October'23 UW MSE Blog: Learnings and Reflections as a Graduate Student for This Month

As a graduate student in the UW Master of Science in Entrepreneurship program, I have been on?a journey of personal growth, creative exploration, and experiential learning. In this blog, I will be sharing my learnings and takeaways for this month.

What I've Learned:

? Start Now, Take Risks

The most significant advice I received from previous program alumni is to START NOW. Do not wait. When I asked them what they would have done differently during their time as graduate students, they responded:

"Start sooner rather than later. It's better to fail forward and take risks at the beginning. It doesn’t have to be perfect at first. If you wait to make your product perfect, you’re wasting your time."

• Even by launching a prototype, you can learn about the audience's preferences and what they want. You can learn how to improve your services or product and execute more effectively.
• Gathering feedback from potential customers early on is important because it allows you to identify gaps and make small adjustments along the way, instead of waiting until the end to address everything.

? Schedule Office Hours with Professors

• Foster relationships with them. Let them get to know you. Discuss your assignments or passion projects with them, seeking their feedback and insights. This has proven to be one of the most valuable experiences, because who knows — these professors could turn into long-term mentors, best recommenders, or even friendships. It may not be the case for everyone, but talk to them anyway! Open yourself up to them.

? Get an Internship

• An internship can provide valuable insights and experience to your career journey and learning. It can help you understand your aspirations, identify the industry you want to be part of and learn new skills required for the role. Highspot was my first corporate internship, and I have learned a lot about working efficiently with the team and applying my marketing skills that I wouldn’t have learned on my own.

? Pitch Your Idea to Multiple People

• If you want to start a business, start pitching (to strangers, networking events, new friends, etc.). Be open to opportunities where you can put yourself out there.

? Buy a Book (Optional, but recommended)

• Buy a book related to topics you want to learn more about. If you don’t understand accounting or finance, go on Amazon and search: “Finance for Non-Finance” or “Accounting for Beginners”. Some of these books cost between $7.99 - $20.00. Despite some of the costs, this is about YOU investing in your education.

If you are a graduate student, treat education seriously. But also, try to make it fun! Whether that is color-coding your notes, listening to music while studying, forming study groups with your peers, etc. — personalize your learning styles! Make learning fun for you. Studying does not have to be boring unless you make it out to be.

Try experimenting with your academic experiences!

Product-Market Fit / Business Idea

A few weeks ago, I did a soft launch on GUNI's Delight ??

Here is my product market fit positioning statement:

For gift-giving individuals or dessert lovers who value spreading love and enjoy buying gifts in the form of treats, GUNI’s Delight is a special gift dessert treat that provides special gift bundles with nougat candy wrappers and personalized letters that are wrapped with love and care.

This is not just a dessert business. It is a market of self-gratitude and gift-giving.

• To treat yourself
• To treat your friends
• To reminisce your childhood memories
• To remember your cultural connection

From my customer discovery, I identified a unique appeal of my homemade treats.

It takes people home. It reminds them of their hometown -- their cultural origin and their roots. Beyond the message of gratitude in gift-giving, it provides a sense of nostalgia.

Here is How I Describe My Target Market

Objective #1: To provide a unique, special, personalized gift-dessert experience that brings delight and joy to loved ones.

Why it’s important: Gift-giving individuals value personalization and uniqueness in their gift-giving experience because it derives satisfaction and happiness from making their friends and family members feel special and loved. They want their gifts to stand out and create memorable moments. This objective is important because it fulfills their desire to show appreciation and strengthen personal relationships through thoughtful and delightful gifts in the form of sweet, unique treats.?

My target market’s objective is to make gift-giving a joyful, unique, personal, and convenient experience that strengthens relationships with loved ones.        

GUNI's Delight isn't perfect yet, but I launched it anyway — to test things out and gather feedback. This was really fun for me as it allowed me to get creative with social content, understand my potential buyer’s needs and interests, and refine my marketing strategy. It also helped me to identify what works and what doesn't. That's the essence of experimenting—testing the waters and seeing where it leads.

Here are some testimonials/reviews below:

To support the creation of my passion project, go check out my account and let GUNI’s Delight send some love and delight to those you care about. ??????https://beacons.ai/gunidelight

Thank You for Reading!

Thank you for following up on my educational journey, and for visiting my digital library of experiences!?Feel free to say hi or message me on LinkedIn!

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