TRICKY BUSINESS

PROGRAMME 2: STEVEN MITCHELL

ACTIVITIES

Guidance

These activities support a mix of individual, paired and group work.

Before viewing

Create a big picture of the attitudes that successful young entrepreneurs possess. Is it possible for someone with dyslexia to become a successful entrepreneur?

Imagine that you have inherited £70,000. How would you spend it?

Find the animal hidden in this anagram: A FLAB WET FOUR. Where does this animal live? What type of food does it supply?

After viewing

To view 4Learning video clips you will need Windows XP/2000 and Windows Media Player 9, 10 or 11. Unfortunately, the clips are not supported on Macintosh computers.

The video clips may contain a few seconds of extra material at the beginning and end. We have therefore included opening and closing descriptions to help identify the intended scene.

Business basics
Clip one: 01:28 – 03:48

• Opens with the narrator saying, 'Farming traditional livestock is a notoriously tricky business.'
• Closes with Steven saying, 'I'd like to think I'm a little bit in the middle, you know.'

Answer these questions.

• What is Steven's unique business idea?
• What are Steven's business objectives?
• What advantages do water buffalo have over cattle?
• How do other people view Steven's business plans?
• What business challenges does Steven think that he will encounter?

Many livestock farmers diversify in order to keep their businesses going. Imagine that you are a dairy farmer for whom milk sales are the main source of income. How could you diversify? Share and discuss your ideas.

Entrepreneurial attitudes
Clip two: 06:06 – 08:29

• Opens with the narrator saying, 'Although Steven's uncertain about what the vet has to offer, she's on hand to give whatever help she can.'
• Closes with Steven saying, 'I think I've just been terribly unlucky with this particular animal.'

Give an example of something that Steven says that shows he is an optimist rather than a pessimist. Decide whether he is being realistic or doing some wishful thinking. Discuss why successful entrepreneurs are often described as people who combine realism with optimism. What would happen to a pessimistic entrepreneur?

Find an optimistic way to look at these situations.

• You were pinning your hopes on getting a big contract but have heard that it has gone to someone else.
• You were told that a cheque was in the post but it has not arrived yet.
• You have been working 16 hours a day for the last couple of months.
• A customer has placed a smaller order than expected.
• Your delivery van has been involved in an accident.

Share and review your ideas. How realistic are they? Are you optimistic enough to be an entrepreneur?

Tough negotiation
Clip three: 09:25 – 11:28

• Opens with the narrator saying, 'Eight-hundred-kilo Malky doesn't disappoint.'
• Closes with Steven saying, 'I paid £150 more than I wanted to but £150 less than he wanted me to. Er, so a compromise.'

Discuss these questions:

• What is the difference between 'supply' and 'demand'?
• How did supply and demand affect the price that Steven had to pay for the buffalo?
• What is the purpose of a negotiation?
• Do successful negotiations always involve compromise?

In pairs, role play one of the following scenarios. When you have finished, share the highlights with the rest of the group.

• A stallholder at a car boot sale is selling a DVD for £7. The buyer wants to pay £5.
• An employer wants a member of the bar staff to work on Christmas Eve. The employee wants the night off.
• An events organiser wants a 25% discount on room hire for giving a hotel a lot of repeat business. The hotel manager wants to limit the discount to 10%.

Inspirational business ideas
Clip four: 15:41 – 17:52

• Opens with the narrator saying, 'It's time to put all his business initiative into play.'
• Closes with Steven saying, 'If that's what it takes to sell buffalo meat then I'll be a chef.'

Explain how Steven came up with the idea of selling gourmet buffalo burgers instead of raw meat at Edinburgh Farmers' Market. Look around the room and identify any objects that may have made their inventors a lot of money. Where do you think that the inventors got their ideas? What problems might they have been trying to solve? Choose one of the items on your list. Suggest how you could change it to make it a better product. Could you sell your idea and make money from it?

Direct marketing
Clip five: 20:42 – 22:55

• Opens with the narrator saying, 'So far it's been a disaster.'
• Closes with the narrator saying, 'It's the end of the day and the burgers have been an incredible success.'

Describe how Steven persuaded the people at the farmers' market to buy his buffalo burgers. List the ways that food retailers use to promote their products and encourage people to buy them. Which of the methods on your list could Steven use to sell his buffalo burgers and why?