4A- Forming an Opportunity Belief
1. I strongly believe there is a need for more parking available around campus and less parking restrictions. This is my second year at UF, and the opportunity for the creation of more parking and the lightening up on perking restrictions has become more prevalent to me every semester.
2. The unmet need is the desperate desire for more parking around UF's campus. I believe that the people who need this are all students who have very limited parking options with their current decal and have classes that are scattered around campus, requiring them to drive to class. I think that this is a need that has always existed, yet it is one that I haven't realized until I was in the position where I found myself never ever finding parking whenever I would take my car out. So much so, that I even stopped taking my car out and making other people drive me so that I would not lose my spot. I am sure that students who are seniors now have come to realize within their 4 years at UF that it would have been really nice to have been able to find parking whenever they pleased throughout their collegiate career. In order to meet this need right now, I believe that some people are just buying scooters rather than bringing their cars to UF since it is such a hassle to park. Those who do not own a car or a scooter are just finding other modes of public transportation to get around or even walking to their final destinations. At this point, I am about 80% certain that this opportunity exists, because there are a lot of people who I personally know would take advantage of the opportunity to park freely if it were an option.
3a. I am first interviewing a Sophomore at UF.
4a. As I interviewed my first prototypical customer, I asked her to tell me a little bit about herself and what her class and daily schedule looked like. This person is a sophomore who has her car with her at UF, so I figured she would be a good place to start. She says that she becomes increasingly aware of the need for more parking whenever she takes her car out during the day and later tries to find a parking spot around dinner time, which is when everyone is trying to park frantically in the same lot. Since she brought her car up with her in the fall, she has only had this need for last semester and what has passed by this current semester. She first became aware of the need for more parking with fewer restrictions when one day last semester she parked at the top floor of Norman garage thinking that it was Red 1 zone and she ended up getting a ticket. She soon realized that the decal switches over after the second floor, and it is hard to tell unless you are paying close attention to the signs. Currently, she says that she never takes her car out, unless it is on weekends because that is when parking is lifted. Instead, she tries to Uber and asks her friends for rides because she does not want to deal with the frustration of not finding a spot. Truthfully, she is very dissatisfied with this solution, but she believes it's the best solution she has given her current situation and previous experience with the parking system.
3b. I then decided to interview a Junior at UF.
4b. I decided to find someone who had at least one more year at the school in order to really understand the scale of the need. To this Junior at UF, his nature of the need seemed to be a little less severe than my last interviewee. This guy has a car at UF, and he has had it here since his freshman year. To him, he definitely sees how he would get great use out of the creation of a larger lot with more parking spaces and fewer restrictions, but he does not see it as something that is particularly urgent. This person became aware of this need for better parking conditions in the middle of their sophomore year. He says that although it did really frustrate him not having a set spot whenever he pleased, he learned to accept it and be more proactive. He realized the need for more parking at UF whenever he would drive to the gym during busy hours and also whenever he would try to park on Fraternity row during dinner and lunch. It is safe to say that he has definitely gotten used to the whole frustration aspect of not finding a spot, and it is something that he pays little to no attention to at all anymore. He realizes that if he finds a spot, great. If he doesn't, then that sucks. Currently, the way he addresses the situation is by taking out his car at certain times of the day that he knows he will find parking when he comes back. Since he is a junior, he knows the peak times and times of the day where parking is usually available, so that is how he deals with the parking issue. He is pretty satisfied with the solution. It is very creative if you think about it because he first realized that parking was very difficult to deal with, and began to be smarter than the system in order to assure that he would always find a spot, regardless of time. I also think that he is satisfied with the solution because he has just learned to accept it and not let it frustrate him.
3c. Finally, I decided to interview an advisor for one of my business clubs.
4c. In order to completely understand the scope of the parking issue at UF and the undeniable desire for better parking with fewer restrictions, I decided to see the whole situation from the perspective of a staff member. To her, there is a clear need for a better, more versatile parking system at UF. But, she makes it clear that she speaks for the students, and not herself when telling me about this need for parking. In her perspective, it was actually quite funny how she realized the need for better parking at UF. Being the advisor of a club, she realized students being late to meetings a lot of the time due to their inability to find parking even at later times of the day, which struck her as odd since she never had an issue with that. Therefore, she realizes the need for parking especially prevalent during later hours of the day whenever students have late meetings or later classes. Since staff gets a parking decal with wider access to parking, she states how her personal desire for better parking at UF is not too high. She notes that she is usually able to find parking and that to her the need for better parking at UF is low. Sometimes, like anyone with a car would know, she does have some trouble fitting into the tiny parking spaces at UF, and she tells me how if anything, she would work on the design aspect of UF parking. Currently, she addresses her issue by driving around and looking for a spot that has a good amount of space for her to be able to park comfortably.
5. Overall, I learned that my opportunity was in very high demand. Strangely enough, I did learn that the opportunity that I believed was of the same sense of urgency to everyone seemed to become less desired as people became older. When comparing a Sophomore's need of better parking to that of a Junior at UF, the Sophomore had extreme ways of coping with the horrible parking situation. She even said how she stopped taking her car out because she did not want to have to deal with the frustration of not finding a spot. So much so, that she would rather catch an Uber than take the risk of not finding a spot. On the other hand, a Junior who had his car at UF all throughout his time here has pretty much taken a completely opposite approach. To him, he realizes that there is nothing anyone can do to make parking better at UF, so rather than fight with nature he has decided to become proactive about the situation. Similarly, my club advisor who is a staff member never has trouble with parking, and in her case would deem my opportunity unnecessary. I believe that the most surprising thing I have learned about my opportunity is that it is not desired equally by everyone. Unbeknownst to me, everyone has a very unique routine and schedule that allows them to adjust to the parking system in their own personal way. I truly believed that every single person at UF that has a car has experienced some sort of frustration with the parking system, but that is not exactly the case. I think the most important takeaway for me is that every single person is different, and thus everyone's needs differ entirely. What I may see as a huge issue may be of very small concern to someone else.
6. See above.
7. To be brutally honest, I think that a lot of my opportunity is gone. Going into the assignment, I truly believed that my opportunity was going to fix an issue that was normal for a majority of students at UF. Now, reflecting on my interviews and their responses, I see that this is not the case at all. Instead, I believe that a better, more intuitive opportunity would be to solely encourage fewer parking restrictions rather than create more parking at UF. I believe that this is a bit more feasible and that it would bring comfort to more people rather than just creating a new lot or more parking in random places around campus. I definitely see how this new opportunity of mine is more accurate than my old one because it pleases a greater audience, which is always a better route to go. Taking this into consideration and taking into account the interviews, it is safe to say that I strongly believe that entrepreneurs should be able to adapt to their opportunities when collecting customer feedback. After receiving feedback, I was able to gain greater insight on the real issue and the severity of the issue, which is honestly not as bad as I perceived it to be. Sure, it differs from person to person, but it definitely does not frustrate and affect as many people and students as I would have thought. Yes, my opportunity was practical in theory, but in reality, it may not have solved the problems of as many people as I originally thought. There is success in being able to show responsiveness within your personal opportunities and adjusting them based on external observation.
2. The unmet need is the desperate desire for more parking around UF's campus. I believe that the people who need this are all students who have very limited parking options with their current decal and have classes that are scattered around campus, requiring them to drive to class. I think that this is a need that has always existed, yet it is one that I haven't realized until I was in the position where I found myself never ever finding parking whenever I would take my car out. So much so, that I even stopped taking my car out and making other people drive me so that I would not lose my spot. I am sure that students who are seniors now have come to realize within their 4 years at UF that it would have been really nice to have been able to find parking whenever they pleased throughout their collegiate career. In order to meet this need right now, I believe that some people are just buying scooters rather than bringing their cars to UF since it is such a hassle to park. Those who do not own a car or a scooter are just finding other modes of public transportation to get around or even walking to their final destinations. At this point, I am about 80% certain that this opportunity exists, because there are a lot of people who I personally know would take advantage of the opportunity to park freely if it were an option.
3a. I am first interviewing a Sophomore at UF.
4a. As I interviewed my first prototypical customer, I asked her to tell me a little bit about herself and what her class and daily schedule looked like. This person is a sophomore who has her car with her at UF, so I figured she would be a good place to start. She says that she becomes increasingly aware of the need for more parking whenever she takes her car out during the day and later tries to find a parking spot around dinner time, which is when everyone is trying to park frantically in the same lot. Since she brought her car up with her in the fall, she has only had this need for last semester and what has passed by this current semester. She first became aware of the need for more parking with fewer restrictions when one day last semester she parked at the top floor of Norman garage thinking that it was Red 1 zone and she ended up getting a ticket. She soon realized that the decal switches over after the second floor, and it is hard to tell unless you are paying close attention to the signs. Currently, she says that she never takes her car out, unless it is on weekends because that is when parking is lifted. Instead, she tries to Uber and asks her friends for rides because she does not want to deal with the frustration of not finding a spot. Truthfully, she is very dissatisfied with this solution, but she believes it's the best solution she has given her current situation and previous experience with the parking system.
3b. I then decided to interview a Junior at UF.
4b. I decided to find someone who had at least one more year at the school in order to really understand the scale of the need. To this Junior at UF, his nature of the need seemed to be a little less severe than my last interviewee. This guy has a car at UF, and he has had it here since his freshman year. To him, he definitely sees how he would get great use out of the creation of a larger lot with more parking spaces and fewer restrictions, but he does not see it as something that is particularly urgent. This person became aware of this need for better parking conditions in the middle of their sophomore year. He says that although it did really frustrate him not having a set spot whenever he pleased, he learned to accept it and be more proactive. He realized the need for more parking at UF whenever he would drive to the gym during busy hours and also whenever he would try to park on Fraternity row during dinner and lunch. It is safe to say that he has definitely gotten used to the whole frustration aspect of not finding a spot, and it is something that he pays little to no attention to at all anymore. He realizes that if he finds a spot, great. If he doesn't, then that sucks. Currently, the way he addresses the situation is by taking out his car at certain times of the day that he knows he will find parking when he comes back. Since he is a junior, he knows the peak times and times of the day where parking is usually available, so that is how he deals with the parking issue. He is pretty satisfied with the solution. It is very creative if you think about it because he first realized that parking was very difficult to deal with, and began to be smarter than the system in order to assure that he would always find a spot, regardless of time. I also think that he is satisfied with the solution because he has just learned to accept it and not let it frustrate him.
3c. Finally, I decided to interview an advisor for one of my business clubs.
4c. In order to completely understand the scope of the parking issue at UF and the undeniable desire for better parking with fewer restrictions, I decided to see the whole situation from the perspective of a staff member. To her, there is a clear need for a better, more versatile parking system at UF. But, she makes it clear that she speaks for the students, and not herself when telling me about this need for parking. In her perspective, it was actually quite funny how she realized the need for better parking at UF. Being the advisor of a club, she realized students being late to meetings a lot of the time due to their inability to find parking even at later times of the day, which struck her as odd since she never had an issue with that. Therefore, she realizes the need for parking especially prevalent during later hours of the day whenever students have late meetings or later classes. Since staff gets a parking decal with wider access to parking, she states how her personal desire for better parking at UF is not too high. She notes that she is usually able to find parking and that to her the need for better parking at UF is low. Sometimes, like anyone with a car would know, she does have some trouble fitting into the tiny parking spaces at UF, and she tells me how if anything, she would work on the design aspect of UF parking. Currently, she addresses her issue by driving around and looking for a spot that has a good amount of space for her to be able to park comfortably.
5. Overall, I learned that my opportunity was in very high demand. Strangely enough, I did learn that the opportunity that I believed was of the same sense of urgency to everyone seemed to become less desired as people became older. When comparing a Sophomore's need of better parking to that of a Junior at UF, the Sophomore had extreme ways of coping with the horrible parking situation. She even said how she stopped taking her car out because she did not want to have to deal with the frustration of not finding a spot. So much so, that she would rather catch an Uber than take the risk of not finding a spot. On the other hand, a Junior who had his car at UF all throughout his time here has pretty much taken a completely opposite approach. To him, he realizes that there is nothing anyone can do to make parking better at UF, so rather than fight with nature he has decided to become proactive about the situation. Similarly, my club advisor who is a staff member never has trouble with parking, and in her case would deem my opportunity unnecessary. I believe that the most surprising thing I have learned about my opportunity is that it is not desired equally by everyone. Unbeknownst to me, everyone has a very unique routine and schedule that allows them to adjust to the parking system in their own personal way. I truly believed that every single person at UF that has a car has experienced some sort of frustration with the parking system, but that is not exactly the case. I think the most important takeaway for me is that every single person is different, and thus everyone's needs differ entirely. What I may see as a huge issue may be of very small concern to someone else.
6. See above.
7. To be brutally honest, I think that a lot of my opportunity is gone. Going into the assignment, I truly believed that my opportunity was going to fix an issue that was normal for a majority of students at UF. Now, reflecting on my interviews and their responses, I see that this is not the case at all. Instead, I believe that a better, more intuitive opportunity would be to solely encourage fewer parking restrictions rather than create more parking at UF. I believe that this is a bit more feasible and that it would bring comfort to more people rather than just creating a new lot or more parking in random places around campus. I definitely see how this new opportunity of mine is more accurate than my old one because it pleases a greater audience, which is always a better route to go. Taking this into consideration and taking into account the interviews, it is safe to say that I strongly believe that entrepreneurs should be able to adapt to their opportunities when collecting customer feedback. After receiving feedback, I was able to gain greater insight on the real issue and the severity of the issue, which is honestly not as bad as I perceived it to be. Sure, it differs from person to person, but it definitely does not frustrate and affect as many people and students as I would have thought. Yes, my opportunity was practical in theory, but in reality, it may not have solved the problems of as many people as I originally thought. There is success in being able to show responsiveness within your personal opportunities and adjusting them based on external observation.
Hey Rebeca,
ReplyDeleteI really liked this opportunity because I genuinely feel like parking is a huge issue here, I too stopped trying to drive myself to class and instead have someone else drive. I like the different people you used as well, and it was interesting to see how the sophomore and juniors opinion changed. I liked your conclusion as well, I don't think it's so much that more parking sports are needed, it is less restrictions. With the permit they gave me for my car (which I did not rebuy) there were little to no areas that I could actually park my car.
Hi Beca, I basically wrote about the same thing. My problem was paying so much for decals that dont really even work. The decals are great but it is annoying that I can't even park in the parking lot that I am paying for. I had my car up here freshman year but decided not to bring it up this year because its pointless if I spend for time finding a spot then driving to destinations. Its hard to fix this problem because there are so many students and limited areas for quality parking.
ReplyDeleteHello Rebeca, parking is a major issue that most universities face, so finding a solution that works at UF could potentially work at other campuses. The interviews were very descriptive and highlighted different perspectives on the issue. I like how you took note of these different perspectives in your reflection and summary and used them to reframe your opportunity. I currently do not drive to campus and mostly rely on RTS, but every time I see the parking spots most are filled.
ReplyDeleteHey Rebeca! I completely agree with you that parking is a massive issue on campus, although I also feel that most people have found an effective work around for this issue. For instance, I do not even own a car, so my work around just happens to be that I live as close to campus as I can, and skateboard everywhere. Now this solution is by no means perfect, with many flaws such as: not being able to carry more than I can fit in my backpack, cold or rainy weather, and lots of foot traffic, that present themselves quite often. Although this is the case, my solution works for me. I was still very interested in your process though, and I can easily see how owning a car would make this problem present itself constantly.
ReplyDeleteHi Beca,
ReplyDeleteI completely agree with this issue. This year, as a sophomore, I live in apartment where I have a designated parking spot so I can drive whenever I want. Last year, I had a parking spot on UF campus but it was so far from my dorm that I never wanted to walk a mile to my car. Also, whenever I moved my car, there would be no spots left. I didn't really realize it then, but this changed my quality of life so much. I am so much happier this year because I don't feel trapped on one part of campus. The ability to drive all over campus and even to different parts of Gainesville makes me feel like I'm actually a life that I can control. UF should totally look into better parking because I think it could make freshman and people who still live on campus feel a lot happier.