that he tends to blow up on individuals and can be a huge jerk. Some of the stories recounted in the book were very surprising. However, everyone is human and I don’t necessarily think Jobs is an awful person just because he’s been a mean person in periods throughout his life.

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

Jobs was fired from Apple in 1985. After this he invested his time and money into NeXT and Pixar. His investments into Pixar eventually made him a billionaire. Who knew that initially getting fired from Apple would actually be a blessing In disguise for Jobs. Crazy.

2) What competencies did you notice that the entrepreneur exhibited? 

Jobs’ determination and the way he could communicate with people was truly a gift. It’s the reason why his employees worked 90 hours a week to make the best product possible. Jobs’ ability to inspire and motivate was one of his greatest gifts.

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

There wasn’t really anything that confused me.

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

The first thing I’d ask is what the biggest regret regarding his career and then I’d ask what’s his biggest regret he has regarding his personal life. I’d ask him this to pick his brain. For a man who’s done so much for the world and has accomplished so much success, I find interest in seeing if there’s a different path he would’ve taken in the past or if there’s anything he would change. That stuff really interests me.

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

I think Jobs saw hard work as the key to success. I agree with that because I truly feel dreams don’t work unless you do. Many things in life don’t come handed to anyone. You’ve got to work for what you want to make things happen and I believe Job’s worked his absolute tail off to turn his dreams into a reality.

12A – Figuring Out Buyer Behavior No. 1

For my segment, I’ve chosen 3 individuals who eat at Chick-fil-a a somewhat regular basis.

In the first interview, it was done with my friend who goes to school in Alabama. We discussed my idea and he thought it was interesting. He told me he eats out pretty often as he doesn’t know how to cook much and that his parents give him a monthly allowance to spend on food. In turn, he usually ends up spending his money on Chick-fil-a because according to him “it’s the best bang for your buck.” However, he has said that the Chick-fil-a he goes too is always packed. Therefore, the thought my idea was a unique solution to the issue.

My next interview was done with my friend who goes to FSU. His main reason for eating Chick-fil-a so much is that he lives across the street from one. It’s super convenient for him because he doesn’t have a car so all he has to do is cross the street. He told me he usually gets it for lunch most days at around 2 pm. However, he told me that it doesn’t matter the time of day as the drive thru is always consistently packed. He supported my idea heavily as he thinks the 3-lane drive thru will be good in spacing out cars and speeding up order times.

My last interview was done with a friend of mine who goes UF with me. He lives right off Archer road, making Chick-fil-a the usual spot he goes too when he’s hungry. He says that he usually either goes at around noon or at 8 PM. He told me that the drive-thru lines are usually worse during the days so most times he’ll wait to eat it for dinner. Once I told him idea, he was immediately interested. Although, he thought that adding a third drive thru lane may only increase the waiting time in lines as more cars can now occupy space. However, he still supported the idea and can see the benefits it can bring to the table.

Summary: Although all of them liked the idea, it still isn’t 100% that the 3-lane drive thru will ultimately be beneficial and efficient. To figure it out if it works, a few test runs should be done at already existing locations. Once these results are gathered, it will be clear whether the plan works or doesn’t work.

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 Connor Brennan. My talents are pretty simple, but I think of myself as a hard worker with great learning and listening skills. Basically, I feel I can do anything I can set my mind too. My aspirations for this business idea are to make the life of Chick-fil-a customer’s easier by adding a third driveway. I’m not sure how this proposition would affect my life, however I do think it would satisfy customers which in turn would satisfy me.

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

I am offering another solution to help speed the process up within the Chick-fiI-a drive thru. By adding this third drive thru lane and adding more employees, I believe the Chick-fil-a drive thru process can reach new heights of speed and efficiency.

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?

What all my customers have in common is that they want their food fast and ready. The whole purpose of a drive-thru is get to food to the customer in the fastest way possible. Since everyone basically loves Chick-fil-a, I think everyone who usually eats there will support my idea.

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. 

Well, I’m getting paid to make their lives easier. Sitting 15 minutes in a drive-thru can be annoying and frustrating. In fact, when it comes to Chick-fil-a, I think they’re the only fast food restaurant in which its faster to go inside and order rather than waiting in drive-thru. I intend to reverse this process and I believe customers will definitely support.

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

What sets me apart is my willingness to make a change. If the idea fails and its not as effective as I thought it’d be, its just another lesson to be learned. I try not to fear failure and, in this case, I’d be happy I went forward with my idea. Also, what sets me apart is that I don’t think many fast food restaurants (at least from my own experience) have 3 drive thru lanes. This idea would be new territory to the industry.

I believe all these elements will fit together. I believe the process of the drive-thru will ultimately speed up and that customers will most definitely be satisfied. If the process works, it could be revelation in the fast food restaurant business as many companies may start installing 2 or 3 drive thru lanes at specific locations.

10A- Elevator pitch 1

Here is my elevator pitch for my potential website. Hope you enjoy.

9A – Testing the Hypothesis, Part 2

Who: After conducting further interviews, it was clear to me that not all high school athletes have a desire for my product. I interviewed 3 of my friends from my hometown of Miami (Fl). In the first interview, my friend brought up the notion that some people just play high school sports for fun and that they don’t care to play in college even though they may be extremely talented. My other friend brought up the harsh reality that some athletes just aren’t good enough to play at the next level, no matter how much exposure they get within the sports world. In the last interview, my friend brought up the notion that an athlete would need to have all their games and practices filmed. If this isn’t possible for them, then the platform is useless as they’ll have nothing to upload. However, all 3 of them thought the idea was great if these athletes did want to pursue an athletic career post high school.

Additionally, I also saw another market for my product. I interviewed one of my father’s old college football teammates whose career ended after not getting drafted by an NFL team. However, he brought up the idea that my product could still work for even adults. In pursuit of playing in the NFL, many athletes will play in the CFL (Canadian Football League) and the AFL (Arena Football League) after college in order to live out their dreams of hopefully playing in the NFL one day. My fathers friend brought up the idea that these people could then upload their highlights from their time in these leagues in order to help them gain exposure to potential NFL teams.

What: In my fifth interview, done with a cousin of mine who played volleyball all of high school, she thinks that my idea is unique and that it can help.  She felt that by an athlete being able to upload all their highlights and training drills, it would definitely help them in gaining exposure to possibly land a scholarship from a college team. However, she also brought up the real problem in that although highlight tapes can make anyone look good, the athlete actually needs to have the talent and determination to play at the next level. If playing college ball was so easy, everyone would do it. That’s why landing a scholarship is so difficult.

Why: No, I don’t think the need is different. The only difference is between the athletes that want to play college ball and the ones who don’t.

         Inside the Boundary                                    Outside the Boundary

Who:	-High school athletes seeking a college scholarship.	-High school students who do not care to play in college.
	-College students who want to play college sports	-High school athletes who don’t care to play beyond high school
	-Older athletes still pursuing their dreams of playing professionally	-High school athletes who simply aren’t good enough to play at the next level
What:
	-To help gain exposure to these athletes.	-The need isn’t an absolute solution for the athletes. If they simply aren’t good enough, they won’t get a scholarship. However, the website allows them a platform to show their skills while gaining exposure to the college sports world.
Why:	The need exists as many want to play  college sports but don’t get enough exposure.

8A – Solving The Problem

As I stated in the previous “Bug List” assignment, I believe the Chick-Fil-a drive-through on Archer road is busy way too often. Yes, I know that Chick-fil-a is extremely popular and that they’re known for great customer service. However, whenever I do go there, it ends up taking a while to get my food because it’s always so packed with cars no matter the time of day. To solve this problem, I pitch the solution of adding a third lane within the drive through area while also adding more employees to help combat this new system. Chick-fil-a is already great under pressure when the drive-through is packed. The workers never seem stressed and they do their best to make sure every customer is satisfied. By adding a third lane within the drive through area, I believe this will definitively help with the long line problem. The Chick-fil-a on Archer has 2 lanes already and still somehow the line will wrap around the building. By adding a third line, I believe this problem will go away as it will space things out and I truly don’t think all 3 lanes will ever be filled completely. If that happens, then Americans are simply eating Chick-fil-a too much. All in all, Chick-fil-a is a top-notch fast food restaurant with little flaws. The drive-thru process is my only issue and I feel that my solution will help ease the problem by ultimately speeding up the time in which cars spend waiting for their food.

7A – Testing the Hypothesis, Part 1

High school athletes see their dreams of playing college sports come to an end every day because they get offered 0 scholarships to play in college. An underlying reason for this is that these athletes aren’t getting enough exposure to even get a chance at a scholarship to play at the next level.

The who: High School Athletes

The what: See their dreams of playing college sports come to an end every year because they get offered 0 scholarships to play in college when they’re about to graduate from high school.

The why:  These athletes aren’t getting enough exposure to even get a chance at a scholarship to play at the next level.

Testing the who: The who can be anyone that is pursing a college sports scholarship.

Testing the what: When it comes to athletes not getting scholarships, it can be for a variety of reasons such as they’re simply not good enough to play at the next level and sometimes its injuries. However, I’m going to focus on the not getting enough exposure as the main reason why.

Testing the why: In testing the why, I’ve come up with a solution. To combat athletes not getting enough exposure, I planned to create a website in which it allows them to upload they’re high school highlights. First off, they would obviously need their parents or friends to film them during games and practices. However, once this is done, all they would need to do is upload the videos to their respective account. This platform would allow individuals share their accomplishments with the sports world. By having a website that exposes college scouts to these high school athletes, it gives them a better shot at being noticed and ultimately a better shot at receiving a scholarship.

Interview #1

This interview was done with a friend of mine at UF. He’s a freshman now, but he played baseball his whole life. However, he didn’t start taking it seriously till 11^th grade and by then, his chance to go the next level was pretty much gone. However, he was a great pitcher and he never thought he’d end up playing college ball anyway. I asked him though, had he taken the sport more seriously, would he have used the sports website idea I proposed? His answer was a definite yes. He told me he wished that website was around when he was in high school as so many of his teammates wanted to play college ball but didn’t.

Interview #2

This interview was done with a friend of mine who attends FSU and played football his whole life. He wanted to play college football but unfortunately, he never got any offers despite being pretty talented. When I brought up the website idea to him, he was definitely intrigued. He told me that if it was around when he was in high school, he would be made highlight tapes for all 4 years he played. There’s no guarantee that would’ve led to a scholarship, however, it definitely would’ve given him more exposure.

Interview #3

This interview was done with my friend who currently is on scholarship at UF for golf. He’s an absolute stud when it comes to the sport and his family are all athletes. When I talked to him about my idea, he liked it, but said it wouldn’t really have help him in the golf world (back when he was in high school). He explained to me that you get noticed by performing in intermediate tournaments here and there and that when you play really well, you get offers. Golf isn’t the most popular sport in the US, but, it’s also one of the most difficult ones to be the best at so when colleges see any potential in a high school golfer, they’re immediate all over it. He then told me a highlight tape wouldn’t really work in his favor as golf is a complicated sport with various factors that can lead to success and failure.

Interview #4

This interview was done with my cousin who’s in 7^th grade playing football. He proceeded to tell me that he hopes my idea is in works by the time he’s in high school so that he can start uploading all the clips he has from games and from training. He dreams of playing in the NFL, but he knows how hard it is to get to even play college football. According to the NCAA, only 7.1% of high school football players successfully transition to playing college ball. With my idea, this could help my cousin significantly in the future.

Interview #5

This last interview was done with my father. My father played football his whole life and only had 1 offer once he graduated from high school. This offer was from Florida A&M University and he went on and became an All-American for the school at the wide receiver position. Unfortunately, that was the end of his football days. He wanted to go pro and his stats were very good for his position. However, FAMU is a small school so he never got much attention from NFL scouts, which ended up being his downfall. I told him about my idea, and he said that if it was around 20 years ago when he played, he guaranteed he would be in the NFL. I was sort of shocked at his bold statement. But he thought he was that good and his stats did back up his talk. However, the lack of exposure to other college teams ended up being his downfall as if he had an offer from a more known school (like a D1 school), things would’ve been different.

Summary:

After interviewing all these people, it’s clear my idea would be helpful. It would’ve helped them all in different ways. But mainly, it would serve its ultimate purpose which is giving high school athletes a platform in which they can show off their skills to college scouts in hopes of getting a scholarship.