Saturday, February 27, 2016

Week 8 Reading Reflection



1) What was the biggest surprise for you in the reading? In other words, what did you read that stood out the most as different from your expectations? 
The biggest surprise in the reading was the myths about venture capitalists. The list of myths really informed me about what to anticipate from venture capitalists. For example, the myth about venture capitalists needing only basic summary information before they make an investment was unexpected because I thought venture capitalists were willing to give all good business ideas a chance without further investigation.

2) Identify at least one part of the reading that was confusing to you.
The concept of initial public offering (IPO) has always confused me, and it was no different in this reading. I had trouble keeping with the author’s description of IPO under the ‘Public Offerings’ heading.

3) If you were able to ask two questions to the author, what would you ask? Why?
If I can ask two questions to the author, it would be “what percentage of people receive capital for their businesses from investors?” and “what is your opinion on companies that prefer to use their profits to fund their businesses instead of getting capital from outsiders?”
I would ask the author “what percentage of people receive capital for their businesses from investors?” because I would like to know the success rate of entrepreneurs seeking capital from investors. I would ask the author “what is your opinion on companies that prefer to use their profits to fund their businesses instead of getting capital from outsiders?” because some businesses prefer to use their profits to fund their companies, and I want to know if the author thinks it’s beneficial or harmful to their businesses.

4) Was there anything you think the author was wrong about? Where do you disagree with what she or he said? How?
No, there isn’t anything I think the author is wrong about from what I read in Chapter 8.

Tuesday, February 23, 2016

Half-way Reflection



Tenaciousness is a skill. What are the behaviors that you have used (or developed) to keep up with the requirements of this course? 
I kept up with the requirements of this course by making sure I work ahead of the due dates on the assignments. I also read ahead on the requirements of the assignments days before I attempt them to make sure I can average how much time it takes to complete the assignments. Some assignments can take a day while others take a few hours. 

2) Tenaciousness is also about attitude. Talk about a moment or two when you felt like "giving up." What pulled you through? Do you feel like you've developed a tenacious attitude during the past two months? What experience or experiences most contributed to this?
I haven’t felt like giving up yet, but it did have a time where I had to do a very challenging assignment. I pulled through the assignment by contacting the professor, and we came to the conclusion of a solution to the problem I had in an assignment. I went through with the plan and succeeded with the assignment. You always have to try different alternatives to get to your goal if it seems unreachable. I do feel like a developed a tenacious attitude over the past two months because this course has required me to do constant assignments over the week period instead of just one day a week. This is a big task because I have to organize my life around the ENT3003 due dates.

3) Three tips. What are three tips you would offer next semester's student about (1) fostering the skills that support tenacity and (2) developing the 'tenacious mindset'?
1) Be prepared to work hard and do many assignments
2) Work ahead of due dates to make sure you complete assignments on time
3) Just relax and enjoy the experience of the course.


Thursday, February 18, 2016

Week 7 Reading Reflection



1) What was the biggest surprise for you in the reading? In other words, what did you read that stood out the most as different from your expectations? 
Nothing surprised me in this reading. It wasn’t a new topic for me because I learned about segmentation in my Marketing course. However, I enjoyed the reading since it went into detail with segmentation examples which supported the definition of segmentation.

2) Identify at least one part of the reading that was confusing to you.
The most confusing part of the reading was the explanation of the “What is at Stake” table. The example of the razor company confused me a little because the reading was explaining so many business options, and I was not following along.

3) If you were able to ask two questions to the author, what would you ask? Why?
If I was able to ask two questions, I would ask the authors “If they can explain the “What is at Stake” table?” and “Why do they think some segments fail to attract targeted consumers?”
I would ask them “If they can explain the “What is at Stake” table?” because I really didn’t fully understand the table with its different categories. It would be better if they simplified the information.
Also, I would ask “Why do they think some segments fail to attract targeted consumers?” because often segments attract unintended consumers, or don’t increase sales at all like in the Miller Lite example. I would like to get a professional perspective on that problem in the Marketing world.

4) Was there anything you think the author was wrong about? Where do you disagree with what she or he said? How?
No, there is nothing that I disagree about in the reading that the author spoke on.