Supplement the learning environment with resources

Originally posted in our November 2024 Top of Mind Newsletter. In “The Mom Test,” Rob Fitz shares three dynamic tips for validating business ideas through customer conversations. He urges entrepreneurs to avoid hypotheticals and instead dig into past behaviors for real insights. By emphasizing specifics over generalities, Fitz reveals how to gather actionable feedback. His third tip focuses on understanding customers’ lives and problems rather than seeking validation of your idea. For those setting out on…

Originally posted in our October 2024 Top of Mind Newsletter. Articles like this piece from The Conversation emphasize the importance of fostering an entrepreneurial mindset within universities, focusing on the campus community. This mindset can provide a valuable outlet for innovative thinking, but its true potential is realized when universities improve their outreach and partnerships with local communities. By integrating academic innovation with local needs, universities can benefit the surrounding areas significantly. This approach not only…

Originally posted in our September 2024 Top of Mind Newsletter. The HBR article “The Discipline of Innovation” underscores the need for structured approaches to foster sustainable, innovative growth. In it, Peter Drucker identifies key sources of innovation, such as unexpected occurrences, incongruities, and industry changes. Applying these principles to community entrepreneurship is vital to enhancing local economic development. By systematically exploring opportunities and leveraging local resources, community entrepreneurs can drive impactful, culturally relevant innovation, ultimately creating…

Originally posted in our August 2024 Top of Mind Newsletter. This piece from the University of Michigan references and expands on a study that found entrepreneurship programs in impoverished regions are more successful when they showcase domestic or culturally relevant innovations rather than highlighting the world’s most successful entrepreneurs.  This aligns perfectly with ELI’s belief that unlocking entrepreneurial potential is best achieved by providing relatable social models to those we aim to help. If the examples…

Originally posted in our August 2024 Top of Mind Newsletter. Recently, we’ve been inspired by the wisdom in James Allen’s classic text “As a Man Thinketh.” This insightful volume likens a person’s mind to a garden, emphasizing that our thoughts and actions are profoundly shaped by how we “tend” to them. This metaphorical framing helps us ask important questions of ourselves.  Are we letting our thoughts run wild? Or are we cultivating “right and useful” thoughts?…