14A- Halfway Relfection

1.     This course requires a lot of work.  It’s very hands on, in a way that requires some time to do right.  A lot of time is spent doing interviews and reflecting upon what you have learned. For me, it’s been about clearing one day a week to go somewhere and find people to interview.  I have to write down key points while I’m interviewing, so I can remember what I learn and draw conclusions back on that.  You have to be disciplined or you won’t get as much out of the class as you put in.

2.     I remember when I was doing the interviews for people who should have been in my boundary but weren’t.  I was asking people what was wrong with my product, or why they wouldn’t be interested.  I had done a lot on this opportunity at this point, and I was fairly optimistic about the outlook.  However, many of they had pretty negative things to say about the idea.  It was difficult to take that kind of criticism, especially about something I thought was such a good idea.  The more I thought about it though, there were so many other consumers that did fit inside my boundary.  I think that when you hear bad news, and you will, it’s important to focus on the good things in your business. I think that through the process of sorting out my idea, and talking to people about it every week, I have become more tenacious.

3)   

      -Do your interviews early, it gives you more time to digest what your interviewees said and draw conclusions.

      -Take the news somehow.  Being more informed can give you more ideas on opportunities and will really help in this class.

      -Be open to criticism.  Read the comments on your blog posts.  They will give you ideas on how to improve upon yourself.