Week 3 Reading Reflection

After reading Chapter 2 “The Entrepreneurial Mind-Set in Individuals: Cognition and Ethics”, the biggest surprise of this particular chapter is psychic risk. Psychic risk is described as being the greatest risk to the well-being of the entrepreneur. It occurs when entrepreneurs are not able to bounce back after suffering financial catastrophes. I had never heard this term before, and it was shocking that a psychological block due to one failure is such a risk to entrepreneurs. A confusing aspect of chapter 2 was in the section about “The Grief Recovery Process”. I’m particularly confused about why it states that ignoring and pushing aside a specific failure is a better process. I had previously thought that addressing you failure head on was healthier, but apparently I was wrong. If I were able to ask the author Donald F. Kuratko two questions, the first question would be “Is the Grief Recovery Process the most effective approach for every entrepreneur's failure, every time?” The second would be "How can an energetic drive be a potential dark side of entrepreneurship?” Overall, I do not think that the Kuratko is incorrect about anything mentioned in this reading. I do not disagree with anything, but would rather prefer he delved more into the dark side of entrepreneurship.

Identifying Local Opportunities

1. Rock Gym faces unstable ground, buoyed by locals' support

 http://infoweb.newsbank.com/resources/doc/nb/news/15A7E65B287302D0?p=AWNB

Description:
Due to the unfortunate recent discovery of cracked and sinking concrete slabs, The Gainesville Rock Gym has temporarily been forced to close. The gym previously had plans to expand their gym due to it's enormous popularity and success, but those plans are paused for now. The 400 active members and its 10,000 monthly customers will receive free or reduced climbs from other rock gyms in surrounding areas until the foundation is fixed.

Problem:
The main problem in this situation is the forced laying off of 20 employees at Gainesville Rock Gym. Another issue is that rock climbers in Gainesville have to go to a different gym until the necessary $100,000 is raised to fix the foundation.

2. GPD video goes viral: Police officer's response to kids playing basketball a slam dunk

http://infoweb.newsbank.com.lp.hscl.ufl.edu/resources/doc/nb/news/15A8E38FB89DA700?p=AWNB

Description: I'm sure you've heard this story already, as it has gone national thanks to a follow up from Shaq. Two weeks ago there was a dispatch call to GPD about a group of kids causing a disturbance in an Alachua county neighborhood. Upon arrival, Officer Bobby White discovered three African American kids playing basketball. It has been inferred that the race of the boys was the reason for the call. Instead of stopping the kids, the officer joined their basketball game, and then even more kids showed up to play. The video concludes with a statement that people need to stop calling about "kids being kids" and let the officers worry about real crime.

Problem: While this story is great for publicity for GPD, there is a problem with officers being dispatched in non-emergency situations. If this continues, there could be a real issue with officers not being available in case of a real crisis.

3. Vellos closes, Buffalo Wild Wings opens

http://infoweb.newsbank.com/resources/doc/nb/news/15A6696306A50108?p=AWNB

Description: This article is about a new business coming to downtown Gainesville. Buffalo Wild Wings is opening its doors at the location where Vello's has been for six years. The article also mentions stories about other locations in Gainesville that are either expanding, relocating, or completely changing into something else.

Problem: The problem is with restaurants in Gainesville that seem to be popular are closing their doors for common chain restaurants. The owner claims that he simply had the wrong concept in that location.

4.  Gainesville man gets 270-day jail sentence in puppy death

http://infoweb.newsbank.com.lp.hscl.ufl.edu/resources/doc/nb/news/15A9388B69AA9488?p=AWNB

Description: A Gainesville man was sentenced to 270 days in jail for animal cruelty. After having his pit bull mix puppy for only 2 days, Meldwige Gregoire returned the animal to Animal Services, but this time it was dead. The puppy had evidence of severe abuse including stomping on the puppy's back and hind legs, and kicking the dogs ribs. Gregoire claims the injuries were the result of"discipline".

Problem: The problem here is that this man should have never been allowed to adopt this puppy. There needs to be background checks with a waiting period before someone is allowed a puppy.

5. Dogs patronize Gainesville restaurants, never pick up tab

http://infoweb.newsbank.com/resources/doc/nb/news/15A88EA81308DD20?p=AWNB

Description: This article explained the increasing popularity of restaurants allowing dogs inside during operating hours. However, these establishments do not have the proper permits to do so. Only 5 businesses in the Gainesville area have these permits, but others are trying to join the dog-friendly trend in an illegal fashion.

Problem: The problem is that theses negligent businesses can face a hefty fine for allowing dogs into the establishment without the proper permit. This can cause sanitary problems and risk hefty fines if the restaurants in question do not either stop this practice or go through the proper procedure to allow dogs inside.

Very Short Interview No. 1

I interviewed my boyfriend's father, John Moor, for this post. Mr. Moor owns his own orthopedic surgery practice in Sarasota, Florida. He started Advanced Sports Medicine Center about 25 years ago, and the practice has been extremely successful ever since.

I called Mr. Moor while he was in between surgeries on a regular afternoon full of breaking bones and putting them back together. He was on speaker phone with me while Jordan, his son/my boyfriend, was sitting nearby, constantly interrupting my questions with humorous quips of his own.

Question 1 : What do you think is the most important thing for an entrepreneurship class to teach?
       Mr. Moor: "Accounting. It's often overlooked by people just starting out. All the self-made guys will tell you that everything is based on accounting. You need to know how you're doing and where your going, and the numbers will tell you everything you need to know."

Question 2 : What's the biggest obstacle you've had to overcome?
       Jordan Moor (trying to be funny): "Oh he didn't have any clients when he started. He hurt people just so they'd need him to give them surgery."
       Mr. Moor: "Actually, no. Government was the biggest issue. Their overhead costs are non stop roadblocks when I was trying to get things started, and even now they sometimes get in the way. And for the record, I've never injured anyone to get their business, but thanks for that Jordan."

Question 3 : What does it mean to you to be an entrepreneur?
       Mr. Moor: "Being an entrepreneur means that I get to do things my way. I get to select the best and do things the easiest, most efficient way. It's better than being in a group making decisions, I get to make the important snap decisions that I want. I am considered to be in the 99% of my peer group, and that is only because I work for myself."

This interview, while very short, was quite eye-opening for me. When creating these questions, I couldn't help but thinking of the answers I assumed Mr. Moor would give. I was surprised that his answer for the first question was accounting, when I assumed he would've said perseverance and dedication. I also learned a lot about Mr. Moor and his pride for what he's made for himself. I never knew how important is is to be able to make your own decisions in the medical industry, but it makes a lot of sense. When someones life is on the line, you need to make snap decisions and not have to worry about clearing the decision with a board of directors. Overall, I'm very glad that I decided to do this very short interview on Mr. Moor. It just goes to show that this class and the blog posts are opening my eyes to things I never would have known otherwise.

World's Biggest Problems

1. Terrorism - One of my first memories is of 9/11. Terrorist attacks have been a normal thing for my whole life, but that should not be the case. This global problem causes too many senseless deaths and destruction. With all of the easy access to weapons and technology, this problem has the potential to keep escalating until World War III happens. I think a solution could be to improve religious and racial acceptance. Until everyone starts to understand and love one another, there will continue to be senseless violence.

2. Racism - Similar to terrorism, this problem is worldwide. It has recently escalated particularly in this nation. People hating other people solely on the color of their skin is causing a rift that ends only in violence. The only solution is for everyone to practice tolerance, starting from teaching children at a young age that everyone is equal. Stopping this senseless prejudice will take time, but is for the well-being of everyone.

3.Gender Equality - This issue may be seen as not as important in comparison to the others on this list, but it is a big problem still. Sexism is seen is multiple aspects of modern culture.The most significant aspect is based upon gender expectations. No one should be told what they should and shouldn't be. To solve this issue, society needs to change. Once again, humanity needs to teach children from a young age that everyone was equal.

4. Starvation - While this problem is not in the forefront of society, it's one of the worst. Many Americans gorge themselves on a daily basis while millions around the world are dying from getting nothing to eat.  This issue isn't exciting or controversial, so people don't talk about it. Awareness is key here, people need to know that they can help if they try. The first step to solving this problem is teaching people to simply give more and take less. Selflessness is the only solution.

5. Big Game Hunting - This problem is only relevant because of a select number of horribly inhumane people. Hunting the world's most powerful and beautiful creatures is not only terribly cowardly, but it affects the ecosystem and balance of the food chain. There needs to be a worldwide ban on any hunting of protected or endangered species, with consequences that are extremely harsh. If the hunters don't think they'll be punished, they will continue.

6. Poverty - Poverty is everywhere in the world. You could travel to the most wealthy city in the world and still see people begging on the streets. The definition of poverty differs worldwide, but it highlighted by not being able to fulfill the basic human needs of food, water, and shelter. The only solution has to start with less selfishness, and continue into the future with helping hands for those who need it.

7. Pollution - This is the one problem that truly does affect everyone globally. Not only are we damaged by pollution, all future for this world is potentially damaged. There are places where citizens cannot enjoy being outside or even commute properly without risk of lung damage from smog. This world is the only one we have, and we need to try to keep it clean for ourselves and the future. Creating new laws and regulations to stop pollution is the probable solution.

8. Suicide - This problem is not advertised enough as being something solvable. Society sees it as a tragic occurrence, but isn't doing anything to stop their ridiculous standards that tend to cause suicide in the first place. The only solution to this problem is to teach love and acceptance. Loving yourself and loving others would do wonders for cutting down on the senseless suicides in the world.

9. Rape - This problem is very personal to me. Rape is a significant problem, especially in the college culture. It is not condemned or taken as seriously as it should be. Rape also doesn't mean just to women, rape of men needs to be taken much more seriously. People may joke about it, but it is not a laughing matter at all. We need to publicly condemn rape and institute harsher punishments for those who commit it.

10. War - This problem is as universally recognized as they come. War has always been around, and will probably never stop occurring. The only solution is to try to resist as much of the senseless violence as possible, so that not as many wars break out in the first place. Promoting world peace and universal love is a step in the right direction.