6A - Identifying Opportunities in Economic & Regulatory Trends

1.  To end the shutdown, reframe the issue: Today's talker

a.      https://www.usatoday.com/story/opinion/2019/01/22/donald-trump-nancy-pelosi-learn-how-negotiate-talker/2642715002/

b.     Raphael Lapin writes about how terrible at negotiating both Trump and Pelosi are. There may or may not be a physical wall at the border of Mexico, but their absolutely is a wall between Trump and Pelosi, aren’t these people supposed to be roll models? Where did they learn to negotiate?

c.      Meanwhile, families are at stake waiting for paychecks to come in with government shutdowns.

d.     It affects everyone who is (or should I say was) working for the government and their dependents and families directly. Not to mention the government jobs that are affected like our airport security, where people are working without pay or are calling in sick making the lines through security even longer than before and therefore affecting us all to some degree. Every time someone loses their paycheck in the government especially when the fight is over money, it should be that those paychecks should be paid out of the funds they are fighting over. That should take the punch out of the fight and make for a shorter standoff.  

2.     Empty nester? Here’s what to do to get your finances back on track

a.      https://www.usatoday.com/story/money/2019/01/07/retirement-savings-plan-after-kids/2339639002/

I get it, most of you will not be thinking about retirement because you’re just beginning, probably haven’t even worked yet. But, now is the time to think about how you’ll save now to support yourself and family when it’s time to retire. Sadly, most people wait too late and don’t have much to live on. This article just gave me the idea because my daughter just graduated college, is out of the nest, and just moved to another state. I too am playing catch up. Don’t let this happen to you!

b.     Retirement? Yes, think about it now. Think of the interest you can earn over the next 40 years. You may be able to retire early. I may not ever be able to retire!  It’s never too late to think ahead. Resources to educate us all about funds to support ourselves and the mindset to be diligent about sticking to a long-term plan is essential to a happy life after work.  

c.      The elderly that should have saved, the middle aged who is trying feverishly to save, and the young who are smart enough to get a head start.

3.     Complying with Government Regulations

a.      https://www.entrepreneurship.org/articles/2005/11/complying-with-government-regulations

This description on several government regulations hits home with entrepreneurial businesses. It’s hard to start a business and run it and regulations make it even tougher. You have to stay on top of the and compliant.  

b.     It makes me wonder how tough it is to be an entrepreneur. It’s not just about having a great need and the ability to resource it. It’s much more than that. There is a lot of red tape.

c.      Any person who owns his/her own business, or would like to, should be aware of regulations.

4.     Government Regulations in Business

a.      https://smallbusiness.chron.com/government-regulations-business-2964.html

I didn’t realize that small business pay 40% more than large businesses to comply with regulations. It also talks about how regulations can hurt businesses’ growth ability.

b.     Deregulation is becoming the trend to help everyone in businesses make it through.

c.      Large and small business are affected.  

5A - Identifying Local Opportunities

1. Post–hurricane help tops 2018 list of news stories; researchers doing all they can to stem citrus greening 

a. The Link to the Article: http://www.brevardbusinessnews.com/ArchiveDocs/2019/2019-01-01/BBN-010719.pdf (010718) Page 6

b. Brad Buck from The University of Florida's Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (UF/IFAS) has reported that as Florida has been recovering from the hurricanes this past year, that the UF/IFAS department has made positive advancements in several areas to work with communities and growers to support agriculture and natural resources advancements. He writes about the different specific areas in which UF excelled.

c. The article brings up a great point about how the hurricanes have devastated our areas and how we must work together as one unit to restore what was lost and to move forward with new technology, better ways to saves our crops, our homes, our livelihoods, and our lives. We can’t forget what devastation we had, we must keep in mind what we can do and work towards future solutions for future generations.

d. Every person in our community was affected by the hurricanes but I would say that the elderly had an especially challenging time. They needed extra care and assistance that sadly some of them couldn’t receive. It may be somewhat easy for most of us to evacuate, but, not so easy for the elderly or the sick.

2. The nonprofit Addiction Policy Forum rolls out resource to address crisis in state; find treatment facilities by county

a. http://www.brevardbusinessnews.com/ArchiveDocs/2019/2019-01-01/BBN-010719.pdf (010718) Page 14

b. The article brings new resources of how persons suffering from addictions can find help and offers more private ways of doing so such as with using an app or making a phone call. This way, more people will likely make that move towards helping themselves or possibly someone else.

c. I don’t think there can ever be too many resources for people who suffer from all sorts of ailments except that the care given to people during vulnerable periods in their lives is exceptional and that they are treated well. The persons who work with these people need to be trained professionals who know what to say to them and what they are going through.

d. Persons who have this problem are any person who has, is, or will suffer from and addiction to substances.

3. Schools implement instant emergency communications system with first responders; real–time coordination

a. http://www.brevardbusinessnews.com/ArchiveDocs/2019/2019-01-01/BBN-011419.pdf Page 2

b. This article explains how this new technology bridges the gap between schools and law enforcement and can have a response time like no other. It allows for instant contact with law enforcement allowing that all important reduction in time should a crisis occur.

c. It reminds me of how we must work towards many new solutions to help to alleviate this crisis in our world and in our own local towns and communities.

d. The persons who have the need are any child in public schools. The need could then move to other public areas.

4. Face your challenges like a linebacker — and don’t be afraid to try a blitz

a. http://www.brevardbusinessnews.com/ArchiveDocs/2019/2019-01-01/BBN-012119.pdf Page 4

b. This article is about facing challenges with a mindset that allows you to be strong and determined, not afraid. She writes about stepping outside of your comfort zone to handle issues that come your way. She uses football terminology as a reference to help you to see the big picture.

c. People are afraid to try new things, to reach out of their comfort zones, to exceed to greater heights. As a result, some people just accept their circumstances as they are, never trying new things. For example, I’ve run across several friends and colleagues who say I could never do that especially at my age when I tell them (at my age in my fifties) that I’m taking classes at UF at the Heavener School of Business. A need exists to get us up and, on our feet, to tackle those things we would like to change about ourselves.

d. The problem exists for us all to some degree, but for people who have let their situations dominate them, and who have just accepted life as less than what they hoped. People with low incomes comes first to my mind, but there are also those striving to overcome a disability or something else that takes a little mind over matter.

5. Don’t let poor negotiation skills doom your business venture; mistakes entrepreneurs make and ways to avoid

a. http://www.brevardbusinessnews.com/ArchiveDocs/2019/2019-01-01/BBN-012119.pdf Page 4

b. I couldn’t pass up this article since it hit so close to what we are overcoming in this Entrepreneur Class. It offers steps to better negotiation skills which come in to play with every day situations to starting a new business.

c. The need is to teach people the art of negotiation. It can help to get that new job, to negotiate a lower price on a car or new home, or to speak with officials, clients, or your superior officers.

d. College students to retirement age people with a special focus on the intermediate ages.

Forming An Opportunity Belief

What will it take to make the tragedy of losing a child or a pet in a heated car a thing of the past? Since these innocent beings cannot speak for themselves, we can devise a plan to protect them. There are plenty of health apps on the market right now telling us about our own health statistics. I know I’ve seen one where an elderly person’s stats show up on their daughter’s app alerting them to a situation. It may be this simple. But you may have trouble guaranteeing that an infant will wear a watch, for example. What about your pet? I don’t see too many watches or safety bracelets for them. But a pet could wear a safety collar and a baby could wear a safety bracelet or anklet.

If a mother, father, or caregiver leaves a child in a car too long, their temperature will rise, and an alert message could be sent to the person with the twin device. I would like to explore this idea further and see if it has already been prototyped or developed.  

I usually stop myself right here and think, oh, it’s already been done, “they” (all the top brains in the world) have already made one so perfect there is none better. What if that isn’t true?   

I interviewed someone at work who has small children: Erica McCallister. I was asking her about this device and what she thought of it. I said that car manufacturers may have a solution already. She has seen one solution where when you are leaving your car (removing your keys) an alert message reminds you to check your back seat. A pet owner, however, who runs in a store for a minute in Florida may not realize just how fast it gets really hot in a car and think that the pet is fine. I’m not sure if I trust that idea also because you would get desensitized after seeing that same message all the time. You may think you know there is nothing back there in that back seat. Erica said her sister had that happen to her. She said she has several children, and they all went in to Sam’s Club, or so she thought. Once inside, she did a head count and found one member missing. She was able to get back to the car to her little one in plenty of time. Erica said that so many people ridicule the parents, but she feels like it’s just an awful accident that could happen to anyone. I do agree that as a society we are so busy taking on so many things at once, more mistakes like will be bound to happen.

I interviewed a new grandmother to get her point of view: Sue Hill. Her son-in law and his wife just had Easton 3 months ago. She will be taking on the roll of caregiver on many occasions and I thought she would be a good person to interview for this project.

She believes the product is a great idea and even though there are similar products out there that this was one to consider. She said in the hospital, Easton had a bracelet that beeped if there was a problem. It alerts the nurses at the nurse’s station. Now if we could just fine tune that for parents and caregivers. She knows this issue is especially bad in Florida and we thought that it wouldn’t sell as well in another state, say Alaska, unless the alert was a general health alert system.

I interviewed a new mother to get her point of view. Karis Underhill’s daughter is 6 months old and getting in to everything already. She really likes the idea too but mentioned that there are similar products out there already. She also thought a proximity alarm would be helpful, beeping if you are too far away (I think this is what they may use in the hospital as well). It wouldn’t work as well for pets, she said, since they run around so much. That could also come in handy in the case of a child-napping situation. Maybe both items could be integrated into one device. The stats wouldn’t notify you if something was amiss unless it was set to alert you of a distress signal such as a high temperature.

My product has gone through some changes already as it has been thought out. I’m sure it will go through many more changes to keep it feasible, at a low cost, and to make it appealing. Baby anklets could be quite decorative for little girls and masculine for little boys or remain non-gender specific which is the new trend.

I like the feedback I received from my potential customers about this product idea. Has it been done before, yes, in similar ways, but not specifically for this purpose. If the cost can be kept to a minimum it would be a great addition to a family to keep that little new life safe. I believe that sales for children would be more likely than sales for pets due to the feeling of it not being as much of a necessity for your pets to thrive. I would love it for my dog since I’m at work all day every day.  She may not be overheating, but, if she was in distress otherwise, it would be good to know right away.

My Story

I don’t know if I would have considered myself an entrepreneur when I started my freelance art business. I was doing the design projects for different clients already and it just grew and needed to be made into a legal entity. My product was basically being their art department. Most businesses need art and design some of the time, but not necessarily full time. So, I filled a need and supplemented my income as well. I also painted murals for restaurants and just did one about two years ago for a Mexican restaurant. I stopped because I work full time and take classes at night. It was too much to do all three things and the freelance business couldn’t grow without a nest egg that I didn’t have. The work was also sporadic, and I couldn’t depend on it at that time. The goal is to have one full time job, hopefully a career, to make ends meet. Perhaps when classes are over, I will paint murals once again on a part time basis.

My mother worked as a District Manager for a chain of clothing stores and my father was a Production Analyst. There are no entrepreneurial backgrounds there. I, however, like to come up with new ideas and I hope to be able to put them to good use. I think I just barely scratch the surface with a good thought and don’t know how to turn it in to a great new product. I’m hoping to learn this skill and make some positive changes. 

Bug List

Bug List: 20

1. It’s hard to stay focused: I bounce around between assignments, not able to just complete one at a time. That bugs me! It loses its efficiency that way, takes more time to revisit it and catch up to your thought processes.

I believe the reason why is three-fold: 1. I must do this at work: I will be working on a project, and someone needs help, or a new customer comes in. I must stop that and help them. Then there are more instances like that during the day until the work day ends. 2. I must do this at night for school keeping up to date between assignments/classes. 3. I must juggle all these things with personal deadlines, doctor appointments, car repairs, can’t stay up until 1:am doing homework, since I have to go to work and do it all again.

2. Being able to arrange all the lists (work, school, home) into one place. I make lists to help me stay focused, but there are so many lists and categories, that now takes up a lot of time! I bought a calendar to write it all down, but that is becoming a new chore. I like our digital school calendar, that is a big help since it populates itself according to our assignments. Maybe I should record all my work orders in a way that can be populated into a calendar with the two-week due date for delivery to the customer.

I know the reason is taking on too much each day. In my case it’s temporary while I’m taking classes, then, it will get easier. Plus my job is demanding as so much volume of products moves through our facility daily.

3. Why do people drive too slowly (when you’re trying to get to work on time) and yet there are those who ride up on top of you pushing you at the same time? If we could work from home, it might alleviate a lot of unnecessary accidents. Or, we could manage our time better and just have plenty of time to get to work/school/etc. Finally, maybe three lanes should be the minimum: fast, medium, and slow!

I believe the reason is just personality differences as well as deadline differences with people in general. The person in front of me may be off of work for the day or retired while the person behind me is late for work or perhaps has a real emergency to get to.

4. Why are there not enough hours in a day? I can never get everything done in a 24-hour period.

Does it go back to the problem of inefficiency from Bug 1? Probably. How can I change that? If a customer comes in (without an appointment- I encourage appointments) you must give them your full attention, it can’t be helped. Did I just answer my own question/solve my own problem? The answer is to encourage appointments and manage your time better. There needs to be a work or personal calendar app that allows you to make detailed entries, in less time. Maybe a microphone entry?

5. Why is my car’s maintenance light still on? (Why haven’t I taken it in yet for an oil change?)

Why do I procrastinate? Money, time, both? It would be nice to be able to make an appointment automatically…Ms. McDowall, we see your car needs an oil change. Would Monday morning at 8:am work for your schedule? Why, yes, it would!

6. Why is it so hard to get people to finish reading an email?  They usually miss a point or a crucial question. 

I would guess that the email is too long/lengthy, but I purposely keep them very short and to the point. Maybe we could make email live in that we can have listed items in bold and check boxes next to each bullet point. That could be emailed back to the sender. (Your email items have all be read).

7. Why do laptops have plugs on each side like mine (Dell) instead of in the back where they are out of the way? Trying to write in a notebook with limited desk space is daunting with the USB plug right there. 

Maybe they were in the way in the back as well? I’m not sure why, just know it’s tough to write on the right side. I am sure the problem is worse if you are left handed. There are even more plugs on the left side of my Dell.

8. Why are there so many snakes in my yard? What can be done to get them to move on away from my house? I don’t want to hurt them just want them away from me or others.

I live in front of a wooded area, so I think they like to bask in the sun in my yard. Or they want to escape the weather.  

9. Why aren’t there automatic dishwashers to wash as you go?  Just a dish or two at a time in a small device that gets hot as fast as a Keurig and washed /disinfects the dish ready to put away in less than a couple of minutes?  That would mean no longer loading up a dishwasher (yay) and no longer having dirty dishes in the sink.

Is it too costly to build or maintain? Or has no one tried it yet? 

10. Why aren’t there easier ways for people to call the police in a quiet way? Like a button they could have on themselves like a remote control that if they are in school, or in a movie theater and trying to hide for cover, they can silently call 911? It would also have a locator on it so the police can find you.

Maybe this one exists already?

11. Why can’t basic hurricane shutters be provided for people with lower incomes for their homes? Just basic painted wood. 

Too expensive?

12. Why aren’t there more homeless shelters or help for homeless people to remain dignified while they are getting back on track like basic shelters that rotate people in and out for say a week at a time? This way, they don’t get used to not looking for a solution (become complacent).

Too expensive perhaps, maybe there are too many homeless people to help all of them? 

13. Why is it so hard to get to sleep at night, then so hard to get up in the morning?

Is coffee to blame or caffeine in general? Possibly stress related?

14. Why can’t we make carts or something for homeless people to carry their items?  They could be lighter weight and could have larger wheels that roll easier than a shopping cart! Then, they could unfold it for a single bed to use at night. I see this same guy each afternoon on my break from work that struggles with his cart on the roadway (so unsafe). My heart goes out to him.

Again, maybe the problem is there is not enough funding to help all of them.

15. Why is it so hard to find quick healthy meals? How hard is it to make a salad, smoothie, or have soup ready for drive-thru folks? I have a half an hour for lunch and barely have time to make my own lunch the night before. Plus, I would prefer a hot, fresh cup of soup or sandwich over a stale one.

I’m not sure why because healthy food tastes better than typical fast food.

16. More ways to stay in touch. Skype and Face Time are wonderful apps for catching up, but they are short lived. Why aren’t there more digital games to play or things to do with friends or family members of all ages that are actually fun and allow us to interact digitally? Maybe you could watch a movie together that you rent.

There are lots of apps out there, I don’t know if this has been done before, but my daughter just moved to Colorado, so I’m looking for ways to keep in touch.

17. Why is my cat so hard to catch when it’s time to go to the vet or during an evacuation?  I’ve tried all the tricks and I cannot catch her. It really scares her (and me)! There has to be a better way!

No one can catch a cat? Maybe no one can sell an idea of trapping your cat. Maybe the approach should instead be to attract your cat to that area of enclosure.

18. Why don’t restaurants have little cold bags you can purchase to put your food in when you leave so you can go shopping or to a movie and your food stays fresh until you get home? The cost would have to be less than it would be to buy the meal you are saving.

People wouldn’t perhaps buy them often, but in high traffic shopping areas, it might really work.

19. Why can’t they make a lawn mower that is like the IRobot vacuum, but safe for automatic use?  Especially for yards with a fence! 

It could potentially hurt a child or animal, or your foot. Better to explore this idea a little further.

20. Why can’t we devise a thermostat in cars that when a certain temperature is reached, the windows open to let fresh air in, IF someone/something is detected in the car with a heartbeat? Maybe the app could just be an alert bracelet you wear, or an app for your smart watch to alert you that your baby is in distress?

Maybe this just hasn’t been finished yet. I’ll bet there are ideas flowing about this subject in the car industry especially.

This bug list wasn't too hard for me to write, I think about things like this all the time and I’m thrilled to have someone interested to hear my bugs! I know in general some ideas are terrible, have been done before, or exist currently. But it’s good to keep trying, especially in case it hasn’t been thought of before. I hope I can turn negatives into positives for everyone. If you have an idea you want to try out, where else can you safely submit it for testing to see if it’s feasible besides this class? Maybe we should create an app to have it ask 20 questions, or so, about ideas to see if they pass certain criteria for feasibility. You could submit it with your name and stamp on it that it’s your idea, unless someone else beat you to it.  

New Blogger Alert!

I have never created or worked with a blog before, so this should be fun. I look forward to seeing where this can go and how it can be used. This photo is a public domain photo downloaded from https://www.pexels.com. You may like to use this website for your blog as well. Have fun!