Reading Reflection 3

Steve Jobs



There were actually a lot of things that surprised me about Steve Jobs because my knowledge of him was very limited. I was most surprised by his hippie lifestyle, pilgrimage to India and excessive drug use. None of these were things I expected to read in this book. It was also really interesting to learn where the name “Apple” came from. I had no idea he was involved with PIXAR either.

I think I most admire his creative vision. He brought together unlikely, but highly intelligent and creative people to create products like nothing before. He is truly a technological visionary and has changed the way the world learns, communicates and runs. I also admire his ability to be different. He didn’t always conform or do exactly what society said he should. He thought outside the box, which is why the Apple products we know and love exist today. He also had the ability to bring things out in people, like getting Wozniak to sell his idea, rather than give it away. He might not have always used the best techniques, but he drove people to do more.

He definitely dealt with adversity, but also battled with a lot of inner turmoil. He was adopted and fought to accept this his entire life. He denied his own child and walked away from many relationships. He did things people could not envision, so there were always naysayers. He also struggled between holding celebrity status and trying to stay true to his non conformist beliefs. Some of his products were complete flops and his stubbornness seemed to have gotten in the way on many an occasion. He was even “ousted” from his own company, but those who worked with him felt this tough love was exactly what he needed. He didn’t give up though and no matter the obstacles, he brought his visions to life. Ultimately, he changed the way the world accesses information. He returned to Apple and produced technology the world had never even dreamed of (iMac, iPad and the iPhone).

Like Elon Musk, Jobs was intense and seemed to take this intensity out on people. He also had a very cold side to him which is shown in his complete disregard for people in many situations. He seemed to clash with a lot of people. He had a lot go growing up to do and once he matured a bit, he became more focused and was able to bring his creative visions to life. When he was running both Apple and PIXAR, he definitely stretch himself thin. He felt this had weakened his immune system and allowed the cancer to spread.

There wasn’t really anything confusing in the reading, but there were a lot of minute details that felt a bit unnecessary. It’s quite a long book, but it’s a very thorough glimpse into his life and ideas.

I don’t think he was afraid of hard work, but his definition of it was definitely different than Elon Musk. Elon is non stop, barely eating or sleeping. Jobs also relied a lot more on people to know how to do aspects of creating the product.

I would ask him two questions:

Ultimately, do you think your time in India helped shape your creativity?

Did you ever think you would change the way the world accesses information in the way that you did?

26 A- Failure

I am taking classes as a prerequisite for a Master’s and also working and running a nonprofit. I live in another country and am constantly taking on new projects. This semester I missed a few deadlines and completely forgot about a few assignments and deadlines. This is really uncharacteristic of me, as I hate to let people down. I am usually very organized and excellent at time management, but I just had too much on my plate. I actually had to turn down a big trip because I could not take on anymore commitments. I really failed at finding a balance for work and life. It’s very easy for me to be a workaholic, letting sleep, health and life take the back burner. I have realized how important this balance is and by finding it, I am far more efficient and successful. I don’t have it completely figured out, but it has definitely been eye opening.

I have learned that I need to sleep, eat healthy ( eat in general) and take time to do things away from the computer and that make me happy. I continuously have to learn that I can’t always do it all. I am terrible at saying no when people ask for help, letters of recommendation or for a school visit/presentation. I never want to let people down and I love my work, so I just say yes. There are only so many hours in the day and the last few months have really showed me that I need to take care of myself, do things for fun and

Failure is definitely hard, especially if you feel like you are letting others down. It affects me both mentally and emotionally. I am a type A personality and a perfectionist, so failure is really difficult for me. As I have gotten older, I have learned to deal with it better and to really learn from it. I grew up as an A student, star athlete and very driven. I have worked for myself, built my own company, traveled the world and really built a life I am proud of. When I fail now, I really stop and look at the situation. I slow down and try not to react immediately. It’s in my nature to fix it immediately, but this is not always the best course of action.

I am willing to take risks, as I know it is part of growth. I think I will definitely push myself more with the business idea because now is the time. I am the type of person who will want to wait till everything is ready and everything is perfect before starting, but that might take years. Before starting this class I wanted to put a plan together to open a center 5 years from now. Now, I am looking at a year from now.

ENT 28- Exit Strategy

When I started the nonprofit, I never thought about an end point. Over the last 5 years our program has grown and developed and I’ve learned a lot. It is my intention to keep the nonprofit going for as long as possible. As I get older and it grows, I would love to have someone else (other people) run it, but still stay on the board. Ideally I will pass onto family. It would be amazing if our kids ( meaning board of directors) could run it some day, as we all have. It’s what I want to do with the rest of my life, so I do not intend on leaving anytime soon. In regards to opening an education center, I would would want to keep the center open, but hire other people to run it. It would remain part of the nonprofit, so ultimately the whole thing would be passed on.

I have built this program from scratch and have worked with some incredible people to do so. It has been my baby for the last 6 years and it’s what I want to do with the rest of my life. It’s not just a job or income, it’s truly my passion. I have built it so it can continued onwards and kids can continue to learn about sharks. As environmental issues continue to escalate, a need for education continues to exist. I want this business to continue educating people around the world for as long as possible. Maybe one day it won’t be necessary, but for now there is a critical need.

Although I have not thought specifically about an exit strategy, all my decisions for the business have been made from my passion and belief in what we are doing. Wanting to continue onwards, making this my full time job has helped me grow the company. It started as a passion project, but now is a fully functioning and expanding business. It’s been an incredible journey. Knowing I needed to expand our reach and generate income for our projects has definitely shaped my approach. I have also learned that a nonprofit is still a business and has to be treated like one.

Venture Concept -Shark Education Center

Opportunity: For the creation of a shark education center in South Florida, I have identified a few key customer segments. Our main target segment will be teachers and home school parents/educators within 100 miles of the center. This can then be broken down into smaller segments including elementary school teachers and home school parents with elementary school aged kids. The needs will vary from group to group, but overall, include the following

• Field trips and hands on activities for students of all ages
• Interactive programs with one on one interactions for students
• Access to experts in the field, rather than just reading about it in a text/book.
• Activities to align with standards and curriculum requirements
• Flexible planning for activities
• Smaller group interactions and programs, rather than competing with multiple groups.
• Reasonably priced and easy to schedule

Overall, parents and educators want hands on learning experiences where students can directly interact with experts in field. They want these experiences to connect to larger global issues and concepts, while still connecting students to local opportunities. They want small group interactions and a reasonable price. They feel like there is a shortage of these opportune or those available do not meet all their needs.

Our online program allows us to meet this need for people in a much larger geographic range ( globally actually), but I do not believe people will drive further than 100 miles for a field trip/learning experience. Our center will offer unique programs, so it’s possible some people might travel further.

Customers are currently visiting other education centers and aquariums for these kinds of experiences. They can still visit this places as well as ours. As the home school community is growing, the amount of people with the need for these programs is expanding. This means our potential audience/customers are growing.
There is no set window, as people are always looking for these kind of experiences and learning opportunities. The standard school year will be when teachers have the most need, but summer camps and community groups will have the need year round.

Innovation:
Our online shark education programs were created from experts who work as marine biologists, conservationists and videographers. The content was developed to meet national education standards, making it easier for parents and educators to incorporate in their lesson plans. The innovation comes from our knowledge and experience as well as our ability to create unique visual content. The idea is not innovative, so to speak, but the combination of media and experience has allowed us to deliver a broad range of programs in an innovative manner. Other organization have similar components, but nothing close to our overall program and all the opportunities we already provide. The center would be a physical extension of this, providing students the opportunity to work directly with experts and access to learning programs not available in other locations. The innovation is also in the team of people who would be working with students. It will not solely be interns or people with an education focused background.

• Income will be generated through various customized programs
• Week day for schools and home schools
• After school for community groups and clubs
• Evening presentations for specialty certificate programs and guest speakers
• Summer camps
• Long term certificate programs
• Weekends open to the general public

Venture:
Our programs will solve the unmet need of educators and parents looking for specific learning opportunities for students. I believe people will come to the center because we will offer unique access to experts and customized programs for each group.
Our main competitors will be other education centers and aquariums in the area. They are designed for larger groups and can be expensive. They do not offer a one on one customized program for groups.
We will start out with me as the only employee and have interns and volunteers assist with the groups as we grow.
Our most valuable and important resource is our team. We bring decades of experience and first hand knowledge, studying and working with sharks around the world. The ability to combine this experience is not easily replicated.
The center will allow us to also grow our online programs and curriculum. It will give us a space to work from and to work with others.

Five years from now I want to see the center running full time, I want to have published 2 more books and developed an entire new curriculum to go with the programs at the center. I also want to have an unrivaled library of educational videos and visual content. I want to see education teams in various areas around the world also running our programs. I want to be traveling and teaching kids around the world about sharks and really focus on areas with major shark conservation issues. This is my passion and how I want to spend the rest of my life. I want to teach kids around the world about these amazing animals and saving our oceans.

23 A- ENT

1. Social capital: nearly 80,000 followers on social media.
A large audience means more potential customers and donors.
Not rare, as lots of organizations have large social followings.
Easy to copy.
Not easily substituted, other than maybe email lists.

2. In person connections: We’ve worked with hundreds of teachers directly.
This direct contact to people is valuable because it’s building relationships.
Not rare, lots of people do this. We have traveled all over the world though, so this is harder for a company to build.
Possible to copy, but not instantly. It would take time and resources for someone else to do and build.
Not easy to substitute, as it took time for us to build these relationships.

3. Experience- our team has a unique level of experience working with sharks all over the world and in different capacities.
This is the heart of our ability to create and build our program and materials.
Yes, rare to find this unique combination of people with these specific resources and knowledge.
No, you cannot copy years of personal experience and knowledge.
There is no substitute for knowledge gained from experience.

4. Knowledge: we’ve worked with hundreds of teachers to gain knowledge and understanding of curriculum and standards
These connects and relationships are extremely valuable. They add to our reputation and our reach.
Not rare, but definitely not easily done, as it takes time to build.
People could copy, but again, it would take a lot of time and networking.
This is not easily substituted, as these relationships are unique and took time to build.


5. Knowledge: our team has studied and worked with dozens of species of sharks all over the world. We have first hand knowledge of these animals.
This is the heart of our ability to create and build our program and materials.
Yes, rare to find this unique combination of people with these specific resources and knowledge.
No, you cannot copy years of personal experience and knowledge.
There is no substitute for knowledge gained from experience.

6. Reputation: we have built a solid audience and community and now have an excellent reputation with testimonials from all over the world.
Yes, very valuable as it’s what people say about us. It’s what the world thinks of us. It’s our credibility.
Not rare, but definitely not easily done, as it takes time to build.
People could copy, but again, it would take a lot of time and networking.
This is not easily substituted, as these relationships are unique and took time to build.

7. Media capabilities: We can shoot all our own content with high resolution photo and video cameras
Yes, it’s valuable as it means we do not have to rent/buy equipment or hire people ( we could not afford to do) and gives us amazing content that we have full rights to.
Not rare, but expensive to create or recreate. Some of our footage is unique (i.e lemon shark giving birth)
People can definitely copy, but it would take a lot of time and be very expensive. This footage and content has been collected and produced over many years.
We could get from other people, but would be expensive and have to deal with copyright and ownership..etc.

8. Media personalities: Many of our team members have been on TV and work in TV. They have a large social capital as individuals. I myself have 41, 000 followers on Instagram alone.
It’s valuable because it lends to credibility and our ability to build an audience.
It can be rare, as not everyone has a large following.
People could copy, but it would take time and resources.
Not really easy to substitute with our other resources, although they do work together.

9. Equipment: We have hi tech equipment for creating unique content. This includes 8K underwater camera systems and the ability to created VR videos.
Yes, valuable as far as monetarily and for the resources and content we are able to create.
Rare for many small nonprofits.
Not easily copied because of expense and time to learn how to use equipment and produce content.
Not substituted by any other resources.

10. Intellectual property: We have already created a large amount of lesson plans, activities, curriculum, videos…etc.
Yes, extremely valuable, as it’s a large part of what we do and who we are.
Rare because it was created by a unique combination of people with unique knowledge and experience.
Our unique combination of assets and intellectual property would not be easily copied.
Not able to substitute.

Our most valuable resource is definitely our team! We have been working with sharks for decades and bring unique experience and direct knowledge to the table. We have worked all over the world and have worked with dozens of different species of sharks. This would be nearly impossible to replicate. It is also what makes us unique and has allowed us to build a large audience and successful program. This resource would take years and years to replicate, were it even possible. It's ultimately what separates us from other organizations and allows us to offer a unique product and experience for students.

ENT 22 A

Here is my 3rd video. It was shorter this time, but more concise. It's definitely getting easier and I know what I want to say, without really having or memorized. I am trying to speak from the heart because I am incredibly proud of the program we have built. I can't wait to take it to the next level. I made sure to include the numbers again, as people commented on how effective they were. I mostly got positive feedback, so I really just tried to be concise and emphasize what we've done and what we plan to do.

ENT 20 A

Amy is a biologist who works in animal care at a turtle education center in South Florida. Her primary role is taking care of the green sea turtle they have on site, but she also does outreach with the general public. She coordinates groups coming through and plans activities for them. She is filling the ‘domain expert’ slot because she is working at a similar business to what I am trying to create. We chatted about challenges and ideas for marketing, which was really helpful. I am actually attending an event with her at the center next week. This will give me an opportunity to speak to her in person. We are going to network and discuss contacts for bringing groups in. I can connect her with groups we already have and she can help us connect with more teachers. The event on Tuesday is actually with over 100 teachers. Amy has a similar background of science and is now working in education. It can be challenging to make that transition with no formal education background. This is exactly my situation. She has learned a lot from working with people and coordinating programs, so I think we are building a long term collaboration. This will help each of us grow our audience and be better educators.


Krissy is a middle school STEM teacher who I briefly met at a shark event. We exchanged emails, but didn’t really speak. I reached out to connect to her about creating better curriculum to align with standards schools and teachers are using across the US. She has developed a lot of curriculum and is a certified STEM curriculum developer. She also loves sharks and diving! I worked on the grade K-5 curriculum and it was fairly easy to update to meet NGSS, but middle school is really tough. She is going to help us create lesson plans and activities to align with middle school expectations and standards. This will really set us apart and give us even more credibility. She lives in California so we are going to continue to have Skype calls and exchange emails. She fills the “expert on your market,” slot. In return she will be listed on our website as a curriculum developer and being given access to some of our media content to use for her own projects.

We do not regularly buy items, other than marketing merchandise, but we do offer students in field opportunities. In order to do this we need access to boats. Neal owns a diving company and is keen to take students out on field trips to see marine life. He is filling the "supplier" role. This is not a supply we need daily or even weekly, but it is a supply or resource we use and want to do more of. Neal’s boats are registered and insured and his crew have all the required safety training and permits to take guests ( including students) out. I’ve known Neal for a while, but have not really thought of a dive boat and snorkeling gear as supplies we need, but they are. Neal and I discussed the desire to bring more local students out on the water and even bring in students from other islands, offering them the experience. We also discussed creating a special shark program for kids ( open to any kids) in the summer, which would essentially be a 2 camp. We are going to speak again in person and come up with a schedule and itinerary for some activities. This will allow us to teach a lot of kids about sharks and the ocean and help connect them first hand with what we teach. Having your own personal experience is more valuable than any video you can watch or book you can read. In turn, the dive shop gets some images and video they can use for PR and marketing, but it also shows their involvement with the community.


I actually took this opportunity to reach out to people who I had thought of in the past, but had not really taken the time to connect with on a professional level. When you stop and think about people you have met or know through a mutual contact, you might be surprised at the knowledge and resources you will find. I think I definitely need to network more in education groups. We’ve been very shark focused, but educators are the ones who will help us create better programs and then bring their students to participate in those programs. I’ve only attended one education conference and it was extremely valuable. I will attend two more in 2019 and I am really looking forward to seeing what we can gain from this networking. This networking exercise was different because I approached people with a specific goal rather than coincidence of meeting. Going in with a specific ask also helped me understand what I could offer in return. It’s a far more targeted and efficient approach. It’s like having a very specific ‘To Do’ list.