Assignment 30A- Final Reflection

·      What stood out to me most for this class was that we actually had to interview people. When I read the first assignment that had that requirement, I was very nervous since I never really interviewed people before. However, since multiple of assignments had us interviewing, I got very used to the interviews very fast, and even got better at them and in the future I will feel prepared to give in an interview so for this reason it was the most formative experience for me.

·      A experience that I will remember years later is that so many people had so many different ideas for products or services, which means if you think hard enough there is always an opportunity that you can exploit.

·      The most joyous experience was definitely when I finally came up with a product. Brainstorming has always been something I never really liked so when I finally came up with a product it was almost like relief.

·      The experience I am most proud of myself for accomplishing is keeping up with all of these assignments and never falling behind. My schedule involved classes with a lot of work so not falling behind, and sometimes even being ahead at times, was an accomplishment for me

·      Now at the end of the semester I do see myself as an entrepreneur. After doing each of these activities, that I think really do apply to what I would have to do in the real word if I was creating a service or product, they have each allowed me to move closer to an entrepreneurial mindset. Now when I think if things it’s almost like I point out the problem and automatically start thinking of ways to exploit this problem and how it could be fixed.

·      One recommendation I would give to a student going to journey down this path in the future is to really think long and hard about the very first assignment. You want to pick something that you really do see an opportunity with and can see yourself expanding on since every assignment goes off that very first idea you have.

·      In order to preform best in this course I recommend you set time aside for this class to complete the assignments so you don not fall behind because some assignments do take longer than others and require more in depth thought process. If you pick a set schedule of when you will work on t his class it will ensure that you don’t miss anything.

·      What I would recommend they do to foster this mindset is to take each assignment seriously and really try to picture this class as if you were in the real world actually creating your service or product. You wouldn’t do anything half way so you shouldn’t do anything half way when completing the assignments. This will really allow you to put yourself in that entrepreneurial mindset. Plus, if you take advantage of this opportunity that this class gives you can really get something out of it that will help you in your future endeavors.

Assignment 29A- Venture Concept No.2

Psychological Test (Before purchasing a firearm)

Opportunity:

·      This part is still the same. We are currently living in a society where people we love are dying because those who should not have a firearm are purchasing them and creating mass shootings.

·      Right now to purchase a firearm you only have to pass a background check, which is clearly not enough.

·      People who have demonstrated signs of mental illness are the ones committing these tragic crimes. This is why there is a need for a psychological test that will prevent mentally unstable citizens from purchasing a firearm.

·      Right now everyone in society has this need no matter if you own a firearm or not.  

·      Geographically, I would start the market in Florida and hope that it could eventually reach other states. 

·      Demographically, the main customers will be those twenty-one and older who want to purchase a firearm. However, this service will indirectly affect those who do not use this service. This is because who obtains a firearm legally has an affect on every single persons life who is around that person

·      This is a very large opportunity considering it deals with the safety of people’s lives. And because this is so large having society in favor of my service will be vital in this service actually being implemented

·      This window of opportunity will be open until an effective solution that meets these peoples needs is emplace and works in an effort to decrease the amount of mass shootings from occurring

Innovation:

·      The service that I’m offering is a psychological test. Within this test customers will be asked questions based on their past, current life, and future goals.

·      Based on their responses, each response will be given a number. At the end that number will correlate to a psychological reasoning explaining that persons mental capacity

·      This of course will take much research and expert help to create this test. However once it is created there are a few steps these customers will take:

o   They will first go to a psychiatrist who will administer this test

o   Then when they return to the place where they are purchasing a firearm the owner will request a background check along with the request to process the results of this test.

·      There is a fee to process the background check so there will just be a small additional fee to process the psychological test as well. This may range at about $25.

·      Many different groups benefit from this: Not only will test allow for us to look more into each individual and make it harder to purchase a firearm but also psychiatrists will receive a profit from each individual who must take the test and firearm businesses will receive a profit from each test that is processed.

·      This small additional fee should not be a large burden, since this will just mean each individual will be looked at more in depth, and most importantly in the long run, more lives will be safer.   

Venture Concept:

·      My innovation will solve this opportunity by making it harder for a single person to purchase a firearm by looking at each individual more in depth

·      This is something all people want, not just limited to people looking to purchase a firearm. Citizens are looking for hope and something that would be in the right step forward in trying to stop these mass shootings that are occurring due to mentally unstable people with firearms.

·      There currently aren’t any competitors since there has been no solution to this opportunity, however there can be some weakness within my innovation that I will have to work hard to overcome.

·      One of these weaknesses is that this psychological test will only be effective with the correct and extensive psychological reasoning, which means I will need to have a team of experts in the psychological field.

o   However, because of my connections with a current researcher in the psychological field, her and the people she knows in that field will be crucial to overcoming this weakness

·      Customer support is a huge factor in my service because with their support it will make it more likely for my service to actually be implemented in firearm businesses if there are strong numbers in favor of it. They will be the voice that actually allows me to sell my service.

·      Customer experiences are also a large factor. If customers don’t have a good experience with using this service, whatever it could be, they will fight against having my service implemented.

Employees:

·      For this my employees would technically be my team of research experts in this filed who are helping my form this effective service. Once that is created I can then go to legislature to have it implemented as a requirement in gun shops.

Unfair Advantage:

·      This is a service that gives hope to all, and many services do not do that. Each individual is affected positively by this service if it is implemented which is also very uncommon. Plus, this opportunity deals with peoples safety and lives and you cant turn away from a service that will protect those two things

·      Right now I’m offering a solution that is currently unavailable get everyone desperately wants.

·      Having a service that no one else has can help me gain large customer support

What’s Next:

·      With this service, I hope that it will be a step in the right direction that can help limit the amount of wrong people from purchasing firearms. Although I’m only focused on Florida right now I hope to see my service in other states.

·      As time goes on I hope our research becomes more advanced and in depth in helping us update the test to be more effective if it is needed.

What’s next for me:

·      Five years from now I hope to have perfected my service and have brought it to legislatures attention

·      Once they have accepted it I hope for my service to be implemented in gun shops within Florida

·      I will then be working to have it implemented in other states

·      My main goal here is to see a decrease in deathly mass shootings caused by the mentally unstable with my service implemented.

Feedback:

·      Most of my feedback as positive on how I structured and explained my venture concept

·      However, when looking at one of the comments I realized I discussed customer support but not customer experience. And my customers experience with my service will play a huge role in maintaining my service implemented.

What I changed:

•       Based on my feedback, I added that I will need large positive customer experiences because without that many people could actually go against my service rather than for it.

•       I also added a more detailed description of who my employees actually are, which within my business it is actually my team of research experts who will be helping me form the effective test.