Final Reflection

This semester in ENT3003 has pushed me in various different situations and scenarios that I have never before been to. I feel like the most formative experience in this class came from the elevator pitches that we needed to do. I feel like being able to summarize your ideas in a short pitch is something that can help you in many different areas of your life, including school and careers. The assignment where we needed to find our “secret sauce” will probably the one that I will always remember because It was interesting to see what the people close to me had to say. The hardest thing to do for me was the customer interviews because it was hard for me to find people willing to participate in Orlando.

I personally will not see myself as an entrepreneur until I have opened an actual business but this class has absolutely helped me develop a mindset for the entrepreneur. I feel like starting a business is something that I am not only now prepared for, but also something that I am capable of doing.

I would recommend to future students that they start the assignments early in the week. Many times I would find myself unable to complete many of the interview assignments simply because I did not have the time to complete them. In order to foster the mindset necessary for this course, I would also say that it is important for people to act as if they are actually creating their venture in real life. This will make the entire course more fun and realistic. I would also recommend using a checklist to make sure you complete everything in time.

Venture Concept No. 2

Opportunity: Every year, millions of tourists travel from all over the world to the City of Orlando to visit its world-class attractions and experiences. Although most tourists travel from within the United States, there is an increasing amount of tourist from international countries, especially Brazil and Argentina. Most visitors come to Orlando as part of a convention group or with their families. When someone has decided to go to Orlando, they usually have a hotel reservation, flight booking, and a rental car prepared months in advance. Once they actually get to Orlando, they have to decide and plan what they are going to do with their precious time. In Central Florida alone, there are over 45 attractions to choose from and most of them are not well-known outside the state of Florida. There is currently no way to easily plan which attractions will be visited and also no way of knowing which attractions will be entertaining for everyone traveling together.



Orlando has been continuously expanding over the past decade in both residential and commercial zones, which has brought increasing amounts of people and new businesses to the city. This upward growth has ultimately led to an increase in the tourism industry which makes it harder for tourists to make the best of their time. Currently, tourists are relying on their own knowledge to plan their vacations. This leads to people who are not able to make the most of their time and who come to Orlando to visit only the major theme parks that are known across the nation. This window of opportunity will always exist because Orlando will always rely on tourism as its main industry.



Innovation: The innovation that will be at the backbone of this new venture will essentially be a new “vacation planning” software that can be accessed through a mobile application or website. Users will first create an account so all their information can be saved and accessed from any device. After creating this account, every person in the family or group will take personality/interest quiz. This quiz will be composed of questions that ask of the preferences of each user based on scales from one to ten. Using this information, the website will notify the users which experiences/ attractions will best suit everyone in the family and how much time they should spend there. A specific calendar will be displayed for the days of the vacation and users can drag the attraction onto the day they wish to go there. The calendar will automatically calculate how long the user will be there for and how long it will take to get to travel to the next location afterwards. Users will then be able to purchase all of their tickets together online. This will not only save them money, but also time by keeping away those pesky will call lines and allowing tickets to be printed at home or saved to their smartphones. If for any reason, users would like to manually add an attraction that they would like to visit, they would be able to add it to their calendar and ticket bundles.



Revenue will mainly be made through two services. Most of the revenue will come from advertisements on the website. Every advertisement displayed on the site will be limited to attractions and experiences in the vacation city. This means that users will only be seeing relevant options instead of their most recent amazon search while they are planning their vacations. A smaller portion of revenue will come from a small convenience fee added to every online purchase.



Venture Concept: This innovation will specifically be designed and customized for the city of Orlando and will be called “Experience Orlando”. This website will allow guests to plan out every attraction they want to visit while knowing that everyone in the group will enjoy the entire vacation. Nothing like this has ever been created before, therefore, customers will not have to switch to this service, but they will need to log on for the first time. The biggest competitor I believe could possibly the large tourism websites, such as Expedia. They do not actually meet the unmet needs of the guests, however, and should not interfere very much in my venture. My business concept is based on guests purchasing the tickets online in bundles so that they can save money on the experiences chosen for them. Small convenience fees and advertisements for tourism in Orlando will allow for a good inflow of money. My business will ultimately be composed of about 15 employees where most of them are other IT specialists or guest service employees who will answer phone calls.



Other Elements: The problem with many internet businesses today is that they are based on profit over passion. What will set my business apart is that it will be founded and operated by people who love the city of Orlando. This particular website will never focus on other cities.



The next step in this venture will be to actually open a customer service center inside the tourist district of Orlando. Once this is completed, guests will be able to talk to guest service representatives in person. This will give my internet business a personal touch that I am sure many tourists will make use of.



If this business was to be launched, I would like to see myself still in control over the venture. Because this venture is based on my passion for Orlando, I would like to see myself involved for as much as possible.



Previous Feedback:



All of the feedback from the previous post stated that I needed to add the option to manually add attractions that people want to their itinerary and bundles. I added this change to the venture concept above.

Making It Real

Here is my resume through the following link: https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B7JArDPaOi-Pd3ZFOTZsUjdZRkk/view?usp=sharing

My Exit Strategy

For my venture, I could see myself continuing to run the business in the City of Orlando for as long as possible. Because my venture would be created specifically for Orlando, I would not attempt to add other cities to my venture. I believe I would only sell "Experience Orlando" when I choose to retire. I would, however, consider selling the platform and software to other companies for use outside of Orlando. These purchasers would be required to only focus on their own city and will not be allowed to be used in the state of Florida. Other than the usage of the same interface, these companies will not be tied to "Experience Orlando".

I chose this exit strategy because I want my venture to remain focused on Orlando. I would not want to see this business sold to a large company and applied generally to every city across the nation. I could make money off of selling the platform for other companies to focus on their own city, but I want to remain personally focused on the original city.

This exit strategy influenced how my website would be designed. It can be something that can be applied to other cities and sold, but the venture will always be designed specifically for the original unmet need in Orlando.

Venture Concept No. 1

Opportunity: Every year, millions of tourists travel from all over the world to the City of Orlando to visit its world-class attractions and experiences. Although most tourists travel from within the United States, there is an increasing amount of tourist from international countries, especially Brazil and Argentina. Most visitors come to Orlando as part of a convention group or with their families. When someone has decided to go to Orlando, they usually have a hotel reservation, flight booking, and a rental car prepared months in advance. Once they actually get to Orlando, they have to decide and plan what they are going to do with their precious time. In Central Florida alone, there are over 45 attractions to choose from and most of them are not well-known outside the state of Florida. There is currently no way to easily plan which attractions will be visited and also no way of knowing which attractions will be entertaining for everyone traveling together.

Orlando has been continuously expanding over the past decade in both residential and commercial zones, which has brought increasing amounts of people and new businesses to the city. This upward growth has ultimately led to an increase in the tourism industry which makes it harder for tourists to make the best of their time. Currently, tourists are relying on their own knowledge to plan their vacations. This leads to people who are not able to make the most of their time and who come to Orlando to visit only the major theme parks that are known across the nation. This window of opportunity will always exist because Orlando will always rely on tourism as its main industry.

Innovation: The innovation that will be at the backbone of this new venture will essentially be a new “vacation planning” software that can be accessed through a mobile application or website. Users will first create an account so all their information can be saved and accessed from any device. After creating this account, every person in the family or group will take personality/interest quiz. This quiz will be composed of questions that ask of the preferences of each user based on scales from one to ten. Using this information, the website will notify the users which experiences/ attractions will best suit everyone in the family and how much time they should spend there. A specific calendar will be displayed for the days of the vacation and users can drag the attraction onto the day they wish to go there. The calendar will automatically calculate how long the user will be there for and how long it will take to get to travel to the next location afterwards. Users will then be able to purchase all of their tickets together online. This will not only save them money, but also time by keeping away those pesky will call lines and allowing tickets to be printed at home or saved to their smartphones.

Revenue will mainly be made through two services. Most of the revenue will come from advertisements on the website. Every advertisement displayed on the site will be limited to attractions and experiences in the vacation city. This means that users will only be seeing relevant options instead of their most recent amazon search while they are planning their vacations. A smaller portion of revenue will come from a small convenience fee added to every online purchase.

Venture Concept: This innovation will specifically be designed and customized for the city of Orlando and will be called “Experience Orlando”. This website will allow guests to plan out every attraction they want to visit while knowing that everyone in the group will enjoy the entire vacation. Nothing like this has ever been created before, therefore, customers will not have to switch to this service, but they will need to log on for the first time.

Celebrating Failure

1) This past summer has definitely brought several new experiences that I had never before expected. One failure this summer was actually during a job interview that I had. It was just for a seasonal position for a tourism company in Orlando. I had spent about an hour filling out the online application and then got an in-person interview. I went to the interview and answered all the questions. Apparently, during the interview, I had contradicted information about my availability and the next thing to happen was that the recruiter said they can't hire someone who lied during the hiring process.

2) Although a small mistake on my application over what hours I could work should not have led to me being labeled as liar, I think it is safe to say that this was a failure. In this instance, I learned the importance of double checking job applications and any other important documents.

3) It was especially embarrassing to find myself being called a liar by an employee for the company that I wanted to work for. It definitely made me think twice for any future job applications that I have had to do. When I face failure, I usually don't really react behaviorally but I do feel a little emotionally down. After some time, however, I am usually quick to come back with the expectation to do even better. This class has shown me that failure is a good thing that everyone can learn from. Failure in many ways can be the only way to get better.

Elevator Pitch No. 3

The Pitch: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jZTD3HW8Ow8&feature=youtu.be

The Feedback: The feedback I received on the last pitch was actually very good. Most people said that my tone of voice throughout the video was really good and well-rehearsed. Most people simply said that with more practice it could become closer to perfect. Someone said that my transition to the product features wasn't too well done but only one person said this.

What I changed: I practiced my pitch several times before making a final video and I tried to work on smoother transitions. I also tried to add a little more detail on some of the details.

Amazon Whisperer

Revenue Drivers: The main revenue drivers in my venture are ticket sales, sponsored attractions, and advertisements.

The Next Product: This product will be a portable phone charger with my company logo on it. It will have a flashlight built into the side of it and will also contain an alarm clock. I believe my customer's would want this because it would help solve many of the problems people have while on vacation. 

Enhancing my service: This product could improve my customers' experience when they go on vacation. It will keep them from phones running out of battery and while the external battery is charging, it can be used as an alarm clock. If I was to offer this product as an incentive for booking a certain amount of attractions through the website, it could lead to higher customer loyalty and higher customer sales.

Amazon product: The amazon product that I found is an external battery with an embedded flashlight. It has a huge capacity and output. It can actually fully charge an iPad Air and an iPhone 6s six times. (https://www.amazon.com/External-RAVPower-16750mAh-Portable-Technology/dp/B00MQSMEEE/ref=sr_1_5?s=wireless&ie=UTF8&qid=1468742653&sr=1-5&keywords=portable+charger)

Customer Reviews: The reviews for this product are amazing and they even say how great this product is for frequent flyers. The customers love how long the charger lasts but several customers have said they hate that the company does not replace defective products.

Design Changes: The biggest change I would make to this product would be the addition of an alarm clock to the device. Many people like using actual alarm clocks over their phones and this could give them that ability even when they are traveling. I would also put my logo on the external battery. 

This product would add a great incentive for customers to use my service and could even make their vacations just a little bit easier. I feel as though it could bring in more revenue to my company and would increase customer loyalty.

My Unfair Advantage

My Resources:

1) Programming Skills

• V- This gives me the skills to create a website that is innovative and appealing to customers.
• R- This is not very rare because anyone can learn how to code.
• I- This can rely on creativity so in some ways it can't be imitated.
• N- The only substitution would be to pay someone to code for you. 

2) Multiple computers capable of creating websites

• V- Good computers are expensive so having several in my possession is very valuable.
• R- This is not very rare because anyone can go to the store and buy a computer.
• I- Anyone can buy the same computer that I have.
• N- Tablets and phones aren't as powerful as computers so they aren't substitutable yet.

3) Great knowledge of the Orlando area

• V- This is incredibly valuable for a website based on the City of Orlando.
• R- This is only available to someone who has lived in Orlando for an extended amount of time.
• I- This is not easily copied if you haven't lived in Orlando.
• N- This is not substitutable for a venture based on tourism in Orlando.

4) 12 years of experience in tourism

• V- This is extremely valuable for a business based on tourism.
• R- This is extremely rare for someone to have working experience in travel agencies, several hotels, and the biggest theme park in the world.
• I- This is not easily copied at all.
• N- This is not substitutable for a ventured based on tourism in Orlando. 

5) Access to an existing private database of attractions in Orlando.

• V- This is extremely valuable because I can rely on professional information that is already written. This will save a lot of time in my venture.
• R- This is pretty rare because not many people can find a connection like this one so easily.
• I- This could possibly be copied but it would be extremely time-consuming.
• N- This is not substitutable because info on attractions will make up quite a bit of the website.

6) Connections to several sales departments in attractions across Orlando.

• V- This is very valuable for the ticket bundles and sales that will be offered on my website. It will allow me to partner directly with the companies for tickets.
• R- This is rare because not many people can find multiple partnerships so easily.
• I- This is not very easily copied because it is hard to quickly develop relationships with other companies.
• N- This is only substitutable by paying full price for tickets, which could possibly hurt my business plan. 

7) No debt and good savings

• V- This is very valuable because it could lead to faster returns on my venture.
• R- This is somewhat rare for students in college.
• I- This is could be easily copied for students who are working through their education or with people who are receiving substantial scholarships.
• N- This is not substitutable.

8) Knowledge of Photoshop

• V- This is valuable because banners and pages in websites can actually be created using the Adobe suite. 
• R- This is not very rare because anyone can learn how to use photoshop.
• I- This is easily copied because it is easy for people to learn how to use photoshop.
• N- This is not easily substitutable because there aren't very many alternatives to photoshop that are as powerful.

9) Ability to use Social Media

• V- This is highly valuable in today's world because social media can be a powerful way to advertise and market.
• R- This is not very rare. Most people above the age of twelve know how to use social media of some sort.
• I- This is easily copied because anyone can use social media.
• N- This is not very substitutable because social media is one of the strongest industries today.

10) Great Credit Score

• V- This is valuable because starting a venture can be expensive and a good credit score can allow you more access to loans and lines of credit.
• R- This can be somewhat rare for students in college.
• I- This can be easily copied because anyone can get a credit card and use it responsibly.
• N- This is not easily substitutable because many resources can revolve around credit for a new business.

I believe that my top resource is my twelve years of experience in tourism in Orlando. This is simply because my venture revolves around the tourism industry and my experience has allowed me to see all sides of tourism, both as a guest and as an employee. 

Reading Reflection No. 2

The book I chose to read was "How to Fail at Almost Everything and Still Win Big."

1)What was the general theme or argument of the book?The general theme of this book in particular was how failure and unexpected situations could actually bring you success. This book relies on the stories and experiences of Scott Adams (the author and creator of Dilbert) and how he used it to find the success of his future.

2) How did the book, in your opinion, connect with and enhance what you are learning in ENT 3003? I would say that one of the biggest themes that I am learning in ENT 3003 is how knowing yourself and the resources that you have can lead you to a successful venture. I feel like Adams wrote about the same theme through much of the book. He said "goals are for losers". He specifically emphasized it was important to rely on a system instead of goals. I personally believe that this "system" is composed on human capital, social capital, and our other resources. These resources are more powerful than goals.

3) If you had to design an exercise for this class, based on the book you read, what would that exercise involve? The exercise would involve defining a system for your venture. It seems like a majority of the blog posts that I have read throughout this course have been composed on goals. I would specifically create an assignment that asks students to throw away their goals and come up with a system composed of their resources that could lead them to success.

4) What was your biggest surprise or "aha" moment when reading the book? In other words, what did you learn the differed most from your expectations? Other than the fact that the author said goals don't help anything. I would say that the biggest "aha" moment occurred when I read that being passionate does not mean anything. I always thought that passion was a resource that could drive you to success in what you care about. According to the author, passion leads to the demise of your venture almost every single time.

Idea Napkin No. 2

1) You
 I live in Orlando and have lived here for my entire life. I have a strong passion for tourism because my family had owned a travel agency business for over 40 years in Puerto Rico and in Orlando. I currently am a cast member at the Magic Kingdom in Orlando. I have always dreamed of being a mechanical engineer so that I could design and update the rides in the attractions. Because my business venture is heavily based on tourism, I feel like it would be something that I could enjoy doing for years to come. I could see this as a business where I could make some extra money on the side, but would still have to be constantly updated to meet current tourist attractions. I do not think this would be a business that I would sell off to another company unless it was to somehow change my life for the positive.

2) What are you offering to customers?
 I feel as though that there is no where for guests to the Orlando area to be able to find information about the attractions they should visit all in one place. My business will create a website and mobile application where people will be able to view every single attraction that is available to visit in Orlando. They will also be able to purchase all the tickets they need in one, easy online interface. The biggest feature of this application will be its ability to tell guests what attractions they should visit and how much time they should spend there based solely on the interests of everyone in the family. 

3) Who are you offering it to?
 The customers that will use my application will for the most part be located everywhere outside of Orlando. Most of the people who will use the application will most likely be from outside of the state of Florida. Anyone who has never been to Orlando before will also be a likely customer for the application. It will mainly be designed for people who have never been to Orlando before and have no idea where to start.

4) Why do they care?
 People will pay to use my product because they are choosing to spend large amounts of money on their vacations to Orlando and will want to to make the most of every penny they spend. Time is also a scarce resource for guests to Orlando and the application will help every guest make the most of every second. People in Orlando should care about a venture like this because it could raise the revenue of smaller attractions across Orlando and even for the City of Orlando itself.

5) What are your core competencies? 
 I have lived in Orlando for twenty years and have advanced knowledge about all the attractions and transportation in the area. I have a passion for tourism and planning vacations that not many people have even in the Orlando. This will be an application that will help guests plan vacations based solely on their interests, which can be found through personality tests. This will be done through a rating of one to ten on how much they like particular subjects in an interest quiz. This quiz will be what separates my venture from existing companies.

I truly believe that all the components of this business combine together in a beneficial way. Unlike Expedia and Travelocity which focus on flights, hotels, and rental cars, my new software will focus exclusively on the attractions that make Orlando great. This focus on the attraction over logistics will make the website different and unique from websites like Travelocity. Because of my background in tourism, I believe that I could make this venture a success.

Feedback: Most of the feedback I received on the last napkin idea was positive. The two comments I had really only had a few pieces of advice for me to follow. The five main points I took away were:

• How the interest quiz was going to be setup
• If I was going to sell or keep the venture
• How I was going to set myself from the competition
• The focus on attractions over logistics such as flights and hotels
• the rise in revenue for smaller attractions and the City of Orlando.

I was able to incorporate this feedback by simply adding some explanations to some of the major points. I really didn't have to change anything; just mainly had to add some extra details.

Growing My Social Capital

1) Domain Expert:

• I made contact with Irmarie. She runs an online tourism website for Orlando and relies mainly on sponsored advertisements. 
• The person fulfills the domain expert "slot" because Irmarie's website is focused on tourism just like mine will be. She is also an expert on building and designing websites for tourism purposes.
• I contacted Irmarie through my grandparents. My grandparents used to own a travel agency that focused on Orlando and was therefore able to obtain the contact information through them. I had already known about the website from previous meetings.
• The exchange I had with Irmarie was actually through a meeting that occurred at my grandparents house. I mainly talked with her about advertising and the website design itself. She told how to show that which attractions were sponsored and which ones were not. I could also use her existing database to supply info on attractions for my website.
• Including Irmarie in my network could allow me to partner with her website in order to obtain recent information about Orlando attractions that has already been researched and created. This could also be good advertising for Irmarie's website.

2) Market Expert:

• The second person that I talked to is named Paula. She has worked in hotel and attraction sales for over twenty years.
• Paula fulfills the market expert "slot" because she has dealt with tourism sales for over twenty years. She has seen Orlando grow over time and she knows the ideal customers for different types of sales.
• My dad works in a local hotel and Paula works in their sales department.
• I met with Paula inside a local hotel restaurant. We talked about how I would sell the tickets online with bundles, sales, and an added convenience fee. She said to make sure that my customer's knew about the added fee from the beginning so that there were no surprises last minute. This website could possibly bring Paula more sales.
• With Paula in my network, I could have access to knowledge about sales from the past twenty years and how to be successful in sales based on tourism. With her help, the website could also bring more traffic through Paula's sales department.

3) Supplier:

• This third person was named Tony. He works in sales out of the biggest theme parks in Orlando. 
• This person fulfills the supplier position because he is responsible for the distribution of tickets to the theme park. 
• I found the person internally at the theme park I work for. I emailed him and we continued the conversation online.
• Our exchange was over email. Tony explained to me how they use online ticket sales for their own company and how I can use their system to sell tickets. The return expectation would be to increase their sales through this website.
• Including this person in my network will allow me to easily obtain tickets for the website and could also lead to the implementation of mobile online tickets for the biggest theme park in Orlando.

Reflect:

This experience taught me that for future networking I should target exactly who I need to reach success. Finding people who are experts in little portions of my needs could be better than finding people who are just like me. This differed from other networking events because I was looking for resources for my venture instead of just for myself.

Elevator Pitch No. 2

The Pitch: https://youtu.be/QYVmhKm3qOQ

Reflection on Feedback: The main feedback I received was actually to describe how I would distinguish between sponsored and non-sponsored attractions on my page. Other than that, people had said that I should include "teaser" videos for each attraction and that I should cut out my introduction of who I am.

What I changed: Based on the feedback I received, I explained how I would notate exactly which attractions are sponsored and I also cut out my introduction of who I am.

My Secret Sauce

How I feel about myself that makes me different:

1) I am very focused on details. I wouldn't go as far to say that I am a perfectionist but I do believe that whenever I am responsible for something that I make sure all of my work is up to certain standards. Sometimes the little details can make huge differences.

2) I am always setting goals for everything that I do. It has gotten to the point where my family and friends have actually made fun of how I approach the goals I set. It seems like have goals for everything I do, especially in work and and school.

3) I am very good at envisioning what I want my future to look like. Ever since I was a little kid I have known exactly what I wanted to be and how it is I should get there.

4) I have always believed that it is important to be kind to be everyone. You never know what opportunities the people around you can bring you and its important to treat everyone with respect. I try and make sure to follow this with every person I meet and talk to.

5) I have a strong passion for tourism. I love living in Orlando and seeing tourists experience new things that they will remember for the rest of their life. Even though I am studying mechanical engineering, I hope to use my skills in the future to create more state-of-the-art experiences for thousands of people to come.

Interviews:

1st Interview with Austin:  https://soundcloud.com/user-443175550/160702-0015a
Austin said that he thought my loyalty stood out from other people. His main point was that I notice every single details and observant with everything in my life. He even went as far to say that I am trusting, extremely smart, and very thorough. (Ignore the comments about the Puerto Rican soda, its amazing, just take my word for it)

2nd Interview with Ethan:  https://soundcloud.com/user-443175550/160702-0016a
Ethan started with how I am able to remain focused in all situations like driving or watching lectures. He also said that I am able to understand people very well to the point where I actually got to see what people were really like "behind the scenes" in many different occasions. He also said that I am able work and understand new material easily and quickly.

3rd Interview with Jayleen: https://soundcloud.com/user-443175550/160702-0014a
Jayleen said that I was kind to everyone, mature for my age, and that I am willing to go out of my way to help others.

4th Interview with my Dad: https://soundcloud.com/user-443175550/160702-0013a
My dad said that I set my goals early and was easily able to visualize what I want to do. He continued to say how I am extremely focused on details and planning important things out. He finished talking about my sense of humor and how it can actually help me in the future. He also added in the end about how mature I always was growing up.

5th Interview with my Grandparents:  https://soundcloud.com/user-443175550/160703-0018a
My grandparents said that I always try my best to make the best use of opportunities in my life. They said that I always do what is correct and that I make goals for myself. They also talked about working hard and taking risks.

Similarities between the interviews and what I thought:

The people that I interviewed for the most part talked about things that I had already thought of myself. It did surprise me how mature and focused on details a lot of the other people had said. It also surprised me to hear my dad talk about my sense of humor and how it can actually help my future in many cases. I specifically like what my dad said about visualizing and I know that it has actually helped me in many cases. I feel like the ability to easily visualize myself in different places and situations is something that many people are not easily able to do.

My Customer's Avatar

My new business specifically relies on the tourists who come to Orlando. After working for the Walt Disney World Co. for a year now, I have already established sort of a mental customer avatar for my business. It is a 42 year old man who is married and has two kids. One kid is a 11 year old boy and the other is a 16 year old daughter who just started driving. The man has black hair and brown eyes. It looks like he hasn't shaven in a couple of days and is wearing a t-shirt and cargo pants. He has a Pennsylvanian accent and drives a light blue Honda Odyssey mini-van. The entire family loves to spend time with each other, but everyone once in a while they do love to fight with each other over questionable topics. The father loves Star Wars, but the rest of the family is mainly interested in Disney movies. The father specifically likes to plan out his vacations,  even if his wife would rather just wing the whole vacation. 

I think the only thing that I have in common with the avatar is that I personally love to plan out my vacations. With the amount of money I am spending to go somewhere, I want to know going in that I making the most of everything I do. I believe this coincidence exists because I would imagine myself using an application to plan out my visit to all of the attractions in Orlando if it was my first time there and I can see how I would get frustrated having to go to a hundred different sources for information. 

Halfway Reflection

1) Perseverance is probably the biggest behavior I have used throughout this course so far. There have been times where it can get tough, but the motivation of finishing the class over dropping is far greater. This class asks you to do things you've probably never done before and it can seem impossible to figure out how to approach some of the assignments; however, if you take everything one step at a time it becomes possible.

2) There was really one moment when I felt like I was going to give up on the class. It was when I found out that we had to talk to strangers and interview them almost every single week. I feel like that is not something that is easy to do and I almost wanted to drop the class because of it. After doing the first assignment, I quickly found out that it actually wasn't that bad. The hardest thing about the assignment now is finding time over actually talking to people. I do feel like I have developed a tenacious attitude when it comes to this course mainly because I want to see it through to the end. I do not want to drop the course and give up. This means that I will not be pulled apart before the end of the summer semester.

3) The first tip would be to never let talking to strangers scare you away. These are people you will probably never see again so even if you embarrass yourself a little bit, it ultimately won't matter. The second tip would be to forget about how many points you need to get to reach the grade you want. If you spend so much time on what you need you may miss out on what this course actually has to offer. The third tip would be to apply what your learning to your actual life. This course deals a lot with how to attack your plans and what behaviors an entrepreneur should have, but almost everything you learn can also be applied to other areas of your life.

Portmanwho "Terrigreat"

1) I combined the words "terrific" and "great" to create the word "terrigreat".

2) The definition is to feel so amazing that neither terrific or great can accurately explain how happy you are. It is to be the most excited feeling you've had in a long while.

4) Using this word around my friends made me feel silly, especially when I tried it around my parents. I think for a second there they questioned the class I was taking, but they seemed to get used to it after a while. My friends used it a couple times after I had been saying it for a week, but every time they said it they mainly just laughed. I also tried it on a couple of strangers and most of them just gave me a weird face. I think given more time, people could get used to the word and start using it, but at first glance more people seemed to find it silly rather than useful.

Reading Reflection No. 1

1) The Entrepreneur
 I read the biography about Steve Jobs for this post. The most surprising fact I found about Steve Jobs was that his entire venture was originally started in a garage in Pasadena. What is now the Mac originally began as a circuitboard that was designed and manufactured with Wozniak right out of a garage. From that point on, the Mac line of products exploded and grew into what Apple exists as today. I truly admire Steve Jobs because after all he went through, he continued to push forward and stay on top. When the Apple board of directors kicked Jobs out of his own company, Steve chose not to quit, he moved on to a new computer business and even helped the creation of Pixar. Several years later Jobs was put back on top at Apple. The only thing I disliked about Jobs was how cruel he could be towards his employees. In one instance he actually screamed at an Apple designer because of the way a particular font appeared.

2) Competencies of the Entrepreneur
 Steve Jobs did not have extensive technical knowledge, yet he was CEO of the world's best know computer company for years and years. This was because Jobs is hardworking and never knows when to quit. His biggest competency was his sharp eye for design. The products he was making didn't look like a giant plastic box, it actually brought design and beauty to the technical world.

3) I'm Confused
 If there was any part of the reading that was confusing, it was all the different relationships that Jobs had with in his personal and professional life. He went through several breakups in his life but they all seemed to be over questionable reasons. He even had a falling out with his start-up partner, Wozniak, over several different issues.

4) Two Questions
 The first question I would ask Jobs is, "What made you enter the world of computers and programming in the first place?". Throughout the book, it never became obvious why Jobs entered this business in the first place, it almost seemed as if he was just taking advantage of Wozniak and the opportunities presented.

The second question I would ask is, "What made you continue in the world of computers after being forced to leave from Apple?". I would ask this questions because I found it impressive that being kicked out of his own company did not stop Jobs from being successful.

5) Hard Work
 I believe that Jobs had a strong belief in hard work. Everything Jobs did was based on handwork. Jobs, in fact, may have been a little over focused on hard work because he worried about every single detail and could actually be cruel to his employees. I share the opinion that had work is important, but not to the point that people get hurt or fired over small little details.

Idea Napkin No. 1

1) You
 I live in Orlando and have lived here for my entire life. I have a strong passion for tourism because my family had owned a travel agency business for over 40 years in Puerto Rico and in Orlando. I currently am a cast member at the Magic Kingdom in Orlando. I have always dreamed of being a mechanical engineer so that I could design and update the rides in the attractions. Because my business venture is heavily based on tourism, I feel like it would be something that I could enjoy doing for years to come. I could see this as a business where I could make some extra money on the side, but would still have to be constantly updated to meet current tourist attractions.

2) What are you offering to customers?
 I feel as though that there is no where for guests to the Orlando area to be able to find information about the attractions they should visit all in one place. My business will create a website and mobile application where people will be able to view every single attraction that is available to visit in Orlando. They will also be able to purchase all the tickets they need in one, easy online interface. The biggest feature of this application will be its ability to tell guests what attractions they should visit and how much time they should spend there based solely on the interests of everyone in the family.

3) Who are you offering it to?
 The customers that will use my application will for the most part be located everywhere outside of Orlando. Most of the people who will use the application will most likely be from outside of the state of Florida. Anyone who has never been to Orlando before will also be a likely customer for the application. It will mainly be designed for people who have never been to Orlando before and have no idea where to start.

4) Why do they care?
 People will pay to use my product because they are choosing to spend large amounts of money on their vacations to Orlando and will want to to make the most of every penny they spend. Time is also a scarce resource for guests to Orlando and the application will help every guest make the most of every second.

5) What are your core competencies? 
 I have lived in Orlando for twenty years and have advanced knowledge about all the attractions and transportation in the area. I have a passion for tourism and planning vacations that not many people have even in the Orlando. This will be an application that will help guests plan vacations based solely on their interests, which can be found through personality tests.

I truly believe that all the components of this business combine together in a beneficial way. Unlike Expedia and Travelocity which focus on flights, hotels, and rental cars, my new software will focus exclusively on the attractions that make Orlando great. Because of my background in tourism, I believe that I could make this venture a success.

Tweaking the Innovation

My new software called "Experience Orlando" will give people to plan out the attractions they want to visit in Orlando by assessing the interests of the people in the group while also allowing customers to purchase all the tickets they need in one place. The drivers that my software will have will be a the website data, the interests assessment, transportation, and the ticket purchases.

The first item will be the website data. The benefit of this item will be access to a wealth of information in one place that can give new visitors to Orlando all the information they need about the attractions. The tangible will be the actual part of the website that people can log onto and search for any attraction that they would like to. This item could be re-innovated so that people would have to pay a subscription fee to access all the data. It could also be designed in a way that people could create accounts and save the information for attractions they are interested in on their own profile page. This information could also be linked to social media sites so that people could plan with their friends over the internet.

The second item would be the "Interests Assessment". The benefit of this item will be that people could plan their vacations by knowing how much time to spend in attractions and which attractions to focus on solely on the interests of the people in the families or groups. The tangible level of this item would be the actual interests quiz. It would be a set of questions that can determine what type of attractions people would have a strong interest in. The augmented level is that the quiz can compare you interest results to what attractions have to offer, thus allowing users to make informed decisions.  This item can be innovated by designing different quizzes for different members of a family. For example, the quiz for a little girl could be made easier to understand than a quiz  for the father of a family which could be more detailed and comprehensive. A second innovation could be a specific version of the quiz designed for the bigger theme parks. For example, Walt Disney World could have their own version of the quiz so that people could figure out what they should do in each of the parks.

The third item would be transportation. The benefit would be that users would have access to different bus system routes and services instead of having to pay for and use a rental car for the duration of the trip. The tangible level of the item would be a map of routes and a list of the different companies that could be used by any of the users at any time. The augmented level of this item would be for the ability to purchase tickets for the transportation through the app. Innovations could include the ability to contact taxi services through the application and the ability to link the app to the schedules of the bus systems so that you know what time to be ready to be picked up by.

The fourth item would be ticket purchases. The benefit would be the ability to purchase all the tickets you need for attractions on one website before you even arrive in Orlando. The tangible level of this item would be an actual page on the website that you could order tickets from and use your credit card or PayPal to pay for tickets. The augmented level could be the ability insure the tickets so that the users money could be refunded if the user must cancel the visit to the attractions. Innovations could include the ability to package tickets for different attractions together in bundles. A second innovation could be the ability to send tickets to someone as a gift automatically.

Elevator Pitch No. 1

My solution to the problem with planning trips to Orlando is called "Experience Orlando". Unlike Expedia or Travelocity which focuses on how to get people to a location through flights and hotels, my application and website will allow people to plan what attractions they will go to Orlando based on the interests of themselves and their families. The program will tell them what attractions to go to and how much time they can spend there. It will also give people a single place to purchase all of their tickets before they even leave for Orlando with only a convenience fee added to every purchase.

The link to YouTube below contains my First Elevator Pitch.
https://youtu.be/v3SWeaq_GUg

My Solution

The problem that I have encountered in my previous posts is that visitors to the city of Orlando do not have an efficient, easy way of planning out the daily itineraries and attractions for the day. They must rely on using information from several hundred different websites. I am proposing to create an application that allows guests to discover everything Orlando has to offer, order tickets, find out how much time to spend in each attraction, and to assess what attractions are worth visiting based on the interests and personalities of the people in your family. This would be on program that is capable of completing all of these services in an easy to use interface.

Looking for Opportunity

Opportunity #1: http://www.economist.com/news/science-and-technology/21699436-guarding-against-rogue-drones-could-be-legal-nightmare-hacked

This article is about the regulation of small consumer drones and was found at "economist.com". The problem that exists is that there is no way to currently regulate or control drones that may be used for illegal reasons. One recent example was a drone that actually delivered drugs and cell phones to an inmate in prison. This problem has begun to exist with the emergence of drones because of the impossible nature of tracking small aircraft and legal regulations that forbid the interference of any aircraft in the sky. I believe this presents an opportunity for the creation of a system that could use legal procedures and equipment to protect the people who could be targeted by these drones. This presents a problem specifically to people and/or agencies that require privacy and isolation. This opportunity may be difficult to exploit because of the laws and policies that protect the aircraft from any interference or hacking. I personally believe that this opportunity exists because I have a working knowledge of how drones work and have read about the regulations that continue to be created by the FAA. Using computer programming designed by either the targets or by the drone manufacturers, there must be some way to legally preserve the privacy of people.

Opportunity #2: http://www.wsj.com/articles/oil-prices-poised-to-hit-sweet-spot-for-global-economy-1464286482

This article is about oil prices, which for the first time in the past decade are about to hit a price point that is cheap enough for  consumers to want to spend the money and also expensive enough that producers are able continue business. The problem lies in that oil companies are still planning on cutting back on investments and hiring because they are not making enough money for growth. An opportunity exists because oil companies want to keep oil at the current price point but need more people to start purchasing oil again. Because oil is so cheap, it would be beneficial for carmakers to make cheaper cars that run on gas, instead of trying to move all of their manufacturing to more expensive cars that rely on solely electricity or hybrid engines. This would bring more people to the gas pump and could potentially bring oil producers to a point where they can start to invest again while continuing to charge at the current price point. This may be difficult to exploit because consumers only want prices to go lower and producers only want to grow. I believe this opportunity exists because I know that oil is still the most heavily used source of energy and while I know it is important to save our resources, I think it is also important to maintain a lower cost of living. This can only happen if costs are kept constant instead of entering into a rising trend.

Opportunity #3: http://blogs.wsj.com/economics/2016/04/13/the-economy-grew-last-year-but-poor-americans-needed-more-charity/

This article from the New York Times is about the recent growth in both the economy and the amount of charity needed my Americans across the nation. I believe there is an opportunity here because people have an unmet need for assistance. The upper class continues to grow in wealth, but the lower and middle class continue to rely more and more on assistance. This creates an opportunity for a business that could pay people to do services for those needing help around them. Although this may not be an extremely profitable venture, it could make a difference for everyone involved and could even allow the middle and lower classes to grow as well. This opportunity would be difficult to exploit because it would require quite a high amount of investment and a low expectation for much profit at all. I believe this opportunity exists because I have passion for helping people and would love to be in a situation where I could create an actual business that did just that by providing jobs as well as cheap services for those in need,

Opportunity #4: http://www.ibtimes.com/tsa-airport-wait-times-one-big-reason-why-lines-are-getting-longer-security-2374070

This article from the International Business Times talks about how security lines at TSA checkpoints in America have become disastrous in the last year. The problem is that there has been a rise in passengers but no rise in TSA security officers. I believe this provides an opportunity for more efficient and technologically advanced screening equipment that could be developed. The typical customer in this situation would be agencies such as TSA who must invest in better equipment. This is probably an easier opportunity to exploit because there hasn't very many advancements in recent years although technology continues to become exponentially powerful. I can personally see how this opportunity exists because I love to travel and find myself stuck in these checkpoints on average five times a year. It is an unmeet need that I know applies to myself and millions of other people across the nation who are flying through major airports.

Forming an Opportunity Belief

MY BELIEF: I believe that there is an unmet need in Orlando when it comes to planning what attractions tourists will go to while they are in town. This need specifically matches the typical tourist who comes to Orlando without the knowledge of what there is to do. This need has always existed but has grown exponentially in recent years with more and more attractions being opened across town and even outside of Orlando's city limits. I would think that there is a 70% chance this need exists

REFLECT: Both interviews 1 and 2 gave the impression that the unmet need did in fact exist to people who have rarely come to Orlando. There is a need to for knowledge on attractions and transportation between the attractions. Interview 3, however, gave me the impression that there was no need for anyone who has any knowledge of Orlando. The biggest surprise to me was that there are people out there who have no interest in finding out about new attractions that they have never been to before.

SUMMARIZE: I believe my original opportunity belief still exists and that the need exists mainly to new visitors of Orlando. I believe that my belief is just as accurate, but that the prototypical user has changed to someone who has no knowledge of Orlando. I strongly believe that entrepreneurs should adapt their beliefs to fit feedback received because it is ultimately the customers that will decide whether or not they will use the service or good to meet their needs.

Interview 1: https://soundcloud.com/user-443175550/interview-1-final
Interview 2: https://soundcloud.com/user-443175550/interview-2-final
Interview 3: https://soundcloud.com/user-443175550/interview-3-final

Identifying Local Opportunities

Project paved with good intentions - But uneven C.R. 426 shoulder work needs overhaul, residents say
http://infoweb.newsbank.com.lp.hscl.ufl.edu/resources/doc/nb/news/15A3A1BFA75B2A30?p=AWNB

County Road 426 in Brevard County has had an increase in bicyclists in the recent years. Specifically on the weekends, hundreds of bicycle riders are found in the traffic lanes along with motorists. This creates an unsafe situation for both parties. The bicyclists are asking the county to build shoulders along the entire route, but because of federal grant money, the county can only partially build a shoulder. According to the county, the road was built only for motorists and there was never the intention of building bike lanes that went along the entire road. This problem is specific to both bicyclists, who want a bike lane, and motorists who do not want to see bicyclists clogging up the traffic lanes.

With tougher school exams, more than 40% could fail
http://infoweb.newsbank.com.lp.hscl.ufl.edu/resources/doc/nb/news/15A3A1BF9F5DE840?p=AWNB

The State Board of Education in Florida recently voted to make Florida school exams, such as the FCAT, tougher for students. With this new policy, 40% of students could find themselves failing and having to repeat coursework. The problem is that the State Board feels as though students in the Florida Public School System are not graduating from high school with the skills needed to go to college or to good-paying jobs. This problem specifically challenges students across Florida who either face moving on prepared or having to repeat coursework and delaying their high school graduation.

Smoking law costs Orlando big business
http://infoweb.newsbank.com.lp.hscl.ufl.edu/resources/doc/nb/news/15B41D515CD73978?p=AWNB

The American Heart Association recently created a new policy that stated that they would not conduct business in any cities that allow for in-door smoking. In Florida, any bar can apply for a permit that would allow for people to be able to smoke inside.The problem now exists that the American Heart Association will no longer use the Orlando Convention Center to host their annual conventions until Orlando makes any kind of in-door smoking illegal. This creates a problem to the convention industry in Orlando because they are now losing one of their biggest clients. This hurts the convention center, the surrounding hotels, and can even have an effect on local tourist attractions.

U.S. Ambulance to move main office out of area
http://infoweb.newsbank.com.lp.hscl.ufl.edu/resources/doc/nb/news/15B3CB521C775E68?p=AWNB

One of the biggest manufacturing operations in Orlando, Florida belongs to U.S. ambulance. They currently employ over 700 people and are growing to become the world's biggest manufacturer of emergency vehicles. The problem lies in that the company has recently decided to move their headquarters from Winter Garden to Milwaukee, Wisconsin. While this does not mean that they are not currently moving their manufacturing plants, it does mean that they are finding it cheaper to do business in Wisconsin. Reports have recently been released that say that Milwaukee is working with U.S. ambulance in order to attempt to move more manufacturing jobs into Milwaukee. This provides a problem for over 700 Orlando employees who are now questioning whether or not they will still have a job in the next couple of years.

SeaWorld's dolphin species last of a kind - Company doesn't plan to replace unusual Commerson's dolphins
http://infoweb.newsbank.com.lp.hscl.ufl.edu/resources/doc/nb/news/15AC33EE75908258?p=AWNB

Sea World has recently announced that it will not be replacing Commerson's dolphins in their habitats. These dolphins are an unusual species that actually look like killer whales when they swim around. This parallels a shift in company policy that SeaWorld recently announced where they are stopping the breeding of orca whales and halting some of their daily shows. This has lead to SeaWorld cutting back on experiences for the time-being. This presents a problem to some of the employees who are finding it harder to work at Sea World and also to the company itself which has seen a decrease in attendance in recent years.

My Bug List

1) The Bright House Cable Company in Orlando has the slowest internet company to the point where lecture videos do not even load.

- This because they use one cable to service the hundreds of houses in the neighborhood which decreases the available broadband.
2) The Best Buy at Milennia Mall never has the items they say are in stock on the website.
-This is because they do not do a good job of keeping track of inventory and updating the website.
3) Apple Store never put their products on sale even when they have to clear items out for their new products.
-This is because Apple feels that their products are already so cheaply priced and that they don't want to decrease prices.
4) Every time I go to the Walgreens on John Young Pkwy, they always have to call my doctor to refill a prescription because the computer says I don't have any refills left when I actually do.
- This is because this Walgreens does not do a good job of keeping their computers updated with patient information.
5) My Surface computer needs to update it seems almost every single week right when I need to submit an assignment before a deadline.
- This is because Windows has an increased amount of security threats and must use updates to keep their users safe.
6) The home alarm system from ADT emits a loud beeping noise every morning when the system battery runs low at around 5 am.
- This is because the company uses batteries that are not reliable and must constantly be changed out.
7) American Airlines charges $25 for your first checked baggage no matter how big or heavy the bag is.
- This is because the airlines must keep up with costs of flights and is also trying to limit the amount of checked baggage.
8) The YouTube App now charges a monthly subscription fee to listen to videos while the app is in the background.
- This is because YouTube is trying to rinse more revenue at the expense of user enjoyment and productivity.
9) The Bank of America requires a safety deposit of at least $300 to get your first credit card.
- This is because first time credit users do not have enough credit history and the bank is taking a chance on the account holder.
10) The General Electric oven in my kitchen starts smoking when it reaches 300 degrees.
- This is because of faulty parts in the oven that have never worked correctly.
11) There is no good way of organizing a trip to Orlando with the hundreds of attractions available to tourists in such a short span of time.
- This is because companies such as Expedia only focus on flights, hotels, and rental cars instead of attractions.
12) The Bank of America on Central Florida Pkwy took out the drive through ATM which makes it unsafe to go the ATM at night when it's dark.
- This is maybe because the drive through ATM was constantly getting jammed thus frustrating customers.
13) The "Kresto" chocolate milk powder found in Puerto Rico is incredibly hard to find anywhere in Central Florida.
14) The Lynx bus system in Orlando is limited in bus stop locations and you must get to the bus stop an hour before so you don't miss the bus.
- This is because not enough people are using the bus system in Orlando which makes it difficult for Lynx to increase the amount of buses on specific routes.
15) The I-4 interstate system that runs through Florida is packed with traffic and has the worst rush hour times in Central Florida.
-This is because the highway was built to 1960s standards and not designed for the amount of traffic Orlando has today.
16) The stores and restaurants at Orlando International Airport are not open 24 hours which means when you have a 5 am flight you won't be able to find snacks or even coffee before your flight.
- This is because they are not enough people in the airport at all hours for companies to remain open and still make a profit.
17) The 408 highway and the Florida Turnpike have expensive tolls located up and down the entire length of the highway which adds up when you are commuting to school or work.
- This is because the state is trying to make enough money to keep the highways maintained at the expense of commuters and other drivers.
18) The self-checkout at the Wal-Mart on Turkey Lake Rd always says that you did not bag your items when you did, which keeps you from quickly completing your checkout.
- This is because they weight underneath the bagging station is not sensitive enough to the various groceries.
19) There is no way to pay for items online at the Best Buy website with two or more different credit cards.
- This is because the website is not programmed to allow this, maybe for security reasons?
20) The Chick-Fil-A on Sand lake Rd uses cones and signs to split up the parking lot which confuses customers on how to get to the drive through.
- This is because the parking lot is badly designed and they try to use cones and signs to alleviate the problems.

Reflection:
I personally found it a little bit challenging to find enough bugs for this list. It was pretty easy at first but the more into the list I got, the harder it became to finish it out. Fortunately enough, it seems pretty easy to find bugs in a big city such as Orlando compared to a smaller city like Gainesville where it might be hard to find enough items.