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After the lecture presented by Dr. Alexis Amye on the 2nd of November, I learned a lot of new skills as well as having my eyes opened to the entrepreneurial mindset. During the session on Friday Dr. Alexis Amye explained how the mindset of an entrepreneurial mindset works and how it thinks.

The main experience that I toke away from Fridays class was the on the spot presentation we had to accomplish. Where we were split in to groups and given a task of trying to secure a deal with a big company. We were only given a brief amount of time which put us all under tremendous time pressure. During this exercise I caught a glimpse in to the world of an business person.

As for Lori Greiners quote which states " A brilliant idea doesn't guarantee a successful invention.Real magic comes from a brilliant idea combined with willpower, tenacity and a willing ness to make mistakes" I completely agree with this statement. This quote is very similar to many sport quotes which say talent s nothing with out hard work.

In conclusion I believe that Fridays Session with Dr. Alexis Amye was very beneficial to my peers and I and will the lessons I learned will stand to me in the long run.

I agree with Dylan when he says that if we didn't have willingness to make mistakes then we would not have succeeded in our task o Friday.

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Our lecture with Dr. Alexis Amaye was an eye opener as I learned more about entrepreneurial thinking and that there is much more involved than just having an idea but having the will power and a willingness to make mistakes and to learn from the mistakes to ensure a successful idea. An entrepreneurial thinker will look at an obstacle as something that needs a solution rather than trying to avoid it. The task we were given was a great experience as we had to work as a team and we had to establish a plan of action under pressure. Dr. Alexis Amaye added to the pressure and added in obstacles that we had to overcome to ensure the presentation was ready on time. Our team worked well under pressure however most of us lacked the necessary confidence when asked questions. The task was very beneficial as we were able to use the concepts used in this lecture as well as some previous lectures when preparing our plan of action and when presenting the information.
I agree with Lori Grenier's quote that a great idea doesn't guarantee success but having the drive and motivation to not let obstacles hinder the success of the idea. I agree with Axis that on paper it seems much simpler. In theory the concepts we are introduced to seem much simpler than when we have to apply them.

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After the session on Friday the 2nd of November with Dr Alexis Amaye, I can wholeheartedly agree with Lori Greiner's reflection on ideas and the foundation that are required to turn them into reality. The class was split into groups and tasked with forming and developing a successful and efficient business model, and it was up to Alexis whether or not to accept the offer. I learned that in order to get the task done sacrifices had to be made. The idea that my team and I conjured at the start of the experiment had to be altered halfway through due to Alexis informing us of an unforeseen circumstance that affected our business plan negatively. In reflection, it took great tenacity and improvisation for the team to meet Alexis' demands even though we were faced with a major setback in the exercise.
In the lecture, Alexis also talked about how much extra effort and labour has to expended even after an individual has a "brilliant idea". She used the example of a mobile phone and how we take this advice for granted for the amount of factors that go into the production of the device and how it gets in the hand of the consumer. I learned that there are a great number of raw materials that go in to the mobile phone including glass, plastics and various metals, including cobalt, which needs to be sourced from war-torn countries with less than favourable infrastructures.
I think that I can look back on this session with Alexis and say that I learned that a brilliant idea is just the beginning of innovation, as a lot more factors have to be sourced through tenacity and willpower to put a finished product in your hand, and that sacrifices have to be made to achieve such innovation.
I agree with Joshua's observation that sometimes we must adapt to unforeseen circumstances, and this can be quite challenging but through hard work and a little sacrifice a solution can be resolved.

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Upon reflection of the session on Friday the 2ndof November I agree wholeheartedly with Lori Greiner’s quote. I found that Dr Alexis Amaye portrayed the idea of ‘entrepreneurial thinking’ very effectively and clearly highlighted the vast differences between starting a business and the notion of thinking in an entrepreneurial manner. There was one key concept which really stuck out in my mind whilst reviewing this session. The idea that when thinking entrepreneurially you do not view a problem as an obstacle as such but from the perspective of ‘what solution can I provide to this problem I’ve been faced with?’.  Lori Greiner’s quote reinforces many of the points of conversation in Friday the 2nd’s session. It highlights the resilience required as well as the risk involved in transitioning entrepreneurial thought into reality. During the session we were ambushed with the task of making and delivering a presentation on a hypothetical business scenario. We were subjected to time pressure and I felt that this this actually helped our team come together and work well as a unit as there was no time to mess around with. Overall I found the session very worthwhile.

In response to Dylan’s entry, I also found the questions and answers session at the end of the presentation rather enjoyable and I felt I provided competent answers to Dr Amaye’s questions.

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After attending "The Entrepreneurial Mindset Management" class explored by Dr. Alexis Amaye on Friday 2nd of November, I strongly agree with Lorie Grenier view that "a brilliant idea doesn't guarantee a successful invention" but rather "Real Magic comes from a brilliant idea combined with willpower, tenacity and a willingness to make mistakes".

At the beginning of the class, Dr. Amaye presented to us the various materials that is present in an everyday object such as the phone. She informed us of all the different materials that was present in the phone but to also take note of all the processes that went into the production of the phone. I believe she did this to emphasise how much work goes into producing these phones and how an entrepreneur needs to take initiative in order to produce a single phone which relates back to Lori Grenier view that you need to own a sense of tenacity.

Afterwards we were split into around eight groups each given a certain task, each group was either a start up glass making company or a start up juice company. My group was a start up juice company and we were given the task, of what processes and concerns we need to take into account in order to fulfil our first international order. On paper it sounds easy, but much harder in practice. So our group began by splitting into individual characters in the company such as the HR manager, Financial manager etc. We started off well, discussing all the various materials and processes needed to produce our juice drink. As we continued on with the task, I began to realise just how much planning and preparation goes into the production of just one juice drink reinforcing Lori's view that you need to have that "willingness" that "willpower".

Around halfway through the task we were given a problem of now having to deal with an additional cost. As a company we were able to resolve this problem by simply paying it off with our initial capital but it just goes to show how you need to be prepared for any problem and how sometimes more money, may not always be the answer.

I can relate to Eliza Connolly's response in how she was forced to "rethink" their methods of completing the task, as a group we also, had to revise our methods in order to find an answer to the problem.

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I 100% agree with Lori Grenier’s quote that it takes much more than just an idea to become successful and make money. It boils down to a lot of hard work and energy. The idea is only a stepping stone to turning it into a feasible product/service, and to do so requires determination and an ability to learn from mistakes.

This quote reminds me a lot about our session with Alexis Amaye on Friday the 2nd of November. Working in a group thought me a lot about how sometimes people’s opinions can differ from your own and you must find a way to accept other people’s views and work with them. I also learned that at times you are forced to adapt to change due to unforeseen circumstances, which can prove quite challenging. The talk also inspired me to become more innovative and take notice of things that I believe to be a nuisance, which could possibly be easier to use or of better quality. But on the other hand, I learned that entrepreneurship takes a lot of determination and willpower and is not just as simple as coming up with an idea. Capital plays a huge role in terms of whether an idea becomes commercialised or not.

In response to Karl’s entry, I thoroughly agree that there have been many ideas that had the potential to make millions, but the people who generated them, for numerous possible reasons, could not bring them into commercialisation.  Usually this is true due to the large capital investment needed to produce, package and distribute products to large markets.

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Upon reflection of the session we had with Alexis Amaye on Friday 2nd of November, I recall it to be a fruitful and impactful experience. The session was based on entrepreneurial thinking and problem solving. We were split into groups and there were two problems. Every second group were given a different problem and it proved to be challenging.

My group consisted of Leigh, Luke, Evan, Cain and myself. We were given the glass manufacturing problem. We had to produce a certain number of windows + PVC doors and find a way to export them to Britain and negotiate around the trade barriers that we were faced with, especially with Brexit. It was a testing challenge as neither of us had knowledge of the market or procedures that had to be undertook to produce such products. We were lucky that we had Luke in our group as he was an Engineering student last year which helped in places. For example, his chemical knowledge gave us insight into the raw materials that were needed. In the middle of our group discussion, Alexis came up with a problem for each of the original problems. She told us that throughout the year there was a fire in the warehouse and half of our stock had been burnt. This didn’t have the desired effect on the group Alexis would have wanted as we had brushed aside the new problem with ease. I think this can be related to Lori Greiner’s idea that “Real magic comes from a brilliant idea combined with willpower, tenacity and a willingness to make mistakes.” I think this can be likened to our problem of the loss of stock. We could have given up, but we pushed through and found a contingency plan to counteract the new challenge, showing great tenacity and willpower.

When we were finished, we had constructed a business plan that would win over our buyer Alexis who acted as the other side of the deal. Alexis was a tough customer and squeezed and poked each aspect of our plan. She praised us on how our plan was structured and that we had clearly defined each department and each role that we had. This was down to leadership and like the last time I enjoyed taking the lead on some aspects of the plan. As I said before I like to talk and not listen. With saying that, everyone in the group had an input and this also helped us to reach our end goal. This experience has also taught me that I wouldn’t like to enter this industry or market. There are a lot of variables that must be controlled and there are a lot of things that can go wrong, and thus I have learned that it is not for me.

With response to Karl, I would agree that the climate for entrepreneurs is not present for a majority of billion dollar ideas and hence why we loose so much innovation on a daily basis, this is where the Govt. must step in to norture a entrepreneurial friendly climate.

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Certainly I can relate to the below quote by Lori Grenier. It is possible to relate to a greater degree after the session which took place last Friday with Dr. Alexis Amaye. In my view, Dr. Amaye put us into a difficult situation when grouping us together to complete a task at which we had to think deeply and logically about which in turn would finish with a presentation of our work- an outcome of the in length discussion we had about our window manufacturing company, in theory.

Without having the willingness to make mistakes throughout the process, it is certain that we would not have been able to come up with the necessary material to present a positive and impressive image of our hypothetical business. The will power of the group and the tenacious nature in which we went about our work left us in good stead and allowed us to perform what I felt was a strong presentation and one which Dr. Amaye praised. I understood the importance of components such as determination and tenacity in aiding an already strong idea as a result.

In response to Eliza's entry, I agree that Dr. Amaye thought us that an entrepreneur must take risks, be innovative and think inspirational. This is a lesson of value moving forward.

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I agree with Lori Greiner’s quote that you need to consider multiple things before progressing with a brilliant idea. You need to take into account other aspects which lead to the brilliant idea progressing and growing into something bigger. You need to work hard and have patient, willpower and a willingness to make mistakes. You have to start somewhere and you must make mistakes so you can learn from them and move forward with your idea.

I found Dr. Alexis Amaye’s session very productive. Alexis allowed us to work together in groups of 5 or 6 to sell a certain product. She allowed us to plan what we have to take into consideration before researching deeper into what the task we have complete. We then had to research as best we can to understand all the steps in selling this product. Then we had to get up in front of the class and Alexis and try sell our product ‘Dragon’s Den’ style. We had to explain each of the steps taken into account before coming up with our final profit or loss figure. Alexis then quizzed us on why we did what we did at certain steps. I found this part enjoyable as we watched other classmates talk and see their interesting ideas also.

In response to Padraig’s Entry I agree that the group session brought on the entrepreneurial mindset. This allowed us to consider what an entrepreneur must think of when trying to complete a task.

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After attending Friday’s class with Dr. Alexis Amaye, I would agree with Lori Grenier’s quote. Having a million dollar idea isn’t enough to become successful you need hard work and entrepreneurial thinking to achieve it. Last Friday Alexis Amaye thought us an entrepreneur needs to be innovative, a role model, a risk taker and has inspirational thinking. These skills relate to Lori’s quote on entrepreneurship.

In our class last Friday with Dr. Alexis Amaye we did group work. For this we were given a product of a healthy drink with the extract from special leaves only found in Madagascar. We had to figure out the expenses and profits of this product. This was more challenging then I was expecting but when we all put our entrepreneurial thinking at work it helped us come up with creative ideas of getting the job done efficiently. Halfway through the task Dr. Alexis Amaye add an additional challenge to our task and we were forced to rethink our methods of completing the task.  Finally, we had to present our work to the class. This helped us practice our presentation skills which will be useful to have in the future. Overall, I found the session last Friday was very interesting and we practiced and lots of skills such as teamwork and presentation skills and we learnt how to use entrepreneurial thinking.

In response to Colin I would agree that we used willingness, tendency and willingness to make mistakes in our teamwork in our class last Friday.

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Lori Grenier's quote about entrepreneurship to me is an important quote and one that I agree with. It's not just enough having an idea, you have to work hard for your idea and be able to accept that you will make mistakes.

After after last Friday's session with Alexis Amaye on entrepreneurship, I gained insight on how a successful entrepreneur comes up with ideas and how they deal with challenges successfully. Alexis Amaye first began the session by describing the important characteristics that entrepreneurs have. She then gave us real life examples of this in the business world and in UCC itself. After this, we were then split into groups and given a task that we had to complete. On completing this task, we then had to present a presentation detailing how we completed the task. Our task was to make 2000 windows and 200 doors for a firm in the United Kingdom.

The first thing we did as a group was to talk amongst ourselves so that each member fully understood what the task was. Once we as a group fully understood what we had to do, each person was then given a specific task to do. My task was to research how we could import the materials we needed to make the windows and doors and how we could export our finished product to the U.K and how much this cost. However, around half way through the task Alexis Amaye presented each group with a problem that had to be dealt with. I learned from this that entrepreneurs have to be able to deal with problems in an effective and efficient manner otherwise they would not be able to complete their tasks.

Last Fridays session with Alexis Amaye was an eye opening one for me. I learned many things, including how important communication and delegation is in a group setting. Without it, some people in the group would not know what to do when working in the group. I also learned how that even though problems may be occurred when completing a task, the best entrepreneurs can overcome such problems.

I agree with Evan's statement that "There is a major element of risk involved in entrepreneurship" Each idea an entrepreneur comes up with will not succeed. Sometimes their idea will fail. However, the best entrepreneurs take these failures in their strides and don't let themselves get bogged down. They continue working to come up with the best ideas that they think will be successful.

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Critical Friends Circle - Entrepreneurship

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Guideline for the Critical Friends Circle Entry 

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Guideline for the Critical Friends Circle Entry 

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In your Critical Friends Circle (CFC) discuss Lori Grenier’s consideration of ‘being entrepreneurial’ in the context of the session on ‘The Entrepreneurial Mindset Management’ explored with Dr. Alexis Amaye on Friday 2 nd November.

Ensure that you post at least once AND respond to at least one post of one of your friends

This Circle Friends Circle Entry closes at 5pm on Weds 14 th November, 2018.