For me, it’s crazy to see the transition of BlendZ from being just an idea to being an actual tangible business. Some of us have experienced entrepreneurship together with a lot of media, others have experienced it together with a lot finance, but all of us—regardless of our role—have experienced entrepreneurship with all its good, and also its bad.
When I look back at this semester, I find that one of our biggest struggles has been maintaining a constant work ethic. When the summer came around, or when we were preparing for mocks, we found it ok to say “bye, bye BlendZ”. When school started, however, a switch was flicked; everyone was suddenly working their butts off again, and we were making progress, fast. But then came mocks, and this story of “bye, bye” repeats itself.
Part of caring in my opinion is having EMPATHY. It’s about recognizing that a business is a group effort, and that group effort is prone to dependency, and thus, trust. This semester we’ve focused greatly on creating systems. As the product and development team, I’ve created systems for things as simple as keeping the yogurt organized in terms of expiration date, to having the plan for all the sales of the month. In the process, I’ve come to appreciate how systems allow me to MAXIMIZE my time and MINIMIZE the effort that I delegate to menial tasks.
But as we know, the factors that make up a business are interconnected; therefore, my systems are often dependent upon other peoples systems in order to succeed, as are other people’s dependent upon mine. That’s where empathy rolls in. I’ve come to understand the value in getting my work done because I know that without it, other people can’t do their own, and thus, I’m pushed to not simply getting my work done, but getting it done right.
On a separate note, this semester has also given me the opportunity for IN TR OSPECTION.
I often try to fix other peoples mistakes in an attempt to stop us from failing as a whole. I do so because I try to see the “big picture” of failing. The problem comes in that my idea of the “big picture” often only includes the people that we will have affected from failing, and the person who will be blamed for the “failure”.
I don’t take the time to step back and truly look at the “big picture”. I don’t recognize that at times, the stress gained from trying to fix a problem, is much larger than what would result from letting the project fail; it’s good to be a fighter, but you need to choose what battles to fight. And sometimes—as harsh as it may sound—the best way to let someone learn is by letting them fail.
My point being that for me, the term “me time” can be very broadly defined. It shouldn’t just have to mean playing a sport, going to a party, or scrolling through Facebook. If you’re doing something that brings you VALUE, and MEANING, and PURPOSE, and you love doing it, than to me, that qualifies as “me” time.