Am I an entrepreneur?

Entrepreneurship is for myself, as it is for everyone. I am an entrepreneur because I encounter situations in my daily life that challenges my problem-solving skills and it encourages my mind to generate solutions. As an entrepreneur, I seek for innovation that can result in creating a new service or good that can better the success of an organization. I benefit from sharing ideas and collaborating with people with different views and multiple perspectives in order to connect dots on ideas and create something new.

What is success?

Success for me is being able to set a goal and achieve it. It can be small goals that lead up to bigger goals. An example of my success is buying a house at the age of 23. I may not have purchased my dream home just yet however, with hard work and dedication, I was able to reach my short team goal of buying a house. With my current property, I was able to generate the idea of renting out one of my rooms in order to reduce my mortgage. The money that I save on those monthly payments can be used to fund my business idea of buying another property to rent out. Success is measured by accomplishing my goals that I set for myself.

Am I a self-starter? How well do I follow through with my ideas?

I am a self-starter because I collect all my thoughts and ideas for a business based on my interest and strong skills. For example, if my interest is traveling, I will generate ideas that would relate to traveling such as an Airbnb, hostels, car rental, tour guides, and mobile bars. I have started my ideas by researching popular locations for tourist and how much a property cost in that area. I experience the travel first and canvas around the prospect location for an Airbnb before I commit into starting a business there. My first property is my home. To follow through with my ideas, I will go through the four phases of a business model creation. To start it up, creating a business model canvas will guide me in following through my plans.

How does ODU view entrepreneurship?

ODU gives importance to entrepreneurship by providing various amount of resources for entrepreneurship such as establishing a division on entrepreneurship and economic development. There is a Strome Entrepreneurial Center at ODU that provides a space for entrepreneurial culture to meet and collaborate on economics development in the region. It offers entrepreneurial activities and resources that are free for the students to access such as events, consultations, experiential learning student spaces, and internships & entrepreneurships. ODU prepares their students in life after college by offering entrepreneurship and internship opportunities.

What is my role in this ecosystem?

My role in this ecosystems is to brainstorm ideas and turn them into innovations that can help the world become a better place to live in. My role is to contribute to economic growth by expanding my knowledge about a business that will benefit the society as a whole. Every entrepreneur has different skills and it will help me grow as an individual when I connect with other roles in the ecosystem to widen my view in life. Being able to adapt to different environments and having an open mind to learn new things will guide me to become a better leader that will help me improve my entrepreneurial journey.