BUS110 W14 Reflection: Entrepreneurial Journal Final

 

• If you had one final lecture to share with a group of students on what you have learned from this course, what would you share?

• This has been an interesting and very informative course. I wasn’t quite sure what to expect when I registered for it but am surprisingly pleased. The most important lesson or idea that I learned over this semester is to find and then do something you love. When you do something you love, it can make weathering the storms seem a bit easier because you are doing work that you enjoy. Life is short and there isn’t time to waste being unhappy. Being an entrepreneur can be something exciting if you make it exciting. It doesn’t mean that it will always be easy but learning how to work effectively is important when owning your own business.

• What would be your last bit of advice to someone wanting to begin the entrepreneur journey?

• Networking! Networking is extremely helpful in any career you choose. If you are able to build a stable and wide network it will help you be able to do better in your business. There are often times that you can help another business and then they in turn can help you. Keeping track of your network and staying involved with them will and does improve your business as well as your ability to work effectively.

• What words of advice, direction, or caution would you give him or her if you had only one chance to give your own last lecture?

• The most impressive words of advice that I could give to someone is slow and steady wins the race. This is a common phrase that most people know about. But they don’t always take it seriously. Many people want to take the easy way in their personal and professional life. It may work for some but that is an exception to the rule. When you start your business it’s normal to not see much growth or earnings right away but if you run your business honestly and truly work your hardest, it increases your chance of success. Many people want to give up after the first difficulty because they want things to be easy or thought that it would be easy. But nothing that is worthwhile will be easy. Take your time, follow your gut, and trust the process.

BUS110 W13 Reflection: Entrepreneurial Journal

  I really enjoyed President Monson’s talk, “An Attitude of Gratitude.” I have had a hard time with gratitude at different times in my life. I didn’t believe that you could always find something positive in life despite what you may or may not be going through. But as I have gone through many trials and celebrations I have learned that there is a way to see something, even if it is a small something, good in every situation. This doesn’t mean what I’m going through isn’t hard, it just means that I can see past the trial and see that this is just temporary and I will be happy again. I learned that using gratitude helped me to grow and learn from trials and at some points it helped me get through them faster! President Monson stated, “We can lift ourselves, and others as well, when we refuse to remain in the realm of negative thought and cultivate within our hearts an attitude of gratitude. If ingratitude be numbered among the serious sins, then gratitude takes its place among the noblest of virtues.” We are taught and commanded to be like Jesus Christ and try to emulate Him in everything we do. He was gracious and so we must learn to be gracious as well. Being able to see the small things to be grateful for helps us see the positive in hard situations. Plus it helps us become closer to our Heavenly Father and our brother, Jesus Christ. There is so much to be thankful for and if we open our eyes then we will see what surrounds us. The things that I’m most grateful for are my Heavenly Father, Jesus Christ, the Spirit, my family and my friends. I have been blessed with a lot of great people around me that have helped support me and in return I’m able to support them.

BUS 110 W12 Reflection: Entrepreneurial Journal

 Based on what you read in the first two pages (pages 3 and 4), why are virtue and integrity so vital to an economy?

In the article, “What’s a Business For” by Charles Handy, he states, “Trust, too, is fragile. Like a piece of china, once cracked it is never quite the same. And people’s trust in business, and those who lead it, is today cracking.” There are many businesses that are not honest and trustworthy but they try to say they are. Charles Handy touches on the dishonesty of governments and the fact that they aren’t associated with honesty. When the government isn’t honest, some think why should I be honest? There are many times when the lies are exposed and it can be detrimental to a company. So while being honest and virtuous may be a more difficult and slower process, in the end it is so much better for the company and the consumer.  

According to Charles Handy, what is the “real justification” for the existence of businesses?

“The purpose of a business, in other words, is not to make a profit, full stop. It is to make a profit so that the business can do something more or better. That ‘something’ becomes the real justification for the business.”

What are two solutions proposed by Handy that you agree with? Why?

Charles Handy states that businesses need to take the lead in a variety of areas instead of waiting for the government to impose laws. The most important solution he provides is the importance of individual and environmental well-being. He explains that companies need to allow their employees to have a healthy work/life balance in their lives. When your company has happy employees, it makes it easier for the employees to work harder and be more effective. This also ties back to honesty. Being honest with your employees and your expectations will help them to trust you and gain loyalty from them.

W11 Reflection: Entrepreneurial Journal

 What is your attitude toward money?

Money is a necessary evil in our world. We have to have money in order to survive and to live our lives. I do believe that there is too much emphasis put on money and it has and does create a lot of big issues all over the world. There are many people that don’t have enough money to even survive much less live. The poverty in the world is getting worse and worse and something needs to be done. There are people that have more money than they could spend in 10 lifetimes and some of them donate and try to help people. But it isn’t enough. They have enough money to donate to help more people. They don’t need their homes to be personal resorts. There are people with much less money that are donating what they can including their time. I want to be able to make enough money for me and my family to live comfortably. I don’t want to worry about how we will make it if a car problem happens or someone gets sick with lots of medical bills. 

How can your view of money affect the way you live?

Understanding that money is needed in life helps us know that we need to gain an education and find a good job that we can be happy at while still being there for our family. I want to raise my kids to be kind, caring and giving people. They don’t need to judge those that are less fortunate than them. The idea of helping others is the way I want to raise my family to think about money and others. Money isn’t the goal of life, the goal is to live with your family and be happy.  

What rules are recommended for prospering?

I don’t believe there are any set rules that will result in a lot of money. There are a lot of suggestions but you have to find what works for you and your family and your personal situation. Prospering doesn’t have to mean being rich. Prospering can mean thriving in your personal and familial life. Being there for others. Helping and serving when you can. Prospering shouldn’t be synonymous with wealth.

BUS110 W10 Reflection: Entrepreneurial Journal

  This week provided so many helpful and interesting resources to learn from. In the talk given by Elder Dallin H. Oaks stated, “In contrast to the institutions of the world, which teach us to know something, the gospel of Jesus Christ challenges us to become something.” In order to “become something” we will need to learn and grow to “learn something.” Learning doesn’t have an end date because if we are wise then we continue to seek out knowledge and learn more throughout our life. Learning to have a growth mindset is important in our professional lives as well as our personal lives. When and if you choose to start a business or launch a product doesn’t mean the work is done. It is just beginning. You have to continue to gain education about your career and seek out people that can help you grow. Keeping this in mind is important when you are faced with challenges. Instead of retreating when trials come, keep the goal of gaining knowledge and push your way through and you will grow through what you go through. I want to finish my Bachelor’s Degree by next year. But this will take extra work and extra effort on my part. While it seems daunting at times, I keep the end in mind. I remind myself why I’m going to school and even when school is hard, I can learn from it. 

In the video, “Your Emotional Fingerprint” it states, “Since the dawn of time, there’s been a struggle between two forces. One is uplifting, hopeful, encouraging, confident, and charitable; seeks not to own or control, and is strong, beautiful, free and independent. The other is fearful, egotistical, prideful, puffed up, lazy, contentious, lonely, seeks approval, is negative, and is loathsome. I’m not talking about a movie plot, or the next great novel; I’m talking about the battle in each of us.” This stands out and reminds us to always look and move forward with a positive attitude about our personal and professional lives.

BUS 110 W9 Reflection: Entrepreneurial Journal

  This was an interesting week and I was able to learn a lot from the readings. The assigned reading that stood out the most to me this week was, “A Disciple Preparation Center (DPC)” by Elder David A. Bednar. He shares about the Missionary Training Center (MTC) and about the various experiences that have come from that but most importantly the Missionary Training Centers are located near a temple. I didn’t know this before I read this article. But this makes so much sense. Temple attendance is so very important in our lives and we are encouraged by all church leaders to make this an important priority. Missionaries are dedicating the next couple of years of their lives to the Lord and they will need His guidance. There is no better place to pray and grow that important relationship with our Heavenly Father than at the temple. Allowing young missionaries to attend the temple while at the Missionary Training Center is helpful for their spiritual growth. He then talks about Brigham Young University - Idaho is similar to the MTC by being close to a temple. Elder Bednar and others have noticed how beneficial this has been for the missionaries at the MTC and the residents as Brigham Young University - Idaho. He explained that they are looking to create “not a missionary training center (MTC), but a Disciple Preparation Center - a DPC.” 

Elder Bednar stated, “A disciple is one who follows or attends upon another for the express purpose of learning. Please note that a disciple both follows and learns.” This Disciple Preparation Center sounded really insightful. I think having a place where we can gather and learn more about how to be Disciples outside of Sunday Church. This has inspired me to be a better disciple and even though there may not be a Disciple Preparation Center by me, I can do my own thing and study about being a better disciple.

BUS110 W8 Reflection: Entrepreneurial Journal

In President Monson’s talk titled, “Looking Back and Moving Forward” he talks about the passing of President Gordon B. Hinckley and about what a wonderful called of God man that he was. It is always said when someone you love and care for passes on. But something to remember is that it is only sad for us that are left on Earth. For those that have passed they are with their Heavenly Father and free from pain. President Monson explains that while we can look back and remember their life but we must ultimately look toward the future and embrace what the Lord has in store for us. 

President Monson stated, “In the private sanctuary of one’s own conscience lies that spirit, that determination to cast off the old person and to measure up to the stature of true potential. In this spirit, we again issue that heartfelt invitation: Come back. We reach out to you in the pure love of Christ and express our desire to assist you and to welcome you into full fellowship. To those who are wounded in spirit or who are struggling and fearful, we say, Let us lift you and cheer you and calm your fears. Take literally the Lord’s invitation.” The Lord is willing to overlook our past and forgive us for our sins so that we can move forward in faith and cleanliness like President Monson encourages us to do. I have done some things that I’m not proud of in my past and I felt as if I couldn’t be forgiven and I wasn’t worth being forgiven. But I was lucky to have great church leaders that explained that even though I have made past mistakes, I can still repent and be forgiven. I don’t have to focus on the past and feel hopeless but rather I can learn from my past and move on to bigger and better things in my life as long as I follow the Lord and His promptings.

BUS 110 W7 Entrepreneurial Journal

 Which of the 7 habits has the most meaning for you?

Habit 1: Be proactive 

Being proactive is important in all aspects of life because it helps you choose what is happening and how you react rather than just letting things happen and having to react. It’s similar to being on the defensive side of sports, you are in control. Whereas an offensive side has to react to whatever they are given and they aren’t proactive. 

Habit 2: Begin with the end in mind

If you know where you want to go in life then you can have a better idea of what you want and need to do in order to make that happen. For example, if I want to own my own business selling T-Shirts, then I know I need to learn some things about business, marketing, t-shirt design, etc. By knowing my end goal, I am able to prepare and gain all the knowledge I can to help be successful. 

Habit 3: Put first things first

This habit seems simple but it is an important one to master. Being able to recognize what is most important and then working on those things first will help get things in order. When you are faced with a lot of different tasks, you need to learn to prioritize so that you aren’t creating more work for yourself. Understanding what needs to be done first and actually doing that will help you be more efficient and organized.

Why will the 7 habits help you fill your life with passion and purpose as you seek to achieve both a private and public victory?

Gaining knowledge will never hurt you. So understanding the 7 Habits can only help you succeed. They help to give a starting point at what needs to be done and how to accomplish your goals so that you can get and be where you want in your personal and professional life.

BUS 110 W6 Entrepreneurial Journal

 

• What did you learn from the W06 Study: So You Want to be an Entrepreneur readings and videos?

In the video “Loyalty to God and Family” by Jan Newman, she talks about how starting a business is a timely endeavor and it will test you and try you. But she then talks about the spiritual aspect of your life. Learning that “you don’t grow and run a business at all costs.” is an important principle that needs to be mastered. Running a business is going to take up time and pull you away from other activities and needs in your life. This is expected and normal. But it shouldn’t be put before everything. Your spiritual and mental health are still very important. You won’t be any good to your business or clients if you aren’t taking care of yourself. Learning how to create a healthy balance of business and personal needs is something that needs to be practiced and perfected over time. Jan Newman talks about not disregarding your church callings and prioritizing them over your business. Understanding that we have what we do because of the Savior is important, making time for Him is never a waste of your time. It will never do you harm to spend time with the Savior. But choosing worldly things over your Savior can cost you a lot of heartache and upsets. 

• What are you looking forward to learning and experiencing?

I am looking forward to learning more about how to prioritize your business vs your personal life. It is something that I am working to understand now while I’m in school. When I started school, I made that my main focus and missed out on many things. It wasn’t until I was feeling so burnt out that I realized that I can do school and also have a personal life. I am assuming that this is what needs to happen when I start and develop my business as well. Working to improve that balance now will help in my future professional and personal life.

BUS110 W5 Entrepreneurial Journal

    Learning how to persevere will help be beneficial throughout your life. Perseverance means that you keep moving forward and putting forth effort in good times and bad times. Staying strong through life's ups and downs is how we persevere. We can only learn this by actually doing it. It isn’t something that can be learned overnight but rather it needs to be worked on. The more you persevere then it starts to become second nature and ideally it becomes easier. 

    Understanding that life is not always going to be easy and happy is important to perseverance. It’s easy to press forward and continue living when life seems easy and there aren’t many obstacles. But it is completely different to be able to press forward when life isn’t easy and there are many obstacles. This is where learning how to persevere helps. If we have the end in sight then we can move forward knowing that this next part might be rough but the rough time will end just like the happy times end. Feelings aren’t the destination but they happen along your journey through life. In the Hero’s Journey video it states, “So what does it mean to choose a hero’s journey? It means to live every moment of your life like it matters, because it does. It means to live as if you have an important mission, becau     This week we learned about perseverance and the Hero’s Journey. Learning how to persevere will help be beneficial throughout your life. Perseverance means that you keep moving forward and putting forth effort in good times and bad times. Staying strong through life's ups and downs is how we persevere. We can only learn this by actually doing it. It isn’t something that can be learned overnight but rather it needs to be worked on. The more you persevere then it starts to become second nature and ideally it becomes easier. 

Understanding that life is not always going to be easy and happy is important to perseverance. It’s easy to press forward and continue living when life seems easy and there aren’t many obstacles. But it is completely different to be able to press forward when life isn’t easy and there are many obstacles. This is where learning how to persevere helps. If we have the end in sight then we can move forward knowing that this next part might be rough but the rough time will end just like the happy times end. Feelings aren’t the destination but they happen along your journey through life. In the Hero’s Journey video it states, “So what does it mean to choose a hero’s journey? It means to live every moment of your life like it matters, because it does. It means to live as if you have an important mission, because you do. It means seeing struggles as adventures, and setbacks as lessons.” Living every moment of life like it matters helps one to stay present and find things they love to do. Learning how to embrace every experience and learn from it will help us to live every moment. We are only given 1 life and it would be terrible if we are miserable in life. se you do. It means seeing struggles as adventures, and setbacks as lessons.” Living every moment of life like it matters helps one to stay present and find things they love to do. Learning how to embrace every experience and learn from it will help us to live every moment. We are only given 1 life and it would be terrible if we are miserable in life.

BUS110 W2 Reflection

“That is what it is. We can’t change it. We just have to decide how we’ll respond. We cannot change the cards we are dealt, just how we play the hand.” - Randy Pausch

Randy Pausch had such great success because he learned how to deal with what life gave him. He wasn’t given a perfect and stress free life. But instead of feeling bad for himself and taking it out on other people, he put all his effort into building himself and accomplishing dreams that he had. Understanding that no one is given a perfect life, but rather it needs to be created. He didn’t let circumstances hold him back from chasing his dreams and eventually accomplishing those dreams through hard work and perseverance. 

Dreaming is something important to do in our lives but it doesn't always come easy to some. Learning to dream and then chase your dreams will help you achieve success and learn more about yourself. Dreaming is crucial because if not dreaming and working toward something then you are stagnant. Dreaming helps to create a sense of purpose and motivation in life. Ideally our dreams can and will lead to our passions and will give us a sense of purpose and fulfillment that we need in our lives. Understanding that dreaming can help lead us down a meaningful path is important when thinking about the future. It is also a way to get to know yourself and understand things that you enjoy and like to do which can help enhance your life. 

I had many dreams as a child and while some were unrealistic (owning a unicorn) others were achievable. I always dreamed of working in a career where I could help people. I always wanted to help others that were struggling. I thought I wanted to be a teacher but my dream evolved into helping those that struggle with addiction. I work in the recovery field and am able to help people everyday that have and are going through a hard time.

BUS 110 W1 - Reflection

     I am excited for this introduction to entrepreneurship class. I always thought entrepreneurship basically meant starting your own business. But after this week I see that it can be more than just starting a business. It can be an idea that you build on. By following the advice of our Prophet and Apostles to further my education it has helped open my eyes to all the possibilities that are out there for us. I always put off going to college because I didn't see the point and didn't really understand how it could help me if I wasn't going to be a doctor or a lawyer (or anything that you need formal schooling for.) But since I decided to go back to school, the world has opened up to me and I can see how earning an education will help me in whatever field I choose for my career and gaining education is never a waste. I'm glad that I decided to follow the Prophet's advice and go back to school or I would have missed out on so many fun and exciting things that I have learned and gone through up til this point. I am now finishing my Junior year and I have had my eyes opened to a different career path than I thought I would take. I have learned more in these last few years than I ever thought I would. I even started to find the classes that I was very interested in interesting. Understanding the new information that I have gained can only be beneficial when it comes to entrepreneurship. I will be able to have a wider variety of ideas about a variety of topics which can help me figure out the direction that I want to go in for my career and potential business.

BUS 374 -- Week 1 Reflection

Week 1: April 17 - April 22

    This week was mostly an introduction to the syllabus and the outline of this course. We learned about the different kind of assignments (group and individual), tests, projects, journals, etc that are required to be successful in this course.

    The point that was interesting to me is one of the future weeks that features design. Learning how social innovation and design interwine and can work together is interesting and sounds like something that will be intriguing as well as fun to learn. I have been interested in different types of design but never really thought about design going along with social innovation but it makes sense to create something beautiful that can inspire others.

    Social innovation is the process of developing, creating, and implementing new, different, and effective solutions to help solve social issues in our lives. We live in a world that is run by social media and we get our information from the internet as well as social media sites. Understanding that not everything we read is the truth is important to understanding what information to believe and use to make change vs information that isn't real and won't make a difference in our lives. Understanding social innovation is important in these days so that we understand the difference that we can make in our personal life as well as the lives of others in our world.