Tuesday, April 17, 2007

The Look-Look Challenge



Look-Look, an LA based company that researches the trends of today’s youth culture, recently presented a challenge to our class. Look-Look asked us to research the "new entrepreneur," and examine why this is such a trend among today’s college students.

So who is today's "new entrepreneur?"
Of course today's entrepreneur must have the drive,dedication,and the cash flow to turn their "idea" into a successful business opportunity. Some people may have the idea of starting their own business, but have no plan whatsoever. Today's entrepreneur is one step ahead and is raring to bloom.
As a side note, our professor asked us to raise our hands if we wanted to be an entrepreneur. I was among the half of the class who didn't raise their hand. I consider myself an ambitious person, but not down right competitive. For me, I will take pleasure in my structured 8-5 job. So maybe it comes down to more than just having the right qualities.

Why does the new entrepreneur flourish at SMU?
-For one thing, location. Nestled in Highland Park, an extremely affluent neighborhood,SMU exists in a somewhat exclusive bubble.
-SMU is a "can do" city. Dallas Convention and Visitor’s Bureau recently launched a new slogan: “Live Large, Think Big”
Although often characterized as a school for rich kids, it is hard to refute such a stereotype when the student parking garage is filled with BMWs, Mercedes, and Audis.
- a curriculum devoted to entrepreneurs and draws ppl to campus.
SMU is a "can do" city. SMU is known as a school for rich kids.-
SMU established The Caruth Institute for Entrepreneurship in 1970 as an addition to the Cox School of Business. Now thirty-seven years later, the institute ranks 5th among the top 100 entrepreneurial schools in the country.
href="http://www.cox.smu.edu/aboutcox/pressroom/releases/2005/mar30".

In order to get an accurate insight into the “new entrepreneur” at SMU, I immediately thought of my friend Scott Sumerall. Scott, a 21 year-old junior at SMU, is essentially living the entrepreneurial dream. Yes, I am envious of his red Lexus convertible he drives, but he definitely earned it. Scott started on his own and invested well in real-estate. When I asked Scott why he wanted to be an entrepreneur he replied, “It’s in my blood, I come from a family of entrepreneurs all the way back to my great-grandfather”. Scott says it is the only way he has ever known since no one in his family has worked for someone else- they have all become successful on their own. Scott feels that as an entrepreneur he has the freedom to have creative discretion and control over his own life. Regarding the new entrepreneur trend, Scott believes there is a different shift in attitudes towards work. Our grandparents stayed with a company for decades, but now the instability of corporate America isn’t appealing, comments Summerall. Summerall also addressed how the trend of being an entrepreneur might affect businesses in the future. He proposes it might become saturated- people will work for companies until they come up with their own idea and peace. Perhaps young entrepreneurs should take note of Sumerall’s philosophy: “I look for ways to start an empire and anywhere I can be that touches fun, I go for it!”

3 comments:

Kara said...

really good! the SMU statements at the beginning really help your case!

Charles H. Green said...

Given your interests, you might enjoy looking at my posting at
http://www.trustedadvisor.com/blog/137/

Michael said...

I like the post! It's concise and appealing. The only thing is that at one of the beginning paragraphs, a "the" should go after "have"