Week 4 Reading Reflection

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 part on Organization Creativity.  I never really thought of that on the creative side of business, but I guess it is.  Relationships are key to succeeding in business, no matter if it is one you are starting, or one you are working in.

Identify at least one part of the reading that was confusing to you.

I had to read the section on Ways to develop Left and Right Hemisphere Skill.  I am going to look more into this. I believe this could help me in my own business environment.

If you were able to ask two questions to the author, what would you ask? Why?

Define a functional perspective a little better. This was unclear to me.

I think innovation is a little predictable. As thing are needed things happen.

Was there anything you think the author was wrong about? Where do you disagree with what she or he said? How?

No, I thought this chapter was right on with the material in the class.

Top 5 World Problems

Below is my top 5 list of the world's greatest problems, ranked in order from 'most serious' to 'least serious' .  Below  that is my list of solutions ranked in order from 'most-possible to implement' to 'least-possible to implement.

Problems:

Refugees: The amount of refugees leaving Syria is unprecedented.  This has caused many problems for many countries taking them in. The refugees are being forced from their lands causing a huge influx of people all around the globe.  This is a very dangerous journey for the refugees, and it also causes burdens on the countries taking them. 

Terrorism: This is closely tied with the refugee problem the world is facing.  These groups that torment the world have no respect for human life and will stop at nothing to spread their ideologies.  

US Debt: The US debt is currently out of control.  This problem is amazingly huge, 18.2 trillion dollars huge! This a problem that literally grows by the second because the government still runs a deficit.  This will keep the national debt rising.

Poverty: There are many places around the world, and even in the US where poverty is a huge problem.  There are people in the world without electricity, running water, etc… This is because of many reasons, but has got to be fixed.

Clean Water: Water resources around the globe have been stretched very thin. This affects people that are flocking to cities to live.  This is happening so fast that the water supply can’t keep up. Increased energy usage has also contributed to this.  The creation of usable energy consumes a vast amount of water.

Solutions:

Fixing poverty will require the cooperation of many governments.  One of the reasons poverty exists is because of government. This can be related to travel restrictions, trade restrictions, and bad management. 

This is another problem being debated across the world, what to do about the terrorism problem?  There is but one solution to this issue, and it is also military action. This will require more than bombing runs, it will require ground combat forces to directly intervene.  This also should be a coalition of forces as this action would be beneficial to all countries.

This is another problem being debated across the world, what to do about the terrorism problem?  There is but one solution to this issue, and it is also military action. This will require more than bombing runs, it will require ground combat forces to directly intervene.  This also should be a coalition of forces as this action would be beneficial to all countries.

The solution to the refugee problem is being debated all across the world.  It would be best in my opinion to create an area where the people could feel safe in Syria. This would take military action, and a coalition of forces to implement. However, the outcome would be beneficial to all parties involved.

This is a tricky problem to solve as there are many schools of thought on how to fix it. We are going to have to cut spending to the point we no longer run deficits. The longer this continues, the larger the problem will become.  This has the potential to effect the entire world’s economic balance because of the size of the US economy.

The solution is not easy.  This would require people to slow their movements into urban areas, and also more water efficient energy sources need to be developed.

Very Short Interview No. 1

For my interview, I spoke with the owner of a farm in Reddick, FL.  The farm is a horse farm, and she also breeds two breeds of dogs successfully. 

Below are the questions and answers I received;

• What does it mean to be an entrepreneur?  An entrepreneur is someone who is creative, and uses that to be successful.
• What do you think I should learn in an entrepreneurship course? It is very important to remain ethical in business.  Ethics are a large part to being successful.
• What do you wish you had been taught in school before setting out on your own path as an entrepreneur? To have been better prepared on the accounting aspect of being in business.
  It was a very interesting interview I had.  I liked her take on using creativity to be successful.  She has been very successful in both the horse industry, and in the dog breeding business.

World's Biggest Problems

Below are some of the biggest problems in the world. All of which can be solved with a lot of work.

ISIS: The terrorist group ISIS is by far a danger to the world.  Steep military action is needed to end this problem.  The other Arab nations need to pull together more and assist with eradicating this enemy of the world.

Syrian Refugees:  A problem tied to the ISIS problem are the Syrian refugees.  This is a great burden on the world, social and economically.  The refugees need safe zones set up so they can stay in their own country.  This is better for them, and the world.

Mexican Border: The border between Mexico and the US is extremely unprotected.  This allows people an opportunity to come into the US illegally.  This issue has caused a great divide in the US over what to do about the people here illegally. A decision has to be made on what to do, and the laws already in place need to be enforced.

Nation Debt and Deficit: The huge debt the US has amassed is approximately 19 trillion and we are still running a deficit. The problem The massive spending that has gone on out of control along with a few other factors.  The spending has got to be reduced with a manageable budget so that we can quit running these deficits.

Greece Debt problem: The Greece debt problem almost tore down the Eurozone. This would have been a huge disaster for the European economy if Greece would have defaulted on their debts.  This has been averted for the time being, but Greece needs to ensure they also limit their spending.

America’s poor road system: The road system in the US is in a sad state of disrepair. This a going to be a huge cost to the American tax payer. This will have to be planned in the national budget, and implemented very soon.

Political Correctness: The political correctness problem in the world has gotten out of control.  Huge decisions get made with the part of the deciding factor to not offend someone. This often clouds judgment and makes for bad decisions.

Gun Violence in the US: The gun violence is running rampant in major cities in the US, some of which have the toughest gun laws in the country.  A key to curbing this is education  in gun safety, and allowing lawful citizens the right to carry.

Chinese Economy:  The Chinese economy is in terrible shape and causes huge fluctuations in the market due to the government intervention.  The Chines government needs to stop interfering in trading. Spending needs to be cut tremendously there as well.

Health care in the US: The health care system in the US is still lacking in the US. A system needs to be put in place that all sides can come to some sort of agreement on and allow proper coverage for US citizens.

Week 2 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 reading chapter one was the “Global Entrepreneurship Monitor (GEM) report findings.  Specifically, the findings that 110 million people between 18 and 64 years old were actively engaged with starting a business, and the 140 million who were running new business they stated less than 3.5 years earlier.  I would not have guessed the numbers would be that high. I do take into count that this is a global figure, but it still seemed very high to me.  I was aware that the largest employer in the US belongs to small business, and these figures kind of put proverbial “teeth” to that statement.

2) Identify at least one part of the reading that was confusing to you.

The “Dynamic States Approach” was a little confusing to me.  The book describes this as a more process-oriented view, but it seems the “Integrative Approach” (IA) seems like a more well defined process approach.  The key elements are better defined in the IA approach and is a little easier to follow.

3) If you were able to ask two questions to the author, what would you ask? Why?

1. Why has there not been more research, or education on the entrepreneurial process until now?  The reason for this question is that entrepreneurs play such an important part to the economy, and also to innovations in products, services, and processes.

2. What is opportunity tension?  The book does not define this very well (unless if I missed it in the readings).

4) Was there anything you think the author was wrong about? Where do you disagree with what she or he said? How?

I did not agree with the author’s stance on free trade versus fair trade.  Specifically, I am not a fan of NAFTA, and think we should abandon that for fair trade.  Free trade is good when you are on the good side of free trade.  The only country benefiting from NAFT is Mexico.

Bug List

Bug List;  Here is a list of 20 things that bug me.

Cell Phone Loss; On several occasions, my wife has lost her cell phone by leaving it somewhere, or it mysteriously disappears from her pocket. Most recently at Jacksonville Jaguars Game, her phone walked away and did not come back which required a $200 replacement claim with the cell phone insurance.

Timing Belt Failure on my car.  Timing belts are an integral part of how a car runs, but need to be replaced on an all to frequent basis, and can be very expensive. My VW needs one, and it is $1400 to replace. This process occurs every 100,000 miles or so.

Lawn mower mowing incorrectly; Lawn mower leaving streaks in grass, and even ripping turf off of the ground as it is being mowed.  This happens regularly when I mow the lawn on every Saturday.

Whiteboards not being able to be erased; Using a whiteboard with a whiteboard pen, and not be being able to remove the marks after they have been there for some time (over a day) without having to get some sort of cleaning solution.

Using hazard lights while driving in rain; People that turn on hazard lights while driving in the rain is dangerous on the interstate or any other roadway (it is illegal as well). This happens on I-75 every time it rains.

Tires dry rotting because of non-use; Tires on trailers, campers, vehicles, etc. that crack on the sides and become dangerous simply because they have not been used in a while.

Different plugs and receptacles to hook up the same items; Hooking a second monitor to a MacBook Pro requires a different plug than hooking a second monitor to a Windows computer.

Internet Speeds in rural areas: The fastest internet connection in rural areas is through DSL or satellite while in urban areas, cable is the way to go.  Our only option is Windstream which is just as expensive as cable, but the speed is very slow.

Potholes on the interstate; I-75 south of Micanopy has potholes in the interstate which makes travel dangerous, and also causes unnecessary wear and tear on vehicles.

Restaurants that include gratuity in the bill; Restaurants will factor in gratuity to the bill of large groups (usually 8 or more) regardless of how the service was.

Texting and driving; People still find it necessary to text while driving which increases the chance of someone causing an accident.  This is an offense that drivers cannot be pulled over for because it is a secondary offense.

Having to pay for meals on flights; The price of air travel is very high, and then on top of that people have to pay for meals and almost anything else on a flight (this was a personal experience on a United flight from Tampa to Las Vegas). What is next, having to pay to use the bathroom?

Aquarium filter not working after a power outage; My fish aquarium filter will not self-prime itself to start pumping water after a power outage, and will burn up the motor.

Roadside parking being replaced with bike lanes; On SW 16^th Ave west of 13^th to the VA, roadside parking was removed to make way for bike lanes that hardly anyone uses (they still use the sidewalk to ride bicycles). This causes huge parking issues (lack of parking).

Having to pay to use the hotspot feature on smart phones:  Spring charges money to use the hotspot feature on phones. This is Sprint dictating how I use the data I have already paid for (Hotspot prices range from $20 to over $100)

People not using turning on their headlights while it is raining; On i-75 when it rains, people do not use turn on their lights which creates yet another very dangerous situation.

Sizing of shoes not consistent; There is a difference between a size 9 between Nike and New Balance which makes it very difficult to order footwear from a website.  A size 9 should be a SIZE 9.

Price of meals at fast food restaurants; Wendy’s off of the Irvine exit on I-75 (south of Micanopy) is charging over $10 for a combo meal (Baconater) It seems I have to pay more for food that is progressively getting worse for me to eat.

Paying sales tax on items ordered through Amazon; Amazon opened a distribution facility in Florida which now requires sales tax to be paid on item bought from the web site.  Why did this change when there was no distribution facility in Florida (there is no discernable difference to the consumer)?

Removing trash bags from trash cans; It is almost impossible to lift a full trash bag from my trash can because of suction. This can make the trash bag rip (which happened to me this morning), or requires two people to lift the bag out (one to hold the can, and the other to pull the bag out).

Reflection:

This was not a difficult list for me to come up with.  I think this is because I am a little older than the regular student, and have plenty of things to complain about.  I do like to put things like this in writing as it allows me to see, and prioritize things to either fix, or deal with in my own way.