February 6th
Discovering your creative problem solving is one of the most essential skills that an entrepreneur should possess, in order to develop creative and imaginative solutions to the challenges they face in their businesses. Developing business creativity skills is necessitated by the process of generating and finding new problems and opportunities, conceptualizing challenges, optimizing it into practical plans and solutions, and driving implementation effectively.
February 7th
I learnt that creativity training is composed majorly of breaking barriers that hinder creativity. This can be achieved through the practice of fun which is achieved by working on projects that one is passionate with, fighting the mental fears that people may hold as entrepreneurs, and changing the perspectives that we hold on a challenge.
February 8th
Fostering collective creativity is enhanced through the decision to practice vulnerability by the leadership, which describes their fears and thoughts so that other people can relate to them, and their experiences. This builds organizational compassion which allows innovativeness to become widespread.
February 9th
The use of a value-oriented approach in developing brand loyalty was modeled by SEER. It leads to the growth and development of a firm’s authentic purpose which functions as a competitive advantage within a highly competitive brand landscape. Eventually, this leads to consumer loyalty. For instance, the consumers advocate for the brand because of their emotional attachment to it.
February 10th
Defining authentic purpose is made possible by using the value-based approach. The use of the social, ethical, and environmental responsibility captures most of the contemporary values of the 21st Century. It is also argued that the SEER model encompasses the most pertinent issues that face corporate organizations in the modern times.
February 11th
What characterizes people who are involved in starting businesses in the United States? It has been observed that educational attainment is a great predictor of entrepreneurial activities, particularly for the black and Hispanic males. It was observed that a reasonable percentage of the individuals that graduate from this population segment launch entrepreneurial ventures. It was also observed that high levels of household income also had a relationship with the creation of new businesses.
February 12th
The Buyers Life Cycle refers to the processes that make the consumers to idealize the brand and develop a consumer-brand relationship. This implies that the brand evokes its image and perception in the customer’s mind. It is focused on creating excellent customer loyalty by connecting the authentic purpose of a brand with the values that are held by consumers. This is achieved through the process of accurately presenting a brand’s core message, various channels and platforms on which it presents itself, and enhancing product and service experiences. It can also be achieved by taking measurements of the strategy that is employed accurately.
February 13th
Pitching an idea presents an entrepreneur with a chance to make an effective value proposition to different stakeholders. It is argued that an ineffective idea pitch can be the hindrance to investment opportunities, and decrease or reduce an individual’s collaboration prospects.
February 14th
A pitch is developed and compiled through various stages that follow a well-developed and logical structure, which will provide the investors and other interested stakeholders all the relevant information that they need to make an accurate and informed decision. A pitch is developed to effectively communicate persuasion and emotions. This will lead the investors to think critically and generate an action.
February 15th
Tips for an Effective Pitch
It is suggested that a pitch should last an average of 90 seconds. The following was listed has the most effective way to utilize the pitch time granted.
- In 5 seconds the entrepreneur should tell his name and the name and nature of his product and business.
- In 15 seconds he should tell an interesting story or ask a question that will evoke emotions of empathy and understanding in the audience of the marketplace problems that they face.
- In 30 seconds the entrepreneur should provide a description of the innovative solution that they process to the above outlined problem. In this they show the uniqueness and innovation of their idea and describe how it will help address the customer’s pain.
- In 25 seconds the entrepreneur should describe their value proposition. In this they show the relevance and advantage of their business concept over other existing solutions. They also outline their product and service superiority that will grant them market share
- In 15 seconds, the entrepreneur should specify the capital that they are seeking and from how what number of investors and they should also seek their interest in engaging with their business plan as potential investors.
February 16th
In this section, the Dos and Don’ts of a pitch were explored. These included simple rules and suggestion to keep to memory during a pitch process.
- It is suggested that the entrepreneur should memorize the pitch, most importantly the opening, closing and transitions parts of the pitch. An entrepreneur should never read a pitch or even consider the use of notes.
- Technical jargon and language should be avoided at all cost. An entrepreneur should always consider the use of analogies. They should also not be afraid to express their excitement and passion for the innovation under presentation.
- Factors that may cause the listener to question the credibility of an entrepreneur such as the use of vague generalities and huge numbers should be distanced away from. All claims made by the entrepreneur should be accompanied with credible facts that are based on research.
- PowerPoint slides should be avoided or used wisely as they may distract the audience, especially if the PowerPoint slides are too many in number or they are too crowded with words. Listeners may be tempted to stop listening while they struggle to read the written texts on slides.
- The panelists’ questions should be answered concisely and quickly. The entrepreneur should attempt to answer all the questions asked.
February 17th
Using Analogy to Change Perspective is essential in the process of a pitch. This can be done by communicating personal analogies that we identify emotionally. We can then develop a potential compressed conflict that is relatable to the idea under presentation.
February 18th
During the entrepreneurial process, the entrepreneur should develop and maintain momentum that will help them to stir-up ideas in other minds.
February 19th
An innovative strategy is developed by creating new market linkages through the use of new or improved technological competencies that challenges the existing market structures.
February 20th
I learnt that disruptive innovation enables or enhances development of a new market and value network. This leads to the disruption of these developments (new markets and value networks).
February 21st
Intellectual property refers to a legal ideology that offers exclusive rights and recognition to the creations of the mind.
February 22nd
The Protection of Intellectual Property extends to intangible assets which comprise musical, literary, and works of art. Common intellectual property rights include copyrights, trademarks, and industrial design rights.
February 23rd
Sustaining strategy is the kind that fosters improved performance of existing products in aspects that create sustainable value to the existing customer base. It is mostly used by firms that have substantial dedicated assets and integration. It can be readily absorbed or imitated by competitors.
February 24th
Disrupting strategy is a kind of strategy that is focused towards the long-term and involves a business model that creates sufficient profits at the discount prices demanded to attract the low-end consumers. It requires asymmetric skills and motivation and is meant to disrupt the significant competitive players within a market.
February 25th
Programmed problems advocate for a singular right answer and formula. They are also analytical problems with their facts relatively clear. Non-Programmed Problems are the kinds that have no single right answer and no defined formulas to follow. They are also unstructured and messy with too much or too little data.
February 26th
An innovative result involves the various elements that lead to innovative results. These are content knowledge, diverse background, connection to the problem and problem solving preference.
February 27th
Innovative Results Equation comprises of content, principles, skills, processes, tools and the defined functions for each member of the group involved in the problem solving situation.
February 28th
It is thought the process of flexing creativity muscles involves the process of diverging, converging and deferral of judgment, avoiding killer phrases, and the use of brainstorming practices.
March 1st
The functional roles of innovators within a problem solving situation involves the understanding of the process and the content.
March 2nd
Reframing a problem involves being imaginative and factual in order to enable easy development of the creative problem-solving process.