Conclusion/ Advice

The first piece of advice I would give to those starting their entrepreneurial journey is to find your passion. Starting a business with the sole purpose of making money will not lead to true happiness. Doing something you love will make it easier to get up in the morning and give you the feeling of self-accomplishment. The caution I will give is that this is not a cake walk. Starting your own business is tough and requires long hours. Going back to the first point, if you aren’t doing something you love, it will be harder to put in the long hours if there is no enjoyment in the process. Be willing to roll your sleeves up and get two work. Know your customer. This is probably one of the biggest pieces of advice I can give to someone starting their own business. The customer is what drives the business. If you don’t know your customer, you won’t be able to make necessary changes or build customer loyalty. The last piece of advice I give is to not being afraid of taking risks. Giving up salary or a well-paying job to start a business is a risk. Your family and others could be affected by your decision. Despite all this, the payoff is more than worth it. You can be your own boss and control your own future. Commit and don’t look back. If there are speed bumps, get through them. The road of an entrepreneur takes patience and continual effort.

Week #12

This week we were able to do a trial and error assignment and submit a report with our work. We were to research an entrepreneur who overcame obstacles to get where he or she is today. At first I thought, “well this is going to be a little difficult, I don’t know any off the top of my head.” As I began searching the web, I found several examples of successful entrepreneurs who had really tough trials get in their way of success. I liked the quote by Henry Ford that said success is 99% failure. These entrepreneurs have to go through a lot of failure to get where they are or were.

This week was a tough week for our business Custom Pillow Covers. We had finalized our last sales for the activity and were preparing to close the business. As we sent out the text messages, our customers were very sad to see us go. They became like family to us over the past weeks. Starting a small business has been challenging, but extremely rewarding. I would like to come up with something new and continue to do that on the side. My husband helped me a lot with Custom Pillow Covers and it has brought us closer together. 

Week #11

This week we were able to explore some case studies and have discussions regarding starting a family business. This allowed me to see some of the challenges associated with starting a family owned business. What I learned is that you really have to take into consideration how you are going to organize the business moving forward. You have to be clear about responsibilities, equity, salary, etc. Sometimes this is difficult to discuss because they are family and you are so close to them that talking business is difficult. Despite this challenge, it is necessary because it can definitely become muddied if things aren’t detailed and things go south.
This week was another great week for Custom Pillow Covers. We have had a lot of returning customers and we have been making seasonal pillow covers that are a hit. We had a lot of orders before thanksgiving, because people wanted there house to be festive and we already have more orders and requests for Christmas. It’s sad to see the business come to a close because we really have become connected with some of our customers. Having my husband alongside has really made a huge difference while doing this challenge. It has brought us together and actually made our marriage a lot of fun. Instead of watching t.v., we are out making money, creating posters and strategizing our next move. It has definitely been a valuable experience that we will never forget

Week #10

I forgot to talk about last weeks assignments and experiences.  I think was one of my favorite weeks in regard to the discussion board we had on the Roxanne case. Originally when I posted, I had stated that I thought North Carolina was the best decision for her because of the growth potential of her business. When I was reading through some of the discussions, I realized that growth is a very loose term and not always the best decision for a company. Roxanne was comfortable where she was in Maine, her company was profitable and she was able to provide jobs for workers who desperately needed jobs. We see the potential in North Carolina and all the sudden the money signs start popping up before we see the risks. By moving to North Carolina she would take on a lot more risks. Her company would not be nearly as profitable as before with the additions in staff and change in business model. She would have to change her product line which doesn’t guarantee success. What the discussion taught me is we can’t think all growth is good. Some companies have tried to grow too fast and lost the values and quality their business once had. Also, there are personal decisions to be factored into each decision. Life is too short to not do what we want to do.
This week for Custom Pillow Covers was on par with our average for the previous weeks. We actually had someone leave us a note saying we should visit x and y complexes because they have friends that live there who would want our service. Word of mouth is powerful and has helped us really build a bond with our customers. Although we only have about 9 truly loyal customers, they love us and are always giving us ideas on ways to grow.

Week #9

This week was centered on franchising and some of the benefits and risks associated with franchising a business. I really enjoyed the IceDelights case study as it gave me an opportunity to see what some of the associated risks there are with starting your own franchise. Not only are you strapped with the stress of starting a new location, but you also have to factor in market research, logistics and brand reputation. The other assignment I really enjoyed was the document that talked a little about franchising. It gave Mcdonalds as an example of a franchising opportunity. There are different variables that you have to weigh before making the decision to franchise.

This was a pretty steady week for Custom Pillow Covers. We did $30 in sales but also had a couple people bail on us which cost was sad. We don’t have a system to pre-charge people so that has been a concern for us throughout the semester that has not really been resolved. There are some people who tip and we figure the tip money could cover the last minute cancellations we get. People are pretty upset we are ending this business soon which is very sad for us.

Week #8

This week’s assignments and discussion boards really helped me to see the value of hiring the right people. One thing that we talked about back and forth on the discussion boards was how companies hire too fast and don’t know how to train the new hires. We pointed out how some companies hit a busy season and feel the need to hire someone even though they don’t have the resources or money to train the individual .The company also gets caught up in the need to hire so much that they hire fast and don’t take time to find the right candidate.
This week with Custom Pillow Covers, we experienced some trials followed by immediate success. We went from Monday to Thursday and had no business in that time period. We thought that this would be our first week where we generated $0 in revenue. Suddenly on Friday the pillow cover orders started piling up and we ended up having the best sales since we started the business. At first we doubted if this idea was sustainable over the course of the semester. We feared we might generate initial sales and then the interest would drop off. We keep trying to build customer loyalty and we have new ideas for building that loyalty for the upcoming week.

Week #7

One of my favorite parts of this lesson was the discussion board we had on leaders and what made Jesus a good leader. Before this assignment, I would have probably stated the more common attributes such as loving and forgiving. As I continued pondering, the attribute patience kept on coming to mind. Christ was the perfect example of patience in His relationship with His apostles. They were all new to the gospel and had little knowledge and understanding. Most managers are very impatient towards employees that don’t understand the principles they are trying to implement.  Jesus, however, was willing to see past their deficiencies and taught in parables for better understanding.
This week was our second week in business for Custom Pillow Covers. Business is going surprisingly well. Our customers have responded well to our "pillow talk" idea. There, I have been able to do exactly what the the customer wants. I am able to make and deliver quality pillow covers that our customers can enjoy. I have taken advice from those around me and tweaked a few things here and there, and I encourage my customers to give honest, helpful feedback. 

Week #6

This week brought some fun and some challenges as it was the first week of business. My husband and I started by designing some flyers for our service. We then called around different businesses in the area to receive permission to not only pas out the flyers, but to also promote the service. I was surprised that nearly every single place allowed us to promote our business. We started our first round of passing out flyers and noticed an error. We forgot to include that all proceeds were being donated to an entrepreneur in South America that needed help with his show business. We wanted to make it clear that we were not starting this business for our own financial gain. We also wanted to encourage those who did not care for the service, but wanted to donate so they had an option. We went back and fixed the error and continued to pass out flyer after flyer. The response we received was very positive and encouraging. As we walked around and visited different places, we were congratulated and given advice for additional places in the area to visit. We made sure that we were friendly and that we showed we love our customers and their business. We made $10.00 from people who offered us cash on the spot just as a donation for the great work we were doing.  This has been so much fun and I am enthusiastic as our business continues to grow.

Week #5

This week we were assigned to do an “elevator pitch”. I chose to use my $100 challenge idea for the pitch. In previous weeks, I told my family and friends about my idea but I had never done so as if I was selling my idea. The pitch helped me to really focus on what was important. I tried to make the pitch as clear and concise as possible. I wanted to make sure the “pain” for the customer was engaging and effectively hooked the reader. The assignment really helped me to identify some of the potential competitors for my business. Originally I thought I didn’t have any competitors, but as I started talking to my local friends they mentioned other boutiques that sell cute pillow covers as well. It has been really helpful for me in these past weeks to talk to other people about the business. Sometimes we are so sold on our idea that we forget to ask others how they think about it. My idea and my pitch has evolved from the numerous suggestions that even the professor has given me to improve my business. A key takeaway I had from this week was the video from Phil Romano. As a serial entrepreneur, he taught me the importance of always looking towards the future for new opportunities in different areas.

Week #4

This week was exciting as I had the chance to successfully fund my business for the $100.00 challenge. In weeks prior, I had been in contact with my family members bouncing off ideas and getting their feedback. Being that the members of my family are my biggest supporters, I decided to include them in the funding for my business. I had each family member donate 2 dollars for the startup costs of the business. Ten members of my direct and extended family donated money to get me to the $20 dollars I needed to start the business. My husband gave me great advice for starting the business. He encouraged me to leave a thank you note and piece of candy with each pillowcase I make.I think this is great advice to get the repeat customers and build a sense of friendship between me and my customers.
My favorite activity for this week was reading the talk given by Elder Wirthlin. I think that budgeting is such an up and down thing for me that I really needed to read this talk. The blessings that come from paying your tithing despite being on a tight budget are countless. My husband and I have received so many blessings by following this principle.

Week #3

This week for the $100 challenge, we were given the assignment to create a one page business. This was the first time I had the chance to really dig into the details of the service I planned on providing. It was challenging at first to come up with a mission statement because there are so many directions I could go with this business. Am I going for affordable, convenience, fast, etc.? I also enjoyed going in and crunching some of the numbers for the objectives section. Expenses add up and you really have to be thorough to make sure you are accounting for the details. It was a good experience to practice some of these things at a smaller scale so that I could learn the basics before doing larger scale write-ups.
From the class reading and discussions, I really gained some valuable insight from the Heather Evans case. My main takeaway from the case is the importance of developing a feasible strategy in the beginning stages of a business. My main concern with the Heather’s strategy is she was focused too much on the long term like franchising out her name. That takes years of brand recognition and really shouldn’t be her focus in the beginning stages.

Week #2

I would like to start by reporting on my progress with the $100 challenge. I have always been a creative person and I like to get the creative juices flowing. The assignment allowed me to use my creative skills to help others find their sense of style and creativeness. Given the fact we are expected to have a low startup cost, I have elected to center my ideas on service-oriented businesses. It was fun to think of all the ways I could make life easier/more fun and comfortable for students on campus. My number one idea so far has been custom pillow covers. This allows students or really anyone to pick custom fabric for pillow covers to make their apartment or home more enjoyable. This will be affordable for all and a fun way to spice up your home.  

I found the case study this week to be very fun and inspirational. I have been on the duck tour in Boston and it will always be one of my best memories of the city. I loved how a business was created based on a passion and not solely based on market opportunity or financial gain. I will apply this principle to my future business endeavors.

Week #1

The past couple weeks in this course have gone beyond the traditional textbook courses. I have been able to watch videos by professionals that haven given advice that is crucial for me in the beginning stages of my professional career. My goal is to not live a life of work, but rather live a life of meaning. As a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, I know that my purpose in life is to find a balance. Too often professionals lose sight of the importance of family as they try to do too much in one day. I love that I will be entering the professional workforce in a couple months. As much as this opportunity excites me, I am even more excited to raise a family with my husband. The end goal is the most important goal I will set in my life. To be completely honest, I’m not even sure what my next job will be or the job after that. I have a plan, but I also realize that my plan might not be what is best for me. I don’t think anyone expects a 21 year old to know what she will be doing in 10 years. I certainly don’t know but I do know what my spiritual goals are and I am confident those goals will help propel me to live a life with meaning.