Last class day in Dublin

Today started off with our class meeting in the morning.  Our purpose today was to have each group talk about what each learned during their time working for the various companies.  Leadership was the talking point, but we also were each able to speak a little bit about the work projects too.  This really forced me to think critically about some of my takeaways and it was great to hear what everyone else had learned.  It was clear we all came away with many valuable lessons.  I had three main takeaways that I shared with everyone and will share here as well.  First lesson, when you are considering a new product for a company or if you are a new company working on your first product, you have to do your due diligence in your market research.  Which leads into my second takeaway, and that is when you come up with a result that the product does not fit into the market the way you thought, you have to address it.  Even though it is hard to admit that the product won't fit into the market place the way you wanted, it is better to find out when you are doing the market analysis before you get even further invested into developing it and waisting your time and money.  And finally, no matter how cool of an idea you think you have, if it does not solve a problem that will make people want to buy it, it does not matter.  You can't make money off sommething that does not fit into the market place.  In terms of leadership, I learned how to make things work as a team when there is no clearly defined leader.  Although it is probably better to have a clear leader, sometimes you can join together and work through obstacles as a team and rely on each other.

The second part of the day we visited the NDRC, which is effectively a launch pad for entrepreneurship start ups in Ireland.  They were very receptive to us and had 4 different entrepreneurs present to us their proposals that they had already pitched the week prior.  They all had pitched to try to get further funding and it was interesting to hear them talk about their different business ideas.  I was a little surprised to see how much money each of them were asking for to fund the business.  I thought about if I was an investor if I would give any of them money for their businesses, and I only would have given one of them any money out of the 4.  Simply because I did not believe some of them had a great enough idea or business model to truly be successful.  I believe this is a result of so much government funding going on in Ireland for start ups.

After our time at NDRC we had a good dinner together at this restaurant called the Porterhouse.  It was good to celebrate the conclusion of our class and adventure in this fashion, all together one last time in Ireland.  We have a presentation to give on the 16th of June back in Colorado and then we are done with the course!

The Final Product

The final day of the project is here!  After working so late last night, we all agreed to get up and get started an hour earlier today.  Our group anticipated the need for the extra time, and it was a good thing too as we certainly needed it.  All our laser focus is on delivering a valuable presentation for our company and we want it to be the best possible presentation.  As we made our big push to deliver our presentation we discovered some new things at the last minute that required some adjustment in our recommendations.  After all this research we had done, we had to come to some tough conclusions and decide what kinds of recommendations we would make.  What we finally came up with was not easy news to deliver.  Our client had certain ideas and expectations that did not fit with our market analysis.  This market analysis was pretty in depth into the different sports market arena where there are some big players with hundreds of millions of dollars invested into the broadcasting rights.  Presenting these findings in much further detail helped us as we made the tough recommendations on how to proceed.  Our news was not all bad or gloom mind you, but it was still hard to shoot down some of the original premise for what our clients wishes were in terms of their product.  We were able to recommend and come up with some other good ways to move forward for them.  I watched the faces of our clients intently as we presented as well as observed the body language.  Right away I could see the discomfort grow as our presentation proceeded.  But at the end of the presentation there was I believe relief from both us as presenters and for our clients.  They now know what they are up against and have some solid information, and we have completed our tasks.  Not without some battle scars though.  Our clients offered feedback on our project and how we performed.  We delivered what they wanted and needed, but there were some speed bumps we could have avoided.  At the start of our project, we needed a team leader.  I don't believe this is always going to be the case in a small group of 3, but it would have helped us tremendously based on our team dynamics.  The other thing we could have done better was to have clear objectives for what we would have completed by the end of each day.  This would have helped us avoid some of the rabbit trails we fixated on sometimes during the project.  In perspective, we learned so much from this marketing analysis and consulting that our final takeaways will carry each team member forward to better things in my humble opinion.

After finishing the presentation we all changed and went out to dinner with our clients.  They took us to a very nice restaurant and enjoyed each others company while being able to leave the work behind for the evening.  We also were able to gain perspectives on leadership throughout the dinner as we needed this piece for when we will get back to Denver to present on leadership soon.  All said and done, a good day and good food!  At the end of dinner, Andrew and I both ordered a shot of espresso that was fantastic.  The manager of the restaurant was able to tell me all about the roaster they get their coffee from which was very interesting to me.  It is a local micro roaster in Dublin that does only small batch roasting and sees the art in coffee.  They are called Cloud Picker and I have looked them up to find out more about them.  Very interesting stuff!

Grinding On

Today seemed completely nuts.  Being so close to the end of the project with so much time invested already, we have to avoid running in circles.  It's easy to get caught up in the more broad picture.  Between all the team members and after today we easily have over 84 hours invested into this project.  Our group is passionate about being able to deliver a solid product to our company and feel a huge level of pressure.  But the focus is there, and after a 12 hour day with little in the way of breaks we are getting our "laser focus" back in gear.  When I say little in the way of breaks, I mean we stopped at the store to get some things to make up some dinner, and then it was back in front of the computers drilling away again.  Anna made some pasta and I made some Thai green curry chicken with veggies.  Both were delicious and helped refuel us to keep working hard now that we are back at the apartment.  This is real life, whether we are in Dublin or not, some work days require a lot more hours.  This is certainly not the first time I have put in more than 12 hours of work in a day, haha!  But in a weird way I love the grind too.  Mind you it is not something I want out of everyday, but a good long work day that produces results can be rewarding.  This blog post might be the most raw of them all in its fluid and straight forward nature.  I am trying to re-capture the moments and fluid thoughts as they come right now, so I am not even going back to edit this post.  This day had its ups and downs for sure.  There were moments I wanted to crawl under the desk and lay down to try to get the room to stop spinning.  So much information overload and trying to match information into usable things to drive us in the right direction and keep focused can be one of the biggest challenges to overcome.  One thing pointed out by Bevan that would be helpful would be to have a project leader for our team, even with 3 of us it can be hard when someone cannot fully take the reigns and say this is the direction we are going.  Yet we have managed all the same and with all the head spins we have come out on the other side.  The key is to not get frustrated when you cannot see the light at the end of the tunnel.  So many times we get glimpses and then it will disappear again.  Every time it disappeared today I tried to get us back on track to where we could see it again.  Each of us contributed to this end in reality.  I am grateful that each member of my team has so much to contribute, as this is hard enough.  Without their contributions none of this would be close to where it is at.  After the end of the day today, I feel like that light at the end of the tunnel is a little brighter.  I will be saying my prayers tonight that we can contribute value to our company.  My advice to anyone who goes on this trip to Ireland would be to push through the head spins.  Work through it and don't let it stop your progress.  I know that the value of this experience is beyond measure and that each of us will come away from this with better business sense.  Pictured below is the dinner cooking after our run home in the rain.  This is the grind, because right after this dinner we made it was back to work.

Cliffs of Moher

Today was amazing!  We woke up early at the B&B we stayed at and had a nice breakfast that our host made for us.  Getting a good breakfast helped get a nice start to our morning.  I love coffee so much and she made us coffee using a French press that was so tasty!  We left the B&B and caught a tour bus out to the Cliffs of Moher where we were able to see one of the most picturesque scenes I have ever seen.  Most of today was filled with a lot of sitting and travel back from Galway.  But the Cliffs were so worth seeing!  I am exhausted again after all the travel we have been doing.  Everything in life worth some time seems to require at least some effort.  With little leadership insight and mostly time spent in public transportation, I will make this post short and sign off.  I'll try to post more new good stuff tomorrow night!

Galway adventures

Today was another very long travel day.  Spent time this morning traveling back to Dublin via bus.  We arrived back on the UCD campus and got settled right into our rooms.  Then 4 of us packed up a small bag and headed out on the road again.  We made our way into town on a bus so that we could catch a train to a town called Galway.  All the transferring around all day on different modes of transportation was a little crazy, but we made it to Galway without any scratches.  It was worth all the extra effort and I am grateful that these guys made this side trip up for us.  There are four of us on this little excursion and we are staying at a very cool little Bed & Breakfast right on the coast.  As I type up this blog in this very quant room with all of us working on our blogs I can see the ocean from the windows.  For dinner we went into town and explored the main downtown area.  We ended up at a great Italian restaurant called Cooke's and had a great meal.  My starter that I had was a delicious seafood chowder, followed by chicken and potatoes.  All of it was very flavorful, and after dinner we stopped at Gino's for some Italian gelato.  Gelato seems to be a theme for us no matter where we are at in Ireland.  We all seem to really love it!  Now that we are back at the B&B it is nice to sit back and relax.  I am ready to take some R&R and actually do just a little internal reflection time.  Gotta recharge my batteries a little bit.  Our internet is very, very slow, so my pictures for this post might be a little bit later.  Slán go fóill!

Fish of Knowledge

Today was a tour and then free time after the tour.  This means a little less to report and more pictures for everyones enjoyment to view!  Our tour consisted of seeing all the sites on both sides of the peace walls.  There are war type murals on both sides, the pro-Ireland and the pro-British sides have murals that include the flags of each.  Also, there was a very cool castle that I really wanted to take a look at the inside of, but the tour bus only stops there for a few minutes so that was a no go.  Still cool to see the outside and the beautiful scenery (pictured below).  This castle area is very close to where they also film one of my favorite current running shows Game of Thrones.  So cool!  The afternoon has been kinda chill and just what I needed.  We had a good lunch, then came back and have been chilling at the hotel.  Beven and I also went for a run, and it was so nice to get a good solid work out in.  Second workout of the trip for both of us and glad to have a workout friend while I am here.  This next week we plan on hitting the gym more consistently.  Also, we have committed ourselves to getting in shape when we get back to the states and plan to stay in touch to see how we both progress.  The goal for us both is to get a six pack.  I am really going to have to work on what I eat and drink.  I want to look good for when I get married soon!  So when I get back, I am cutting back on drinking big time.  One time a month I will have a "cheat" day for drinking alcohol.  Food cheat days will be Sunday and will be limited.  Gotta get those abs!  Before and after pics and a blog will be done on it (I already have the before pics).

In the evening we went to dinner at the mall area and had really good pizza.  After this we hit the pubs for some drinks.  I was really excited to find Staropramen at the bar.  It is a really good Czech beer and I snapped some photos there too.  We also met some awesome Irish people at the bar that we were able to chat with for awhile.  Good times!

The Fish of Knowledge.  Legend has it that when you kiss the fish of knowledge that you absorb its knowledge.  I also decided to take it for a ride!

Didn't notice this until after jumping up on the fish...whoops!

Belfast

We traveled to Northern Ireland today, the city of Belfast.  This post is a little late in getting up, but better late than never!  I have tried to write this blog several times and keep getting interrupted.  Here it is finally!  The day started early in the am with a bus ride from Dublin to Belfast.  It didn't seem to take too long and when we arrived our agenda was ready to go.  Our fearless leader Jan has had this trip well organized and planned out.  Our first order of business was to see the dry dock where the Titanic was created.  This dry dock and legend left behind of the Titanic is quite impressive!  We didn't get a lot of time to explore the dry dock and I believe it is something worth checking out for anyone who ever has the chance.

After this we had several entrepreneurial speakers lined up to present to our class, one of whom has been a big game changer for Ireland.  He helped bring in and was a key influencer in making Ireland a hub for the fiber optics.  The other speakers were of outstanding as well.  But in the spirit of making things fresh and new, I have some bullet points of what I think are important take aways from the different presentations.  These take aways relate to both being an effective leader and also relate to being an entrepreneur.

• Be a life long learner and be a life long learner of Leadership
• Continue to reshape yourself as a leader intentionally.  Listen, Learn, then lead.  Rinse and repeat.
• Find people you can lean on and can deeply trust.  Those who will remind you of who you are and what you are capable of.
• Discipline requires a constant effort.  And every aspect of life requires good discipline.  Our human nature goes naturally against discipline and fights it every inch of the way.  Yet, whether it is having the discipline to work out, eat healthy, or be a good leader, it always requires of us to have discipline in each and every aspect of our lives.  If you really want to have effective change in a particular area of your life, you have to force yourself into the mode of being disciplined to make it happen.
• In the beginning! - A nugget of an idea becomes a product and eventfully a business
• No one ever seems to raise enough money.  The takeaway - always seek to raise more money.  Do it early, do it often, and raise more than you think you need.
• Fail Early and Fail Often
• “I have not failed, I’ve just found 10,000 ways that won’t work.”
• Pour energy ONLY into building “the best customer experience” you can
• The first 10 hires will make or break your business - Its okay to say no
• A CEO is NOT a glamorous position - no friends and you must be first to go home at the office party
• Business Consultant usually have only ever studied the history of running a business - do not let them over influence your own judgement
• Do not let work come between you and your health.  Exercise and leave work at the office

The last part of the day was great too.  We went to a local Irish Restaurant and Pub for dinner.  The food was great, and I loved the Burger I tried there.  They do burgers right here for sure, but certainly tastes a lot different from the burgers we have back home!  We had a band that jived there, and the only way to describe it is with video and pictures.  Enjoy! :)

The jiving band as I like to call them. Just a family get together at the pub to jam out!

Below, our brewskis

These pictures are posted up on the walls and I think depict some interesting traits about Northern Ireland and the things they have been through. But don't let my words overpower these very powerful photos.

Below is dessert. A traditional Irish toffee caramel one with vanilla ice cream...sooooo good!!

Our second stop