(1) Positive Statement

What are you most proud of in your Block Presentation and/or your senior project? Why?
I am most proud that I made time, and I engaged my class with my activity. I felt that many were interested because they participated and some volunteered to give what they felt about the activity. Also because passing showed that in the 9 months leading up to this I want just sitting around but doing what was asked by me. 


(2) Questions to Consider

a.     What assessment would you give yourself on your Block Presentation (self-assessment)?

AE       P          AP       CR       NC
I give myself a P-

b.     What assessment would you give yourself on your overall senior project (self-assessment)?

AE       P          AP       CR       NC
I would give myself an Ap+

(3) What worked for you in your senior project?
The one thing that worked for me is finding mentorship. There are many landscapers in California hundreds actually. So mentorship was one thing that worked. 

(4) (What didn't work) If you had a time machine, what would have you done differently to improve your senior project if you could go back in time?
I would have taken my 30 min presentation a little more serious and focused more on making my first answer as solid as possible. 

(5) Finding Value

How has the senior project been helpful to you in your future endeavors?   Be specific and use examples.
It has helped me realize that no matter what profession you chose to pursue, choosing a profession you love will make everything so much easier. It also helped me realize to be an expert in your profession researching and studing it is essential. Just like researching and studying your topic was essential in making this project.

Mentorship

    Literal

·     Log of specific hours with a total and a description of your duties updated on the right hand side of your blog

• https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/ccc?key=0Amqk500aJNz9dF96UTVla2FIbEdOUEplSGJfa0N6RUE&usp=drive_web#gid=0
• Rosalio Jimenez, Rosalios landscaping service

    Interpretive

     What is the most important thing you gained from this experience? Why?

• The most important thing I gained from this experience was that in any business its hard to get going and make profits. Money is an important issue that should be covered kept good track of. Also being an expert in your field takes years of experience and cannot be covered in one day.    

   Applied

     How has what you’ve done helped you to answer your EQ?  Please explain.

• What I have done really has helped me because I am working in a landscaping environment. Every hour of mentorship I attend the more I learn. My mentor has over 15years experience and teaches me what I need to know in order to answer my EQ by putting me in situations. For example he has me quote houses and then tells me the real cost to show me how important it is to quote a house. Getting a price wrong can make you lose profit. Part of my EQ involves profit so mentorship does help so much in answering my EQ. 

Exit Interview

Content:

(1) What is your essential question and answers?  What is your best answer and why?

What is most important in managing a profitable landscape business? My best answer is Maintaining cost and designing cost effeciant landscapes. This is my best answer because it is my first answer. I have quite a bit of research to back it up. Also because in a business keeping track of your cost is key to a successful business. 

(2) What process did you take to arrive at this answer?

To arive at this answer all I did was go over and look at all my answers and choose which one had the most research and which one was most solid in providing evidence for. 

(3) What problems did you face?  How did you resolve them?

The only problems i faced was finding credible research and enough of it. With the help of Ms.Pittman I used advanced google search and the calpoly data base. The calpoly data base opened up a whole other door where I can find research. 

(4) What are the two most significant sources you used to answer your essential question and why?

My mentor and my third interview interviewee. They are my two most sigificant sources because combined theynhave over 60 years experience and have all the knowledge that is need to know to run a successful business since they themselves have successful businesses. 

independent component 2

Content:  

LITERAL
(a) I, Juan rizo, affirm that I completed my independent component which represents 30 hours of work.
(b)I worked with Rosalios Gardening company- (909)-(538)-(6580)
(c)https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/ccc?key=0Amqk500aJNz9dGZnd1BEYlNlODdvWmNiUzRwVTR5aXc&usp=sharing#gid=0
(d)For the majority of this component I worked  during spring break with Rosalios landscaping. I worked about 8-9 hours each day depending on the amount of work that was needed. We worked like any other day, started in the morning at 7:30 and went on to our clients houses to work on the jibs they wanted us to do. 
This helps with Eq because it helps me answer my questions. As we arrive to our clients houses I guess what the cost will be and my mentor will tell me what it is I need to do to make an accurate estimation. Then at the end hetells me the real cost and the mistakes I did to get my estimation. 

These pictures show the finished job, I wasn't able to take a before picture. Basically before the job the space that is filled with rocks was just dirt. 

Third answer

EQ
What is most important in managing a profitable landscape design business?

Answer #3:  designing landscapes relevant to the area in which the house is located is most important in managing a profitable landscape business.

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Conclusion:

Fourth Interview Questions

20 questions:

1.) what are some factors that go into quoting a house?

2.)what interest you when trying to acquire a new client?

3.)How accurate are your estimations?

4.)What happens when your estimation on a house is totally wrong?

5.)If a client is unhappy with your estimation what do you do?

6.)how much of a factor does the quality of a house play in estimating the cost?

7.)Is there a price that is to little for you to even work for?

8.)What is the hardest part of estimating a house landscape cost?

9.) When estimating do you encourage second opinions by other businesses to your client?

10.)Does an employee ever estimate the cost of a house? why?

11.)If the client already has another estimation would you try to equal that price?

12.)How much does the estimation differ between different businesses?

13.)If the house has two owners and one does not like the quote of the house what is done?

14.)In terms of the estimation is the estimation based weekly or monthly?

15.) How much of your money is spent on resources?

16.)what is the most profitable way to run a landscaping business?

17.)what is most important in making profit in this business?

18.)what do you do when profit is not made?

19.)If an estimation of a house in largely underestimated what is done? 

20.) How do profit and estimating a house affect business? 

Advisory Meeting #2

Content:

Just like you did for answer 1 and the objectives for Purther's textbook work for answer 2 post:

EQ:What is most important in managing a profitable landscape business?

Answer #2 (Write in a complete sentence like a thesis statement)*

The experience and knowledge of knowing how to give accurate estimations. 

3 details to support the answer (a detail is a fact and an example)

Detail #1- Experience comes with knowing the field you are working, the more experience you have in something, the more likely you are skilled in the field. The same goes with giving prices and estimations for a house. Giving estimations is a learning experience you will not go out one day and be a master at estimations because there are to many variables to deal with. For example time, labor, resources used are all hard to calculate, also a lot of the times you will not know the full price of what you wasted until the job is over. 

Detail#2- In order to know how to give accurate estimations you need someone to teach you. A teacher can be someone who knows what they are talking about and knowledgeable in estimation. Learning how to give accurate estimations will help your company grow and give the most amount of profits. By giving accurate and efficient prices the margin for profit will grow. 

Detail#3-Giving accurate and fast estimations will make you look professional, The client will also be more likely to stick with the price you gave them if you do not constantly change your estimation. The estimation will seem more sure and will more likely be payed by the client. 

The research source (s) to support your details and answer

"Calculating Profit Margins." Home. N.p., n.d. Web. 07 Feb. 2014. http://www.business.qld.gov.au/business/running/making-and-managing-money/making-your-business-more-profitable/calculating-profit-margins

Concluding Sentence

One thing that is most important in running a profitable landscape business is knowing and correctly estimating a possible clients house. By doing this it will effectively raise profits for a landscape business. 

Blog 15: Independent Component 2 Approval

1.  Describe in detail what you plan to do for your 30 hours.
-For independent component 2 I plan to work with my mentor. I plan to study his work habits and have him teach me the rules to making money and what is  good when managing a business. I can do all 30 hours in one week and I plan on doing that during spring beak. I will use thee hours to learn and answers my Eq ans answer #2. 

2.  Discuss how or what you will do to meet the expectation of showing 30 hours of evidence.
I can easly have him sign off the days i worked and i can also take pictures to track when i have don my hours. Also, I can provide contact information which can reach my mentor and he can provide proof of what I did.

3.  And explain how what you will be doing will help you explore your topic in more depth.
My mentor has over 80 clients with each of them having a different landscape. I can learn how to give estimates on different types of houses just by asking my mentor why it is the cost of some houses are more than others. Estimates and right prices are what make profit and that is a big pat in my answer and Eq.

Blog 14: Independent Component 1

Content:  

• LITERAL
  (a) I, Juan Rizo, affirm that I completed my independent component which represents 30 hours of work.
• (b) My source was my Mentor, Rosalio Jimenez. I attain mostly all my knowledge of my topic  from him.
  (c)  Here is the link,

 https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/ccc?key=0Amqk500aJNz9dGFLOUZQN3ROMUZzczZsbndFQ1JyWGc&usp=sharing

• (d) My 30 hours consisted of working and helping my mentor complete jobs that need to be completed. He also taught me the value of work and what it takes to evaluate and appraise a job. 
• INTERPRETIVE 
  On a common day we would go around to about 20 houses doing busy work maintaing and grooming landscapes. On weekends we would do bigger jobs such as planting and making landscapes, after all the hours of work and labor my mentor would test me and have me evalute the work. Once I gave an estimate he told me what I did wrong in my estimation and then told me the right price. 
• APPLIED
  How did the component help you understand the foundation of your topic better?  Please include specific examples to illustrate how it helped.                   During  my 30 hours we did a couple of jobs that lasted more than 5 hours. On one of those jobs I  just observed my mentor manage the job. I watched him direct and assign his employees to do specific jobs. By obserbing my mentor i learbed the basics on what it takes to manage a business.
• Also on another job I actually did hands on work and helped with the job. I worked over 5 hours in the hot sun doing heavy work, After the job was finished my mentor asked me what I thought the cost of the job should be according to what I did. After I guessed he told me how close I was and then taught me the different variables that go into quoting a job. 

Blog 13: lesson 2 reflection

1. Positive Statement
I enjoyed watching my peers present,since they put so much hard work into their assignment. 

What are you most proud of in your Lesson 2 Presentation and why?
I am most proud of that I made time and I finished my presentation standing because I put a lot of hard work into researching and finishing my presentation on time. 
I spent hours finding research and taking notes to complete my presentation to the best of my ability.
2. Questions to Consider
       a.     What assessment would you give yourself on your Lesson 2 Presentation (self-assessment)?
I would give myself an AP.

       AE       P          AP       CR       NC

       b.     Explain why you deserve that grade using evidence from the Lesson 2 component contract.
I truly believe that I deserve an AP. According to the contact to qualify for an AP the grader has to be concerned with at least one item in the box and I personally believe I did mess up on a few items which is why I think I deserve an AP.

3. What worked for you in your Lesson 2?
One thing that worked was the gathering of research, which helped me learn more in depth on what my topic was about.

4.  (What didn't work) If you had a time machine, what would you have done differently to improve your Lesson 2?
Prepare a little more and talk more about how I can answer my EQ. Also teach my audience a little more in how to do my activity.

5. Finding Value
What do you think your answer #2 is going to be?  
Properly evaluating your work is most important when managing a profitable landscape business.

Blog 12: Third Interview Questions

Content:
1.) What is the most profitable way to run a landscaping business?
2.) How do you price your work?
3.) What is profitable work?
4.) How do you price your time in comparison to labor?
5.) What salary would you pay an employee of yours?
6.) If a job is done and it's not yielding any profits what do you do?
7.) What do you do when a client is not good with the prices you are estimating?
8.) Does the look of your business affect profit?
9.) If a job is not liked by the client do you drop your prices?
10.) How much of your money is spent on resources?

Blog 11: Mentorship 10 Hours

1.   Where are you doing your mentorship?
-Rosalios Landscaping/Gardening services
2.   Who is your contact?
-Rosalio Jimenez
3.   How many total hours have you done (total hours should be reflected in your mentorship log located on the right hand side of your blog like your WB)?   
-I have done a total of ninety-seven hours of mentor-ship with Rosalio Jimenez.
4.   Summarize the 10 hours of service you did.
-The ten hours of mentor-ship I did where done in a matter of two days. In those two days I worked with my mentor Rosalio. We started early from 9 am-6 pm, in those nine hours of work we did a number of things, one being planting shrubs, flowers and trees. For a good part of the day we also just maintained and kept up with the aesthetics of various clients houses.What we did depended on the client, we also installed sprinklers to regulate and more efficiently water lawns and plants. The next day we repeated the process. By the end of the two days I had done a total of 17 hours.

Senior Project, The Holiday

Content:

1.  It is important to consistently work on your senior project, whether it is break or we are in school.  What did you over the break with your senior project?
-Over the break I consistently worked with my mentor and actively participated in hands on jobs such as planting, designing, and maintaining houses for clients. I did about 40 hours of mentor ship which helped me understand my topic tremendously. I took notes on what  you need to do to run a  profitable business and what kinds of prices you need to charge by listening and talking with my mentor. I asked question whenever I didn't understand and listened whenever he was talking with a client.

2.  What was the most important thing you learned from what you did and why?  What was the source of what you learned?
-The most important thing I learned was knowing what prices to charge when clients asked us to do a job. Prices depend on labor and the amount of resources being used.
-My source of this information is my mentor, Rosalio Jimenez. He has over 15 years of experience and runs a profitable business.

3.  If you were going to do a 10 question interview on questions related to answers of your EQ, who would you talk to and why?
-I would talk to Rosalio Jimenez, he would be a perfect interviewee because he has years of experience in landscaping and also runs a profitable business in landscaping. He knows the whole spectrum on what it takes to run a profitable business in landscaping. Rosalio has had years of experience and has learned from his mistakes. His mistakes are what makes his business so profitable and  successful. His experience is why I would choose him for an interview.