The First Week of Class

Hey Everyone,

Wow, the first week of class has already lead me to wonder what I'm getting myself into with this class. I remember reading on the bottom of the syllabus that it said, "If you think life is fair, you should drop this class." Although I understand that life is not particularly fair, seeing that on a syllabus really catches you by surprise. I remember taking ENGR 310 as a delved into the Engineering Entrepreneurship Minor and although it was interesting and usually pretty engaging, this class really seems like it is going to be in an entirely different ballpark.

Regardless, I'm really excited because I think these are the types of classes that really force someone to better themselves mentally, think on their toes, and learn something important without ever touching a textbook, let alone an exam of any kind.

Who ever thought that in a 400 level class we would be spending our times stirring up farfetched recipes in our kitchens and sending our tastebuds into a world of confusion as we nibbled on things like peanut butter wings and cheeseburgers using doughnuts as the bun? The whole idea of it all really grosses me out, but after taking part in the pot luck dinner exercise I learned a lot more than I thought I ever would. I picked up completely unorthodox foods made by complete strangers and tried them. Some of these 'meals' I actually really enjoyed and others I completely regret putting to my nose let alone my palate. However, in the midst of the taste bud frenzy I learned every single person in the classrooms name and a little something about them. I learned that people are willing to try things they never thought they would. The whole class seemed like a small adventure.

As corny as it sounds, it seems like I am learning more about becoming an individual every day in this class. When we have lectures, we aren't forcing random information into our brains, instead, we're talking about groundbreaking inventions. We're discovering how to harness a market and take chances. We're learning how to make something out of nothing using a little ingenuity and a well-thought value proposition.

I spend a lot of my time thinking about how I want to start my own business or how I want to be my own boss. I spent the entire summer this summer learning about nascent entrepreneurs, intention to venture, characteristics of the entrepreneur and traits of a person that make them a good entrepreneur. I learned about the impacts that entrepreneurs have on society and how they can jumpstart an existing business. At the end of this summer I would have thought that I could tell you just about anything if it included the word 'entrepreneur'. Funny thing is, now that I'm in this class I feel like I have just hit the tip of the iceberg.

Cheers,

Pat