I found Brian Forths presentation to be very educational and I learned more of the software side, than Erik's more business related presentation which was perfect. I found it pretty inspiring that he was creating his business, "SiteCrafting" which teaching. I can't imagine working full-time in the near future and also sparing time for starting a business on the side, along with the rest of your life (family, friends, errands, etc.)
Brian's 3 C's that he preached throughout his presentation were very well explained. They consisted of core, company, and community. Throughout all of these three C's, the big idea that I took out of them was that most companies are all about money and not about relationships, so always be aware that it's a business. SiteCrafting is a business that is propelled by the commitment and loyal employees that he's hired. I personally am a big fan of the commitment work environment where leaving the company never enters employees heads. I think trust and gaining experience with a small group that changes very rarely is a huge advantage for companies.
I found it very interesting when he talked about how some of his employees were offered much higher salaries and benefits from Google but decided to stay at SiteCrafting. I think that says a lot about how important relationships, work environment, and how money isn't everything. Brian said "I want SiteCrafting to be a company where employees can expect to stay and retire." This approach is definitely different than some of the top software companies in the world but I personally think SiteCrafting's approach is morally correct, smarter, and rewards the company with happier and loyal employees on a daily basis.
In the future, SiteCrafting has a work environment that I am absolutely interested in and I feel that commitment and loyalty are underrated and can make or break companies. In the end, I thought Brian Forths presentation was very informative and helped me confirm what kind of company I'd like to work for in my future.
Saturday, January 28, 2017
Saturday, January 14, 2017
Erik Hanbergs Life Lessons
Erik's presentation impacted me greatly. I feel his presentation really spoke to me, probably more than anyone else listening that day. I found his Cinema story very relatable in the fact that I've always had thoughts about doing the same thing, but with sports. I know plenty non-profit sports areas where kids play sports and I used to play at them when I was younger, and still do. I think his desire and passion for thinking about the future and the "big picture" in life is very similar to how I approach life. I'm not into reading books or writing whatsoever, but I really respected his approach to his entrepreneurship lifestyle. I actually looked up a few of his books after class that day. I thought his visual graphs on the whiteboard relating to salaries was interesting. The linear graph relating to great jobs such as doctors, engineers, and lawyers showed that they make great money but it is limited to a maximum salary. On the other polynomial graph, it related to the entrepreneurship lifestyle with venture capitalist, actors, authors, and sports and how their salaries don't have a limit but it's a long and hard beginning as the polynomial curve suggests. It was also really interesting to hear about his past businesses such as exit133.com, which was a 2006 blog site about Tacoma stuff and his current business "Side x Side." In the end, I really thought the quote from Seth Godin that he put on his power point really meant a lot. The quote talked about emotional labor and how lacking this trait is a problem in the entrepreneurship lifestyle. Overall, I really enjoyed this presentation and I took a lot out of it.
My Three Ideas
I've always had some ideas that I wanted to take further and possibly make them into a business but I never really thought about the outside concerns, such as money, time, and if there is even a large enough audience for some of them but I love brainstorming and thinking of products that could possibly change the future.
1. I've gone grocery shopping millions of times with my mom and I've always hated the inconvenience of having to go through a check out line at the end, ran by a person which is running a computer operated checkout system. To solve this issue, I've had an idea that would eliminate all check out lines in all grocery stores. My idea is creating grocery carts just like which exist, but add a computer system on each cart. This system would work just like a check out stand. You would scan each product and put it in the cart, which would contain a giant bag, or small bags, that would be getting "checked out" as you shop. This would eliminate all the check out space that currently exists in grocery stores today and also save grocery shoppers time. With this idea, grocery stores would need to have higher security to make sure no none damages or takes the carts home as well as create a few jobs that maintain and take care of these "tech carts."
2. My second idea also pertains to food in grocery stores. My idea is to create a mobile app that allows you to get the nutritional facts from produce at a grocery store, simply by weighing the food on the phone's screen or by taking a picture, or even scanning the food. Produce doesn't have nutritional labels on them but everything else in packages and boxes seems to. I feel this will help families choose healthier foods and really see what they are buying based on the actual produce they are holding, not based on what the average sized produce content is.
3. I love working out. I work out every day and I really hate busy gyms and having to wait for someone to finish what they are doing so you can then use the dumbbells or machine or whatever they were using. To solve this, my idea is to create another mobile app that could tell you how many people are at the gym. With this, this can help people change their schedule to workout because they could see how busy it is ahead of time. This would imply that gyms would need to keep a head count of everyone and constantly update this when a new person enters the gym. This process could easily be automated by having the user check in themselves at the front desk. I think this app has a huge upside in helping people use their time efficiently, helping people get a better workout because there is no wait time, and this idea could also be expanded very easily to other businesses, such as grocery stores, the mall, or even gas stations.
1. I've gone grocery shopping millions of times with my mom and I've always hated the inconvenience of having to go through a check out line at the end, ran by a person which is running a computer operated checkout system. To solve this issue, I've had an idea that would eliminate all check out lines in all grocery stores. My idea is creating grocery carts just like which exist, but add a computer system on each cart. This system would work just like a check out stand. You would scan each product and put it in the cart, which would contain a giant bag, or small bags, that would be getting "checked out" as you shop. This would eliminate all the check out space that currently exists in grocery stores today and also save grocery shoppers time. With this idea, grocery stores would need to have higher security to make sure no none damages or takes the carts home as well as create a few jobs that maintain and take care of these "tech carts."
2. My second idea also pertains to food in grocery stores. My idea is to create a mobile app that allows you to get the nutritional facts from produce at a grocery store, simply by weighing the food on the phone's screen or by taking a picture, or even scanning the food. Produce doesn't have nutritional labels on them but everything else in packages and boxes seems to. I feel this will help families choose healthier foods and really see what they are buying based on the actual produce they are holding, not based on what the average sized produce content is.
3. I love working out. I work out every day and I really hate busy gyms and having to wait for someone to finish what they are doing so you can then use the dumbbells or machine or whatever they were using. To solve this, my idea is to create another mobile app that could tell you how many people are at the gym. With this, this can help people change their schedule to workout because they could see how busy it is ahead of time. This would imply that gyms would need to keep a head count of everyone and constantly update this when a new person enters the gym. This process could easily be automated by having the user check in themselves at the front desk. I think this app has a huge upside in helping people use their time efficiently, helping people get a better workout because there is no wait time, and this idea could also be expanded very easily to other businesses, such as grocery stores, the mall, or even gas stations.
Wednesday, January 4, 2017
What I Want To Learn
When I heard that T INST 475 Entrepreneurship was offered as a computer science credit, I was slightly confused but also interested in the potential this class has to offer me. First of all, I do have to admit that the primary reason I considered this class was because it worked great for my schedule and I didn't have any other options that fit my schedule because they were all full. Other than that, I've always had an interest in entrepreneurs as I watch Shark Tank almost every time it's televised. I've always envisioned entrepreneurs as wealthy, business smart, and someone I'd love to meet. I feel I have a great opportunity to learn the business side of software that could help me in the near future if I decide to pursue that path.
When thinking about this class, I really want to learn how easy or difficult it is to start up a business once an idea for something special is created and planned out. I've always idolized mobile app developers, such as the creators of "Angry Birds" or "Doodle Jump". I've always wanted to know how hard it really is to get your product on the market, make it sell, and how not to screw things up.
Lastly, I've always thought Entrepreneurship is too risky to get involved with. I've heard from family and friends that starting something up and putting all your time and effort into something is a huge risk that can be very successful or the opposite. I've wondered "is the risk worth the reward or not?" Entrepreneurship definitely intrigues me but I just want to be more educated on the risks, the challenges, and last but not least, the potential for success.
When thinking about this class, I really want to learn how easy or difficult it is to start up a business once an idea for something special is created and planned out. I've always idolized mobile app developers, such as the creators of "Angry Birds" or "Doodle Jump". I've always wanted to know how hard it really is to get your product on the market, make it sell, and how not to screw things up.
Lastly, I've always thought Entrepreneurship is too risky to get involved with. I've heard from family and friends that starting something up and putting all your time and effort into something is a huge risk that can be very successful or the opposite. I've wondered "is the risk worth the reward or not?" Entrepreneurship definitely intrigues me but I just want to be more educated on the risks, the challenges, and last but not least, the potential for success.
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