our dream bakery

there are multiple reasons as to why i chose to do this project. when i was deciding on what i would do for the Culminating Project, i wanted to do something i enjoyed that could also help others. i listed down things i enjoyed doing and decided that opening my own mini bakery was the best idea. i wanted to sell my baked goods and donate some of the earnings to charity. if i was not able to earn enough, i wanted to bake different sorts of foods and offer them to those who are in need to express my gratitude for their hard work.

another reason was to experience the process of earning for myself and my family. earning money is not a simple thing to do, so i wanted to challenge myself to try it out myself. i want to repay my parents with the blessings i was given :)

other than that, i wanted to use this opportunity to expand my skills in baking, and to improve my skills in many other things as well.

Specific - what am i doing? why am i doing it?

i am doing something i enjoy, while helping others as well. i am doing this for multiple reasons though. i want to be able to earn from my own hard work, and to share my capabilities with other people :)

Measurable - how will i know i have succeeded?

once i am able to earn from the goods i sell, and / or when i am able to donate the money / food to those who are in need ! that is part of my plan but the donations are just a bonus for my project.

Attainable - how can i make this happen? is it achievable?

of course it is achievable, i love baking and helping others. though i procrastinate a lot, i think it is achievable since doing things last minute and getting it done right before it's due is my specialty.

Relevant - how is the goal relevant to your problem and interest?

because my goal is to help those with problems i am concerned about. there are multiple concerns i have hehe, i noticed that during the pandemic lots of people are struggling both financially and with their personal life. i want to be able to make people smile with my goods made with LOVE <3

Time based - when exactly do i want to accomplish my goal?

latest is a month away from the exhibition. i just want to get this done and feel proud of how far i've came!

Empathy & Identifying Users

• What was your process when identifying your users?

i just saw how lots of people have struggled during the pandemic, i felt it too, so i tried to do something about it, hoping this project can help. i observed the things that make others struggle most, so i came up with a project that can make me, and other people feel warmth.

• How challenging has it been to get in touch with your users? Or to decide which users to contact?

not that challenging at all :) i didn't need to get in contact with users who were a bit difficult to reach out to. i interviewed my friend who owned a mini business with her mom, and got all my answers from her!

• What is one unique insight that you learned from speaking to your users?

i learned that everyone has different goals in what they are doing. from what i observed i realized that are many reasons as to why people start their own businesses, and why it is important.

• Did your interviews change your perspective on the challenge? Was it hard to check your own bias at the door?

it did not really changed anything, but it made me realize that if other people can do it, so can i. i see this project from another perspective, i see it as something i can learn to enjoy rather than something i am "forced" to complete in order to graduate.

• How else might you gain empathy for your users? How might this experience be different if it was not taking place during a pandemic?

my project will definitely be different if it did not take place during the pandemic. i got this idea from the negative impacts the pandemic has given us. without us being in this pandemic, i wouldn't be able to build this project the same way i did.

Define and Ideate

• How have you reframed your "How might we question"?

how might we conduct a product that can help both me and other people?

how might we grow this project without losing interest half way?

how might we build this product successfully?

• Does your HMW question reflect your users’ needs?

to me, and almost everyone else on this planet, food is something we will always approach when looking for comfort. i figured that my love for baking can also bring other people comfort when receiving and consuming my baked goods. as many people were badly impacted by the pandemic for the past year, i observed different ways to cope according to people i am close to, and even people outside this country and even further. i figured that baking could be my way of coping with all the stress, while helping other people cope by offering goods made with my warmth and love.

• Quick brainstorm: What might be two possible solutions?

i could've gone with a completely different project, such as short film making, or a workshop that could possibly help? after brainstorming for about a week, i decided to go with baking and thankfully, i am glad i chose this topic.

• What is one thing that is currently causing you to stress about your project?

the time management! not the management between times where i relax, and times where i work, but how i balance my Culminating Project with the other assignments given at the same time. things would get a little more challenging when we enter summative week.

my project is basically a mini business i started since i love baking. i realized that lots of people were struggling throughout this pandemic. i wanted to create a mini online business that i think could help me get through the struggles. i hope that with my products, i am able to make one smile and feel warmth when receiving my goods. i chose to use "made with LOVE" my 'signature line'. i wanted people to feel the positivity i want to spread while running this project.

the main point was actually to earn for myself, and to donate some to charity, but i felt like making this project a little more positive by spreading warmth and baked goods made with LOVE <3.

i also wanted to know what it felt like to work hard and earn something from my hard work. through this mini business, i can also expand my cooking skills and improve my skills in both cooking and management. management with time, and also the mini store i will handle alone.

i chose to create our dream bakery because i couldn't think of other activities i would stay excited for during the next couple months. at first, i chose to sell my homemade products and share it with others. but along the way, i started developing ideas. i thought of how i could help others with this project.

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