Assignment 23A - Your Venture's Unfair Advantage

List of resources for my venture:

1: Suppliers

a.) Valuable: very valuable as it is necessary for the construction of parking garages

b.) Rare: quite rare in Gainesville as there are not many construction companies

c.) Inimitable: not very inimitable as there are high entry costs to being a supplier

d.) Non-substitutable: no, suppliers for building materials are essential and irreplacable

2: Employees

a.) Valuable: very valuable, work could not be done without them

b.) Rare: not very rare, there are a lot of potential employees everywhere

c.) Inimitable: moderately inimitable since you can't always find qualified and efficient employees

d.) Non-substitutable: no, employees are necessary to run a business

3: Market Expert

a.) Valuable: very valuable as he would have a lot of influence on the operations

b.) Rare: not rare at all, there are many market experts all over the place

c.) Inimitable: not very inimitable since it takes a lot of time to get valuable experience

d.) Non-substitutable: no, market experts have undergone a very specific field

4: Phone Application

a.) Valuable: very valuable as it differentiates my idea from other similar parking ideas

b.) Rare: yes, it is gonna be custom-made and tailored specifically to my city

c.) Inimitable: very difficult to copy, there is a lot of labor and technology that goes into making an app as such

d.) Non-substitutable: no, an app is the only way to provide a level up in convenience in regards to parking

5: Insurance

a.) Valuable: very valuable as it would keep me from racking up some potentially financially-ruining liabilities

b.) Rare: not at all, there are plenty of insurances

c.) Inimitable: not very inimitable, it's difficult to copy the concept of insurance

d.) Non-substitutable: no, insurance is the only way to protect yourself against certain things

6: Property managers

a.) Valuable: very valuable as they would provide me a basis where I conduct my operations

b.) Rare: decently rare as there aren't too many big property managers for parking garages in Gainesville

c.) Inimitable: not inimitable, it is very difficult to copy property managers and acquire expensive property.

d.) Non-substitutable: no, property managers are a very specific group of people that cannot be substituted for anything else.

7: Parking sensing technology

a.) Valuable: very valuable as it serves as a backbone to my phone application

b.) Rare: not very rare, there are a lot of different ones on the market

c.) Inimitable: very inimitable, it is a very easily copied piece of equipment

d.) Non-substitutable: no, a parking sensor would be the only way to make my app work

8: Partnerships

a.) Valuable: very valuable as I would need these partnerships to build my garages in the city and school

b.) Rare: they are neither rare nor common since it really depends how many partnerships are created

c.) Inimitable: it is not inimitable at all since it's very hard to copy the terms of a contract and acquire the same deal

d.) Non-substitutable: no, partnerships are necessary for my garage to go up

9: Property rights

a.) Valuable: very valuable as they are necessary in order to own my garage

b.) Rare: yes they are not very easy to come across these days

c.) Inimitable: not inimitable since it's very hard to copy property rights

d.) Non-substitutable: no property rights are a thing of it's kind

10: Investors

a.) Valuable: very valuable as parking construction operations would cost hundreds of thousands of dollars

b.) Rare: not rare at all, investors are everywhere

c.) Inimitable: not inimitable since it's hard to copy investors without being one

d.) Non-substitutable: no, there are no other ways to fund this project without investors

Out of all of my resources, I would have to say that my phone application would probably be my top resource for a couple of different reasons. First off, it's the main thing that set's me a part from all other competitors. I feel like a business would not be very successful if it isn't differentiated by at least one big factor, and this is mine. Further, this would add an unbeatable level of convenience for anyone who has struggled with parking in the past. I feel like the idea of building parking garages wouldn't be complete without an app to go along with it. 

Assignment 22A - Elevator Pitch No. 3

Here's a link to my third elevator pitch! Hope you guys enjoy it.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ShfNH0_4mKs

2) A reflection on the feedback you received from your last pitch. 

I didn't get much feedback on my second elevator pitch, but maybe that's a good thing. The one little thing that did catch my eye is getting straight to the point and being more specific in describing my concept.

3) What did you change, based on the feedback?

In order to improve my third elevator pitch, I focused on getting right into the topic instead of beating around the bush somewhat towards the beginning. I also tried to expand a bit more on my concept. We'll see how I did based on this week's feedback!

Assignment 21A - Reading Reflection #2

For this second reading reflection, I actually picked up the book called How to Fail at Almost Everything and Still Win Big, by Scott Adams. The reason I chose this book was simply due to the fact that I resonate with the title so I figured it'd be interesting to see my thoughts put out into words. I'm not good at many things but yet I still feel like a champ in most of the things I do, which is what I was reminded of upon reading the title of the book.

 1) What was the general theme or argument of the book?
I found that the general theme of the book was that in reality, you really don't need to be good at something to enjoy it. From what I understood, enjoying something is considered winning because the same type of satisfaction can be derived whether or not you perform well on something. "Winning is only about feeling good and confident in yourself regardless of what happens to you. The book basically teaches you that if you take care of yourself, mindset, and well being, nothing can come in the way between an individual and their self-happiness.

 2) How did the book, in your opinion, connect with and enhance what you are learning in ENT 3003?
I actually think that this book connected to this class extremely well since entrepreneurship is all about making it through failure and preserving despite not achieving a desired outcome right away. This book is all about being content and looking at the bright side of all your mistakes and shortcomings which really helps you learn about yourself, keep a positive mindset, and thus improve on yourself in the future. As such, I think this book really helps develop confidence and positivity within one's life, which is vital for building a business and entrepreneurship mindset.

3) If you had to design an exercise for this class, based on the book you read, what would that exercise involve?
If I had to design one exercise based on this novel, I would instruct students to record themselves indulging in an activity that they're not very proficient in after they have read the novel. Then, after they attempt to do the activity and likely fail, I'd have them sit down and talk about how it made them felt. The underlying reason behind doing this would be to show people the there really isn't any harm in failing at things.  If they see themselves getting upset after failing and take the time to reflect on camera afterwards, I really believe a sense of self-reflection can teach them something important about themselves.

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?
Something that really surprised me from the novel was when the author talks about the positive sides to being selfish. I had always viewed it in a bad way, and of course pure selfishness can never be a good thing, but taking care of yourself and putting your well-being, mental health, and fitness above other things in your life is a big step towards self-love and being content under any circumstance. At the same time, once this balance is maintained, it is encouraged to still spend quality time with family and friends since you can't be giving to others if you yourself are not in a good place in life.

Overall I really liked this book a lot and connected with it on a different level. I highly recommend it to anyone looking to work on and improve themselves mentally while also learning to develop a positive mindset about life!

Assignment 20A - Growing Your Social Capital

Individual #1: Gilbert

Who are they and what's their background? 

Gilbert owns a construction company that builds apartments and homes up from scratch. They have owned the company for around 15 years now and has been in the industry for around 20 years. His primary location for conducting business is in Miami, Florida.

Which slot is this individual filling?

This individual, Gilbert, is filling up the spot as the domain expert in my industry.

How I found and contacted the person

Gilbert is one of my dad's good friends that helped him build our past homes. I haven't met him since I was a baby but my dad told me about him once I mentioned my assignment. He gave me his phone number and I proceeded to contact him about filling up the domain expert slot in my industry.

The nature of exchange I have with this person

The nature of exchange I have with this person is pretty one sided: Gilbert is simply doing me a favor by helping me out and providing me with information about the industry.

How will including this person enhance my ability to exploit an opportunity?

This person will be essential to my operation as he will lay the foundation for my parking garages and will know all about the contracts, property laws, and things as such that goes into play with the construction of large structures.

Individual #2:

Who are they and what's their background?

The second individual I have chosen to join my force is Chance, a parking garage owner in South Beach, Miami.  

Which slot is this individual filling?

This individual will be filling up the spot of the expert on my market.

How I found and contacted the person

I found this person by doing a little of research about parking garages in my area and stumbled across him on the internet.

The nature of exchange I have with this person

After briefly talking to the guy and having a friendly conversation with him, he seemed willing to help me out just for the sake of it. I asked if there is anything I can do in return and he said that he's just looking to help.

How will including this person enhance my ability to exploit an opportunity?

Since this person has all the knowledge and experience needed to raise a parking garage, he serves as a valuable asset and can really help me know the ins and outs of building garages such as the structural design, materials to be used, and tips for maintenance.

Individual #3:

Who are they and what's their background?

The third individual is a contractor and buildings material supplier named Miron who has been in the industry for almost 10 years.

Which slot is this individual filling?

This individual is filling the slot of an important supplier to my industry.

How I found and contacted the person

I actually found this individual through my market expert Chance, as he was in charge of providing the materials needed to build up the Chance's South Beach parking garage. I was given his number and contacted him with a phone call.

The nature of exchange I have with this person

Just like with Chance, Miron seemed enthusiastic about my idea and just wanted to help. Thus the exchange was pretty one-sided: he helped me out of kindness.

How will including this person enhance my ability to exploit an opportunity?

Having Miron on my team will significantly enhance my ability to exploit the opportunity as he will be the main supplier that provides all the essentials I would need to construct a parking garage. Without these materials, it wouldn't be possible to solve the unmet need of limited parking in the city of Gainesville.

Reflection:

I really feel like this experience shaped the way I would participate in any future networking events. First and foremost, it taught me how to speak to people of a higher up position and who's help I need. I feel like the communication there is a key aspect of getting a long with people and social networking. It also taught me that everyone is connected in some way or another. As such, I was able to meet Miron from my market expert, Chance. I feel like this experience taught me that networking means branching out and making new connections with different people. I have never really networked like this in the past since I've never considered a legitimate business so my networking experience does differ from that in the past.

Assignment 19A - Idea Napkin No2

Who I am

I am a second year finance major with an economics minor at the University of Florida. I have a lot a skills when it comes to the market as I've been into trading  stocks, securities and cryptocurrencies since I was 13. I eventually aspire to lead a hedge fund, in Wall Street preferably. If not, I wouldn't mind owning a small time business and living comfortably. At the end of the day, I would just like to be my own boss. Regarding this business concept, I only see it playing a role in my life to the extent in that it will be my primary source of income.

What I am offering to customers

The problem I am trying to address is the very limited parking that is available in Gainesville. In order to tackle this issue, I am offering to buy out single-leveled parking lots in active areas throughout the city, then proceed to build them upwards into multi-leveled garaged. Afterwards, I would set up a subscription system in which people have access to all the parking garages all around the city for a low monthly price compared to other decals. My garages would be technically innovative and would track the amount of spots at any given time during the day. All of these garages would be linked and shown on an app to offer customers parking at any given moment. This would solve the parking problem in Gainesville and allow residents to quickly find convenient parking.


Who am I offering it to

My business concept is tailored towards people who live in Gainesville, own a car, and yet have trouble finding parking. Naturally, the concept is geared mainly to college students since campus is the tightest area when it comes to parking yet there other people might still find it handy in certain busy areas.

Why do they care?

My target group would most definitely care about my service since there are always gonna be times when they have trouble finding parking and sometimes, the only thing that will be available would be my garage so they would inevitably be drawn towards it. This would especially be the case during football game day where a lot of people visit from out of town, if that's still a thing in the upcoming year.

My core competencies 

What sets my business idea apart from anything else like is it is that my business would implement the most advanced and technologically efficient way to find parking at a moments notice. What makes it most unique is an app that will be linked to my parking system which displays all current available spots in nearby garages, in order to provide customers with the best experience and to help them find a spot as soon as possible.

Compatibility of elements 

In all honesty, I feel like all the components of my idea fit really well together. My concept tackles the parking opportunity in the best way by offering more affordable and convenient parking in the busiest parts of the city. It's also so very different from all other parking systems around it which makes me think it might be a game changes. The technological aspect, financial aspect, and logical aspect all add up fairly well and I feel like the idea would fare well in the city of Gainesville.

Feedback memo

Unfortunately, I did not receive any feedback on my first idea napkin so I didn't really have anything in mind to improve. I feel like one main critique I would've gotten is to bem ore expansive about my idea and how it will actually provide the means to better parking and I have made sure to be more specific about that in this post.

Assignment 18 - Create a Customer Avatar

My protypical customer is a student who lives in Gainesville and who commutes to campus and all around the city on the daily. They tend to drive a blue 2015 mustang GT and is always zooming from place to place, and thus requires a more efficient and reliable means of parking.

This image depicts how he typically looks on an average day:


My customer loves to drag race and game on his free time. He also enjoys trading stocks and such of the sort. He's always hanging out with friends and he's always out and about. He doesn't have any children since he's around 21. His favorite color is blue. Although, I should note, that he doesn't like to read, but instead rather watches anime like Naruto and One Piece. His favorite politician is Bernie Sanders. He always feels great and radiates positive energy from a day to day basis.

What I have in common with this avatar:
I also feel very free and open to doing a lot of things. I, too, am always out and about and hanging out with people. Most importantly, though, what I have in common with it is that I have a very important need of improved and reliable parking. I don't think that it's a coincidence that I have a lot in common with it since I myself am the creator of it.

Assignment 17A - Elevator Pitch No. 2

Here's the link to my second elevator pitch:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GoomI7KsCyE

Hope you guys enjoy!

A reflection from the feedback I received from last pitch

On my last pitch I got a lot of feedback saying that I did indeed acknowledge the problem of parking, but I didn't really delve into the details of my solution. After re-watching my first elevator pitch, I too was able to see this and noticed what they were talking about: I was just beating around the bush.

What did I change?

On this second elevator pitch, the big difference that I worked on was being brief on the introduction, and trying to provide a more thorough explanation of the process I would work on to take advantage of the opportunity that exists in the city. I explained in more detail the parking system I had envisioned and believe that although I still think there is some room for improvement, it's still a step up from my first pitch.