Final Reflection

1. Experiences

• What stands out to me the most is the 'Secret Sauce' assignment. I had reservations about doing it and at times I thought I would not complete it. Initially I did not want to interview people who know me because I thought it would be awkward for me listening to them talking about me and also for them being put on the spot having to say things about me to me. It was very formative because it was not as bad as I thought at first and it became enlightening. I learned more about myself and areas I can improve that I may have otherwise never noticed. I think I will always remember this experience as it was a big help and a tremendous step forward in my journey through college and life. 
• I really enjoyed the 'Elevator Pitches'. I was nervous when I first read the assignment as I did not know how it would be received by everyone else. However I like to dress in professional attire and I don't mind trying to convince people of different things so it made it fun. I listened to the feedback and I tried to incorporate something new in each pitch which was also fun. 
• I am the most proud of the entire class experience and that I completed every assignment. In the beginning I thought it would be difficult to interview people. I am used to classes that involve reading books and taking quizzes. This hands on experience was a shock and made me think I would not complete some assignments. Looking back I am most proud that I was able to overcome my initial trepidation and persevere through everything. I said to myself, "I will complete every assignment no matter what and I will get an A." I refused to give up and began to enjoy conducting the interviews. I grew a lot from the first day to this one and that makes me proud.
2. Mindset

• I definitely see myself as an entrepreneur. I find myself talking with people and listening to their complaints more than I did before. Then I try to think of ways to turn their complaints into opportunities. I also look for ways in general to improve different things. I look for products that are extremely popular and try to think of what's next. An example is since there have been a multitude of police shootings, I thought about maybe there could be a class taught by a retired cop as to how citizens should respond when pulled over or confronted by the police.
3. Recommendations
• I recommend taking it one week at a time and noting the structure of the course. The initial shock an experience based course may make people feel apprehensive. I say do not give up as it is not bad at all and will become fun. In general the structure involves at least one written assignment, one interview experience assignment and two comment declarations each week. I recommend completing the written assignment and comment declarations early in the week and the interviews later in the week after the lectures which give more insight into what to ask and how to ask questions. Also try to move ahead once you feel comfortable enough and complete the reading reflections ahead of time as well.
• I recommend at the start of the semester saying, "I will not give up, I will complete every assignment" and sticking to that promise. I also recommend knowing that failing does not make you a failure and failing is fun and intuitive. Failing will happen when looking for people to interview but being an entrepreneur is about failing and rising again and never giving up. Knowing that early on will help in becoming successful in this course.
• I recommend reading Mindset: The New Psychology of Success by Carol Dweck as early
  as possible. It teaches about the fixed vs growth mindset. I think knowing the pitfalls of
  
  the fixed mindset will put more people in a growth mindset which is essential for this course. Other than reading the book I recommend staying focused and at least attempting the exercises. Do not be defeated by an interview denial but rather smile and move on to the next person. People will be happy to give their opinions and after awhile it will become fun. Go through the rejection to enjoy the success.
• Lastly, I recommend just have fun. Make the assignments fun. Make interacting with new people fun. Make the entire experience of being outside your comfort zone fun. Make the extra credit assignments fun. Make commenting on other people's blogs fun. Have fun with the color schemes and posts of your own blog fun. That is the easiest way to an A.

Venture Concept No. 2

Opportunity

People, in general, rarely clean their ceiling fan blades which enables dust accumulation and could potentially cause health risks. Dust becomes manifest after a prolonged time period of not being addressed. Different areas in the home or business are usually of a higher concern and get cleaned more frequently but ceiling fans are often neglected. Dust is the main driving force for this opportunity as well as the 'out of sight, out of mind' mentality adopted by most people. Everyone who owns a ceiling fan at home or in a business has the need to ensure cleanliness. This creates a market for this opportunity among all cultures, locations and ethnic backgrounds. Because of the vast amount of people who are affected, this opportunity has the capability of becoming huge. Currently people

use products such as a Swiffer duster to clean their fan blades and usually there are no specific time parameters to clean them. Sometimes it is an arduous task to clean fan blades so people will neglect them more often. They only decide to clean them when they become noticeable and "gross." Potential customers do not seem loyal to any particular product as they do not give much attention to their ceiling fans until the dust becomes visible which makes marketing this product essential. The window of opportunity will not be open very long as there are always people looking to come up with new ideas to market and profit.

Innovation

Covades

Become a Fan of your ceiling fan!

Covades are ceiling fan blade covers made of spandex which can easily be slipped over your existing fan blades with a Velcro enclosure at the end to keep the covers securely fastened. They are machine washable and can easily be placed on or removed from the fan blade. They are fashionable and come in sets of five in a variety of colors and designs to suit the needs of different customers with their existing room themes. They will also come in different fabrics which will be made to repel dust such as cotton. They will later come in transparent so the existing fan blades can still be displayed. Lastly they will come in different lengths to fit the most common fan blade lengths with special orders available for uncommon lengths. This product will be sold for $30 for each set of five with special order blades at $50 for a set of five. Licensed trademarked products will sell for $60. I will offer discounts to people/businesses who decide to purchase in bulk. I will sell this product on my own initially with the intent to secure major distribution deals in stores. Also, I will target places such as QVC or HSN on television to gain more initial exposure. 

Venture Concept

Covades will provide a fashionable alternative to the traditional ceiling fan blades while keeping them dust free. They will enhance the aesthetics of the current home or business atmosphere by adding an innovative, creative layer to an item which is often overlooked. Customers will switch to this product because the only alternative would be to clean their ceiling fan blades using traditional products such as a Swiffer duster or a cloth rag. My product will allow customers to truly adopt an 'out of sight, out of mind' attitude towards their ceiling fans when it comes to maintaining cleanliness while enhancing the atmosphere of the room by adding a new customization layer of effect. The current competitors are products which help to clean dust from surface areas. Since ceiling fans are suspended in the air, it makes cleaning the blades more cumbersome which is one of the reasons they do not get cleaned very often. Price points will play the biggest role in my concept as this product will have to be affordable. People do not often think of their fan blades so they may not want to pay a lot for this product. Making it relatively inexpensive for the benefits will persuade people to buy this product and word of mouth will increase sales volume.

Minor Elements

My most important resource would be my determination to make this product a success. I do not stop at failure but rather welcome it as I feel that is the best way to improve. My own efforts is what would make it hard for any competitor to copy as well as the excellent customer service I intend to provide which would also help with word of mouth sales. I would like to experiment with different materials such as wicker or wood to create a more contemporary feel to the product. I would also like to create different designs for the actual ceiling fan blades as opposed to the mundane rectangular fan blade. Afterwards, I would create Covades which would fit the new designs. I strive to make moderate to great returns with this venture in the next five years. As an entrepreneur, I would like to solve several other unmet needs in various areas especially ones concerning the health of individuals. I think this venture has helped to instill confidence that I am capable of finding and cultivating an opportunity. By reapplying the methodology I've learned in this course, I will be able to innovate in different areas which would be beneficial to many people. 

Feedback

I received mostly positive feedback throughout this course and concept. It was suggested that I should try to start on QVC or HSN to which I agree. I would start selling this product on my own with hopes of getting into major distribution to stores. I would also offer discounts for people or stores who buy in bulk all of which I included in my concept. Other suggestions for what I should be focusing on next included making it easier for people with higher ceiling fans to install my product which I will focus on for my next venture concept. 

Reading Reflection No. 3

Mindset: The New Psychology of Success

Carol Dweck

1. General Theme/Argument
• The main theme of this book is the fixed vs. growth mindset and the characteristics of each. It is strongly skewed towards developing the growth mindset as it is more beneficial to people based on studies and statistics. The fixed mindset severely limits people in their relationships, challenges, obstacles and encounters as they will tend to only complete tasks with their natural talent. They do not believe in learning and enhancing abilities because they have the mentality of if they were not capable of it then practicing further won't develop it and they do not handle failure very well. The growth mindset is just the opposite in that people actively seek to learn and risk failure to enhance their abilities.
2. Connection To ENT 3003
• This book really helped with not being afraid to fail. Conducting interviews of random people will scare people, including me, as no one wants to fail and experience embarrassment. Learning about the growth mindset and knowing it is ok to fail and learn from failure will help anyone succeed in this course. It helps to develop the positive, tenacious mentality which is required for an experience based course such as this one. 
3. Exercise Design
• I would try to develop an assignment in which I knew the majority of the class would fail such as conducting 15 interviews early on in the class. I wouldn't give points based off the success or failure but merely attempting the assignment and I would not let the students know this until afterwards. Then I would have each student answer why or why not they attempted the assignment and how did failing make them feel if they did indeed fail. Finally I would explain what the true nature of the assignment was about, explain the growth vs fixed mindset and have them write what they learned from the experience. I would do it early so they would know it's not as much about the point as the attempt, the tenacity, and the learning experience. From that point on things will get easier.
4. 'Aha' Moment
• My 'aha' moment came when she began discussing the fixed vs growth mindset in relationships in Chapter 6. Up to that point is was mainly focused on learning vs talent with children, sports, business, etc. Then it hit me these differing mindsets will become manifest and affect relationships. The fixed vs growth mindset is applicable in every aspect of life and how we think through things and solve problems. It also should make everyone want to actively try to develop the growth mindset in every situation as it will be extremely beneficial in every day life. Introspection as to which mindset we already have is the start and if necessary change will follow. It will help everyone accept and welcome failure as well as new challenges which will enhance everyone's life in the long run.

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Making It Real

Résumé

https://drive.google.com/file/d/0Bx55FO926Yikd0hSZWR3VzFkWTQ/view?usp=sharing

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My Exit Strategy

1. Exit
• I intend to cultivate and grow this product for about 5-10 years after which I would sell the business. I will sell it at it's peak and let someone else come up with new, fresh ideas to continue to grow the business. 
2. Reasoning
• I intend to sell it because I will be starting my new profession as a Sports Agent and also I will be looking for other opportunities to exploit in different areas. Also I think it would
  
  be a good idea to get a fresh set of eyes on the product to further grow it.
3. Influence
• I do not think my exit strategy had much influence on my concept as I never thought about the final plan until now. Up to this point I have always been focused on growing the product to become a success but I never thought about exiting. This particular strategy has not influenced any growth intentions or use and acquisition of resources. I have fully intended to grow this business as big as possible. I think after 5-10 years I most likely will have taken it as far as I possibly could have and I think it would be time for some new people to get their hands on it while I explore other ventures and career paths.

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What's Next?

Existing Market

1. Interviews
• https://soundcloud.com/user-477379640/existing-1/s-pSB79
• https://soundcloud.com/brian-carriere-1/existing-2/s-SO8JC
• https://soundcloud.com/brian-carriere-1/existing-3/s-DcxZO
2. Future Path
• Based on my interviews I have concluded that I should be looking for easy ways to apply my product to ceiling fans which are higher in the air. I should be looking for safe efficient ways to ensure people with ceiling fans that are high would want to buy my product as it could still be a hassle getting to them. Looking beyond the quality and design of the product and focusing on ease of application will become an important factor to the success of this product. Another area of focus would be talking with manufacturers to create a joint venture which would make marketing my product easier. Also I need to be cognizant of warranties and if adding a product such as mine would void current ceiling fan warranties. 

New Market

1. Radically Different Market
• Poor struggling males
• Young struggling high school or college freshmen males
• Older minimum wage working males
2. Value Creation
• This concept could give them intrinsic or extrinsic goals to strive for such as:
• A) owning a ceiling fan and the feeling of accomplishment from how far they have come when this initial idea was presented to them; Covades being a symbol of success to them
• B) coming up with their own idea or creation which would help to alleviate their struggle
• C) being a source of inspiration for striving to become successful in a venture.
3. Interviews
• https://soundcloud.com/brian-carriere-1/new-market-1/s-Ios5E
• https://soundcloud.com/brian-carriere-1/new-market-2/s-dkdvD
• https://soundcloud.com/brian-carriere-1/new-market-3/s-OUOxS
4. Reflection
• I received a lot of the same feedback about my new market as the old. Ideas about making the application of the covers easier and making sure warranties remain covered were new ideas. Also thinking about making deals with ceiling fan manufacturers was a great idea in my opinion. As far as the new market, people felt having designs and customization was the most important aspect. Perhaps it coincides with today's culture and generation looking for new ways to customize old devices.

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Celebrating Failure

1. Failed
• Earlier this summer I was taking the course, RTV 3411: Race, Gender, Class and the Media, from Dr. Roy and we had weekly assignment prompts which we would post on a discussion board for credit. The discussion for one week posed the question, should the media report or ignore instances of hate speech? My reply was the media should ignore instances of hate speech and I listed the reasons why I felt that way. Dr. Roy subtracted two points so I received a 28 out of 30 because she was looking for HOW it should be covered. I like to think of myself as an intelligent debater and I knew I would provide a convincing argument and get my two points back. This is where the failure comes in. I
  
  emailed her explaining my side of the situation and the fact that I actually answered what the prompt asked. She began to enlighten me about censorship not being an option and how something may not be reported but will still be reported through social media. The idea was to look beyond the "trick" question that was posed. I responded that censorship somewhat already exists in that the media does not cover when someone streaks and the perpetrator is arrested without the masses ever knowing about it. She responded that while that is true, instances of not reporting something from a professional organization and only through social media could cause more harm than good such as the initial reports on Reddit of a missing Indian boy being involved in the Boston Marathon bombings when it was really the Tsarnaev brothers and the damage it caused. Needless to say I lost the argument and did not get my points back as I initially thought I would.
2. Learning
• It was a humbling experience and it was also gratifying. Although I did not get the points, I did learn to look beyond what every question asks and to try to navigate the true purpose of a question. I learned to think critically and on a higher plane. I also gained a lot more information than I would have had I not tried to get the points back and just accepted it. I learned a lot more from the class that was not originally in the curriculum so even though I lost points on paper, I gained points in knowledge. 
3. Failure
• I think failure is a good thing. No one bats 1000% so everyone fails. Failure enables us to learn more and how to overcome pitfalls that we never would if we are always successful. It also develops character and survival instincts for when rough times do arise.
• I handle failure by looking for the benefits I gain and the lessons learned through failure. I try to see the positive side of it and seek the reasons why I may have failed. In my opinion that is the best way to change, improve and perfect. Winston Churchill said, "to improve is to change; to be perfect is to change often." A sure way to speed up that change is through failure.
• I am definitely more likely to take risks now than I was four months ago. Having numerous people decline me for an interview and still being able to fully complete all the assignments developed perseverance I did not know I had. I just use that experience to accept failure as a growing experience but to stay persistent at the task at hand.

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