13A – Reading Reflection No. 1

1) Grinding It Out: The Making of McDonald’s, Ray Kroc

What surprised me the most was learning that Kroc's entry into the start of the McDonald's business didn't happen until he was 52 years old. Before that, he spent decades in various other other sales gigs such as playing piano for a radio station and selling paper cups. It takes a lot of patience and hard work to go all those long years to achieve a successful business opportunity. What also surprised me from reading about Kroc was his early run-in with Walt Disney while the two were working with the Red Cross during World War I as teenagers. It's really neat and coincidental that the entrepreneurs of among two of the most iconic brands of all time were once acquainted with each other at a young age and Kroc would later reach out to Disney in hopes of a business deal for both McDonalds and Disney. What I admire the most about Kroc was that he never gave up hope. He went through many years of serious hard work to eventually get to his franchise agreement with the McDonald brothers which included many low points and mistakes. What I don't admire about Kroc was how his relationship with the McDonald brothers later deteriorated. Kroc and the brothers had disagreements about the direction the franchise was heading towards and he would eventually buy out the brothers and put them out of business. Ray Kroc had to face many adversities and failures such as health issues, unsuccessful early business opportunities, and financial troubles. Despite these adversities, Kroc continued to work as hard as he did to overcome these adversities and achieve the success that he achieved.

2) Competencies that I noticed that Kroc exhibited was his determination and ability to identify and sell a business opportunity.

3) One part that confused me was how although Kroc was super passionate and committed to his businesses, he wasn't committed to his marriages and poorly handled his personal life. He was married to his first wife Ethel for over 30 years but then met Joan and fell in love with her. However, she was married as well and didn't want to get divorced from her husband. Kroc divorced Ethel and married another woman named Jane and then both Kroc and Joan got divorced so they could marry each other.

4) The two questions I would ask Kroc would be 

    A) What was the biggest personal sacrifice you had to make to achieve your goals?        
    
   B) Would you change any part of your entrepreneurial journey?

I would ask these questions to get a better insight from his perspective about the trials and tribulations he went through in his life in order to achieve major breakout success with McDonalds.

5) I believe that Ray Kroc's opinion of hard work was to never give up on something you're passionate about no matter how much the cards are stacked against you. I do share that opinion and this type of mindset is what helps me get through any struggles. This is the type of mindset I used in high school and to get accepted to UF and I'll continue to use it throughout the remainder of this course and my time at UF.  

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? 

One significant behavior that I have used to keep up with the requirements for this course is serious time management. Last semester, I used a planner only listing the due dates of all my assignments but now I have it updated to where I plan out each day and time I do an assignment so I can evenly space out each day I can do the assignments for this class as well as my other classes. It can be overwhelming to stay on top of all the assignments but they're not too hard of assignments to accomplish. Another behavior I have used for this course is paying close attention to the lectures. This class is different from others I've taken where it seems like any tiny piece of info from the lecture or something small that was rarely discussed will end up being a cupcake question but paying close attention to all that was discussed in the lectures has helped me prepare for them.

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?

There was never really a point in this class where I felt like "giving up". The biggest challenge for me was the first Elevator Pitch. Since I live on-campus, it was difficult for me to find a good spot to record without any distracting noise or with good lighting. I also overestimated how good I thought I would do. My initial thought was because I did good in my Public Speaking class, I wouldn't have a problem with this but I went through about more than 30 different takes of recordings because I would either forget my lines or laugh at the camera. What pulled me through was knowing that practice makes perfect and to not quit on this assignment. After multiple retakes, I eventually got my Elevator Pitch right without any major mistakes. Taking small mental breaks in-between assignments has also helped me in getting through other assignments for this course.

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' ?

Three tips I would offer to a student for next semester would be 

1. Work ahead if you can and don't wait until around the deadline to submit an assignment because you will overload yourself.

2. Take a small 20-30 minute break in-between major assignments you're working on (about every 50-60 minutes). College is important but your mental health shouldn't be compromised as a result. It's ok to take short breaks every once in a while.

3. Always motivate yourself to power through to achieve your goals, whether it be an academic goal or some other personal goal you have.

12A – Figuring Out Buyer Behavior No. 1

1.     Segment: College students that attend frequent public-venue events. Over 50,000 students go to UF and many of them frequently attend these events which include but not limited to sports games, movies, festivals, concerts etc.

2.     Interviews

§  Ramon: Ramon was the first person I interviewed. Ramon mentioned that his passions include movies and film production and he spends most of his weekends going to the movies with his friends to see a newly released movie or to watch a Flashback Cinema where a theater showcases old classic movies. I asked him about the idea of my product, and he said he would love to see it implemented at all movie theaters as well as other venue events. He said he would like to be able to order his food and have it delivered to his seat so he wouldn’t miss any previews or the actual show. Convenience is essential to him.

§  Andrew: The second person I interviewed was Andrew, an out-of-state student from Texas and is a big Dallas sports fan. When I asked him about my product, he said it was a great idea. He went on to talk about negative experiences when getting food at Cowboys and Mavericks games. He said lines would take forever and would miss some minutes of the games when he would get his food and go back to his seat. He eventually just opted to eat out before or after these games because they were more convenient to him. He said that my product would eliminate this issue and he would be willing to order food from the concessions again with my product.

§  Kim: Kim was the last person I interviewed. Kim told me that she frequently attends music festivals and concerts and has experienced this need countless times. Any time she goes to a concert or festival at a stadium or an arena, the lines for the concessions are extremely long and she can never have the time to get something to eat or drink before the shows start. She loved the idea of my product and would be willing to order food and drinks from the app so she can have someone from the concessions or vendors deliver to her before the shows start. She further commented about how smart it was that this product would include all other events because she experiences the same issue with food lines at Jaguars games, movies, and even Monster Jam events.

3.     Summary: What I learned from the interviews I conducted was that although each person I interviewed had their own different niche for what events they attend the most frequently, they all experienced the same problem of long wait lines at food concessions. It reinforces my idea of targeting the product for all different types of events rather than just for one single event (sporting events) that was in my original idea in the beginning of my opportunity belief. The product can be used by people of all age groups, but the interviews showed me that college-aged young adults would be the best segment for my product. The people I interviewed solve their problems by not going up to get food from the vendors and some just opt to eating elsewhere before or after an event. Whenever they have issues solving their problems, they typically ask a friend or someone they know for answers.

11A – Idea Napkin No. 1

1)    My name is Bernard Bynum and I am a first-year Marketing major. My skills include certified proficiency in various Adobe products and animation software. I don’t have big aspirations to start a business so soon but if I were to start one, my goal would be to create a product that would benefit the lives of not only myself but other people. I would like to identify common problems that other people are having and come up with a solution that makes their lives more convenient.

2)    What I’m offering to potential customers is a product that’ll enhance the gameday experience, movie-watching experience, concert experience, or any public-venue event experience. My product is a food delivery app that will allow those who are attending some sort of show at a stadium or large theater the ability to order food from their phone and someone who works at the food vendor they ordered from will deliver it directly to their seat.

3)    My target audience are those that attend large-venue events such as sports games, concerts, plays, festivals, movies etc. I’m offering my product to these customers because they don’t want to get up to get food from the concessions because of long lines and not wanting to miss their shows. This product can also benefit those with disabilities that hinder their ability to get up and get their own food.

4)    Customers would want to use my product because they want the convenience of being able to order food from their seat and having it delivered to them.

5)    What sets me apart from everyone else is being able to take an existing concept and expanding to a broader market that no one else thought of before. The concept of food delivery apps isn’t new but the ones that are being used and are popular such as DoorDash and Grubhub, are mainly for personal use. Many people have complained about long wait lines or not wanting to leave a show to get food, but nobody has come up with the idea of a food-delivery app that’s inclusive of all public-venue events. Being able to take advantage of this opportunity is what sets me apart from everyone else.