Competition is a Learning Experience

The PA DECA & Entrepreneurship Conference took place Friday, November 8 – Saturday, November 9, 2013. I had the privilege of taking five students with me to Penn State University’s Smeal College of Business. Friday’s schedule was met with mini-sessions from successful entrepreneurs. A particular entrepreneur captured my attention as her presentation was worthy of stowing in my memory bank. Her name is Kerri Smith, and when I saw her rap commercial for Belly Rest Maternity Pillows I became an instant fan. My first impression of Kerri was that she is a little quirky. However, underneath her petite frame and big glasses lies a superwoman who gripped me with her notion of of “Idea Stewardship.” The concept is simple: take x-amount of uninterrupted minutes in your day and write things down. Just write, there is no wrong (pun intended). To have x-amount of minutes in my day would be a feat; yet, to spend x-amount emptying my thoughts onto paper sounds so enticing and something worth exploring — how therapeutic! Furthermore, when she spoke about her success I saw some of myself in her. The only difference is that I hold back. The purpose of idea stewardship is just that — don’t hold back. In any event, I hope to see her on an episode of Shark Tank in the near future…and maybe even one day I will be a stakeholder in ONE of her companies.

DECA Students present new product to board members

Saturday’s event was the big presentation. The students of Dauphin County Tech School worked diligently Friday evening and early Saturday morning on a presentation whose theme was how to improve school lunches. The students fulfilled the criteria and presented to a panel of judges. The students did a great job presenting the concept. For example, they used local farmers who would provide food and  government backing by Michelle Obama’s Let’s Move campaign. Their area of opportunity was financing. After debriefing and discussing the results with other teams in attendance, it was clear that financing was a huge focus of the panel. For our next competition we have to be sure the students are well-versed in Economics. I am very proud of their focus and dedication towards the presentation. They spoke well and were very articulate and passionate about their product, which (to me) is a winning combination. I look forward to preparing for next year’s competition. We are D-C-T-S!