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My Journey

1/13/24 I am in my last semester at BYUI. I will be graduating with a BA in Marriage and Family in April. Which seems ironic as I am in the middle of a very ugly divorce. Anyway, I still believe in marriage and in it's importance. I do not know if I will go on to get a Masters degree, which is required to practice therapy.  The idea of having a "side hustle" is intriguing to me. I feel it is important for me to be able to support myself and not rely on a spouse. This may sound easy, however, I have been a stay at home mom for twenty-five years and have been married for thirty five years. There are a lot of changes happening in my life. I currently have a full time job and live alone.  Lessons Learned Although marriage is ordained of God, it sometimes does not work out. Do not judge people who are divorced. Lessons Not Learned How to choose a business. My current ideas are a dog-sitting service, a business refurnishing furniture, a photography business (I am interested in ...
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Corporate Social Responsibility

  Corporate social responsibility (CSR) is a term used that reflects how a business interacts with the world in a positive way which impacts people and society. The four types of CSR are: Environmental - Ex: Reduce carbon footprint  Ethical - Ex: How employees are treated Philanthropic - Ex: Donations (money, products, services) to non-profits Volunteering - Ex: Participating in community causes Companies using best practices will increase their profit through:  Increased revenue  Reduced energy Reduced waste Reduced materials Increased productivity Reduced turn-over Reduced risk Ex: Additional revenue and fewer expenses Sustainablitlity based on a "Triple Bottom Line": Economic (Profit) Social (People) Envirionmental (Planet) WHY CSR? In recent years, the internet has made the world small. It is practically impossible to be ignorant of the tragedies going on throughout the world.  I believe the internet has brought awareness to the social issues in the wor...
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Lean Start-Up & The Business Model Canvas

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  When starting a business, it takes more than dreaming about a sign in the window declaring you are, "Open." For a business idea to come to fruition, a plan is needed. This week we will explore two methods for creating a business, the lean start-up and the business model canvas.  THE LEAN START-UP The lean start-up begins with simple questions, "Should this product be built? Can we build a sustainable business around this set of products and services? and What are the five why's?" If affirmative, determine what the problem is that needs to be solved (what the business will create/do). Experiment through the lean start-up "build, measure, and learn" feedback loop. In the article,  Why the lean start-up changes everything , Steve Blank states, "Rather  than engaging in months of planning and research, entrepreneurs accept that all they have on day one is a series of untested hypotheses—basically, good guesses. So instead of writing an intricate bus...
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Revenue Generation

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Social & Impact Evaluation

"It's not how much we give but how much love we put into giving." —Mother Teresa (Attributed) The most desired measure for any solution is IMPACT.  In the video, Lasting Impact Kevin Starr states there are three ways to measure impact:  Know your mission Measure the right thing Measure it well Starr suggests a mission statement of no more than eight words which include a verb, target population, and outcome. An example of a mission statement is: Get African families out of extreme poverty. In order to know what to measure Starr says to ask yourself, "If I could only measure one thing to know if I fulfilled my mission statement what would it be?" The difference between what happened because of a solution and what would have happened without it is IMPACT.  When setting off to create social innovation Starr asks the following: Is it needed?  Does it work?  Will it get to those who need it?  Will they use it right? These questions are paramount when desiring ...
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Design Thinking

Life is messy. There are problems which need attention. Design thinking is a five-step process to create answers or solutions for life's problems.  Empathize - This is done through observing, watching, listening, and engaging. Define - Who does the problem affect? Write a statement.  Ideate - Brainstorm to come up with 3-5 possible solutions.  Prototype - Write a plan of action and possible funding to implement the solutions. Test - Write down ways to test the plan. Run ideas by someone in the field that can help. Erzsebet Szekeres is the mother of a disabled son, Tibor. She saw a problem with the way disabled people were treated in her community and country. Szekeres spent years creating a solution. Of this Szekeres said, "If you really believe in something, you just have to do it and do it and do it, because if I had given up one month prior to 1989, I would have ended up with nothing." Design thinking is an important skill in social innovation. Design thinking establis...
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Big Problems and Root Causes

Summary of the main ideas and topics of the week. A response to a specific reading, video, or activity.  For instance, did something spark interest, surprise, anger, inspiration, or confusion? In choosing the area I wanted to focus on this semester,  blessing. Reference the specific reading, video, or activity. Add your thoughts, and explain your reaction. Respond to the Week 03 prompt There are "wicked problems" in the world that are typically unsolvable. Some examples are poverty, homelessness, and lack of education. Although solutions to these problems are difficult, people can and are making a difference through innovative means to confront them. Human sex trafficking is a wicked problem. It was heartbreaking for me to contemplate those who are sold into the sex trade, especially minors. I am grateful for people like Tim Ballard who use their skills and talents to make a difference in the lives of these victims.  When trying to decide what wicked problem I wanted to l...
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