14A – Halfway Reflection

1.) this course is completely assignment based, so assignments are what makes up the grade. I'm used to usually having to worry about major exams every week, so this has been a bit of a change. I have had to manage my time and pace myself, which is a skill that I have been able to fine tune. I have also had to be patient because some of the assignments are pretty time intensive.

2.) I believe this question is asking about in life, not in class, so this time would be when I tore my ACL. I definitely felt pretty defeated at the time since I could no longer play high school football, but I pulled myself together and rehabbed my butt off. I did this because I still have my whole life ahead of me and I will need a healthy knee to continue to enjoy playing the sports that I love.
I have definitely developed a tenacious attitude from this class because there are certainly a handful of assignments that I haven't wanted to do, but pushed through them anyways. Just wanting good grades and to build a great future for myself have contributed to my tenaciousness.

3.) My first tip would be to just pick a tough end goal and to stick with it. This will always push you to keep on getting your work done.

My next tip would be to always stay ahead. If you get your work done early, you will feel good and you'll never feel like quitting.

My final tip would be to know what you're talking about. If you pick something you know, you'll be more motivated and the class will be so much easier.

13A – Reading Reflection No. 1

Elon Musk

1.) I would say that it surprised me to read that Elon Musk was once put in a position that he had to choose between continuing with Tesla or SpaceX. This was surprising to me because as long as I have been being attention, both have existed. I liked that Elon Musk was willing to go out on a limb to achieve his dreams during a time that most entrepreneurs weren't taking many risks. The only thing that I didn't like from the biography was that Elon sometimes doesn't sympathize well with his employees. He definitely faced adversity and he pushed through and always found away. He faced monetary issues and push back from people who thought he was crazy, but he carried on.

2.) Elon Musk is definitely a big time science nerd and knows what it takes to change the world. I would describe him as an improviser and someone who pushes through at all costs. He has a diversified skill set that can be used in lots of fields. Elon Musk possesses a work ethic that few have.

3.) I wouldn't say there was much that confused me, but I found Elon Musk's suspicion of Google's robots to be a little strange.

4.) I would start off by asking him when he realistically expects America to move to having all electric cars because oil companies are so huge in American politics, so it would be interesting to see what he actually thinks. I would also ask him about his castle parties simply because they sound pretty awesome.

5.) I have no doubt that Elon Musk strongly believes in hard work. It is said that he has chewed out an employee for missing an event because his wife was in labor. Elon has also been in a lot of situations where he could've just given up, but he pushed through. I definitely value hard work as well, but Elon is probably a bit more cut throat about it.

12A – Figuring Out Buyer Behavior No. 1 Submit Assignment

Interview 1: My segment is focusing more on the currently employed, younger individuals who are interested in regional seminars. This person does admit to having a possible need for my proposed service. He believes that this need becomes most apparent when looking for other possible jobs or looking to improve his overall value to the company. He provided an example of when a company is going through some layoffs. During these times, it's best to present yourself as having an irreplaceable skill set. He says he usually just does research on the internet when he realizes he has an unmet need. He says he would just google search things like increasing your value to companies and other searches similar to that. He has not really talked to friends or family about attending a seminar like this.

Interview 2: The second person that I talked to is very strongly against the idea of utilizing lots of artificial intelligence in the work place. So he does have the problem and realizes that it would be in his best interest to learn the skills of adapting to different career fields. Whenever companies start moving towards an automated workforce, the need becomes more apparent. He says seminars would be helpful in his time of need because he couldn't really afford to be out of work for too long. He says that he mostly just thinks of relevant marketing that he has recently seen when he thinks of the problem, so effective marketing will be important to reach customers like this. He said he would search forms of education available to adults.

Interview 3: This person is an employed blue collar worker, who says he is always looking for ways to improve himself. He also agrees that he needs to diversify his skills because of the trend of increasing artificial intelligence in the work place. He says he does not want to be easily replaceable. He believes this need will be more salient in the pretty near future, but realizes it's something he should start preparing for  now. He commented that he usually solves his problems by searching solutions out on the internet. He would normally search out forms of higher education seminars when looking for things like my solution.

I'd say that people who are in my segment are pretty aware of the issue at hand. They may not be currently doing anything about it, but that's what my idea is for. I believe they would find all the information they needed, if my solution actually existed because I would try to connect my solution to what they told me.

10A – Elevator Pitch No. 1

https://youtu.be/9QZPUPpB4UI

11A – Idea Napkin No. 1

1.) I see myself as a young ambitious man, who is looking for a way to create a business that both provides me with a living and makes the world a better place. I believe that I have above average leadership skills and I have a talent for being able to teach people more efficient ways to do things. I have been a part of many sports teams and many clubs, which have allowed me to fine tune my leadership skills. I have also done a lot of volunteer coaching that lead to me becoming better at teaching. If I started this business, I see it as something that would take over my life. I tend to become very obsessed with the things I do, which definitely helps me become the best I can be. My view is just that if I'm going to involve myself in something then I am going to put in all the effort I can. My dream for the business would to just know that I am improving the lives of many of my customers and making a healthy profit at the same time.

2.) My company will provide customers/our students with an education on how to make yourself more valuable to businesses during a time that artificial intelligence is expected to take over many people's jobs. The education will consist of ways to make yourself irreplaceable to companies and how to adapt to changing career fields and diversify your skill set. This is more than just a vocational school. Its purpose it to teach students a wide variety of skills in numerous career fields. The business will offer individual regional seminars and whole semester education plans.

3.) My customers will mostly be younger blue collar workers who are looking to make themselves more valuable in the workplace. Most of them will be leaving their first job and are looking to diversify their skills. Although, we are open to any time of customer. We are looking to help the older population as well. Any older customer with similar ambitions is welcome. We aren't expecting many students with college educations looking to work in white collar type jobs.

4.) Customers will pay us money because we will establish a reputable program that looks to improve the lives of customers. We are looking to be an easy way for people to receive higher education and diversify their skills. Our goal is to increase every one of our customer's worth, and for that reason alone, people will care about the business.

5.) Most forms of higher education looks to teach students how to work in a specific career field. My business is designed to teach people how to adapt to changing career fields. My business looks to give people the best variety of skills as possible. It is also the only education system that is teaching people to combat the loss of jobs due to artificial intelligence.

I believe that these elements fit very well together. The purpose of the business is clear and the target customer includes a very large population with a specific goal in mind. My business should have a product that will be of great interest to customers and will have a result that will hopefully improve our society. The greatest challenges will be to create an education program that will efficiently teach everything that I am hoping to teach and hiring a staff that is greatly experienced and have the specific skill that I am looking for.

Testing the Hypothesis, Part 2

Interview 1: This interview was with a 26 year old male. He works at a boat factory and is probably pretty safe with his job, considering his dad owns the company. He expressed that he believes plenty of people fall just outside the boundary because artificial intelligence can't possibly replace all of blue collar workers. That would just be bad for the economy. He believes this problem starts to differ at the point when jobs require more advanced human decision making. So even though my opportunity is meant to affect blue collar workers, some shouldn't have the problem of being replaced by artificial intelligence. He believes this is just simply because humans are needed for certain decisions and are vital to a successful business.

Interview 2: This was with a 23 year old male that works in air conditioning. He is a blue collar worker, but he says he lays outside the boundary because we can't possibly have machines going around and diagnosing and fixing problems with air conditioners any time soon. He believes what we offer isn't quite for him, and that a simple vocational school would be sufficient. This is because, he just needs training in one field not training in how to adapt to changing fields.

Interview 3: My third interview was with a 22 year old male who has a college degree, but is not yet employed. He thinks that he does not share the need that I have identified because he is planning on using his degree to find a job, even though he is currently unemployed. His need differs just because he needs to continue searching, but admits that my idea could help him prepare for getting into certain career fields if need be. This is just because he believes my opportunity is more suited for people who have not had any other previous higher education.

Interview 4: This interview was with a 54 year old man who also works in air conditioning. He says that even though he works in a blue collar field, his over 30 years of experience makes him too invaluable. He does not believe his job will be in jeopardy any time soon. He doesn't think the problem affects those that bring wisdom and experience to the table because those assets are not easily replaced.

Interview 5: My last interview was with a 23 year old female, who is not yet employed. She doesn't feel affected by this problem yet because she doesn't think technology could replace her in many jobs that she would do. But she does say that she can see how this might change in the coming years. She believes this isn't quite her problem because she doesn't see her doing the blue collar type work that could be replaced by artificial intelligence.

	Inside the boundary	Outside the boundary
Who	Blue collar workers who have jobs that can be done by artificial intelligence	Blue collar workers who can’t be replaced, white collar worker, unemployed people, workers, children
What	New skills that include how to adapt to changing career fields and how to become more irreplaceable	The need is not just learning technical skills at a vocational school
Why	It is predicted that over a million jobs will be lost due to the increasing use of artificial intelligence	Artificial is not anywhere near the point of replacing many jobs and just learning one skill does not help make yourself more valuable

The Second-Most Important Part of Entrepreneurship

The problem that I have developed a solution around is the fact that over a million workers are expected to be replaced by artificial intelligence in the coming years.

My solution is to create a chain of educational institutions that specialize in educating people on how to adapt to changing jobs or career fields. Tons of people, mainly in blue collar fields, will be affected by the increasing use of artificial intelligence. So, my solution is a service that will help these people maintain a living. My plan is to have institutions similar to vocational schools and to hold regional seminars for people that can't afford or don't have the time to attend school. I would establish institutions in multiple different big cities in order to appeal to the largest population as possible. These institutions should make the workforce more equipped to work with artificial intelligence and to adapt to changing career fields, if necessary. I am hoping that these institutions will better the world and improve the lives of many. We would find the most qualified people as possible with plenty of experience to teach these courses and seminars in order to make the classes worth it. It would definitely be difficult to maintain a great reputation, but the plan is to help enough people that the service will eventually sell itself.

Testing the Hypothesis, Part 1

1.) Not everyone is meant to go to university, and there are other solutions to this like vocational school, but these solutions do not address the issues that may soon be facing Americans. It is predicted that 1 million jobs will be lost due to technological advances by the year 2026. So my solution is to create a higher education system that teaches students to adapt to changing fields. So it would be like a more diverse vocational school. The goal would to create a multi location chain that holds both classes and mini seminars.

2.) Who: Pretty much any person joining the work force
What: Technology is threatening to replace a million people in their jobs
Why: Technology is a cheaper and more efficient alternative for many businesses

3.) My opportunity has a pretty broad who because it could be anyone entering the workforce or anyone that's seeking this form of higher education. It just depends on the certain mindset and goals people have. It affects mostly young people looking to enter blue collar jobs. And the why should remain consistent because it's just the simple fact that companies are looking to increase their profits through the use of technology.

Interviews

1. 22 year old male: He believes that my who will be very broad. He says it can be basically anybody that is looking to enter the workforce or wants this type of higher education. This person believes that the problem mostly affects blue collar type workers, so those will be the people seeking this solution to make themselves more valuable and able to adapt. Jobs in certain fields will obviously not be replaced by machines any time in the near future. So the why does range, according to this person, because machines are not always cheaper and more efficient in certain fields.

2. 21 year old male: This person believes that anyone could at least utilize my idea of seminars because it is always good to diversify yourself in case anything happens. He believes that people need to look at reality and realize if their job could be done by current technology. If so, then they should look into this form of higher education. This person's answer to the why was pretty similar because it is a shared belief that this opportunity is forming because of the logistics of using machinery.

3. 54 year old male: This interview provided a bit of a different perspective from someone that wouldn't be as affected. This person believes the who is mostly younger people who don't have the skills to compete for white collar type jobs. This person doesn't believe the what is very apparent just yet because he thinks human workers still have so much more value than current technology. So that affects his belief in the why as well, but he does believe that regardless, it is still vital to diversify your skills because you never know what will happen in your career field.

4. 22 year old female: The one female in my interviewing process believed that this issue is geared towards younger people who work in physical labor type jobs. She believes that this is becoming a real issue and could threaten a large number of people's source of income. She understands the why considering companies are in it for the bottom line, but she thinks training people to adapt to this changing trend could do real good in our society.

5. 22 year old male: This person doesn't see this as an issue quite yet, but if it does become one, then it would affect labor workers like assembly line type workers. Technology could affect the people he described and so it would be good to obtain new skills, but he believes human labor is still too important. He also believes that it would be extremely expensive for most corporations to move to a more technology based work force.

5.) After conduction my interviews, I understand that not everyone sees this as a problem that will soon affect the work force, but most people do. Most people think it is something we should be proactive about rather than reactive. So I am pleased to have found out that so most people see this opportunity as I do.

Identifying Opportunities in Economic & Regulatory Trends

1.) I found my first opportunity on cnbc.com after searching economic current events. I believe an opportunity might exist because the article claims that over one million jobs will be lost due to the use of automated machines by the year 2026. So I believe that a company formed around the idea of guaranteeing jobs to human workers could be popular in the near future. I also think there's an opportunity to establish higher education institutions that are more geared towards preparing students for numerous job changes and how to handle it rather than just preparing them for a single career.

Any type of blue collar worker would be very interested in my first idea and any student not interested in university, but are trying to be proactive when it comes to the changes in economic trends would be customers. I think this opportunity could be easy to exploit when you're talking about my first idea because it appeals to large groups of people. Although, the second idea would be pretty difficult to exploit because I would have to establish a whole new type of education system and have it be accepted by a large group of people.

I saw this opportunity because I am a strong believer in trying to prepare and educate people for the future. I also believe in people keeping their jobs in order to support their families.

2.) After searching economic trends, I found an article that presented an opportunity on thebalance.com. The article described how baby boomers aren't retiring due to the last recession. So I think it would be a good idea to create elderly friendly working experiences that give the older baby boomers the opportunity to work without having to stay in their currents jobs that may be too physically intensive. The company would have products that are not labor intensive and would provide that needed income for these people who were scarred from the recent recessions.

Obviously, any elderly person who still wants to work would be an asset to this business. And any consumer that understands and appreciates the cause will be a customer. I think this opportunity will be somewhat easy to exploit. The only challenge would be finding products or services to develop the company around. 

I like to believe that I come from a very hard working family, so I have a bit of an emotional connection to this. My grandpa worked very hard into his mid 70s even though sometimes it seemed overwhelming for him. But he had no choice because he's an Italian immigrant and never made much money. So I see an opportunity here to help this kind of person.

3.) I found this opportunity involving regulatory changes on nytimes.com. It is a bit of a contrasting idea from my first economic opportunity because it's taking advantage of the artificial intelligence regulatory changes. There is so much regulation on artificial intelligence that I would want to take advantage of creating "dumb" bots. Lots of people are so afraid of artificial intelligence taking over so I believe it would be a good opportunity to create bots that are guaranteed to just do their job and have no form of intelligence.

Anyone looking for automated help that doesn't like the idea of artificial intelligence would be a customer. Or anyone looking for a very simple bot would be a customer. Anything involving bots would be pretty difficult to exploit because technology is always difficult. It would also be difficult to market the technology as almost anti artificial intelligence.

I believe that I saw this opportunity because I looked at it in a backwards view. Most people are trying to just advance technology, but here I would market simplicity. My attitude here is to look out for the welfare of human workers.

4.) I found another social trend that let to the development of an opportunity idea on pewresearch.org. The article I found states that there is an increasing demographic trend of multi generational households. I believe that there is an opportunity to develop a company that designs better apartment style type houses.

Any close knit families looking to live together would be a customer. This opportunity is very easy to exploit because the idea pretty much sells itself.

I can relate to this topic very closely because I grew up in a large tight knit family. I have seen my family renovate houses over and over because most houses today do not suit their needs. I would imagine that houses designed around housing multiple generations would definitely help out families like mine.