All it takes is to look at the world slightly differently

The expanding field of entrepreneurship is more diverse than I originally thought during the class discussing social entrepreneurs.There’s the typical entrepreneur who acts on a notion full of risk and innovation, and successfully creates a profitable company. There’s the social entrepreneur who undertakes a venture with a social mission. And then there’s the serial entrepreneur; an entrepreneur who continuously creates new businesses from new ideas and soon after passes on the responsibility of managing the company. The ability to constantly have an idea and promptly turn it into an innovative and multi-million dollar project is a unique and extraordinary characteristic of a serial entrepreneur. A common example of a serial entrepreneur is Evan Williams who founded Blogger, a social media company eventually bought by Google and of course, Twitter. However, you might wonder what is it about serial entrepreneurs that make them capable of so much innovation? Contrary to common belief, to be an entrepreneur does not mean “you have to be walking down the street and a bolt of lightning hits you and you get inspired to look at the world differently and come up with this brilliant new idea.” A common attribute of all entrepreneurs is the capability to understand what society is currently lacking and what they can do to address the problem, whether it is to create a fun social media website or an online shoe company. What makes the serial entrepreneur different is the need to keep creating, always being unsatisfied when the “easy” job of just running the company arrives.

Business dictionary: Serial entrepreneur. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.businessdictionary.com/definition/serial-entrepreneur.html

White, S. (2011, November 21).Serial entrepreneurs: How to find the next great idea. Retrieved from http://www.theglobeandmail.com/report-on-business/small-business/sb-growth/success-stories/serial-entrepreneurs-how-to-find-the-next-great-idea/article2239638/

You’ve heard of it. On CTV News, spread across the newspaper and most recently in Piper Hoekstra’s blog post. The Occupy Movement. You have the general gist in mind, something about a protest against economic inequality. But have you attempted to understand what the true message of the protest is, why it’s happening or how it will affect you? Having been constantly reminded that the world I live in is not perfect, I have tried to learn about the only “revolution” I can come somewhat close to experiencing.

On September 17, 2011, a crowd of protestors flooded Wall Street in haphazard formation with a main demand of “ending the influence money has over our representatives in Washington.” Participants branched off from the principal message with causes regarding the wealth divide, the lack of substantial health insurance, money spent on war, the multitudes of citizens who live in poverty and the ability of large corporations to manipulate government decisions. The protestors call themselves the “99 %”, emphasizing that the majority of citizens are at the low end of the economic scale. The catalyst of the movement is believed to be the successful protests in Egypt, which led to the removal of President Mubarak. Many people have turned a blind eye to the events happening in Zuccotti Park, however there are those who are completely against blaming Wall Street or the government for the individuals’ struggles, known as the 53%. All in all, it is still unclear how the ultimate result of the protests will affect everyone’s daily life. However, it is crucial to realize that there are an enormous number of problems within today’s society and that the real value of the movement comes from the reality that people are willing to fight for solutions.

Craig, G. (2011). What is occupy wall street and should you care?. Retrieved from http://freefrombroke.com/what-is-occupy-wall-street-and-should-you-care/

Occupy wall street- how did it all begin?. (2011, November 4). Retrieved from http://www.onlyinfographic.com/2011/occupy-wall-street-how-did-it-all-begin/

Timson, J. (2011, October 13). Why did occupy wall street take so long to happen?. Retrieved from http://www.theglobeandmail.com/life/relationships/news-and-views/judith-timson/why-did-occupy-wall-street-take-so-long-to-happen/article2200498/page2/

The revolution of online shopping

While reading Kyle Yoshida’s blog post describing Lululemon’s launch of the option to buy products online, I began thinking of what an online sales platform needs to thrive. Selling products and services online have exclusive challenges which are typically not found in stores. Examples of such issues include shipping and handling and an automated sales system. However, possibly the most significant difficulty in selling goods online is being able to portray the product as if the customer was browsing in store. Is there a way to make the online shopping experience equivalent, or even better than walking through congested aisles and searching through endless hangers? As online transactions and sales are rising exponentially, it would appear that companies are doing something right. From user-friendly sites, to incredibly discounted prices, and even virtual fitting rooms, battling crowds at the local mall during the holiday season seems less and less appealing. Of course, online shopping does have a higher risk of a mistake happening in your order (a parka instead of a backpack maybe?), however companies ensure that consumers have a dedicated customer service centre willing and able to assist with any problems. The revolution of online shopping is expanding aggressively, and most certainly not at its end.

Graham, P. (n.d.). The 10 secrets of selling online. Retrieved from http://store.yahoo.com/secrets.html

Yoshida, K. (2011, October 31). Lululemon update: Inventory woes could persist, company moves to launch online sales [Web log message]. Retrieved from https://blogs.ubc.ca/kyleyoshida/2011/10/31/lululemon-update-inventory-woes-could-persist-company-moves-to-launch-online-sales/

h.u.m.a.n

An article I recently read described a new company focused on creating vending machines which only sells snacks high in nutritional value. “I left the sports club in search of fuel, but couldn’t find anything healthy for five square blocks,” Kelly says. “. The founder, Sean Kelly launched the company in 2009 and entitled it h.u.m.a.n Healthy Vending (helping unite man and nutrition). The vending machines are bigger however, they are also more efficient, accept debit and credit, and run ads describing the importance of a healthy lifestyle. Already selling 500 vending machines, Kelly hopes to expand into schools, gyms and office buildings by the end of 2011. H.u.m.a.n. is considered entrepreneurial based on many characteristics, one of which being the risk involved in the start up. Vending machines have always been associated with guilt-inducing snacks that are not linked with nutrition. Running against the status quo entails high risk yet also means innovation. Without innovation, h.u.m.a.n. would be just like any other small business. By striving to change the way society thinks and acts on a daily basis, Kelly has climbed into the world of entrepreneurship, connecting convenience and health like never before.

A definition of entrepreneurship. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.quickmba.com/entre/definition/

Daley, J. (2011, May 24). How h.u.m.a.n. is breaking through as the next-generation snack machine. Retrieved from http://www.entrepreneur.com/article/219671