7515 Entrepreneurs Lounge

Register Today! Entrepreneurs Lounge Meeting: “Are You READY To Make the Leap?"

2009-11-12T18:03:00.000-05:00

The Entrepreneurs Lounge is pleased to announce the topics for our next meeting on Saturday, November 21, 2009. “Are you READY to make the leap into entrepreneurship? Have you already made the leap and don’t know what to expect? Are you considering starting your own business, but aren’t sure how to break the news to your family? Don’t be scared. We’ve been there and we are here to help.

Join the Entrepreneurs’ Lounge for our monthly meeting, where we will answer these questions and many more. Be surrounded by other entrepreneurs at various stages of their development and hear how they are overcoming the obstacles you’ll face each day.

Discussion topics will include:

· Knowing when you’re “READY”

· Real World Finance 101

· Financial pitfalls and helpful hints

· Work-life balance: the good, the bad and the ugly

· Time as a consideration

· How to tell others what you’re planning to do

The meeting is Saturday, November 21, 2009 and will begin at 10am. The meeting will conclude approximately 12pm with networking until 1pm. The workshop will be held at the University of Georgia Gwinnett campus room 107. The campus is in the IntelliCenter Building on Sever Road, Lawrencevile, GA (I-85 and exit 109 Old Peachtree). Directions to the campus can be found at http://www.uga.edu/gwinnett/directions.html

Admission of $10.00 cash or check (made out to the Entrepreneurs Lounge) will be accepted at the door. Coffee and bagels will be provided. Please RSVP via email to Michelle Conkle m_conkle@bellsouth.net.

We encourage you to attend this event that will be sure to inspire, encourage, empower and entertain you as you connect with other professionals and entrepreneurs in the Atlanta community. We also encourage you to join the “Entrepreneurs Lounge” group on LinkedIn, which can be found at http://www.linkedin.com/groups?gid=1660237&trk=myg_ugrp_ovr

We hope to see you at this exciting event!

Workshop Materials Posted!

2009-10-19T06:30:00.002-04:00

The materials from our most recent presentation, "Quick Start: Your Own Business in 30 Days for Under $4,000", delivered on Oct. 10th, have finally been posted. We encountered several technical issues that took the better part of a week to resolve, but the good news is that the posted file has been significantly enhanced with new content during the intervening time.

Get your copy of the file at:
http://sites.google.com/site/entrepreneursloungematerials/

Thanks to all who participated, especially our wonderful panelists. Thanks also for the patience while our posting issues were ironed out. Enjoy the presentation!

“Quick Start Your Own Business in 30 Days for Under $4000" - Workshop - Saturday, October 10, 2009

2009-10-05T11:15:00.001-04:00

Register Today!

The Entrepreneurs Lounge is pleased to present a three hour workshop on Saturday, October 10, 2009, designed to inspire ideas and action for starting your own business in thirty days or less for under $4000. Four categories of businesses will be presented that you can start TODAY! A panel of entrepreneurs who have already started these businesses will speak and answer your questions on how you can also be a successful entrepreneur with the skills and knowledge you possess today.

Topics to be discussed are the following:

· Focus on low risk entrepreneurship: What do you REALLY need to know to get started and what should you NOT do?

· Taking stock: Which type of business that will be presented is the right fit for you and what will it take for you to get started?

· Feasibility: What is practical in a 30 day timeframe and a $4000 budget, and how can this apply to your own situation?

· Generating ideas: If the four categories and the multitude of example opportunities that will be presented aren’t quite right for you, how do you decide what is right?

The workshop will also tackle the following:

Getting the word out: lessons in low-cost marketing and business development
Competing with established businesses: practical strategies and techniques
Basic start-up budgets: examples and tools
Planning: what you really need to do to be successful, and how to do it
Backwards planning: moving from goals to results
Scalability: how you can grow your business model

The workshop is Saturday, October 10, 2009 and will begin at 10am, concluding at 1pm. There will be two short intermissions between sections and an opportunity to network after the workshop. The workshop will be held at the University of Georgia Gwinnett campus room 107. The campus is in the IntelliCenter Building on Sever Road, Lawrencevile, GA (I-85 and exit 109 Old Peachtree). Directions to the campus can be found at http://www.uga.edu/gwinnett/directions.html

We hope to see you at this exciting event!

Upcoming Event on August 27, 2009 @ 6:00 PM - Feature Speakers: Nancy J. Lewis & Kenneth Washington

2009-08-25T14:03:00.011-04:00

The University of Georgia Terry College of Business Entrepreneurship Department and Entrepreneurs Lounge cordially invite you to a speaking event featuring Nancy J. Lewis and Kenneth Washington the evening of Thursday, August 27, 2009 at the Terry Buckhead campus. The topics for the evening are developing networking and personal development skills and taking the exciting leap into entrepreneurship.

Nancy Lewis is a leading motivational and inspirational keynote speaker, trainer, author, and registered corporate coach, and she will start the evening’s events. She is the president of Progressive Techniques, Inc. based in Fayetteville, Georgia where the theme of her organization is “Developing a Better YOU!”

Nancy works with organizations that want to develop their people potential and with employees who want more fulfillment in their lives and careers. Some of her notable clients include Delta Air Lines, Inc., Chick-fil-A, Inc., Coca-Cola Enterprises, Inc., FORD Motor Company, AT&T, Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority (MARTA), The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Georgia State University, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, U.S. Department of Education, Kimberly Clark Corporation, and Georgia Institute of Technology.

Nancy is the co-author of Sisters Together: Lessons Learned That Have Anchored Our Souls, a compilation of short stories from multi-cultural women sharing how they moved from adversity to victory. She is the author of Things To Do To Be A Better YOU and a contributing author in Career Compass for Women.

Kenneth Washington will conclude the evening by inspiring the audience with his experience as a successful serial entrepreneur. Kenneth is a young entrepreneur who will change your life. Over the past 23 years, he has been engaged in wide variety of industries and ventures, which have combined to provide a solid foundation and spring boarded him into the life of an Entrepreneur. His work experience includes engagements at companies such as FDIC, Rollins Corporation, Equifax, UPS Supply Chain Solutions and The Home Depot, where he held such titles as Senior Asset Manager, Senior Business Analyst and Senior Financial Analyst.

Kenneth’s entrepreneurial ventures include a Shell Food Mart C-Store, a logistics/ transportation company, Italian and Thai restaurants, and staffing agencies focused on both industrial and communications clients. In total, Kenneth’s companies currently employ over 200 individuals across multiple states and are continuing to grow at a record pace even during the current tough economic times.

Kenneth will speak about his entry into Entrepreneurship and dispel the myth that Entrepreneurship is a risky decision. Plan to attend and find out first hand how easy and logical it is to make that move!

The evening will begin at 6pm with Nancy Lewis and will conclude with an opportunity to network at 8pm. There will be a short intermission with the opportunity to network before Kenneth Washington begins his presentation.

Admission of $10.00 cash or check will be accepted at the door, however, the first thirty attendees to register by email will gain free admission. Please RSVP via email to Michelle Conkle m_conkle@bellsouth.net.

We encourage you to attend this evening that will be sure to inspire, encourage, empower and entertain you as you connect with other professionals and entrepreneurs in the Atlanta community. We also encourage you to join the “Entrepreneurs Lounge” group on LinkedIn.

We hope to see you at this exciting event!

Roadmap to Entrepreneurship

2009-05-31T06:00:00.003-04:00

Here is my view of how to become an entrepreneur or how to start a business. This is what I called the Roadmap to Entrepreneurship.

It is divided into two areas. The left hand side represents the soul searching part, learning from your experiences and aspirations whether you want to start and own your own business, or may be you are not cut for this.

The right hand side shows you three main streams that you can take to become an entrepreneur:

Starting your own business
Franchising
Purchasing an existing business

These streams are not exclusive to each other as you could take several paths at once.

I hope you enjoy this representation of the roadmap to entrepreneurship.

The Future of the Entrepreneurs Lounge

2009-04-19T10:56:00.006-04:00

The Entrepreneurs Lounge has come a long way. However, it is now time to review the main purpose of the group, the results, but mainly its future. As one of the members of the group put it, we are at a point in which the E-Lounge can wilt down, or it can start a long-term growth where great things will be achieved.

Saturday April 18th, 2009 was an important day for the Entrepreneurs Lounge. 10 very motivated Entrepreneurs got together to form a volunteer-based Board of Directors for the Entrepreneur Lounge. This group will represent the interests of all the members, will volunteer time to organize activities, and will make sure the Entrepreneurs Lounge realizes its vision.

Here are some of the conclusions we reached:

Objectives:

Motivation:

This focuses on providing members support in their way to entrepreneurship. Even experienced entrepreneurs need from time to time some motivational support.

Education on strategic and operational:

Entrepreneurs need information and training in a wide variety of aspects, from strategic to very tactical aspects of running a company. We will leverage the knowledge of the members in the group.

Idea Generation and realization:
Promote the generation of ideas and their realization into ventures.

Networking
Promote networking among group members and other networking groups.

News and Events:

Provide information on news and events that can be beneficial to members.

Additional goals include supporting the UGA Entrepreneurship program. After all, this group was born from the UGA Entrepreneurship class in the Fall of 2008.

Volunteers for the Board of Directors Entrepreneurs Lounge:

Andres Garcia
Michelle Conkle

Brad Wood
Khurram Zia
Ron Stacey
Travis Klavhon
Dave Sixto
Asif Dave

In the next post I will share more details about the initial meeting.

Entrepreneurs Lounge next meeting

2009-04-06T01:27:00.001-04:00

The Entrepreneurs Lounge has come a long way since its inception a few months ago. We now believe that we need to stop and do a more serious and detailed planning of the future of the group in order to meet the needs and interest of all members and to work towards fulfilling our mission to promote entrepreneurship. For that reason, we will be hosting a very important meeting and encourage your attendance and feedback.

When our group was established earlier this yea, the founding members decided upon four key objectives:
Motivate: Encourage current and future entrepreneurs and entrepreneurship as a career choice
Teach: Share knowledge and resources pertaining to the operational challenges of entrepreneurship
Idea Generation: Brainstorming new business concepts
Networking: Connecting professionals with interest and expertise in entrepreneurship

As a next step, we would like to invite volunteers to become part of a Board of Directors for the Entrepreneurs Lounge whose responsibilities will be to help shape the future of the group, define the best ways to implement the strategy and vision of the group, and promote the activities and the group itself.

We are planning our next meeting for Saturday, April 18 at the UGA Gwinnett campus (room TBA) from 10am – 12pm. Please join us if you want to volunteer as a nominee to join the Entrepreneurs Lounge Board of Directors or you simply want to provide your feedback and help define the future of the Entrepreneurs Lounge. Prospective board members should plan on being a core member of the group and to take an active role in the planning, organization and execution of programs and events. Time commitment will average six to ten hours per month.

What do we need from you? Suggestions and feedback! Think about the following questions and plan to discuss at the April 18 meeting.

If you are an experienced entrepreneur, what would you like to see in this group to help you advance your venture?
If you are an aspiring entrepreneur, what do you need to help you make the leap into entrepreneurship?

Examples are:
What workshops/ training programs would you like to see?
What lectures/ speakers would you like to hear?
What type of networking events would you be most interested in?
What other suggestions do you have?

We will continue to promote events sponsored by other local entrepreneurship organizations, such as UGA StartUps, Terry Entrepreneurship, VentureEAT, The Entrepreneurship & Venture Capital Club, and events such as Super Extensive Entrepreneur Lecture Series being presented by Chris Hanks and Jim Beach (http://www.internationalentrepreneurship.com/super_seminar.asp).

Please contact Michelle Conkle m_conkle@bellsouth.net or Andres Garcia agarcian@uga.edu with any questions.

Entrepreneurs Lounge Event with Ricky Steele

2009-03-06T21:39:00.005-05:00

We are proud to present Ricky Steele @rickysteele as our guest speaker on the Entrepreneurs Lounge meeting on Saturday March 21st at the Terry Executive Education Center in Buckhead.

The presentation will be based on Steele's book "The Heart or Networking" and you will hear about the characteristics of a successful networker and how to become one.

... Mr. Steele has been profiled and cited in numerous local business publications and several national technology publications. In an issue of Catalyst Magazine, Mr. Steele was tagged as “Mr. Everywhere” in an article about Technology Leaders in Georgia. The Atlanta Business Chronicle has named Mr. Steele one of the “Who’s Who in Technology” during his employment at both PwC and Korn/Ferry International... read more

Register to this event free of charge and tell the author a little about yourself and what you would like to hear in the presentation.

Bring your business cards and be ready for a great networking session.

Date:

Saturday, March 21st, 2009

10:00am to 12:00n

Location:

Terry Executive Education Center

3475 Lenox Road NE, Suite 200

Atlanta, GA 30326 US

Planning vs.Doing

2009-02-18T23:27:00.004-05:00

I am a planner by nature. I love to plan, dream, build and explore in my mind before embarking on a new adventure. So where do you draw the line between the planning process and the doing process? We've all heard about the dangers of a lack of planning, but is there such a thing as planning too much?

I believe there is. How many great ideas and inventions never saw the light of day because they "weren't quite ready" or because the person behind the idea never crossed the line from planning to doing? Is the world a better place for not being exposed to half-planned ideas or is it worse off for being deprived of innovation? What wonderful plans are you making today and when will you transition from planning to doing?

Planning is important, but it isn't until the planning meets with action that it has any relevance. The world is changing at an amazing pace, so unless you are constantly adapting your plans to the evolving environment, those plans have an expiration date. Whether you are planning a vacation, a return to school, a career move, or an entrepreneurial endeavor, make certain you have a time table in mind for launching your plan. Without the goal of the launch in mind, your plan is just a dream.

What is a 'Service'?

2009-02-12T20:29:00.002-05:00

I just came across a definition of Service and I found it very interesting and I am sharing it here:

A 'service' is a means of delivering value to customer by facilitating outcomes customers want to achieve without the ownership of specific costs and risks.

Customers will pay for determined outcomes that they perceive have value for them, assuming no other risk than the price paid for the service.

Can your company provide a 'service' that adheres to this definition? If not, you might need to revisit your company's service catalogue.

Definition taken from ITIL V.3

Local Events - UGA Startups: Franchising; The Good, Bad and the Ugly

2009-01-19T19:38:00.003-05:00

Here is another great resource for entrepreneurs in the Atlanta area. UGA Startups is a series of seminars and panels organized by the UGA Entrepreneurship Program:

"The Terry College of Business Entrepreneurship Program designed the series as an interactive, informal and safe program open to anyone with a serious interest in launching a business. No brokers, consultants or persons soliciting business are invited to attend and this helps attendees feel comfortable discussing fears and concerns about starting a business without pressure to become a client of the persons giving advice."

This is an event that I recommend to every aspiring or experienced entrepreneur. Franchasing is a very viable alternative to start your own business and has an impressive success rate. As anything, it has its pros and cons and there are concepts that are applicable to any type business.

The event is free for UGA alums and $10 for others. See details of the event or register.

Thursday, January 29, 2009
6:30 p.m. - 8:30 p.m.

The Terry College of Business Executive Education Center
3475 Lenox Road
Second Floor, Lobby Level
Atlanta, Georgia 30326

Entrepreneurship in Atlanta and Georgia

2009-01-12T22:14:00.003-05:00

Some interesting facts about Entrepreneurship and Atlanta.

* Georgia was among the 10 states with highest entreprenurial activity in 2007: Idaho, the District of Columbia, Arizona, Tennessee, Louisiana, Wyoming, Vermont, Montana, Georgia and California.

* Among the 15 largest metropolitan areas in the United States, the highest entrepreneurial activity rates were in Phoenix, Riverside-San Bernardino, Atlanta, Los Angeles and Miami.

* The age groups 35-44 and 45-54 experienced increases in entrepreneurial activity.

From the Kauffman Index Entrepreneurial Activity report.

The Inc magazine features the fastest-growing private companies in the country.

Among the Inc 500 Georgia ranks as the third state with 31 companies, after California (78) and Texas (43).

It is good to be in Atlanta.

January Meeting Moved to Sat Jan 17th, 2009

2009-01-08T12:47:00.003-05:00

The January meeting of the Entrepreneurs Lounge was moved to Saturday January 17th.

Remember to keep working on your goals, post an entry in this blog, and start developing your Gang of 5 groups.

See you Saturday Jan 17th.

-AG

Entrepreneurial Fever

2009-01-08T06:19:00.006-05:00

Entrepreneur, noun -- A person who organizes and manages any enterprise, esp. a business, usually with considerable initiative and risk.

The Entrepreneur Lounge sounded like a great idea, however, on the Saturday morning of my first meeting I really did not want to drive the hour to get there. The problem is that entrepreneurial fever grips you and it does not let you go. Meeting like-minded individuals who share their ideas, dreams, plans, results, failures, and motivations for running their own enterprises is stimulating. The meeting was great. It was time well spent and as a goal setting exercise I want to supply my introductory post to this blog.

In my professional life, as a physician and consultant I have been a part of several businesses in the medical economy. These businesses have been a variety of medical practices or consulting services spread geographically from the Southeast to Southwest USA, functioning in both the private and the not-for-profit sector. I have been, at different times, an employee, partner, director, consultant, and founder-partner-owner all wrapped into one. These businesses have all created gainful employment for me and for others. Having a job is good; owning and operating a business that leverages more than just the entrepreneur’s subject matter skills is even better. This sort of business, once started, supplies a service and employment for many and is a dream of mine.

My medical training came first in my career, with business skills being learned on the job and finally followed by my UGA Terry MBA education. The tools of an MBA degree teach you how to structure a business for its continued success. The medical economy is big, sophisticated in the care delivered, yet in many settings remains remarkably primitive in its business systems. Improved services can be created and must be well thought out as life and death outcomes rely on these innovations. I have some ideas formulated into different stages of plans for some of the business needs in the medical economy.

Idea one. Create a service for online appointment scheduling so that patients can be one click away from their own physician. Yes, the technology exists today. The challenge is figuring out how to get everyone what he or she needs from this systemic improvement.

Idea two. Offer a litigation risk management service that both quantifies and avoids these business risks. In high-risk medical specialties such as Orthopedics, Neurosurgery, Obstetrics, Interventional radiology and Transplant Surgery medical liability suits are a common experience. Both sides of this litigation action are well served by plaintiff and defense attorneys. A need not met is an accurate assessment of the business outcomes for all of the parties to the lawsuit. This service would be valuable to plaintiffs, the physician defendants, their attorneys and the medical liability insurance carriers.

Local Events: MIT Enterprise Forum Atlanta

2009-01-04T13:24:00.005-05:00

Those of you interested in resources for entrepreneurs related to Technology in the Atlanta area should take a look at the MIT Enterprise Forum Of Atlanta.

Here is their mission: "The MIT Enterprise Forum of Atlanta is a volunteer, non-profit organization whose mission is to provide educational programs and services that promote and strengthen innovation and entrepreneurship at the intersection of business and technology in the Southeast".

Anyone can become a member for a fee and have access events and resources. Their next event "Run it by the Pros" is on January 7th, with three panelists including Mark Grace whom we know through the 7515 Entrepreneurship class, that will evaluate two business plans of emerging companies.

NatureCure-MD, is an all herbal pharmaceutical company whose mission is the creation of innovative natural products for the improvement of human health; and

HydroCoal Technologies, develops and markets systems and process technologies that enable industrial customers to produce significantly cheaper, cleaner synthetic liquid and gaseous fuels from coal.

This is yet another important resource for entrepreneurs in Atlanta. Check it out at: http://www.mitforumatlanta.org/

Creative Commons License - An Example of a Simple Idea

2008-12-26T12:00:00.001-05:00

A few days ago I came across the Creative Commons License and I was amazed at the simplicity of the representation of the license.

Following the post on Simple Ideas I wanted to share this example of how to take a very long and dry idea, in this case the legal agreement, into something very simple, memorable, and easy to understand.

Hopefully we are able to present our business ideas with such simplicity, they will go a much longer way when reduced to the core concept.

Simple Ideas

2008-12-23T18:00:00.010-05:00

An entrepreneur needs to be effective when pitching a business idea. With a 'sticky' idea, you can utilize your network to help you find potential business partners, investors, suppliers, clients, and key contacts. After all, they will remember and be able to tell your idea to others.

In their book Made to Stick the Heath brothers present six elements that will make your idea understandable,
memorable, and easy to propagate or in their terms, 'sticky'. The elements are: Simple, Unexpected, Concrete, Credible, Emotional, and with Stories.

A Simple idea has or can be achieved by:

The "Commander's Intent":Comes from the military in which a commander tells his soldiers what to accomplish, if nothing else, during the mission. It defines the single most important thing that you want to accomplish.

What is the single most important thing that you want to convey with your pitch?
"Unburying the Lead": Is a journalism term indicating that a news story needs to start with the lead, or the most important element of the story. Sometimes the lead is buried in the middle of the story and people don't even get to read it.

Identify the single thing you want people to remember and start your pitch with it.
Core and Compact:Your message should be very compact in a single phrase and contain the core of your idea.

Define a single phrase that represents the core element of your idea.
Use known concepts to present new ones:You are more effective if you present your idea as a comparison with other but highlighting the difference: Our software product is a scaled down Microsoft Office Suite but online.

Describe your idea in terms of a well known concept and highlight the key difference.

When planning a pitch of your idea make it simple so it is memorable and can be spread easily through your network. What a better advertisement to your idea than someone else promoting it on your behalf.

On Networking

2008-12-15T18:00:00.001-05:00

Effective networking is an essential tool for any professional, in particular entrepreneurs. The 7515 Entrepreneurs Lounge is a lot about finding other people with the same aspirations, about sharing resources, and about developing our entrepreneurial spirit. In other words, the Lounge is a lot about effective networking.

An excellent resource on this topic is the podcast by the startuplounge.com cofounder Michael Blake. Next I summarize some of the ideas Michael discusses in his website.

Networking is a critical business skill regardless of what you do.
It is about building human resources that don't belong to your company
You build Social Capital for yourself and your company.
You can make resources available to you at little or no cost.
It allows you to find capital, customers, managers, help or advice. These resources can be bought, but through networking they can be available at the expense of time rather than cash.
Make a commitment to networking.
Don't be a 'social panhandler' where you expect to get things and benefits from others; think instead how you can offer something to others and make it your initial investment.
Take a genuine interest in other people.
What if you are shy? - You need to grow beyond your perceived limitations.
Get into the habit of small talking with other people for practice.
Prepare your elevator pitch.
Network with other entrepreneurs. They share the same interests, needs, and challenges.

Some recommended resources mentioned in the podcast:

Book: Professional Networking for Dummies

Book: The Heart of Networking by Ricky Steele

Share your thoughts and other resources about Networking that you find valuable.

- AG

Notes on the December Meeting

2008-12-14T10:22:00.008-05:00

Another great meeting of the Entrepreneurs Lounge. 13 people attended this time with a wide range of experience in entrepreneurship and with varied backgrounds.

Who we are:

We started the meeting by introducing ourselves and stating our interest in entrepreneurship.

B. is a first year MBA and entrepreneurship is why he joined the program.
J. finished his MBA in 07, is a Medical Director, runs his own company, and has a few ideas in the pipeline in the healthcare area.
R. is in graduating in May 09, comes from a family of entrepreneurs but worked for the last 20 years in corporate. Now looking to work with a startup of 9 people.
T. is in the health management arena as a consultant, and entrepreneurship is why he started his MBA.
L. is in his first year and his background is in engineering and works in the design of power plants. He has a few ideas that is trying to develop.
R. has an IT background and works with CRM systems. Has an idea that wants to develop further and wants the input from this group. Graduating in May 09.
M. is very motivated and has driven the creation of this group. She is working on an online store and a virtual call center.
S. is also working very hard in making this group a success. He is already working in a Gang of 5 developing some ideas. Interested in the health care arena and with a background in IT.
M. is an Electrical Engineer with experience in the Wireless area. From Sierra Leon, wants to develop some ventures there as he sees great opportunities to develop the communications backbone in his country and in Africa.
M. was part of a startup in college which survived for 2 years and got bought out. He is a part time consultant and is interested in PDAs and Mobile Devices.
A. helped his boss create a company in 2004; a few months ago he became the president of a spin-off of the original venture. Graduating in May 09 has a lot of experience in entrepreneurship.
K. is graduating in May 09 as well. He has an IT background and is very motivated to develop himself as an entrepreneur.
A. is in his last year and graduating in May 09. With an IT background wants to explore the Entrepreneurship world and is very excited and motivated about this group.

Structuring our Meetings:

We proposed a few components that should be part of the monthly meetings:

Motivational: this segment includes sharing ideas that some in the group are developing, how to develop new ideas, and how to keep the motivation high.
Tactical: we will discuss things that are important to an entrepreneur from a practical point of view, from talking about office space, to how to network better with online tools.
Subject Matter Experts: Have subject matter experts give a short talk about topics in Entrepreneurship; this includes guest speakers or people from the group that can share their expertise in certain areas.
Networking: We identified the need to have certain time allocated to allow us to network with the people in the group.

Our Reach:

We expressed interest in reaching over in the Atlanta area to other groups or organizations that might have common interests. We will discuss this idea at a later meeting when the group is more formally established.

We will continue to pursue the creation of this group as an UGA group, and we will extend the invitation to the Executive MBA and to the UGA MBA Alumni.

You can 'sponsor' your friends to come to this meeting if they are not UGA. This meeting is to be open to non-UGA students and alumni.

Individual Goals:

Each one of us committed to individual goals, whether short term (for the next meeting) to mid or long term (6-months to 1 year). We will support each other in the accomplishment of these.

We are all invited to post to this blog.

Next Meeting:

For our next meeting on the second Saturday of January, we will have a few speakers from the group that will share some ideas they are currently working on.
We will check on the progress of some of our goals.
And we will have time for networking.

Please add your comments to this post in case there is something missing.

To see the notes from our previous meeting go here.

December Meeting

2008-12-09T08:48:00.005-05:00

Time and Date: December 13th, 10:00am - 12:00n
Location: UGA Gwinnett Campus - Room 119

We will discuss the objectives of the Entrepreneurs Lounge, talk about your expectations and interests regarding Entrepreneurship, and will have the chance to meet other [aspiring] entrepreneurs.

If you cannot make it to this meeting, please check back on this blog for updates; we will publish all the information from the meeting here.

A Great Start

2008-11-25T13:22:00.009-05:00

We had a great start yesterday during the first meeting of the '7515 Entrepreneurs Lounge'. 9 very motivated people showed up and we even had a few from outside class.

For those of you who could not attend, or are not sure about attending, please keep following this blog as we will be posting updates and information here; you will surprised of the talent and opportunities that will converge to the group.

Some of the things we discussed:

Each one of us shared our background, interest in entrepreneurship, and what kind of help we can offer. (We have background in many different areas: libraries / business research, IT, sales, marketing, engineering, HR, consulting, etc.)
Everyone is invited to post their profiles in this blog so we all can have access to them any time.
We will be leveraging this blog as a communication and divulgation tool for the group, as well as posting articles, references, links, etc. All of us are invited to write our own pieces to publish here. Some people didn't take the class and want some guidance and reference material.
Most of us are interested in start-ups with a wide range of time frames (from a few months to undefined). There was much more interest in bootstrapping than in obtaining capital via VCs or Angel investors.
Good news: Professor Christopher Hanks, the Director of the Entrepreneurship Program at UGA's Terry College of Business, has offered his support to this initiative and we are very glad to have him involved with the 7515 Entrepreneurs Lounge. We will be working with him in formalizing a collaboration approach.
We proposed meeting every second Saturday of the month, from 10:00am to 12:00n.
We still have to organize the structure of our meetings, find a few officers that will act as moderators, note takers, etc. and clearly define the purpose of the meetings. This is still an open item.
While a major meeting is planned for every month, it is encouraged to form smaller groups that meet more often to discuss and work on your interests. You are encouraged to form your Gang of 5.
We want to extend an invitation to other UGA students to join this group, including undergrads, the Buckhead team and all Gwinnett.
Non-UGA students and friends are also welcome to join.
We will be creating a survey to learn more about the interests of the group.

Action items:

Send me your blogger account so I can add you as an author.
Create your profile with the information you want to share with others (i.e. background, interests, etc.)
Register to this blog as follower so you get notifications with the updates.
Write your first post about entrepreneurship. Any topic is welcome.
Post your suggestions about how to better organize our monthly meetings.

Post your comments anytime.

Next meeting is Saturday, December 13, 2008. Location TBD.

See you soon.

- AG

Our First Meeting

2008-11-19T21:38:00.005-05:00

As of Thursday Nov 10/08 I have received confirmation from 17 people interested in participating in the first meeting. The definite winner is Monday Nov 24th @ 6:00pm at the UGA campus Room 109.

I hope most of you can attend even if you didn't select Monday as one of your options. 17 people is a great start (a third of the class and I know of some others that haven't responded yet that are interested). Please invite others in the MBA program as the value of this group comes from its members.

FIRST MEETING:
When: Monday November 24th, at 6:00pm
Where: UGA Gwinnett Campus
Purpose: Establish a networking group whose main interest is Entrepreneurship.

Think about the following questions suggested by Michelle.
What is our entrepreneurship goal and timeframe?
What is the area of expertise we can best offer to our fellow lounge members?
What is the area we need the most help with?

See you all on Monday, and let's extend the invitation to our friends in the program.

Why Joining a Networking Group in Entrepreneurship

2008-11-19T12:05:00.010-05:00

Many people probably don't need convincing why they need to be part of a networking group, yet many of us don't exercise what we know or even what we preach and become part of one. This blog and the 7515 Entrepreneurs Lounge networking group is all about making that good advise a reality - Becoming part of a networking group to grow in the exciting world of Entrepreneurship. So, why joining a networking group in Entrepreneurship? Let me give you a few reasons based on the little experience I've had as an aspiring Entrepreneur.

Collaboration: In the past few weeks I have been exploring many different ideas for creating a new venture; I have tried doing it alone, with some friends, with family, etc. but whether you do it alone (hopefully not) or with a few more people, you still need a great deal of help and support from other like-minded people to run your ideas by, to get ideas from, or to collaborate. I have spent many hours doing research, that would only take a few minutes or 1-2 hours to discuss with someone that has the expertise I lack and that is willing to share the information with me. Most of the times they will give me an answer that is better than my half-baked research. Now, multiply that the number of different disciplines you will need when developing your venture, and this is a huge time saver. Think that you will be doing the same for them, so everybody wins here.

Expand your reach: Who doesn't have an account in linkedin or facebook, or any other social networking sites. Have you noticed the number of second and third level contacts you have? It takes you to hundreds or thousands. Well, that tells you a lot about the power of virtual networking; but why not becoming part of a 'real', or in-person network that gives you similar potential (perhaps not at the same scale) but definitely more tangible and effective. If you are looking to learn or to do a new venture, what can be better than a group that can give you immediate access to dozens of real contacts that can do something for you; again, chances are you can do something for them anyway.
A good use of your time: I have heard from some of my classmates that among the many changes graduation will bring to their lives, is the fact that they will have a lot of free time that was occupied by school work and classes. Why not spending the time in a constructive activity with the same level of intellectual challenge. Spend the time identifying and idea for a venture and building on it; then join a networking group to make your endeavour more effective and successful. If you don't have an idea, join the networking group so you can develop one with the help of other aspiring entrepreneurs.

In actuallity there are many reasons why you can benefit from a networking group like this; all you need to do is join one and discover them for yourself.

You can post comments about your expectations, what you like or not, ideas to improve the group or this site. Anything (appropriate) goes.

In the Beginning

2008-11-18T22:23:00.009-05:00

The 7515 Entrepreneurs Lounge is a simple idea generated from the '7515 Management - Entrepreneurship' class in the Evening MBA program in the Terry College of Business at the University of Georgia. Its main purpose is to serve as a medium to support a network of people interested in Entrepreneurship at any level, from those of us who want to become Entrepreneurs, to those who are experienced Entrepreneurs and are kind enough to share their vast experience, knowledge, and time with us, the aspiring ones.

If you are reading this entry, chances are you are in my Entrepreneurship class in which case I am inviting you to join and contribute your talents to this network, to continue learning, and why not to be serious about entrepreneurship.

There is a lot to gain, and little to lose. I believe there is a great chance that your talents can be matched with someone else's to be able to create something.

If you find this posting because someone passed it on to you, or simply found it on the web, chances are you are interested in this topic anyway. You are also welcome to join us; there is much to be learned and shared.

I hope to hear from many of you. We will be meeting regularly in a place to be determined in the Atlanta metro area. If you can't make it, just keep in touch and contribute through this blog.