As a two year JA Business Week student, I’ve sat through many workshops all surrounding the idea of business. One of the more interesting and beneficial workshops I’ve attended was sponsored by Go Daddy and presented by Darrin Foster, president of Oogie’s Popcorn.

This workshop focused on entrepreneurial methods that can be used in the business world. We were first greeted by Darrin Foster telling us his story of how he became the successful entrepreneur he is today. It was amazing how he started experimenting with different popcorn flavors in Denver, and soon expanded to selling his gourmet popcorn products in all 50 states. I was instantly inspired by his story, and amazed on how someone could go so far with just an idea.

We also got a little bit of a hands-on experience of life as an entrepreneur with an activity involving paper money. This activity gave me a glimpse of the obstacles and the journey that an entrepreneur faces. Both Foster’s story and activity taught me the foundations of an entrepreneur and even inspired me to maybe start my own business. I learned to take risks in the business world and to follow through with my ideas because you never know how far they’ll get you.

-Elvis Ahn, JA Business Week student