Lesson 8

Find your focus

After reading the JetBlue Case Study, I learned that in order to be successful in our own businesses, we must find our focus and never deviate.  In my other class, we read a Harvard Business Review article that discussed the prescriptions to creating an entrepreneurial ecosystem.  One of the prescriptions discussed was to stress the roots.  I think, for the purposes of the JetBlue Case, the roots would be their focus on customer service.  We must find the roots of our business, whether it is a focus on customer service like that of JetBlue or a focus on product quality, or a focus on efficiency of service.  All of these foci have been proven by numerous business and some work in certain industries while others do not.  It all depends on how you choose to define your business and your focus.

For my 100.00 challenge business, I think I have identified and define my focus as the roots.  By roots, I mean the simplicity of the products we make.  Because my business is based upon home recipes, which generally are quite simple, you achieve the simple pleasures that come along with eating such recipes.  Now that I have identified my focus, I can continue on with a renewed vigor and direction.

Lesson 7

Capability, Collaboration, and Character...

Carly Fiorina, the Former CEO of Hewlett-Packard, mentions that the three defining characteristics of leadership are capability, collaboration, and character.  The world, as I see it, understands and has major focus on two of them.  The two that the business world focuses on are: Capability and Collaboration.  They do not have enough of a focus on character.  Character seems to be a big word in the business world.  Almost to the point of being a joke in some instances.

Many people think that character and ethics is the only something that corporate and HR are required to tell us.  However, there are also others that believe that, in order of importance, character would be the top of the list of defining characteristics of leadership.  I happen to be one of them.  Someone could be the smartest, most apt, or most qualified.  But, if they are not honest in their dealings, and have a high standard of personal integrity, I DO NOT want to work with them.

Speaking of working, I LOVE my new job at Sprint.  The reason I like it so much is because I truly feel like I am making a difference.  Just a side note, though.

The $100.00 challenge is coming along, I have begun to make my test batches of my product and I am going to schedule a meeting with my friend to hash out all the details on selling my product at his shop.  Even though my personal life is stressful because of moving issues, my professional and academic life are coming along.

Till next time...

Lesson 6

Honesty and Integrity

In one of my other classes this semester, we are talking about honesty and integrity in business and why it is so important.  I concluded that it is necessary because it helps stabilize the volatility of the economy.  When someone chooses to act dishonestly in business, someone else is affected negatively.

My conclusion was definitely validated today.  My wife and I are in the process of finding a new apartment.  We had a deposit down on a unit and we went to sign the lease today.  We asked to inspect the unit first, and I am sure glad we did.  We walked and we were floored by the poor condition of the unit and the differences between this unit and the model that we fell in love with. We were told the previous tenants were not smokers, but it smelled like smoke and there were cigarettes on the patio outside.  I felt scammed and extremely disappointed.

I just wanted to share that experience because I thought it had a great parallel.  As far as this class' material is concerned, Stew Leonard's experience with customer service stood out to me more than anything.  He realized how important customers are to a business from his experience with the eggnog (and with a little wisdom from his wife).  Customers are the most important of a business, because they alone determine the future of your company.

However, customers are not just external consumers of your product or service, but also your employees, which are your most valuable asset.  I would submit that you can apply the principles of customer service to your employee relationships as well.  These qualities include: respect, a sense of belonging, and a genuine attitude that they are valued.

My $100.00 challenge is still coming along, not as fast as I hoped it would though.  I have been incredibly busy with work, and moving and other things that I have not spent much time developing my product and eventually selling it.  However, my plan is to spend a significant amount of time on it this week.

Till next time...

Lesson 5

And a challenge it certainly is...

I admit, I have been shirking in my responsibilities in school.  That is why I have not visited the blogosphere in a while.  Plus, my life has been overwhelming these past couple of weeks.  My mom has been in and out of the hospital with complications from a surgery, and I attended a training session in Atlanta for my new internship with Sprint.  This week was a great learning experience as well as a perspective changer.  I noticed many instances where I applied the concepts I learned in this business program.  I also had a direct parallel to our training and this week's material.

During training, we discussed our personal brand as it pertains to our conduct and professionalism at work.  I think there is a great lesson to be learned that we are our own personal brand and we are constantly marketing ourselves during our careers as entrepreneurs or as employees.  Guy Kawasaki talked about constantly improving our brand by being likable and improving our "Pan-Am" smile.

As far as the $100.00 challenge goes, not much progress has been made because I have been so busy.  However, I have drafted a plan on how to tackle the initial product manufacturing.  I am going to make a test batch at home, and then work into larger batches using a local meat market's equipment.  Although I am going to be really busy, I welcome the challenge.

Till next time...