Week Two Reading Reflection

I really enjoyed reading the first chapter in this book. One of the ways the chapter surprised me was in defining entrepreneurship. I had always lumped franchise owners, who are actually small business owners, in with entrepreneurs. I never thought of the reality there is a difference.

When speaking about the macro view of entrepreneurship, I had to look up what an external locus point of view was because I did not know and it created confusion. 

If I were to have the opportunity to speak to author and ask them two questions they would be:

1) Other than creating this text book, which is probably a lucrative endeavor, what have you done as an entrepreneur?

2) What is the biggest setback you personally have has as an entrepreneur?

            The only portion I have some disagreement with is Myth number 5, entrepreneurs must fit the profile. While I agree there is no definitive list every entrepreneur must fit in order to be successful, my experiences with successful entrepreneurs have shown that they all do have some consistent traits, such as a persevering attitude.

My Bug List

Bug List

Here are twenty things that just BUG me!

1.      I received a FitBit flex for Christmas- the clasp sucks so bad I already lost it in some parking lot.

Why does this problem exist? In an effort to be cheap, FitBit has made a clasp that jut pushes through rubber and can easily be pulled out during routine activities- seems kind of silly considering it is an activity tracker.

2.      YouTube has too many commercial, I miss the days where they were rarely there.

Why does this problem exist? In pursuit of higher profits, YouTube had to allow more commercials.

3.      Groupon Goods takes too long to ship.

Why does this problem exist? Either I am spoiled by Amazon and two day shipping, or Groupon does not have an efficient shipping department.

4.      Umbrella strollers break too easily. The wheels get all wacky.

Why does this problem exist? The product is cheaply made.

5.      The battery life on my Kindle Fire bites.

Why does this problem exist? I assume they gave up some of their well-known quality in an effort to produce a low cost tablet.

6.      The payday loan person who somehow got my number and calls 3-4 times a day.

Why does this problem exist? Because it is too easy to have ones information sold to companies.

7.      Long lines at Walmart.

Why does this problem exist? To cut costs by not having enough employees.

8.      The pressure salesman at Bluegreen Vacations who know they are selling a horrible product.

Why does this problem exist? Because people respond to pressure sales and deals that will only last “today”.

9.      Blog sites that have too many ads, and have ads that just start playing.

Why does this problem exist? Bloggers have to make money too- it makes ads unavoidable.

10.  I am writing my bug list in word and my computer just lost seven of the things I had come up with for my bug list.

Why does this problem exist? I didn’t save like I should, and for some reason auto-save wasn’t working either.

11.  I hate that I have to merge onto the interstate from the left every day when I take my son to day care.

Why does this problem exist? The spot I get on the interstate at was added as an afterthought.

12.  My van needs a part that can only be installed by the manufacturer in order for the keyless entry and automatic doors to start to work again, and of course they are charging a ton even though I can buy the part for $60 online.

Why does this problem exist? Greedy car companies.

13.  The intersection of Davis Hwy, University Pkwy and Olive Rd. is sooo backed up during rush hour.

Why does this problem exist? The lights work against each other.

14.  Between my toddler and my fiancé, the remote for the Blu-ray player is always missing. Since we don’t have cable and watch Netflix this creates an issue.

Why does this problem exist? Neither one of them knows how to put the remote in the same spot every time they are done using it.

15.  I can never get a direct flight to places I travel, I am always stuck going through Atlanta.

Why does this problem exist? Because I live in a small city, so it must go through hubs.

16.  The UPS and FedEx guys can never deliver things to my house, they always deliver my stuff to the neighbors.

Why does this problem exist? Negligence on the part of the delivery driver.

17.  Talk radio in the morning. I just want to hear some music!

Why does this problem exist? I assume most people like talk radio in the morning, and I am an outlier.

18.  My Facebook feed always changes to Top Stories instead of Most Recent.

Why does this problem exist? Facebook is trying to put its will over mine….but really I don’t know. I assume it is some Facebook thing.

19.  Mr. Potato Head is pretty much guaranteed to lose most his parts in less than two days.

Why does this problem exist? Because kids are kids, and Mr. Potato Head has a lot of parts.

20.  I went to check on the status of a school book I still haven’t received and the FedEx sight is down for maintenance.

Why does this problem exist? Because they have to do maintenance sometime.

Reflection:

I had a hard time coming up with twenty items. With the amount of choices available, I do not have to continue with services or activities that annoy me. That leaves me with the few annoyances that my family creates. It was interesting trying to figure out why issues exist, versus just accepting the issues as they are.