Adam Wolf 16A What's Your Secret Sauce

First, what makes me unique is my personality.  I have a strong personality towards caring for others.  My mind is always looking for new ideas and this is a positive characteristic of entrepreneurs. 

Second, I have calm emotions when placed in stressful situations. 

Third, I have a skill for staying organized.  I have filing cabinets for all my school papers and keep everything in its own space where I can find it. 

Fourth, I have knowledge abilities in aviation which makes me stand out from most other business majors. 

Fifth, I have good abilities in professional communication skills.  What make me different from other people is I like public speaking. 

The people I interviewed were people who know me best including friends and family.  They stated a variety of different aspects that make me unique.  Two of the interviews focused a lot on personality.  They claim I can get along with people well.  Two of the interviews say my skills are what makes me stand out.  Some of the people said my hair makes me stand out yet this is not really considered human capital.  Overall, I got many different answers relating to personality, interactions, and skills. 

I didn’t realize one point that someone claimed I am good interacting with animals.  I didn’t see this as a characteristic that makes me stand out.  Overall, the interviews and my own view of myself were similar.  The animal relationship skill is the only change I would make to the list.  These differences are caused because nobody see themselves as other people do.  To get the full picture, we must talk to others.

Below I have included audio recording of short segments from my interviews.  The individuals I interviewed requested not to have more than a couple lines posted for privacy.  Therefore, the interviews were longer than what is recorded, and the recordings are only segments from my interviews. 

Adam Wolf 15A Figuring Out Buyer Behavior No. 2

Person 1 is a college student living in Florida and drives to work every day.  He is in the segment because he doesn’t have a garage and routinely uses his car for transportation.  I asked him about the seatbelt problem, and he believes price is most important.  Because he is a college student, he has limited money and therefore searches for alternatives that result in the least expensive option.   He says he is more likely to use cash to pay for the product because he saves his credit card for larger purchases.  He thinks the purchase is good if it lasts for at least five years with no problems and effectively cools seatbelts.

Person 2 is a doctor who lives in my town.  He is in the segment as well and owns a sports car.  Person 2 places most emphasis on style and quality when evaluating alternatives.  He doesn’t mind paying money for a new device if the quality is good.  He wants the device to not be noticeable for the appearance of his sports car.  Payment options are not a significant factor in his decision.  He likes the idea and feels the purchase is good if it works correctly. 

Person 3 is a teacher who parks their car in the high school parking lot every day for 8 hours. They fit in the segment and are very similar to person 1.  When evaluating alternatives, price is the most important factor.  She will choose the cheapest option if given the opportunity.  Person 3 thinks the purchase is a bad idea if it breaks within 1 year. 

Overall, I found the results to vary greatly within the segment.  For alternative evaluations, some individuals want quality while others look at price.  They result in different purchase decisions throughout the segment.  Most people in the segment will agree that the purchase was a good idea if my seatbelt cooling device works and a bad idea if it doesn’t properly function to cool. 

Adam Wolf 14A Halfway Reflection

Principles of Entrepreneurship is a great class to take but students must stay up to date on assignments to not fall behind.  The most important characteristic for this class is organization.  You must stay organized because there are many assignments.  Use the canvas calendar to receive updates on due dates.  This will help you not accidentally miss doing an assignment.  Second, stay focused during lectures to do well on the weekly quizzes.  Take extensive notes and pay attention to detail by listening closely.  The last behavior you should have to do well in this course is effort.  You will learn a lot from the assignments if you truly put thought into them.  Putting forth maximum will help you get the most out of principles of entrepreneurship. 

I felt like giving up after the first cupcake.  I listened to the lecture and took some notes, but it evidently was not enough.  As a result, I got a score on cupcake 1 that was very low.  This decreased my confidence in the class, and I started doubting my abilities to finish the course.  Instead, I developed a tenacious attitude and made a goal to improve.  I did not give up and as a result, I have done much better on future quizzes.  The quizzes and lecture videos have contributed most to me developing a tenacious attitude. 

Three tips to foster tenacity are: stay organized, keep a positive attitude, and stay on top of your work.  Three skills for developing the tenacious mindset are to give maximum effort, communicate with the teacher, and complete all work on time.  Attempting to maintain these skills will result in a tenacious mindset and will lead to a success in principles of entrepreneurship. 

Below I have included an image of my favorite quote about not giving up.

Adam Wolf 13A Reading Reflection No. 1

I read about the Wright Brothers.  I was most surprised that neither of the Wright Brothers attended college.  I most admire that Orville and Wilbur built the first powered airplane that could fly.  I least admire the numerous lawsuits involved with their invention.  The Wright Brothers did experience numerous failures.  They started with many different designs and began experimenting with gliders.  Model after model failed and crashed.  Most crashes caused them to start over from scratch.  They viewed every failure as an opportunity to build their adversity and improve their design.

The Wright Brothers were competent because they never gave up on accepting new ideas.  In addition, they fought many court battles as people tried to steal their great idea.  The lawsuits damaged their public appearance and set back progress.  Ultimately, the Wright Brothers prevailed and are honored by society for their advancements in aviation. 

I was a little confused about the end of their career.  Wilbur sold the company in 1915.  It resulted in competing claims.  The following individuals all made claims for successful airplane tests: Clement Ader, Giustave Whitehead, Richard Perase, and Karl Jatho.  I was confused on how their claims were unique and the process of how these conflicting claims were settled. 

Question 1:  How did you observe birds and translate their flight characteristics to a man-made design?

Question 2:  Where do you see your airplane invention in 100 years?

I would ask the first question because I am curious how they believed they could replicate birds.  I want to ask the second question because I wonder how much they predicted the expansion of aviation.

I think the Wright Brothers’ opinion of hard work is staying in the workshop for 12 hours a day 7 days a week and trying for years while still failing.  This is hard work and it eventually paid off because they were successful and continued to work long hours and exhaust efforts to improve their invention.  I agree with this opinion of hard work and strive to have similar qualities.  

Adam Wolf 12A Figuring Out Buyer Behavior No. 1

I am choosing a segment of people that live in Florida, own automobiles, and do not park their vehicle in a garage.  Person one works eight hours a day at a retail store in town.  He parks in a separate parking lot exposed to full sunlight during the day.  Everyday after work, he has the need to be able to get in his car without accidently touching the hot metal seatbelt.  He has this need Monday through Friday.  Person two is a mother who has three young kids.  She works at an elementary school where her kids attend school.  At the end of the school day, the children are excited and jump into the car.  They grab the hot seatbelt and often get burned on the hands because the vehicle has been siting in the school parking lot all day.  Person three is a friend who goes shopping on a regular basis, usually during the middle of the day.  Her seatbelts heat up to unbearable temperatures every time she comes out of a store. 

All three people had the same solution to their need; they turn the car on with full air conditioning at the lowest temperature to cool the entire car including the seatbelt.  In Google, they search solutions but cannot find accurate results because nothing like my products exists yet.  Two of the people I interviewed had previously talked to friends and family about this need. 

I learned from these interviews that a need certainly exists among this segment.  The individuals have a high recognition of need awareness. Their everyday lives prove the need is significant, but the information searches have not been successful.  As a result, the individuals I interviewed have become accustomed to their own solutions but are open-minded for new methods to satisfy their need. 

Adam Wolf 11A Idea Napkin No. 1

1.       I am a college student attending the University of Florida with talents in business administration.  This class is providing me with necessary talents for entrepreneurship.  I hope this business is a way to make income while working on my own schedule.  If the business became successful, it would become a major part of my life and require significant time dedication.

2.       I am offering customers a product that cools the metal part of seatbelts for cars staying in the sun.  My product solves the customer need to not burn themselves when they enter a hot car.  The device would clip to the base of a seat belt and follow similar physics principles as air condition.  It would be battery powered and could be activated from an app on your phone.  Ten minutes prior to getting in your car, the device would start cooling the seatbelt.  When you grab the seatbelt, it will not burn of you accidently touch the metal.

3.       I am offering this product to everybody who has or uses a car.  The demographics and psychographics of my intended audience are widespread.  All my customers use or own vehicles, and they all have in common a similar need. 

4.       Much of the US heats to dangerous temperatures during the summer, especially in Florida and the desert out west.  People should buy my product because it will increase the safety of their vehicle.  Children will be less likely to injure themselves when getting into hot, parked cars.  Customers will feel the comfort of a cool seatbelt and will no longer have to dread getting into their vehicle during the day.

5.       What sets me apart from everyone else is my attention to detail.  I would ensure the design of this product is as efficient as possible, so it solves customer needs to complete satisfaction.  I would ensure no shortcuts in the production process to deliver the best quality.  My idea for this product is something no one else has.

I believe all five elements fit together.  I can see connections between all components of the idea and understand the list of priorities.  The components of this product seem to be consistent across multiple areas of interest, indicating the idea has potential.  I don’t see any out-of-joint elements and can visualize the next stages of the entrepreneurial process putting these elements in action.

Adam Wolf 10 A elevator pitch number 1

Here is the link to my youtube video as backup.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KxmtLznV18c

Adam Wolf 9A-Testing the Hypothesis Part 2

Person 1 should have a need for access to more water during wildfire season.  However, this person did not have this need because they have never experienced a close wildfire.  Because of this unique personal experience, person 1 feels no threat and therefore has their need met.  Person 2 just moved to a dry area but came from a moist climate.  He cannot relate to the dry fire season dangers.  As a result, this individual has no need to have a device to supply supplemental water.  Person 3 is a 10-year-old child living in their parent’s house.  While I initially thought person 3 would have this need, I learned they don’t coordinate with those types of responsibilities of the household.  It would be more of a concern for their parents.  Person 4 is a leader of a local hospital.  She claims the hospital already has a roof sprinkler system in case of a wildfire outbreak.  This explanation indicated to me that person 4 does not have my need.  Person 5 is a firefighter, a great example of someone I thought would have this need.  However, they don’t see the feasibility of the opportunity and claim there are more efficient methods that use upgraded technology to solve the same need. 

Inside the boundary	Outside the boundary
People who own areas in wildfire season locations an have been affected in the past	People who don’t have direct responsibility of their property or already have watering systems
Need to have a device that transports water quickly and saturates an entire property in the event of a fire emergency	Water supply is not a need due to lack of perceived threat or existing needs already met
The need exists because areas that have the greatest threat of wildfires also have the least supply of available water to fight and protect homeowner properties	I classify these people outside my need group because they would not be likely to search for solutions if the problem doesn’t exist.

Adam Wolf 8A-Solving the Problem

In earlier assignments, I discussed my bug of hot seatbelts and the possibly opportunities associated with this problem.  Florida and many other states have hot temperatures in summer, and cars heat up exponentially when sitting in the sun.  As a result, both children and adults are burned by the hot metal of a seatbelt when they first enter the car.  I see an opportunity to solve this problem by inventing and selling a car seat belt cooling system.  This product would attach to the base of a seat belt and circulate cool are around the metal component to decrease the metal’s temperature below burning temperatures. 

The product would essentially be a small air conditioning system and utilize similar components of a normal house AC system.  This device could be installed by auto mechanics, dealerships, and even customers.  It would include an easy installation set-up with clear directions.  I would primarily sell this product to auto parts stores such as Advance Auto Parts and Autozone.  The long-term plan is to integrate this opportunity into car manufacturing assembly lines. 

This product is a small and would be unnoticeable in automobiles.  The price would range from $20-$30 depending on various models of design.  Overall, I see an opportunity relating to people burning themselves on hot seatbelts in cars that stay in the sun.  This is a unique, efficient, and marketable solution to this problem and opportunity.