Week 3 Reading Reflection

1)   The biggest surprise I had during the reading was the idea of how psychologically traumatizing a failed venture might be. I imagined entrepreneurs always confident and ready for the next opportunity.

2)   To what extent is optimism dangerous and pessimism necessary because the line between them seems blurry. He mainly talks about either side of the spectrum rather than where you should actually be.

3)   Questions

a.     What does the author mean when he says that there should be a constant awareness of opportunities everyday, and that a successful entrepreneur starts with one opportunity and their understanding of it will guide them through other issues? Maybe an example would help better explain.

b.     Why doesn’t the author emphasize the idea that going to college or getting a job in a corporation will help solve some of the problems that he pointed out?

4)   I don’t necessarily think the author is wrong about anything in particular but I do feel that he could have included more solutions to problems that he was bringing up because it felt a little discouraging. He possibly could have included advice from other entrepreneurs who have experienced similar shortcomings and how they dealt with them.

Identifying Local Opportunities

1.    Royal Caribbean ship cancels Haiti visit amid protests

o  http://infoweb.newsbank.com.lp.hscl.ufl.edu/resources/doc/nb/news/15A7E6C412AF10D8?p=AWNB

o   A cruise line has canceled their stop to Haiti's city of Labadee due to the protests that are erupting in the country. These riots were caused by their fall 2015 election being postponed and potentially fixed. Due to this situation, the company has decided to avoid visiting Haiti in concern for their guests.

o   The problem is that the cruise line isn't able to visit one of the stops that are scheduled for their guests.

o   The organization facing this problem is the popular cruise line Royal Caribbean. Although I have never been on one of their cruises before, I do know that they are one of the most successful businesses in that field.

2.    Shyp ships out of Miami

o  http://infoweb.newsbank.com.lp.hscl.ufl.edu/resources/doc/nb/news/15A8E3CB04D9FD38?p=AWNB

o   A shipping company started working in Miami November 2014 after having business in 2 other cities, New York and San Francisco. The company has ceased working there due to economical problems they were facing.

o   Their work in Miami has not been as profitable as they projected due to the absence of a Spanish language 'Shyp' app and a lack of south Floridians knowing about their operation.

o   Shyp is a shipping company providing on-demand courier and packaging services with rates comparable to UPS, FedEx, and USPS.

3.    Ana Veciana-Suarez: Color themes, matching towels and the perils of furnishing a son's apartment

o  http://infoweb.newsbank.com.lp.hscl.ufl.edu/resources/doc/nb/news/15A7924DB4D0F730?p=AWNB

o   A mother is having a hard time with her son moving out and furnishing his new apartment. He is moving over 1000 miles away to the midwest, for job in a city where he doesn't know anyone. The mom feels bittersweet about the situation.

o   Specifically she is struggling to find matching decor for his place and dreading the separation anxiety that is to come.

o   The person facing the problem is the mother, Ana Veciana-Suarez.

4.    Former worker sues iconic Miami Cuban restaurant Versailles, claiming unsanitary conditions, retaliation

o  http://infoweb.newsbank.com.lp.hscl.ufl.edu/resources/doc/nb/news/15A640D7B92AC7E8?p=AWNB

o   An established Cuban restaurant in Miami is having a law suit filed against them by a former employee due to unsanitary conditions. The former assistant manager claims he brought attention to the matter but his bosses took no action. There is even speculation that the business put employees at undesirable work schedules so that they resign. 

o   The restaurant allegedly has had hair, glass, and even roaches in their food. There has been sexual misconduct and gender inequality said to be present as well.

o   Versailles is the Cuban restaurant that is under all this scrutiny.

5.    Wynwood artists sue celebrity pastor for using artwork without permission

o  http://infoweb.newsbank.com.lp.hscl.ufl.edu/resources/doc/nb/news/15A3F22C8859A260?p=AWNB

o   During Art Basel 2014, eight artists volunteered to create murals on a struggling middle school in Wynwood, an art district in Miami. A well-known pastor, Rich Wilkerson Jr. has used these murals to advertise the church that he owns without any contact to the artists. These individuals are suing him for not legally using the content and he has yet to respond.

o   This pastor is taking the work of artists for his own material gain without giving any recognition.

o   The artists who aren't getting credit for their work are the ones facing the problem.

Very Short Interview No. 1

Danny Benavides is a founding partner and vice president of a software company and for the last 25 years, he have designed and developed new products to keep pace with the changes in technology and the needs of his clients.

1. What inspired you to start your path as an entrepreneur?

There were two motivating reasons for me to become an entrepreneur. The first was I wanted to take ownership of my career. I initially worked in a large corporation and as time went on I began to feel that my contribution to the overall success of the company was so small that any extra effort or ingenuity on my part had little effect on the company’s bottom line. This realization diminished my motivation and enthusiasm for my job. I wanted to feel that my efforts would have a direct effect on my career and the success of the company.

The second reason was my desire to be creative.  As a member of a large team my role was narrowly defined and any deviation from the master plan required me to explain my reasoning and then get approval from my supervisors and teammates. In short, I felt like a cog in a wheel.

2. What do you wish you were taught in school before becoming an entrepreneur?

The importance of being professional and prepared. For example, when I first began to interview for jobs while in college I thought my only responsibility was to show up on time and in a suit. I have since learned to do research on the job, company and industry for which I am interested. Not only does this prepare me to give a convincing interview or presentation but it also allows me to explore whether the job is a good fit for me. This also applies to starting and running your own business. I cannot show up for a meeting with a client or potential client without researching all aspects of our meeting and their needs in advance.

3. What advice would you give to anyone thinking about becoming an entrepreneur?

Mentorship and networking have been incredibly important in my career. Regardless of how novel your business idea, many aspects of running a business are the same and it is an invaluable education to observe how a successful individual or business functions. And to have access to individuals who can help you achieve your goals. There is no need to reinvent the wheel.

Even if you have entrepreneurial ambitions I believe it is beneficial to first work in a traditional job in the industry in which you have interest. This allows you to observe what works and what doesn’t and to discover possible mentors and develop a network. Every employee I have hired for my company is someone I either worked with in the past or met though some aspect of my business.

Reflection: 

Danny is a close friend of my dads but I hardly knew anything about him originally because I don't get to see him often. I was pleasantly surprised to find out how experienced he was because this led to a great interview. I recognize the responses he gave me as such valuable knowledge that I am going to hold on to when I am pursuing my own career. I am glad I was able to participate in this assignment and I am excited to interview him again.

World's Biggest Problems (and Solutions!)

• ·      Global Warming: The heating of the atmosphere and waters due to carbon emissions is the biggest problem the world faces today. By reducing the amount of fossil fuels we intake and utilizing alternate forms of energy like wind and solar, we can begin to heal our planet.
• ·      Racism: There still seems to be a huge problem with racism in this country as many innocent people are getting killed through racial profiling. These tragedies mainly involve police officers shooting young unarmed Africa-Americans usually merely based off suspicion. The police need to be required to have a video feed running that cant be tampered with and the police guilty of abusing their power need to be held responsible. In a broader scheme, we need to fundamentally change the way people view race as separate groups rather than a unified one.
• ·      War: Nations wage war due to territory, religion, and wealth at the cost of lives that range up to the millions. Now there is conflict with dictatorships like North Korea and Russia as well as Islamic terrorist groups like ISIS and Boko Haram. Although it may never happen, optimally we would form a global society where every country can trade and co-exist with each other in peace.
• ·      Lack of education: In many third world countries vast numbers of children aren’t able to get an education simply because it’s too expensive, leading them to live much less fortunate lives. It’s harder to find a job and support yourself and your family without going to school. The first world countries should all create programs that create schools in poverty stricken places.
• ·      Terrorism: There have been countless acts of terror done through out history but there has been an increase in these attacks within the last 15 years because of war and religion that ended in the deaths of innocent people. In this generation, the terrorism is caused mainly by Islamic extremist groups such as ISIS and Boko Haram and drone strikes done in retaliation to them. We need to come together globally to defeat the enemies causing this chaos and overwhelm any other dangerous groups beginning to form so that they don’t cause a threat.
• ·      Disease: Sickness is the main cause of death in the world and it happens much more often in the undeveloped countries where hospitals are hard to find and they’re not cheap. Some of the main diseases that threaten humanity are Cancer, HIV/AIDS, heart disease, and respiratory disease. We need to fund more research that try curing these diseases or at least lessen their effect.
• ·       Poverty: So many people are born into unprivileged lives and they usually have no way out. They have to work incredibly hard to just in the hopes of living a decent life and in many cases these people aren’t able to have the basic necessities like education, food, and shelter. The developed countries need to come together and implement programs that create jobs, schools, hospitals and other resources for these places in need so that they can live without struggling.
• ·      Hunger: Like many of the other problems, hunger usually results from living in third world country where families don’t have enough money to feed themselves. Starvation is especially a problem for regions in Asia, Africa, and South America. This results in sickness and death for a substantial amount of people around the world. To help mend this problem we need to donate towards organizations that go to struggling areas and help create agriculture and other means for food.
• ·      Gender Inequality: Surprisingly, females are still mistreated in today’s society. Apparently women earn 78 cents for every dollar a man makes, which is outrageous. Many women are on their own and need to support and themselves and their families but unfairly have a harder time because of their sex. We need to continue to create legislation that grants equality among genders and make sure employers are abiding by these laws.
• ·       Nuclear Weapons: Although this could be grouped with war, I believe it is its own demon because of how devastating it would truly be. If both sides have nuclear arms and either side decided to initiate a first strike it would result in a huge genocide with no winner. All of the nations need to agree to completely disarm themselves of nuclear weapons so that no one has the power to use them. Some sort of surveillance will be needed to guarantee all countries are abiding by this law.