Halfway Reflection
This course is not for the person who wants an easy-A, no effort course. Introduction to Entrepreneurship requires you to constantly communicate with other people and to question yourself. You are forced to constantly rack your brain for ideas and to implement them in the real world. In order to keep up with the requirements for the course, I had to take notes every day. Not necessarily on the lectures, but rather on the thoughts that popped into my brain throughout the week. I also had to dedicate a large amount of time to finding and talking to different people. I had to work on my social skills in order to be comfortable contacting and approaching strangers, and had to work on my memory and presentation skills.
This course is not for the faint-hearted. I considered dropping the course many times due to the high-level of rigor that it requires. If I am being completely honest, the reason that I did not drop this class is because of the fees that I would have paid, but I am glad that this was the case. I had to spend many Friday nights finishing assignments that I could not do throughout the week because of my work schedule, but I appreciated the feeling of perseverance that this instilled in me. The picture below shows a "Cry Closet" that was added at a library at the University of Ohio. There were definitely times in this class where I wish I had a similar place because of how overwhelmed I have felt, but I have made it through. I have not missed any assignments yet and the grading system encourages me by providing me with numeric data to show me how close I am to the end of the course.
If I were to make any recommendations for this course, it would be to:
1. Read through every assignment at the beginning of the week. Make sure that you have an idea of how long each will take you and what information you will need to complete them. I often completed each assignment after I listened to the lecture because it was helpful for me to hear an explanation but I always knew how long each would take me to complete it once the lecture was over. This allowed me to budget my time as effectively as I could.
2. Work ahead whenever you can. This will help keep you focused and to keep your brain together. Do not wait until Friday to watch the lectures and complete all of the assignments because you will get overwhelmed and will be unable to come up with ideas to complete many of the assignments.
3. Brainstorm! Take Notes! Keep a Journal! This class will require you to pull ideas from your own brain through out the whole class. You have to think of different business ideas, people to interview, and ways to market products. This is nearly impossible to do in one sitting. This class will force you to be an entrepreneur 24/7 and you need to prepare yourself for that mindset. Be prepared to think about this class at work, at the gym, or out with friends.
Entrepreneurs have to work hard and think about their ideas all the time. That is also what you will have to do to succeed in this course. Good luck!
This course is not for the faint-hearted. I considered dropping the course many times due to the high-level of rigor that it requires. If I am being completely honest, the reason that I did not drop this class is because of the fees that I would have paid, but I am glad that this was the case. I had to spend many Friday nights finishing assignments that I could not do throughout the week because of my work schedule, but I appreciated the feeling of perseverance that this instilled in me. The picture below shows a "Cry Closet" that was added at a library at the University of Ohio. There were definitely times in this class where I wish I had a similar place because of how overwhelmed I have felt, but I have made it through. I have not missed any assignments yet and the grading system encourages me by providing me with numeric data to show me how close I am to the end of the course.
If I were to make any recommendations for this course, it would be to:
1. Read through every assignment at the beginning of the week. Make sure that you have an idea of how long each will take you and what information you will need to complete them. I often completed each assignment after I listened to the lecture because it was helpful for me to hear an explanation but I always knew how long each would take me to complete it once the lecture was over. This allowed me to budget my time as effectively as I could.
2. Work ahead whenever you can. This will help keep you focused and to keep your brain together. Do not wait until Friday to watch the lectures and complete all of the assignments because you will get overwhelmed and will be unable to come up with ideas to complete many of the assignments.
3. Brainstorm! Take Notes! Keep a Journal! This class will require you to pull ideas from your own brain through out the whole class. You have to think of different business ideas, people to interview, and ways to market products. This is nearly impossible to do in one sitting. This class will force you to be an entrepreneur 24/7 and you need to prepare yourself for that mindset. Be prepared to think about this class at work, at the gym, or out with friends.
Entrepreneurs have to work hard and think about their ideas all the time. That is also what you will have to do to succeed in this course. Good luck!
I really appreciate your takeaways from this post. Undoubtedly, this is not an easy ‘A’ for all the reasons you mentioned. I suppose you can do the absolute minimum and not produce great work and you will still get the same amount of points as someone who put in a lot of effort, but if this is your strategy you will have a much harder time week over week to complete the coursework. It appears that the Summer C condensed schedule is also a factor that adds to the complexity of the course because we now only have 7 days between assignments instead of 10. Like you, I work full time during the week, so watching lectures starting Tuesday afternoon for three assignments due that Friday is a bear. I wholeheartedly agree with you that this class will force you to think like an entrepreneur by its design. It is a lot of hard work, but you do feel a sense of accomplishment when you are able to complete tasks that initially seem daunting and outside your comfort zone.
ReplyDeleteAlex,
ReplyDeleteI really appreciate how seriously you took this post. I think your reflection was very accurate and my favorite part was the picture you added. The "Cry Closet" is a genius idea that UF should look into because I, along with many, would find this secret space to have a break down very useful. I think you will make it through this class with a little hard work! Keep your head up
Hi Alex! I definitely agree that this isn't an easy A course. It requires a lot of effort, and I wish every took it as seriously as you and I do. I'm glad you didn't drop this course and you were able to persevere. I know that feeling you had, and it's awful. It takes a lot to overcome that and continue with the course, knowing how difficult it can be.
ReplyDeleteI agree so much with your tips. ESPECIALLY #1. I often would read the assignments due for the week Tuesday evening and realized how demanding they were. I would panic thinking I didn't have enough time to complete everything and would regret waiting so long. Keeping a journal is a great idea. I'm definitely going to try that. Thank you for your suggestions Alex.
Hi Alex,
ReplyDeleteI agree with everything you are saying and I love when you talk about Work ahead whenever you can. This will help keep you focused and to keep your brain together. Do not wait until Friday to watch the lectures and complete all of the assignments because you will get overwhelmed and will be unable to come up with ideas to complete many of the assignments.This was a great point.
Hi Alex! I completely agree with your post, and I also mentioned that this course requires a lot of tedious work and time management is the key for success. Working ahead is a great tactic, that I wish I did more throughout this course. I also really enjoyed reading your tips for next semesters students. I think you gave them some perfect advice. Great job!
ReplyDeleteHi Alex! I completely agree with your post, and I also mentioned that this course requires a lot of tedious work and time management is the key for success. Working ahead is a great tactic, that I wish I did more throughout this course. I also really enjoyed reading your tips for next semesters students. I think you gave them some perfect advice. Great job!
ReplyDeleteAlex,
ReplyDeleteI too feel overwhelmed with this class having such a busy schedule with work and family life at home. I'm glad you stuck it out and did not drop the class and have to pay all the fees. The picture you posted is something I saw on the internet a few months ago and think it is a bit ridiculous. I'm sure you didn't need a place to go and cry when things get tough, all of your posts have been great and you are doing great in this class I'm sure.