My Solution

My solution to the problem I identified: Nowadays everybody carry around these stuffed wallets that are filled with tons of credit card that they use daily, this method is very inefficient and can be made more simplistic.

I believe an application can be made for our phones to put all our credit cards into. Therefore when you go to purchase something at the grocery store all they have to do is scan the bar code on your phone to purchase the product. 

Testing the Hypothesis, Part 1

Nowadays everybody carry around these stuffed wallets that are filled with tons of credit card that they use daily, this method is very inefficient and can be made more simplistic. 

• The who: Anyone who owns a credit card 
• The what: credit cards 
• The why: Having to carry around huge bulky wallets is inconvenient 

I am not declaring this assignment because I do not have access to five people to interview. 

Looking for Opportunity

1.      Creating a business that can expand country wide and have businesses throughout America, but also export product. I found that an economic trend we are currently experiencing is that “The Global Economy Will Continue to Be Powered by America”. I believe with this information that an opportunity exists to take advantage of the world’s reliance of America being the largest trade deficit. I believe the customer would be other countries governments. I believe the opportunity would be difficult to exploit because it involves starting from the bottom and working your way up. I believe others could see this opportunity because majority of Americans believe in the American Dream and working your way up the social class.

2.       An opportunity exists with the economic trend of the increase of pollution into our world. I found this information simply from the fact that trash in our world is building up, while climate change is rising. I believe that an opportunity exists with this because no significant change has been implemented that has changed our current pollution problems. I think everyone would be the consumer of a method to dispose of trash that is not harmful to Earth. . I believe the opportunity would be difficult to exploit because it is something that needs to be invented. I believe others could see this opportunity because it is a rising concern our world is facing.

3.       A regulatory change that just occurred in North Carolina is transgender individuals can use the bathroom of their choosing. I believe this creates an opportunity for bathroom sign producers to change their signs to be less offensive to these individuals. I believe the customer that would be open to this idea is people who are not offended by the changing world and transgender individuals. I think it would be easy to exploit with the current change being put into place. I think it will be half and half with people who believe this is an opportunity or not.

4.       A regulatory change that was put into place in California is it is the law to use your own bags for groceries and plastic bags are banned. I believe this creates an opportunity for green awareness companies to create different grocery reusable bags for different grocery needs. The customer would be citizens living in California, but also people around the world who want to “go green”. I believe the customer that would be open to this idea are more tree huggers who want to do right by the environment. I think it would be easy to exploit this product with the current law in effect. I believe others could see this opportunity because it meets their needs.

Forming An Opportunity Belief

1) I believe that an opportunity exists with the issue that traffic lights do not turn green when a scooter is the first mode of transportation at the traffic light.

2) The unmet need is a traffic light sensor that signals a vehicle is there even if it’s as small as a scooter. The individual who has the need is the person driving the scooter and the people in the cars behind the scooter. The need came from this problem that has always existed. From my knowledge nothing is being done to meet this need right now. At this point, I am 100% sure that this opportunity exists because I have seen this issue with my own eyes.

3) I would say that the prototypical customer would be road transportation department of a city or people who drive scooter.

4)  I interviewed my friend who drives a scooter around Gainesville, Florida who gave me their insight of this problem.

What is the exact nature of the need? – “The nature of this need is simple. It’s at traffic lights around this city.”

When do they become aware of the need -- that is, do they experience their need all the time or only sometimes? “I notice the need for this when I’m waiting five minutes at the traffic light when I’m rushing to class”

How long have they had the need? “The noticed the need for this ever since I have come up here to college and started driving a scooter.”

When did they first become aware of their need? Why? “I became aware of this need when I started driving a scooter”

How are they currently addressing their need? “Well you see I currently put my scooter in park and go press the crosswalk button so the light circuit will change. Then I get back on my scooter.”

How satisfied are they with this solution? “I would be really appreciative if the lights would change when I drove up to the light”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HFM847nVHfo&feature=youtu.be

5) I learned about my opportunity that it was not just me that noticed this need it was other students. The most surprising thing you learned about your opportunity is that students had to be unsafe with their actions to get the light circuit to change.

7) I believe the need for my original opportunity is still there and needs to be addressed.

I do believe entrepreneurs should 'adapt' their opportunities based on customer feedback because that is the only way for them to be success. If you’re looking to invent or create something it needs to meet the needs of your consumers. Therefore, it is very crucial that the entrepreneur adapts to the customers wants and needs.

Identifying Local Opportunities

·         Greenville Drive game suspended due to technical issues

• http://www.wyff4.com/news/greenville-drive-game-suspended-due-to-technical-issues/39434910
• The article is an announcement allowing fans to know that the baseball game located in Greenville, South Carolina was cancelled. They also announced when the game was rescheduled and allowed a refund.

·         The baseball game was cancelled due to technical problems with left field lights. This problem caused them to cancel the baseball game until later on that week.

·         The who is this case that has the problem would be the people in charge of the maintenance of the baseball stadium.

·         Protect your bicycles from thieves in Greenville

• http://wspa.com/2016/05/07/protect-your-bicycles-from-thieves-in-greenville/
• This story is about the problems that are arising with the growth of the cycling community and the increase in population in Greenville, South Carolina. This problem is the theft of bicycles in this area. This article states that 2 of the 3 suspect bicycle thieves have been caught.
• The problem is the theft of bicycles in the local area.
• Cyclist and everyday people riding their bikes in the city have this problem of possible bike theft. 

•          Commentary: We need great teachers
• http://www.greenvilleonline.com/story/opinion/contributors/2016/05/02/commentary-we-need-great-teachers/83697992/
• This story talks about the current decrease in teachers remaining in the teaching profession. The article author expresses the impact it has had on the local area of Greenville, South Carolina. They also talk about two ways to solve this problem such as elevating the profile of the teaching profession and innovating within the profession itself.

·         The problem of this story is that less and less teachers are continuing teaching.

·         The “who” that has this problem would be the school and education department.

·         Temporary ramp changing merging from I-85 to 385 now open

• http://www.wyff4.com/news/temporary-ramp-to-change-merging-from-i85-to-385-starting-next-week/39169282
• This story talks about the current project to fix the traffic problem on the highways throughout Greenville, South Carolina. They explain that the 85-385 Gateway Project is a $231 million project that should make the city’s traffic lighter and improve transportation.
• The problem of this story is that the current road system is cause major traffic problem for the residents of the local area.  
• The “who” that has this problem would be the residents.

·         DHEC failed to properly monitor water for lead

• http://www.greenvilleonline.com/story/news/environment/2016/03/16/dhec-failed-properly-monitor-water-lead/81835408/
• In this article they address the issue that South Carolina’s health department did not monitor drinking water quality for some of the public water systems. This mistake could have meant there was too much lead in the water that residents are using or consuming.

·         The problem presented in the story is that the health department didn’t monitor the drinking water quality to the extent they were meant to.

·         The “who” that has this problem is the health department, but also the residents that consumed this water.

Bug's List

1.      The traffic lights do not turn green when a scooter is the first mode of transportation at the traffic light.

-I believe this is due to the fact that the scooter is too small and light to hit the sensor that changes the light circuit.

2.      The gym tends to be extremely packed in the afternoons versus mornings.

-I believe this is due to the fact that less people like to be active in the mornings.

3.      While at the gym, people like to not un-rack their weight after using a barbell.

-This could be due to the fact that it’s an inconvenience to do so.

4.      While at the gym, people will not wipe down the machine after using it.

-I believe this is due to the fact that it’s an inconvenience to do so.

5.      Some food jars lids are so tight, that it’s nearly impossible to open.

-This could be from the fact that they seal it too tight to preserve the product.

6.      I don’t enjoy when my coffee gets cold, when I just bought it from Starbucks.  

-This could be from the fact that they use cups that do not keep the beverage warm for very long.

7.      Basketball games tend to be aired at 10:30pm, instead of at a reasonable time.  

-This could be from the fact that they are on the west coast.

8.      Some sports games cannot be watched from your television.

-This could be from the fact that they are only aired for people with subscriptions.

9.      College apartment leases go until the end of June, even though majority of people finish their classes by May.

-This could be from the fact that they don’t want empty apartments for three months.

10.  When you order a drink, and they hand it to you not filled to the top.  

-This could be from the fact that they didn’t pay attention to how much they filled the cup.

11.  Majority of the time the scooper found in protein powder bottles is never lying on top.

-This could be from the fact that they get mixed around while in transport.

12.  Going through customs coming back into America takes way longer than leaving

-This could be from the fact that they trying to make sure nothing unsafe comes into our country

13.  When you are watching a popular television show and you seem to be watching more commercials than the actual show.

-This could be from the fact that they are making more money on the commercials.

14.  While cooking different ovens take longer to preheat then others.

-This could be from the fact that they are cheaper products.

15.  While traveling luggage seems to be lost in airports easily.  

-This could be from the fact that there isn’t an adequate system for checking bags.

16.  At the self checkout line in grocery stores, there tend to be a lot of glitches with the system.

-This could be from the fact that the system isn’t as smooth sailing as it could be.

17.  While pumping gas, sometimes gas will over flow and squirt onto your clothing.  

-This could be from the fact that there pump sensors aren’t adequate.

18.  While parking my car on campus, the lot is completely full.  

-This could be from the fact that they do not have enough parking to meet demands.

19.  Waiting for the bus, and the bus app is not working to tell me how much longer until the next bus.

-This could be from the fact that the tracking system is not working as well as it should be.

20.  The bus back to my car stops running after 6pm, so I have to walk.

-This could be from the fact that they do not have enough bus drivers to work that shift.

While doing this assignment there were a few challenges that presented themselves. One was that fact that I found it tough to depicting each and every little thing throughout my day that aggravated me. While trying to have a positive outlook on life and being thankful for everything you have, this assignment can become difficult. 

Your Entrepreneurship Story

A time I was exposed to entrepreneurship was actually recently in my life. I have a friend that decided to open his own cattle business. Within his cattle business he works on the ranch as well as the marketing side of promoting his business. I found it interesting that he reached out to local restaurants and small groceries to market his products for consumption.

I enrolled in ENT 3003 because entrepreneurship has always interested. Many people create their own business, which I find as something to be proud of and is something I would like to do one day. I hope to get out of the class a few tips I can apply to the real world to further myself in the business world. 

First Post

The first post is a test post! Let's make sure everything works:)