Sunday, April 24, 2016

Reading Reflection Week 15

1) I was surprised how the author expained that the bottom of a pyramid sector could be just as profitable as the top. That just proves how the right management can make anyting a success.
2) Nothing in the reading was paritucularly confusing.
3) I would ask the author if i could only take away one thing from this book what would be the most important? also how do you define success as an entrepreneur?
4) I did disagree with the author on any of the reading.

Final Reflection

1) I think what stood out to me the most and will continue to stay with me is my venture concept post. That was definitely a high moment for me because it took my idea from a simple thought into an officialish looking printed document. It surprised me how good my idea actually was and how much good it could actually do for the environment. Overall I am very proud of my project and I think that i have grown up as a person through it. It has forced me to look into the future and find the bigger picture in things. I have the ability now to predict what I will like to do for my life rather than take it a ay at a time, always innovating and bettering my concepts.
2) I definitely believe I have moved forward as an entrepreneur. I can really see myself pursuing this business concept and potentially making it happen. If it does then it will do alot of good and that was my goal to start with.
3) One reccomendation i would give is to take this class seriously. It leads to some very cool experiences and proud moments when you realize just how creative and smart you can be!

Sunday, April 17, 2016

Week 14 Reading Reflection

1) I was a little taken back by the corporate entrepreneurship model. It was a lot to take in because it was very complex.
2) I was a little confused by the concept of nepotism and how it would be beneficial to practice it. I am aware that insome situations it would work but maybe not in most.
3) I would ask the author if nepetism is even legal. For me it is ethically wrong but i dont understand if it is legally wrong.
4) I did not disagree with the author on anything.

Google Gold


1) My approach to SEO was simple ... I didn't. Because i didnt hve to Bitcheeeeeezzzzzzzzz! My blog is so good that I didnt even have to try because I am such a naturally funny and charismatic individual, and I translate all of my lovable characteristics into my blog. This translates to tons of people hittin up dizzzz blog cuz its so dank with da meemz, Spittin fire i be gettin so cold. #buymymixtape its FIRE!!!!!!  Buy My Mixtape!

2) My key words and phrases were: Sustainability, Saving Paper, Oil, Receipts, Environment, Climate Change, Dank Memes, Fire, Mixtape, Uber, Swiggity Swooty Comin for That Booty, Donald Trump #MakeDatDrumpf, #Kanye, #wastehistime2016, Wheres Waldo?, Hittin that KK, Jamie Vardy is Having a Party, Panda Panda Panda got Broads in Atlanta, #HalaMadrid, , Runescape, Too Dank, #Turnt, Slidin in Those DMzzzzz, Orange Juice, and Popeye's Fried Chicken.

3) My huge Twitter and IG following was not rady for the shade that was going to hit them if they read this blog so I chose not to advertise on any of these social media outlets. I wanted to see if this blog was able to work with this class first and then migrate out to all the people who enjoy fire tweets ... Follow me @nahelnas on twitter for some dank tweets.

4) My most followed post was about my biggest failure. I think this is because I serve as such an inspiration to the little people that it came as a surprise to them that I failed at something. They now understand that I am also a human being.... Just an awesome one. Also that post was so absolutely dope money crazy that everyone was all bout reading that ISSSHHH

5) Fo SHOOOO I made it on that first G
oogle page!!!! You think a blog as good as this was gonna go unnoticed in the unknown lombo that is pages 2 - ∞ of Google?!?!? No way Bruh! this blog is tuuuuuu legit for that!!  ....  But real talk I didn't get on the first page of Google.

Sunday, April 10, 2016

Week 13 reading reflection

1) what surprised me or rather intrigued me is the emotional aspect of running a business. A lot of the time it's all numbers and figures about the success or failure of business projects and ventures. For an entrepreneur to dedicate his time money and energy into something will really take an emotional toll on that person regardless of success or failure. Beginning a business is a labor of love for the product that a person believes in and rarely are those things covered.
2) there wasn't anything about the reading that I found confusing.
3) I would like to ask the author about the emotional progress of his company and how he evolved as a person throughout his business process.
4) I did not disagree with the author on anything.

Celebrating Failure

Rarely before this semester have I worked so hard for something and then proceeded to fail at it ..... over and over and over. At the beginning of this semester I set a goal for myself that I would have a sixpack by summer. Come to think of it I may have been a little way in over my head as I was 75 pounds over weight. However I still set out to complete my goal! I knew to achieve this I would need to give up the 3 am trips to Taco Bell for Doritos Locos Tacos and Baja Blast Mountain Dew. I also knew that my diet would have to consist of significantly less bacon and infinitely more vegetables and lo carb foods. I initially jumped into progress for the first month of the semester I ate clean and ran every day, granted running meant more walking and alot of shuffling. But then disaster!! Taco Bell came out with the Quesolupa and I just had to go try it! Sure enough 3am hit and my ability to resist failed me and I made my slightly less fat self over to T-Bell for some delicious cheese stuffed (kind of) mexican magic. It was life changing! I couldnt resist going back for more, and so I did ... every day for the next week and a half. All the progress I had made was gone. I was heart broken but determined to remedy my wrongs. And so I set forth toward my original goal. But once again I was thwarted! Chipotle offered a free meal! The worst possible occurence, how could I possibly justify not getting an excessive amount of food ad Chipotle when it was absolutely free?!?!?! Nay, I said. I must fulfull my destiny and get the largest possible single free meal in Chipotle history! And so I did, triple steak double guac with chips AND MORE GUAC!! All in one sitting mind you. And so I dove into a dark spiral of guilt. My sadness let to more eating and my eating led to more sadness which in turn led to more eating (Please note that this has nothing to do with clinical depresssion I am actually a very happy person and incredibly content with my life regardless of my weight!). All this to say that it is currently April 10 and the semester ends in roughly a little over 2 weeks and I currently weight five pounds more than I did at the beginning of the semester. It is looking like my six pack goal for the end of the semester might be out of reach, however there is always next year! #BEACHBODSUMMER2017 here I come baby!!! And Taco Bell and Chipotle, and the rest of the delicious food of the world, YOU CANT STOP ME THIS TIME BABY! IM GONNA BE EFFIN SEX-C!!

Wednesday, April 6, 2016

My Exit Strategy

1) As the sheer nature of my business requires a very large scale project in order for it to succeed, i believe it would take me a long time to grow the business. Because of this i believe that it will take me longer than five years, and in that amount of time i would like to hold onto my business. My company will be centered arount savving the earth by eliminating paper waste, and i believe that if it is bought out by a larger multinational corporation then it will lose its integrity and become only something to make these companies profit. For that reason I want to stick with my business until retirement, and then hand it off to a suitable heir.
2) I have selected this stratagy for the reasons I stated above. I believe that I can best continue to carry out the vision and mission of this company, rather than have it run by people who only want to turn a profit from it.
3) This exit stratagy influences me thusly, I can now implement my vision for what i would like the company to be in the future. All of my next steps that I have planned out throughout this course can be implemented and the company can grow as a green corporation.

Sunday, April 3, 2016

Reading Reflection Week 12

What surprised me the most about this reading is the value of stategic planning. Properly planning out your idea before beginning the business and searching out your next step is the key to a successful business. It can be seen in big companies like apple, constant innovation leads to success.

I did not find anything particularly confusing about this reading.

I would love to ask the author about what stratagies to follow when innovating. And whether or not bringing in outide help or new people into the company for the sole purpose of reinventing is a good idea?

I did not disagree with the author about anything this week.

What's Next?

For what's next, like I talked about in my Amazon Whisper Challenge, I plan on switching from making just a receipt scanner to being able to pay directly with my application. My app would then be a direct competion to Apple Pay and Samsung Pay however I will still have my receipt storing and organizing capabilities that will, hopefully by this point, be implemented into every major retail and supermarket chain. This will allow for seamless exchangeability between my new pay feature and the receipt storing.

As for my "radically different" market, there is not one. At least not for the product and service I am providing. I am marketing my product to the average regular consumer and every big and small retail store in the nation. For a radically different market I would have to design a completely new product.

After my interview the feedback that i received was very helpful. I was told to make a feature on the app that would recognize purchases which could provide a tax return in order to make the tax process easier for those who cannot afford an accountant. Overall this was a fun experience and i received good feedback.


Wednesday, March 30, 2016

Venture Concept No. 1

In today’s world there is a pressing global climate crisis. We are depleting the earth’s resources and polluting the environment so heavily that we have begun to see irreversible climate changes in the form of global warming. 2015 was the hottest year in recorded history; we had to search as far north as the poles to try to even find snow, and what was even scarier is that places as far north as Juneau, Alaska were experiencing temperatures averaging in the mid-thirties for the month of December (That is above freezing temperature!). It does not take an expert to know that Alaska should be much colder in the winter. These rising temperature will result in the melting of polar icecaps, rising ocean levels, and depletion of habitat for wildlife. This is only the most obvious issue as well. There is direct environmental destruction going on with the depletion of forests all across the world, the pollution and overharvesting of our oceans making dead zones where wildlife once used to thrive. There is much more going on as well, which would take me a whole essay to just list and talk about. And you may ask then why do we keep polluting, and the answer is simple. We pollute in order to produce things that humans need for their every day lives in this new modern age.
If all these things that we do to pollute the environment lead to things that we need then how can we help the environment and stop polluting? Well we need to try to identify products that aren’t necessary and search for a creative, innovative, and green solution in order to eliminate them from our lives and eliminate their environmental impact. One such product that I will seek to address, through my company Paperless Solutions Inc., is the paper receipt. Paper receipts are the most unnecessary use of paper in the modern economy. After many interviews I have discovered that most people never use the receipts printed, and most stores today (Primarily Restaurants) will ask if you want your receipt and should you say no then they will just throw it away. This is a huge problem because paper receipts actually have a huge economic impact and it has been discovered that they are even harmful to a person’s health! Paper receipts account for the destruction of over one million gallons of water, burning of 250 million gallons of oil, and one billion gallons of water consumed every year. All this generates over 1.5 BILLION pounds of waste in the USA alone, all for something you’re probably never going to use. Why then are we using paper receipts? Well the answer is that there currently is no alternative to them and we need a way to provide proof of purchase so people can make returns, and help track their spending. However with the technology we have today physical receipts have become obsolete; we are capable of designing and implementing a much better and greener system.
Through my budding company Paperless Solutions Inc. I will seek to provide a technological alternative to a paper receipt. My idea is to provide a mobile app connected to a website that will simultaneously scan and store receipts, as a digital file, into an online cloud-based storage system. My system will allow customers to access these receipts through a secure online account used via the app or a separate online website. The stored receipts on the app will work very similarly to a normal paper receipt, containing all the desired information however in a non-waste creating digital package. The receipts will be scanned through a digital program either installed onto a separate machine or onto preexisting machines that are able to scan digital signals, much like the Apple and Samsung Pay card scanners. I do not know which of these will be more effective to use but that will be figured out through cost-analysis and marketing strategies.
The digital receipt, although in existence, is not currently efficient. Companies such as Square, Inc. offer a “no receipt” and “email receipt” option along with the traditional receipt. Although those two options do save paper it is not convenient for people who need to use receipts. The email receipt leads to a cluttered email inbox and a difficult to access receipt; if a person receives lots of emails then this would be a very undesirable option, not to mention they would have to type in their email address after every purchase. The “no receipt” option is much more convenient as far as time saving and clutter goes but it does not provide any proof of purchase. With my alternative the shopper will be able to have an app dedicated solely to the storage an access of receipts, which will categorize and organize receipts in a way that we find most efficient (I am not sure whether this will lead to storing the receipts categorially or in chronological order according to date of purchase, but it will definitely include a search bar option), which will also have a quick and simple use simply by opening the app and tapping the phone to the scanner (using much the same technology as Apple pay). And if the customer does not want to save this receipt he always has the option to not scan at all. In either case we have the potential to save up to 1.5 billion pounds of waste every year. And one of the best parts is that because it is cloud based storage the customer will never have to waste space on their phone.
However an app like this would require many people to use it at once, and for it to be offered in many places. For regular customers, downloading an app they will only use once or maybe twice a week would not be useful. However if this app were to work directly with a large corporation such as Walmart and be implemented quickly then this would incentivize millions of people to use this app saving tons and tons of waste yearly.

This app has great potential to take one step closer to saving the environment and making the world a better place. Pollution caused by humans can slowly be decreased with the help of modern technology, all without sacrificing our lifestyles. All it takes is people to be committed to being green.

Sunday, March 27, 2016

Week 11 Reading Reflection

1) The biggest surprise in the reading, or rather most interesting bit, is that technological innovations dont always make for the best businesses and rather innovative business models are what makes for the most succesful businesses. Innovative companies like Amazon, Netflix, and Chipotle have taken serious advantage of innovating their respective markets and achieved great success.

2) Nothing in this reading was particularly confusing
3) Something i would ask the author is what his strategy for innovating is? How he goes about drawing inspiration in every day life to find and create new innovations?
4) I don't disagree with anything the author said this week. I thought all his points were solid and informative.

The Amazon Whisperer

For my business the primary revenue drivers would be contracts with the companies that would have access to my app in their registers. Also a variation of a machine that would allow for phones to scan or the virtual progam to be installed into computers at retailers so the receipts could be scanned.

i think the best way to make my "next product" would be to have the ability, within my own app, to pay directly with the app. Much like apple or samsung pay, however also saving and organizing the receipts that are scanned.

As far as the next experience, I can only forsee ease of use for the app and maybe to the point of having some way to scan all the products and pay for the items all while walking out of the store. It is a little out there to imagine, but what if you never had to actually stop and pay at the register. Your phone could automatically be scanned as you walk out the door or through some kind of scanner and all your shopping gets scanned at the same time. that way nobody would need to stop and you could just go straight to your car. To be able to do this there requires alot more sophisticated technology, but as far as a future experience, that isnt something ide be surprised to see in the future.

As far as a product similar to mine on Amazon, there isnt any. The closest thing to my product is either Apple or Samsung pay. Samsung pay from what ive seen has far better reviews than apple pay because it is available almost anywhere through any register that can scan a bar code, however apple pay requires a register with Wifi and is not offered in as many places because of it. These two products, however, do not offer the ability to store and oranize receipts and do not provide an alternative to traditional printed receipts. Registers such as Square do provide a paperless version of receipts but only through email. After much interviewing and asking around, the emailed version of receipts is not efficient and only clutters a person's email. My product will be dedicatied to the receipts, organizing them in order to provide easy access should a receipt be needed for returns, budgeting, and tax purposes.



Sunday, March 20, 2016

Week 10 Reading Reflection


  1.  The most surprising bit about this reading i think is the amount of possible liabilities. Everything from loans to taxes can be liabilities and it takes alot of effort and tracking to manage them all properly. Its no wonder it takes so many professionals to properly run a company.
  2. I have taken basic level accounting and finance courses here at UF so i did not find much of this quite confusing. Rather a real world application opportunity of what i have learned.
  3. I would ask the author when and how it would be appopriate to seek outside help in the area of accounting and finance early on in the business cycle. Sharing private information early on in the business process can prove to be very dangerous as the company has yet to find any solid momentum and foundation. but also proper financial management is key for a successful business so i would love to know the correct balance for both these key business elements.
  4. This was a very straightforward chapter and i didnt feel any information was misplaced.

Growing My Social Capital

1) Jesus


  •         I met Jesus through a mutual friend of ours. He works for EMC corporation, which is a large technology company that manufactures and creates data storage systems, information security systems and cloud computing systems. This person is my domain expert and can give me just the right advice and connections when it comes to producing my receips scanner app and data base. Also he will come in handy in the production of the machine bits for the actual scanner machine should i need a seperate machine and not just a scanable code. He was introduced to me as a friend of my friends mother. I have gotten a hold of him on the phone and we have discussed for a few minutes how to efficiently make an app with the most fluid design and ease of use with the code scanner.


2) Gustavo Salazar

  •     Gustavo is the head of marketing in the Peruvian insurance broker Trust. I met him through my uncle who is the founder and CEO of the company. Through these two men the company had grown from a two men broker insuring only one small soda factory to the largest broker in Peru and one of the largest in south america. Although Gustavo is not directly involved in the market for my receipt machine his vast experience and success in the consumer marked will prove indispensible with me. I spoke to him over facebook messenger for a bit and he shared really valuable marketing advice that could help my company get started. Keeping him in touch will be a must in order to help quickly grow myh company and even insure it as well!
3) Daniel S.

  •     Daniel works for PCM which is a technology distributer. I got connected through him via a friend of mine. He can get me connected with a tech manufaturer in order to be able to produce my receipt scanning device and possibly web designers who can also develope a proper website and app for my company. 



REFLECTION:

  • This was a very interesting and fun assignment. It showed just how much work it actually takes to star a new company and produce a product. Also i felt very good talking to people about my idea to eliminate paper waste from receipts and the positive feedback and interest i received from my new contacts.





Wednesday, March 16, 2016

Elevator pitch NO. 3

For my last two elevator pitches I was told to provide more information about my product, Give a better introduction, and also explain what I am looking for from the recipient of the speach. I hope I did a better job accentuating these parts in my speech.

Sunday, March 13, 2016

Week 9 reflection

- One thing about the the reading that surprised me is how important correct marketing is. The proper marketing of a product can be the deciding factor in its success. A terrible product can be marketed well and it will be very successful and an amazing product not properly marketed will result in its failure.
- I did not find anything explicitly confusing about the reading this week.
- I would ask the author about marketing via social media and how marketing can and has evolved through it. Every big company now has a social media account and I feel like it is all over my social media lately. Also I've found that small companies are starting up by marketing solely on social media just because of its inexpensive was and reachability.
- I don't think the author was wrong about anything in the reading this week.

My Secret Sauce

1) something I believe that sets me apart from others, my secret sauce if you will, is that I'm very detail oriented and meticulous when it comes to my work. I've said this before but I believe it to be true. I am very hard working and I focus on what other people don't usually see, and I believe that my work stands out because of it.

2)


3) from the interview I've given I learned a lot about myself. I found that I show a great love for people and that I am very inclusive when it comes to being with people. I know that I have a love for people and love when those around me are happy and having fun but I did not know that it was that evident to those around me. The interviews did mention that I am very detail oriented and meticulous in my work but I saw how the more personable parts of my personality. I was very encouraged and happy to hear the encouragement and the love my friends have for me. I think now that my love for people and relationships with those who I love are my greatest attributes.

Wednesday, March 9, 2016

Idea Napkin NO.2

1) My name is Nahel Abugattas, I am a chemistry major. Some things about me include: having a major that has nothing to do with my business concept, the fact that I don't really want to be an entrepreneur because I want to be a doctor, and also I have long hair. As far as talents go, I have an uncanny ability to maintain low self-esteem despite my charisma and charming demeanor. Also I'm pretty smart hard working and very detail oriented. But more importantly sometimes I think that I'm funny, but many times it's evident that I'm not. If this business actually takes off and becomes part of my life I would imagine it would probably be my future. If I were to begin acting upon my ideas and begin my business then I foresee many obstacles but also many rewards down the line. I would definitely need to learn a lot more and become far more experienced before taking upon this take and doing it well.
2) I will be offering an application that will be able to scan receipts directly from a computer or register monitor that I would also need to provide. This scan would save 1 copy of the receipt onto a cloud based storage on the customer’s account and would be able to be accessed via the app or online on a separate website. The scanned receipt would serve as proof of purchase like any normal receipt but will be a purely digital copy thereby using no paper.
3) My product will be offered to anybody with a smartphone who purchases things regularly. The more target market would be individuals from the ages of 18 - 60 who regularly purchase things, are independent, and do most of their own shopping.
4) Anybody who is remotely interested in helping the environment would be interested in my product. Also the convenience of digital accessibility while never needing to take up memory on a person’s phone would ease the process of organizing receipts for tax purposes and return purposes. Online the receipts could be categorized for easy locating making it far more convenient. Also corporations can see a huge return on their investment in the machines used to scan the receipts. Millions of dollars spent annually on paper rolls for receipts would be saved and the retailers can keep all their promotions and special anything that they usually keep on their receipts.
5) As far what sets me apart? I am not aware of any company that is currently doing anything similar. There are certain register companies like Square who can email receipts to you, but nothing that uses an app to have an easily accessible digital receipt. And an email of a receipt is very inconvenient to keep organized.


I think my business has a few key weaknesses. The first being that for it to have any real impact it would need to be implemented in large nation or worldwide retailers. There wouldn't be much of an impact only being used by a few local companies although it would be convenient and money saving for them. Also it would have to work in tandem with people downloading the app. If millions of people have an app but only a few places to use it then people wouldn't keep using the app. The product would first need to be implemented at large retailers and advertised there in order for it to be truly convenient. Then people would begin downloading the app in large quantities and much power will be saved.

FEEDBACK MEMO
For the feedback that i received i can only derive a few points. For one Ive been told that my idea is very good and potentially very beneficial to the environment and that i should try to pursue that. I found this is very encouraging. Also people told me to be more confident in myself and my product. Confidence breathes success and i will need to be confident in order to succeed. I also need to work on my own strengths and weaknesses and be sure to assess myself throughout the entrepreneurial process in order to better myself and in turn better my company. Knowing your personality can help you properly asses your strengths and weaknesses and i believe that in order to succeed i have to know myself first, and work to better myself throughout my career.

Sunday, February 28, 2016

Week 8 Reading Reflection

1) Definitely what stood out from this reading is the problem of financing and raising capitol to start a business. It is common knowledge that it takes money to make money, however it is a complicated process to achive that money without having starting capital. The process of getting business loans and investments is hard and takes alot of perseverance.

2) I was confused during the section on equity financing. Im not really sure if it was explained well, or at least i do not understand what i read. I'm assuming that it means whatever someone invests into my company will but them a share of its equity or a share of some initial profits depending on the contract.

3) My question to the author would be for him to delve a little further into the process that goes behind equity financing and also how to negociate a successful deal.

4) Nothing in the reading i believe the author was particularly wrong about. Again, i would just like further information on the process of equity financing and achieving the most effective deal when seeking investment into my company

Halfway Reflection

Tenacity is a great thing. Both a fansastic word to say, and also a great skill to have. Tenacity is definitely a requirement for success in anything but especially entrepreneurship. But although tenacity may be important i believe that there are many other factors needed to succeed this course and in the process ofentrepreneurship. The most important, behind creativity and tenacity, is the attention to detail. Especially for this course which is very meticulous and detail oriented. In this course there isn't what you would call hard assignments, however they are incredibly frequent which can prove very challeging. Keeping up with the intense amount of assignments can be very challenging but you can do it very easily if you are detail oriented and constantly tracking the assignments. Finding time to do the tasks is key, which i also believe is key for entrepreneurship. When i think about moments in which i felt like giving up i look the the countless restless nights i have studying for classes like Chemistry and Biology or writing an essay (which is something that is particularly challenging to me) for class. The trick is to just keep going and not to make excuses for why you should stop. If your tired, keep going, be tenaceous, and push through. for the following semester i have three tips.

1) Never be afraid to try - attempting a new challenge is always the first step to fiding new experiences and opportunities
2) Always work hard - success will never come by taking the easy way out
3) Never never quit - dont give up just because it is hard or you fail, it is always the right choice to keep trying!

Sunday, February 21, 2016

Week 7 reading reflection

1) I was very interested in his angel investors. I'm interested into how somebody will just throw a bunch of money into a project just because they believe it can do good. It's strange to think that people do that.
2) the reading was fairly straight forward and I was not really confused by any of it.
3) I would ask him if advertising new technology now is easier than advertising technology then? I feel like as people we are now far more well versed in technology so it would be a lot easier to show them to learn.
4) I did not disagree with anything the author said this week.

Free Money

Giving away money was actually kind of fun. To be honest there was no real strategy other than directly approaching them and handing them money. When they asked me why I was giving away money I usually made up a funny reason like "me and this dollar are having a fight and I just can't see it anymore". I tried to give money to people who I actually thought needed it though and two of my dollars were given to homeless people but out of respect for them I did not film those two. Out of the two that I did film my strategy was just to find pretty girls in all honesty lol. Here are the videos! Out of this experience is that people can be very hostile even when somebody is doing a nice thing and that it feels very good to give money to those who really need it.

Sunday, February 14, 2016

Interviewing Customers No. 3

     For my interviews i decided to get feedback on multiple age groups to see how they would take my app differently. For the most part they liked it, and there was some constructive criticism to go along with it which was nice. The only thing is that people dont really understand the idea too well and it took alot of extra explaining for them to understand just how exatly it works. That is something im going to have to work on in order to make my idea popular, hopefully with a better demonstration/ prototype. Basically people dont understand why they would need something on their phone that holds receipts when their already getting paper and throwing it away. The idea of this app is to completely eliminate the paper used in retailers and making the receipt process 100% digital. This way you can reject receiving a receipt and still save the paper because the receipt is not being printed gratuitously.


Week 6 Reading Reflection

1) I was very interested in how he merged family and business together. Family is a very important thing in my life and i believe that with their support anything is possible.
2) Nothing about the reading, this week, was confusing to me
3) I would ask the author what made him specifically find his 5 forces? I would want to know what experiences led him to make that decision and whether or not he believes there could be more.
4) I believe the author was wrong about the amount of factors in his model. Social Media and other forms of internet advertising are very important to the modern business and i believe should be included in the authors factors.

Thursday, February 11, 2016

Idea Napkin No.1

1) My name is Nahel Abugattas, I am a chemistry major. Some things about me include: having a major that has nothing to do with my business concept, the fact that I don't really want to be an entrepreneur because I want to be a doctor, and also I have long hair. As far as talents go, I have an uncanny ability to maintain low self esteem despite my charisma and charming demeanor. Also I'm pretty smart hard working and very detail oriented. But more importantly sometimes I think that I'm funny, but many times it's evident that I'm not. If this business actually takes off and becomes part of my life I would imagine it would probably be my future. If I were to begin acting upon my ideas and begin my business then I foresee many obstacles but also many rewards down the line. I would definitely need to learn a lot more and become far more experienced before taking upon this take and doing it well.
2) I will be offering an application that will be able to scan receipts directly from a computer or register monitor that I would also need to provide. This scan would save 1 copy of the receipt onto a cloud based storage on the customers account and would be able to be accessed via the app or online on a separate website. The scanned receipt would serve as proof of purchase like any normal receipt but will be a purely digital copy thereby using no paper.
3) My product will be offered to anybody with a smartphone who purchases things regularly. The more target market would be individuals from the ages of 18 - 60 who regularly purchase things, are independent, and do most of their own shopping. 
4) Anybody who is remotely interested in helping the environment would be interested in my product. Also the convenience of digital accessibility while never needing to take up memory on a persons phone would ease the process of organizing receipts for tax purposes and return purposes. Online the receipts could be categorized for easy locating making it far more convenient. Also corporations can see a huge return on their investment in the machines used to scan the receipts. Millions of dollars spent annually on paper rolls for receipts would be saved and the retailers can keep all their promotions and special anything that they usually keep on their receipts.
5) As far what sets me apart. I am not aware of any company that is currently doing  anything similar. There are certain register companies like Square who can email receipts to you, but nothing that uses an app to have an easily accessible digital receipt. And an email of a receipt is very inconvenient to keep organized.


I think my business has a few key weaknesses. The first being that for it to have any real impact it would need to be implemented in large nation or worldwide retailers. There wouldn't be much of an impact only being used by a few local companies although it would be convenient and money saving for them. Also it would have to work in tandem with people downloading the app. If millions of people have an app but only a few places to use it then people wouldn't keep using the app. The product would first need to be implemented at large retailers and advertised there in order for it to be truly convenient. Then people would begin downloading the app in large quantities and much power will be saved.

Sunday, February 7, 2016

Customer Interview No. 2

For my product I had to adjust my idea slightly from last time in that my storage for the receipts on the app had to be moved from a phone based storage to a cloud based storage wich allows for more to be saved onto the app and it wouldnt clog up the memory of the users phone. Other than that there is nothing really i needed to change about the app and all the questions remained relatively the same. Everyone i interviewed was still very on board for the project. People very much liked it. For the next ENT class i would reccoment students cater their product to the customers need rather than what you want to make.

Week 5 Reading Reflection

1) I was very surprised at reading just how many entrepreneurs fail because of poor management. This means that there are plenty of fantastic business or product ideas that do not become popular because of poor management. It takes more than an idea to make something work, it takes proper vision and execution in order to make a viable business.
2)I found the portion about lifestyle ventures a bit confusing. I do not think that entrepreneurs have to live the lifestyle of their product or even have a need for it. Rather they need to find something that is necessary and follow that need. In the end i think their main goal should be to profit rather than live a lifestyle.
3) If i had to ask anything to the author i would ask what things I would need to avoid in order to manage my business well and not fail. Also I would ask him how i would effectively patent a product.
4)There isn't anything else i would disagree with other than possibly the bit about lifestyle venturing.

Wednesday, February 3, 2016

Elevator pitch No. 1

Hello! This is my video about my company "Paperless Solutions Inc.". My goal is to completely eliminate paper waste from receipts. My plan is to create an app that will scan a digital receipt onto the customers smart phone and store it on a digital cloud which would serve as proof of purchase and easily organize the receipts.

Sunday, January 31, 2016

Customer Interview NO.1

     For my customer interview I sought out the opportunity to eliminate paper waste caused by the obsolete receipt system. After doing some research I found out that over 9 million trees are cut down to produce paper receipts, and the crazy thing is that most of us dont even keep them! With such an unnecesary waste of the environment and the modern convenience of smart devices such as phones, laptops and tablets, an digital receipt system can be implemented. A simple app on a phone that saves and organizes receiptsin an online cloud database could be very effective and after doing a little bit of research ive found out that people agree with me. In my interviews I asked 5 questions:

  • What are your thoughts on paper conservation?
  • Would you agree that we need to recycle more?
  • How often do you buy things?
  • How often do you keep those receipts?
  • Out of all the receipts that you keep how many of those do you lose?
  • What are your thoughts on a paperless receipt log on your phone?
These were the results ...
Interview 1
Interview 2
Interview 3
Interview 4
Interview 5

From this I learned that people are very willing to help the environment, they only need something worthwhile to support. For this I need to create a quality product that is easy for people to understand and more convenient than the traditional way of doing things. During my interview I also learned how to interview people and try to make them feel comfortable on camera. Also I learned some of the most awkward ways you can ask a stranger for an interview.

Week 4 Reading Reflection

1)     The thing that definitely stood out most about this chapter was the part about muddling mindsets whan thinking bout probabilities. I have always found myself to be a very logical and strategic thinker strongly weighing out the pros and cons of something before I do it. This is one of the reasons, at least in my opinion, why being an entrepreneur would be very difficult for me because taking on entrepreneurial projects involve far more cons and risks than benefits.

2)     I was confused when the author explained how entrepreneurs need to find a niche the market. I always believed that new and innovative products come out of a personal necessity rather than somebody looking for a problem to fix.

3)     The two questions I would ask to the author would be, do you truly believe that anyone has the capabilities to constantly seek out problems or niches in a market, or is that a talent only reserved for certain people? Also do you think that an entrepreneurial team made of someone with a creative freeflowing mind and someone with more logical and gounded thinking capabilities would be more effective than someone working alone?

4)    I disagree with the author on the topic of the creative process and the overall theme of the chapter. He makes it a point that entepreneurs require extreme creativity and a freeflowing mind. I do not completely agree with that because i think that someone with a logical and administrative mind that is not necessarily as creative can also be very successfull.

Wednesday, January 27, 2016

Top 5 World Problems

1) The climate change and environmental problem the earth faces is by far the biggest. Without a suitable habitat (planet) to live on we will not be able to solve any of the rest of the worlds problems. The best way to go about doing it is for the worlds govenrments to instil and enforce tighter regulations on environmentally harmful companies and factories, and focus more funds into renewable energy research.
2) Global poverty rates are still staggering and what is even more staggering is how genuinely easy it is to end it. In my opinion the easiest way to solve this issue is for world governments to put a reasonable and small tax on those who are able to pay to collectively raise $15-20 billion annually to help send aid to those in need.
3) Domestic abuse is a very big world problem and it affects us alot here in the US. The govenment could help to solve this by educating youths about the dangers of domestic abuse, how to avoid it, and what to do if in an abusive situation. By educating young minds the future of the country may be saved from rampant domestic abuse.
4) Abortion is something that is very close to my heart. I believe that not only does it take the lives onnocent children but it also can be emotionally harmful to mothers. The embassasment and guilt of having an aborting has led to hundreds of thousands of  suicides in the US and millions of cases of depression. I believe that rather than make abortion sound like it is no big deal we 1. reach out to women who plan on having an abortion and 2. reach out to the women who have had an abortion and are in a depression. I believe that the right minded charities can be the ones to do this.
5) And im gonna finish off with cockroaches. The government needs to fund more research on cockroach pesticides, because they are definitely the bane of the earths existence.

Friday, January 22, 2016

Very Short Interview #1

For my entrepreneur I decided to Interview Gustavo Salazar who founded Trust, the largest insurance broker in Peru.
Question #1 – How did you start off your career?
               I first began as a very low level insurance salesman at the age of 17. I would go to all of my father’s friends asking them to help me out by insuring anything. I insured lawnmowers, golf carts, and anything else I could get my hands on. Soon I began insuring bigger things like cars and eventually houses. After I made some money I put it all into founding my company Trust and began to grow it.
Question #2 – What are some of the biggest obstacles you’ve faced as an entrepreneur?
               My biggest obstacles were the original failure of my company. When I first began we had no clients for the first three months of our business, I lost lots of money but I never gave up. I kept persevering and eventually found success.
Question #3 – What do you consider your greatest success?

               My greatest success is actually not my business. But rather it is my ability to never be in debt when it comes to family matters. I have completely paid off my house (He has many houses) and my family wants for nothing. Also as a family man I am happy to be able to spend every moment of free time with them and I am thankful I have provided well for them.

Wednesday, January 20, 2016

World’s Biggest Problems and Solutions


1)      Well the obvious first problem in the world is the environmental situation. Climate change, pollution, environment loss, and resource draining are taking a heavy affect in today’s world and reform needs to be implemented. The only way to truly fix this problem is to simply stop using so many resources, preferably any at all. It is obvious this isn’t something that will actually happen so all we can do is try to slow our depletion of the planet. This can be done by improving our technology to stop using so many fossil fuels and releasing so much carbon dioxide into our planet’s atmosphere. One of the best ways to do this is to eliminate the use of gasoline powered cars and switch to electric vehicles.
2)      Another problem is that of global poverty. Almost half of the world lives in poverty (less than $2.50 a day). 22,000 children die every day in poverty due to preventable circumstances. It is no secret that worldwide poverty needs to be addressed. The UN estimates that if everyone who lived in poverty learned basic literacy over 175 million people can be lifted out of poverty. It has been calculated that to end global poverty over the next 20 years it would cost around $175 billion dollars, which may seem a lot but put into perspective it is not really that much. Americans alone spend around $33 billion annually on donuts. The average American worker spends $1000 a year on coffee, which translates to $184 billion on average in America alone! Global poverty then seems to be only a matter of awareness and generosity on the part of those who have money.
3)      Wars! Wars are a problem. The senseless killing of innocent people for greed or religious fanaticism needs to stop. I don’t really know a solution to this other than just stopping it. But too many people are dying for no real reason.
4)      Racism. People, especially in America, grow up to be very-obsessed which I believe to be one of the main problems behind the issue of racism. People hold themselves so highly, almost to the point of making themselves a deity, they do not acknowledge the basic rights of another individual because they look different. Once we all get on one page as a society and realize just how simpleminded the concept of racism is, and actually grasp the concept that just because someone looks different doesn’t make them any less of a human being then racism will end.
5)      There is something so sacred about the life of an individual and nobody else should have the right to take the life of another, yet we see so many senseless murders happen daily in our world? And why is this? Failure to properly educate people? Desensitizing of our minds? Something is wrong and it needs to change. I find it appalling that groups of people have no problem taking a human life. And the only way to change this is by making the world a more loving and less hateful place.
6)      Greed I feel is the cause of many social issues in our country including poverty, divorce, crime, and dishonesty (especially amongst this country’s leadership).  So much of the world’s problems, including pollution and wars, can be traced down to greed. If honest and selfless people ascended to world leadership I believe that many of the world’s problems will be remedied.
7)      1 in 4 women will experience domestic violence in their lifetimes, and men are victims to almost 3 million acts of domestic violence yearly. There isn’t much that can be done to prevent people from entering an abusive relationship, however there can be steps taken in order to prevent more abuse. Proper education on what can be done if one is abused or is about to be abused. Also there needs to be advocacy for those who are in abusive situations to help get out of them. People in abusive relationships tend to stay in that relationship because they have nowhere to go should they leave it. By helping to provide shelters and by having people speak up and volunteer to shelter people who are stuck in abusive relationships we can help lessen the amount of domestic abuse.
8)      This may be a controversial topic, but I do believe abortion is a big problem especially in our country. As I have stated before I believe the human life is something very sacred and something that nobody else has a right to take away. I also believe that a baby in its mother’s womb is truly alive and deserves to have life, to grow up, and to be a person. That isn’t to say that I don’t have sympathy for women stuck in these kind of situations. In fact I have very much sympathy for these women, and I do not think that they should be left alone to deal with the hard task of carrying a child. Honestly  I think that if it weren’t so “shameful” in today’s society to be pregnant, and we were all accepting of a woman being pregnant and even commending her for taking the hard choice of having a child then there would be far less innocent children taken before they had a chance to even live.
9)      Cockroaches. Not much to be said here other than they’re gross and need to be out of my life for good. Maybe we can invent some sort of super cockroach killing spray or something.

10)   Lastly I think more needs to be done to research a cure for cancer. Cancer is the second biggest killer in our country, and I believe we can be doing more to end it. We, as a country, can donate more money to research; People should also be more educated on how to detect risks of cancer so doctors can detect it early in its formation and hopefully stop it more easily.

Thursday, January 14, 2016

My Entrepreneurship Story

For my entrepreneurship story I will desccribe my first experience with entrepreneurship. And while i have experienced members of my family become successful entrepreneurs/ businessmen, my first experience with the lifestyle, which was far more entertaining, happened while whatching an episode of Spongebob Squarpants named "Chocolate and Nuts".
In the episode, SpongeBob accidentally receives Squidward's Fancy Living Digest magazine in the mail, inspiring him and Patrick to become entrepreneurs. At the suggestion of Patrick, the pair become chocolate bar salesmen, which results in them purchasing large quantities of chocolate bars from the Barg 'n' Mart. The first customer in their door-to-door travels, however, just screams "CHOCOLATE!" and chases the two salesmen away. Afterward, SpongeBob and Patrick attempt to sell chocolate to another person, only to be conned into buying chocolate-carrying bags from that person, twice in a row. They then try to sell it to a woman who then wants to buy one, but when SpongeBob can't find a chocolate bar because of all of the carrying bags, the customer gives up. They are then chased away again by the chocolate fanatic.
After their disastrous results in their previous attempts, the two take a break at the diner, and decide to "try being nice." However, this is unsuccessful, ending in Patrick buying pictures of a customer in his childhood, as is their attempt to "focus" (resulting in Patrick staring at a customer until the customer slammed the door on Patrick's eyes.) Then, they decide that the only way to sell chocolate is to "stretch the truth," which is successful when they convince an old woman (to the dismay of her daughter) that it "makes you live forever." The lying continues, but after they attempt to help a seriously injured man (who turns out to be the same man who sold SpongeBob and Patrick the carrying bags in disguise) by buying his chocolate, their profit is lost. However, the chocolate fanatic catches up to them, and, in a turn of events, buys all of the chocolate that SpongeBob and Patrick have. They then use the money to rent out a fancy restaurant, allowing access only to themselves and their dates, the old lady and her daughter who they sold chocolate to earlier.
As far as why I enrolled in this course, it is required for me as I am a student in the Innovation Academy. This class is mandatory for me to receive y innovation minor. I would like to receive an A from this course and possibly gain more information on how to become an entrepreneur so i can be the next Steve Zucherburg or whatever.

INTRODUCTION

Hello class, my name is Nahel Abugattas. I am a second year biology major in the Innovation Academy. I was born in Peru, but my family is from Palestine. I hope to be able to travel the world someday. My ultamate goal is to live in Madrid so I can watch my favorite soccer team play every week, also Europe is cool. I have a huge heart for people and hope to work with impoverished people as a doctor across the world; I also want to work with the homeless here in the United States and hope to one day start a charity that would help the homeless get back on their feet again.