When Farah walked through her entrepreneurial journey, a key and consistent point she made was to just start. She emphasized that whether or not you have the funding, the best thing to do is begin with the idea, because time is the most valuable thing. When I think about entrepreneurship, I usually think of fully automated, successful, and profitable businesses, but this talk made me realize that operating a business is not inherently high-margin, it is more of a way of thinking. This influenced how my group approached our idea. Most of my college business classes prioritize feasibility when it comes to idea creation, but with this project, I felt more free to let my ideas run wild. I felt like now was the time to brainstorm even significant goals and features for this model because we already had the foundation of the idea.

The team dynamic of Souk Shopper was very mixed. Some of us were good at letting ideas flow, while others were much more creative at displaying our concepts. It was like one side was speaking their minds while the other side listened and drew in real time. This made our final deliverable come together very quickly and allowed us to present a fully backed idea with neat and engaging visuals to support it. What really surprised me was how quickly my group members would draw on the board. Personally, I’m more of a “do it in the moment” kind of person, which often leads to mistakes. Design was never my strong suit, but I still felt like my contribution, along with everyone else’s, was valuable to the group, which is all that matters.

Overall, the best part of this activity was the cross-cultural aspect. Being able to apply our business mindsets and work with a Moroccan student on real issues was really motivating. It goes to show the value of diversity in a group, and it is something that will resonate with me as I gradually become a professional.