Entrepreneur Journal Entry 9: Not Necessarily Warm and Fuzzy

This week in class, we first went over loyalty: what it is, what it's more valuable than, and if we would compromise or sacrifice it for another quality or even money. That was an interesting few minutes of class.

We also went over the case study of Erica Mills and her Warm Fuzz Cards business. The business was a neat idea and she had the potential to make it pretty lucrative. We went over some of the options presented to Mills in this fictional scenario: Does she want to try growing her business quickly or slowly? If quickly, which area of growth should she focus on?

The group I was in agreed on growing slowly. Mills wanted to have a baby within the next year or so, and fast growth wouldn't allow her time with her new addition to the family. Family should always come first, and motherhood is the most noble of professions (at least I think so). Not to mention that she has a husband who is supportive both emotionally and financially. His job seems stable and earns enough; Mills isn't solely depending on her own income for sustaining herself, and growing her business faster has much more risk to it.

Entrepreneur Journal Entry 8: Teamwork Doesn't Always Make the Dream Work

This week in my Intro to Entrepreneurship class, we reported on our "Sell Anything" challenge. And frankly, I've got a lot to say about this whole thing.

First off, the team I was dealt wasn't one for making decisions. As I mentioned last week, their idea was flimsy and they ended up changing it just a couple of days before we were supposed to sell. I was hesitant to even get my own skin in the game; I felt like this challenge was a waste of my time and energy.

My feelings about this particular project shouldn't be confused with my outlook on the whole class. Brother Wasden is a superb teacher with gusto and a real passion for what he teaches. But I have yet to learn how to handle working in a team with something like this. In a real entrepreneurial escapade like this, I think you have a bit more say on who you choose to work with and who you don't. I feel I would have gotten much more out of this if I collaborated with someone who had similar interests as I did. Or even if I didn't have a partner at all. I've been a lone freelancer (very successfully) for the past two years. I try to minimize the amount of production I do with others.

Overall, I wish this activity wasn't worth so many points. I didn't like it and felt completely estranged from it.

Entrepreneur Journal 7: Chick-Fil-A and Such

This week in my Intro to Entrepreneurship class, we talked about Chick-Fil-A. There was even a tantalizing yet helpful display of food from the restaurant perched on the podium. I got hungry. But I was hungrier for truth and justice for my favorite fast food joint.

Chick-Fil-A (or CFA, as I will refer to it as) has long been known for closing on Sundays. This scheduling choice alone gives an obvious message as to its religious stance and how it feels about families. Through reviewing the case study in class, I never fully realized how much I appreciated CFA’s gentle but firm standpoint. It doesn’t use religion to advertise in commercials, it doesn’t require all employees to be Christian, and their decor and outward culture doesn’t feel religious.

Yet there Dan Cathy stands, not wavering on his respect for tradition, not being bashful about his feelings towards God. He has continued to build and cultivate something great. CFA is not only great, it’s one of the most successful fast food places ever.

One point that was discussed was how much money CFA was “losing” by closing on Sundays. A remark that stuck with me was how God blesses those who honor His day. Can some of CFA’s success be attributed to that? I certainly think so.

Unfortunately, I was not feeling well during the waning hour of class and excused myself, so I did not experience the entire discussion.