Customer Interviews No. 1

1.)   I spend a lot of my time grocery shopping, so I saw an opportunity at the grocery store. The opportunity I see at the grocery store deals with the how fast paced our lives are becoming with globalization, technology, and people having less time for themselves. I’m focusing on how long people spend grocery shopping, and how much they actually enjoy it.

2.)   Right now, the unmet need is very general so I’m just focusing on grocery shoppers, which is practically everyone.

3.)   (See video to hear questions)

4.)   (See video for interviews)

5.)   I think my opportunity exists amongst some shoppers. I learned that some customers genuinely enjoy the shopping experience, and feel like they get something from physically being in the store. I think if I were able to interview people with very fast paced lives, who find it hard to make time to go grocery shopping, my opportunity would be even more prevalent.

6.)   I absolutely hated this experience and feel I gained nothing from it. I was rejected so many times, it got ridiculous. With all the rejection, I wasn’t able to get information from the customers that I felt actually had the opportunity. I really wanted to talk to the people that were shopping on a time restraint, which is obviously very difficult. Its hard to stop someone on a mission to have an interview with a college student.

Week 4 Reading Reflection

1) What was the biggest surprise for you in the reading? In other words, what did you read that stood out the most as different from your expectations? 

I found this whole chapter very interesting; I was surprised that the author was able to go through the phases of creativity so thoroughly. This was interesting, as well as extremely useful. I feel that by studying these phases, I can approach thinking of ideas in these ways and have a better creative flow. With the phases, I can determine my weaknesses in creatively thinking, address them, and generate great ideas. The author even gave suggestions to practice each phase.

2) Identify at least one part of the reading that was confusing to you.

The part of the reading that I found a little confusing was the sectioned titled “Eliminating Muddling Mind-Sets”. As I was reading through it, I kept getting lost with what the author was explaining. I found myself having to go back to understand what habits he was talking about. After reading it a few times, I understood it.

3) If you were able to ask two questions to the author, what would you ask? Why?

How were you able to identify the innovative ideas? It was very difficult for me to think about where innovative ideas can be brought up from, so I am shocked at the authors ability to identify them so well. I like that he put his sources to help answer my question a little.

Would you consider the functional perspective to be selfish, or just human nature? When I first read it, I thought selfish. But as I went back to understand the meaning of the perspective better, it almost seemed like it was just the reality of things and not selfish at all. I’m interested in knowing the author’s perspective.

4) Was there anything you think the author was wrong about? Where do you disagree with what she or he said? How?

I didn’t think the author was wrong about anything. It’s very hard to disagree with a textbook since everything is backed up with facts and sources. The author doesn’t include opinions and is very thorough in his explanations.

Top 5 World Problems

Top 5 Problems (most problematic to least problematic)

1.     Poverty. Poverty is a problem in every country in the world. People are unable to buy the necessary items to sustain life, such as food, water and shelter. They are walking on a fine line between life and death.

Solution: The only way to help people that are impoverished is too give them an opportunity to generate an income to get out of it. If education is made more available to those who can’t afford it, they would be able to learn a skill that they can use to generate income to come out of poverty.

2.     World hunger. Many humans suffer from malnourishment, more specifically under nourishment. They are unable to obtain food because poverty, corrupt governments and lack of resources. Thus resulting in many unnecessary deaths. The children and elderly suffer the greatest from under nutrition because of their weak bodies. Solution: Governmental regulations on grocery stores to not waste food, but distribute that food to those in need. Also, possibly creating a global committee focused on the end of world hunger through taxes and regulations.

3.      Lack of clean water in third world countries. Many people struggle just to get a glass of water a day to survive. Families are forced to walk miles to get to the closest source of water, and even then, it’s rare to find clean water. This causes people to fall ill and die. Solution: Create a cost friendly device that can be placed in the ground to transport and filter water to villages.

4.     Climate change- global warming. As carbon dioxide increases in the atmosphere, the carbon dioxide cycle is moving too quickly for the earth to adjust to it, causing the average temperature of earth to increase. Animals that thrive in cold climates will not survive, and eventually our water will evaporate and life will not be sustainable on earth. Solution: Reduce the use of carbon dioxide with “green” alternatives. Set regulations that force people to cut back on how much carbon dioxide is released into the air.

5.     Extinction of species. Species that humans rely on for food will become extinct, creating a domino effect in which humans will die out shortly after. If species become extinct, the food pyramid will be in trouble. Solution: Create a hunting quota for species that are endangered. Raise prices on the meat of the animals that are becoming endangered to lower the demand until the species can replenish.

I started this list with poverty because I felt that this is the first problem one must overcome before they can even begin addressing the other large issues. If one is impoverished, they are probably suffering from hunger as well, but hunger is another issue that must be addressed before moving on to the rest. People’s needs must be met before worry about a long term issue like climate change or extinction of species. Those are more problematic for future generations rather than suffering in the present. My list is prioritized by current human necessities for living.

Top 5 Solutions (most possible to least possible)

1.     Climate change- Solution: Reduce the use of carbon dioxide with “green” alternatives. Set regulations that force people to cut back on how much carbon dioxide is released into the air.

2.      Extinction of species- Solution: Create a hunting quota for species that are endangered. Raise prices on the meat of the animals that are becoming endangered to lower the demand until the species can replenish.

3.     Poverty- Solution: The only way to help people that are impoverished is too give them an opportunity to generate an income to get out of it. If education is made more available to those who can’t afford it, they would be able to learn a skill that they can use to generate income to come out of poverty.

4.     World hunger- Solution: Governmental regulations on grocery stores to not waste food, but distribute that food to those in need. Also, possibly creating a global committee focused on the end of world hunger through taxes and regulations.

5.     Lack of clean water in third world countries- Solution: Create a cost friendly device that can be placed in the ground to transport and filter water to villages.

I began this list with climate change having the solution most possible to implement. This solution involves the use of “green” alternatives. In order to use “green” alternatives, research must be done and innovation must be involved as well. This is opening the door for new technology and new ideas that can be turned into business ventures. Anyone can help implement this solution. Aside from just “green” alternatives, the solution involves government intervention. I think this is most possible because the government can forcefully implement regulations and laws that people must abide by, or face the consequences. From there, I felt that the solutions that were most likely to be possible were the ones that involved the government because I feel that they have the most control over peoples actions and large issues.