Farah’s talk had a major impact on our group entrepreneurship exercise because it changed the way I thought about failure. When I asked her about the biggest failure she had experienced, she said she did not know. She explained that it was not because she had never failed, quite the opposite. Instead, she said she does not view setbacks as failures, but as steps in the right direction. Every mistake is an opportunity to learn, improve, and avoid repeating the same problem in the future. That mindset made me feel much less afraid of taking risks during the exercise. She also emphasized the importance of simply starting an idea rather than waiting for perfect conditions or immediate funding. In some ways, not receiving money upfront can actually create more autonomy and force entrepreneurs to be more creative and independent.

One of my biggest observations and surprises during the exercise was the heavy emphasis on brainstorming. We spent around the first 25 minutes discussing ideas and identifying the weaknesses in the potential different business models. At times this was challenging because it took a while for us to settle on an idea that everyone supported, but in the end the process helped us develop a business model we were all satisfied with. Another interesting part of the exercise was how well everyone built off each other’s ideas. For example, I would suggest an idea, and one of the Moroccan students would use their knowledge of the country to expand on it and make it more practical. This collaboration added cultural diversity to both the solution and the problem solving process, making our ideas much stronger. One of my favorite moments was when another student and I found a map and tried to determine when it was created based on the countries and flags shown on it. Overall, I had a great time working with the Moroccan students because they were intelligent, funny, and very personable. Their willingness of everyone being included in the discussion also made the environment feel welcoming and collaborative, which encouraged me to participate confidently and share ideas worrying about being judged.