The Mastery Journal of Kyron the Legend

"Nothing is true, everything is permitted. ―The Assassin Creed's maxim. I am Kyron Parsons, an Entertainment Business major at Full Sail University from Miami, Florida. Looking to make my mark in the world of Video Games, Business, Youtube, Life and History. Move with Purpose. Strive For Greatness.

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Final Project: Business Plan

Is the end of the road or the beginning of the next journey? Well, that doesn’t matter because we made it! WE MADE IT! All 12 months we came, we saw, we conquered. The last steps will be walking across the stage with my name in lights and the cheers of the people in the audience screaming, “Congratulations!”

For the final class, it was all about turning our Business Plan into a presentation for when we’re ready to present our ideas to investors, we are prepared. All of my classmates did GREAT and their ideas are A1. The professor, Bill Thompson has a plethora of knowledge and is simply a legend (I wanna be just like him when I grow up)! He walked us through creating Company Snapshots, actually creating the presentation, and extra tips to make us stand out from others.

When I started, I knew I would gain a lot from this program, but every single class vastly succeeded in teaching SO MUCH MORE than I thought. This class specifically made me realize that creating my company is really right in my grasps and it’s easy to get it started. The hardwork comes in when you want to make it to the top and with the knowledge I’ve gained, I know I can take it to the top!

As for my presentation, I received some quality feedback and advice on how to make my business plan even more sound. Having the program director there was awesome and something you don’t really see everyday. We know they can be extremely busy, but for Heather Torres to take the time out and come watch us, and also Steve, was really awesome and it was a privilege to be able to present to them!

I guess what I’m trying to convey is that I’m just grateful for being able to be in this program and prosper. I was not only told, but shown I can prosper and that my dreams have no limit. It’s only what’s....wait for it... Beyond the Horizon. I’m ready for it thanks to Full Sail.

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Business Plan Development: The Preparation for Glory

This is it! This is the final stretch after a year-long journey and my Business Plan Development course certainly did not disappoint. Mr. Burhoe definitely knows his stuff and was able to give plenty of advice and hints to ensure that our Business Plan was crisp, precise and most of all, convincing. The original goal I had set for this course was to really sum everything up that we’ve been working on for the entire year and get us ready for the final capstone presentation month. This course not only met that goal but went so much further. It was really eye-opening honestly because this made me realize my dream to start up a successful company, really isn’t a dream. This is a reality and it’s definitely achievable!

“If you don’t know where you’re going, you’re already there” was the quote that really resonated me throughout the month. It really embodies this whole course because it’s all about creating a sound business plan. The business plan is the roadmap to let you know where you’re going and when you get there, you’ll know. I gained a plethora of information and knowledge and really small things that makes huge difference such applying for a LLC and Corporation at the same time so when your business reaches Corp status, it doesn’t look like it’s a new company, but a Corp that’s been around for a long time. Another example is knowing about the taxes for different states and countries and making a compelling pitch that encompasses everything investors or anyone reading your plan needs to know.

I was somewhat ready for the capstone coming up next month, but after this course, I feel more confident about my business plan, especially with Mr. Burhoe’s advice and guidance, I feel even more prepared and know what I’m talking about and with the past courses helping me conjure up ideas about other products and services I can provide, I feel as if my company can be successful if I follow everything on the plan. This course also served as a great refresher and helped me tweak some things I had originally thought about, but now, knowing more, I was able to put more thought, effort and more meaning behind my products and services to show how they can be great for brand and for the business. Thanks to this course, I’m ready for what’s next and the Capstone. Thanks Mr. Burhoe!

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Entertainment Media Publishing & Distribution

The Full Sail Journey is almost coming to an end! Man, just a little more to go and we are done and onto the next step!

For this month’s class was Entertainment Media Publishing & Distribution and I must say, this class helped tremendously as far as informing us about how to publish our works and where to go to find the best outlets and distribution companies to make it happen. Ms. Kim was a delight and very very knowledgeable (she even wrote her book for the course which is phenomenal). She gives major keys such as the printing press and how it evolved as technology become more advanced to informing us about self-publishing and why it’s one of the most efficient and affordable ways to get your content out in the market and around the world.

Thinking back to what I hoped to learn from this course, it was spot on because I wanted to know how to push and distribute video games and other content such as music and film. I also wanted to what would be the best way to distribute content for a startup and I received all my answers and then some. Getting advice and some solutions for common problems and other problems that may arise really helped. It’s really good to have a book that’s specifically catered to the course because it helped ‘cut the fat’ on what was needed to be learned and understood.

 When I think about where I’m going as I finish, being a Content Creator is definitely calling out to me and this class helped make that answer clearer for me. How, you might’ve asked? Well, learning about the self-publishing that’s available for Creators is simply awesome. That means, I don’t have to go through the larger media outlets, because let’s be honest they will never notice me as I’m starting out, but if I self-publish and push out my own marketing and distribution, I can then create a fresh, organic community and I have control over that which may be the best part to me. Then as I gain traction, then they will notice me and it won’t be sending query letters, no no, it will be them reaching out and sending me contract agreements! I’m looking forward to trying to incorporate writing a book or creating music and distributing it to the masses and bringing great content in a plethora of ways. Thanks Ms. Kim for the information!

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Artist & Product Management

This month was all about Artist and product management and boy let me tell you, this class had a lot of information to give and a lot get out of it! We’ve had our professor, Christine Winn, before in a previous class and she kept telling us that she has so much great stuff to tell us but we had to wait until this class and she was right. This class did not disappoint.

 This class was all about knowing the Business of the Show and knowing how to offer superior product quality to customers and consumers. The first part of the class was about knowing how to manage an Artist and be a great Artist Manager. It was great learning about this side of the entertainment industry because I did not know a lot about the music business, but this portion helped me get a better understanding. The part of this section that made me have a mind-blown moment was when we looked at the Top 10 songs of each decade. The fact that we skipped over so many great artists when we jumped each decade made me realize that time truly does move fast and you have to take advantage of every opportunity you receive and push for more opportunities whether you’re an artist or manager.

The second part of the class was about Product management and creating a product that not only brings value, but how to price and market it effectively. This part of the class was really eye-opening because it made me realize that you need more than a great product or service to have a successful business. You MUST offer Lifestyle and Experience. The lifestyle aspect brings what you’re offering. The experience aspect is the most important in today’s society because a lot of companies are moving towards creating products and creating more experience. For example, Nike is known for Athletic wear and staying fit. That is their lifestyle. They covered experience by hosting a run meetup around the world and bringing groups of people together to participate in a marathon or a small mile run. This now moves beyond the products that they offer. They have created involvement and inclusion amongst their customers and now they will be more brand loyal, and even more willing to buy their products because they feel included and a part of something larger than life.

 This is what it’s all about! Bringing Lifestyle and Experience to your customers makes your business not only profitable, but it will make your company larger than life and bring in more fans and brand loyal customers that will help you continue to be successful. This class was great and Ms. Christine was so enjoyable! I can’t wait to use what I’ve learned in this class for my final project!

[gaminghumour]

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Playing Monopoly in our Negotiation and Deal Making class. This is a pretty great idea especially for this class.

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Negotiation And Deal Making

Continuing on my Mastery Journey, the path takes me to Negotiation and Deal Making class. This class has been SUCH an AWESOME experience. The professor, Mrs. Elizabeth, is super knowledgeable, down to earth and overall amazing. In this class I learned the basics of negotiations. Knowing and finding out about the underlying interests and positions of the parties can be a huge factor in coming up with solutions and hidden opportunities that will ultimately have both parties satisfied and hopefully curve their mindset about negotiations (since the overall connotation of negotiations is seen as a chore more than an opportunity). There’s more than just this that goes into a negotiation though. You have to take into account emotions and basic human needs. This is where empathy on your part and knowing yourself comes in.

Well, speaking of knowing yourself, this class has helped me learn more about myself as well. We took a short but interesting personality quiz and the choices were a Thinker, Inspirer, Commander, and Quiet Supporter. I found out that I am a Thinker and some characteristics about this personality is that we’re great at creating a plan, organized and can figure out solutions out of a large problem. The downside is that we can’t empathize as easily as the other personalities, not doing as well in chaotic situations and have a hard time expressing opinions on personal matters. This stuck out to me a lot because it does describe me somewhat and I have been thinking that I need to start thinking more empathically and this confirms it for me this month.

This month has helped me a lot with learning to handle negotiations and being able to think a bit more creatively, especially during an exercise we did in class. Not only do we roleplay with fact patterns, but we played Monopoly! This is a genius idea to have this as an exercise in a Negotiation and Deal Making class! Not only did I learn new tactics to use in life and in the game, but also it gave me a chance to use everything I’ve learned in the class in real time and had to learn how to use these techniques on the fly and see what works and what doesn’t and learn how to read others so that way I can tailor my approach to them and get the favorable outcome I’m looking for. This class has been by far my favorite class of this program and being halfway through this journey, I’m getting fired up for the second half of the program!

It is bittersweet because I was a part of the last class that Mrs. Elizabeth taught at Full Sail. She is moving on and I wish her all the best! I’m glad I finally met her and had the opportunity, privilege to be in her last class. See you soon Mrs. Elizabeth!

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Entertainment Business Finance is Great!

I can’t believe we’re almost at the halfway point! This month served as a great refresher for me because it was Entertainment Business Finance. Now I know what you’re thinking, “gosh finance!” Or “Math? Dang I thought I could get away with doing math!” Well, the professor did a really awesome job at going through the essentials and fundamentals of finance! There’s math yes, but it’s not hard to understand at all because of the way he breaks it down. I understood his way a lot more than I did in my bachelor’s program and I had three months of Finance back then!

 What I was really excited for was that we created a Pro Forma Financial Statement for our business that we want to start up. This was a great experience because it just puts things into perspective and really makes things feel real! Having to think about a detailed list of every expense your company will have and how will you be profitable just makes the belief that having my own business is really close and the dream of having my own company doing what I want is really right there. I just have to figure out how to cut back on these expenses a bit more because my dream is a bit pricey! (Insert laughter here)

 This class exceeded my expectations because like I said, I expected it to serve just as a refresher, but I got so much more out of it. We even went over how to straighten out our personal finances and how we can make smarter financial decisions in life when it comes to buying a house, obtaining 401K or Roth-IRA accounts, starting a stock portfolio or learning about how making our work for us (that compiling interest). It was a great class and I can’t wait to use this momentum to propel me into the next month.

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A Brand Without A Story Is Just A Trademark

Hey everyone! Another successful month done here at Full Sail! This is month I too a class called Business Storytelling and Brand Development. My overall goal for this class was that it will assist me in brand development strategies, creating and delivering an excellent customer experience and will help in me developing my own personal brand identity.

     It certainly did that, but I got so much more out of it! Ken DeGilio is a great Brand Coach and helps in every way when it comes to branding and being successful at it. You can really tell he’s in his element when it comes to it because the passion exudes off of him when he’s teaching. In the class, I created a personal brand website that shows what I’m all about. I also created some sample logos and trademarks for my company that I want to start and came up with a whole branding game plan that can solidify the success of the startup. We had in depth discussions about branding and the multiple planning processes to ensure that our brands are fine tuned to what we want to portray.

     This class did a lot more for me though. I knew I wanted to start my company, but I was at a point where I was just stuck. Trying to figure out what I really want to portray and the message I wanted to send out or how I can make it unique. This class helped me turn my ideas that I had into something more concrete and now I have a path that I can continue to go down as I make my dream a reality. Another step to creating something great. I will continue to polish my personal brand and use these technique that I’ve learned throughout my time at Full Sail, and beyond.

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Project and Team Management

This month I took the Project Team Management Course of the Entertainment Business Master’s program here at Full Sail. Not only did I learn even more about leadership and effective team management, I also learned a lot about myself and personality! Last month, I learned about Leadership and what qualities and techniques leaders use. Project and Team Management has giving me the ability to apply those skills even more and then I learned more methodologies on how to come up with effective solutions for conflicts, I know the different types of leadership styles there are in the workplace, and what leadership type a person could possibly be. This class helped to my develop my skills in order to create a productive working environment. 

The biggest impact this class had on me was helping me understand myself more. According to the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator, I am identified as an INFJ. It helped me realize why I do certain things and how I think and most of all, how I can change to make my personal weaknesses into strengths. It really helped bring everything together that I have learned so far.

Sitting down and actually making a thorough plan for my dream was something that inspired me even further to make sure I bring my dream into reality. Some further research is needed to refine and make it definite, but I am confident that this idea will be completed before I graduate (which is the ultimate plan).

It was a lot of information and it helped me learn about myself on a whole new level that I’m ready to explore. I feel that I could have put even more effort, but personal forces stopped me from realizing my true potential in the class, but it will not take away from what I learned. The knowledge in this class is invaluable and I will be continuing to stay hungry and use what I’ve gained to further my progress along this path of Mastery. 

Use the links below to take the tests and hopefully they help you understand yourself as well!

https://www.16personalities.com/infj-personality

http://www.celebritytypes.com/isfp.php

 Verzuh, E. (2016). The fast  forward MBA in project management. John Wiley & Sons.

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Leadership

When I look at the two different leadership styles that we have gone through in my Leadership class, Maxwell’s emotional-style based leadership and Greene’s hardcore-style based leadership, I believe that I am more aligned with Maxwell’s style of leadership.

 I strongly believe that if my team sees the empathy, passion and effort I put forth for not only myself, but for them to grow and become better as well as making sure I have the companies best interest at hand as well, my team is going to willingly follow me and will be loyal. Now, this does not mean that if I show myself as a loving, kind, person my team will follow me solely off those principles. Leadership is also about influence and where my team thinks I am at according to the Five Levels of Leadership.

 As Maxwell outlined in his book, Developing The Leader Within You, I still must be able to create value, show my commitment, show integrity, and set the standards or have a clear vision. All of these traits will eventually turn to influence and that is leadership. Possessing these traits and portraying them all the time will not only show the signs of a great leader in the making, but will create followers that wants to be with you along your journey. Also, motivating them with compensation, and letting them contribute doesn’t hurt you either.

 “This world needs leaders… who handles themselves with their heads and handles others with their hearts” (Maxwell, 201). Even though I agree with some of Greene’s laws in his book, 48 Laws of Power, I still see myself as more of a Maxwell leader because just being passionate, honest, influential, and a visionary will get you to the top and hopefully Personhood.

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Hey check out my PowerPoint presentation about my Mastery Journey Timeline and be on the lookout for my first vlog about my first month at Full Sail University!

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Today’s inspirational quote has been brought to you by Colin Powell. Now, this one resonates because it fully says what it takes for you to be successful. Our measures of success can be different, but what it takes to get there is all the same (for the most part). You have dedicated to your craft, put in hard work, and fail. You’re going to fail and it’s okay. Your persistence and passion will be the main factors that will help get over that failure and help you be successful. Help you to be come a Master.

Because I can’t help myself, here’s my APA citation,

Colin Powell Quotes. (n.d.). Retrieved June 26, 2017, from https://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/quotes/c/colinpowel386437.html

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Inspirational Post: What I’ve learned in my journey down my Life’s Task is that, we CAN change the world as how we see fit. It all starts in what we believe. You call yourself and continue to, you become one. You say to yourself you will be successful, and you will be successful in what you believe your success to be. We have to be in the right mindset to be able to fight the daily struggles and and hustle hard for what we want. If you say you can’t, you’ve already lost the war. So start changing that attitude and if you say you can, you can!

Move With Purpose. Strive for Greatness.

Because I like citations...

Bright Drops. (2016, February 14). 25 Uplifting Quotes to Brighten Your Day When Life Gets Tough. Retrieved June 19, 2017, from http://brightdrops.com/uplifting-quotes

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Inspirational Post: Here’s something I found on LinkedIn, and then went to The Outperformer. This stood out to me A LOT because this is telling you to start finding your path or your Life’s Task. (Greene, 2012). Some of us have a hard time figuring that out what our Life’s Task is and this gives a clear, detailed roadmap that could us a starting point. This also helps people already on their path! Use this to get back on focus, see what’s your next steps are and continue to climb and reach the top, whatever the top may be for you!

Move With Purpose. Strive For Greatness.

Citation: Eisenhuth, B. (n.d.). 13 decisions hurting your career. Retrieved June 13, 2017, from https://www.theoutperformer.co/post/13-decisions-hurting-your-career

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Check out my LinkedIn Profile: www.linkedin.com/in/kyron-parsons-04014330

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