A session to get year 10 students going on a group project where they choose an aspect of their school that they would like changed/created and where they present to a panel in the hope of being selected for this project to be realised.

1. http://www.sethgodin.com/sg/ Seth Godin is an American author, entrepreneur, marketer, and public speaker. Wikipedia

2. The thinking

3. What’s your idea?
Fleshing out your idea

5. Brainstorm ideas around your idea to come up with different
perspectives.
Explore each perspective using these questions:
1. I am thinking of ... the idea… from the point of view of …
1. A question I have from this viewpoint is...
(Visible Thinking, Harvard Project Zero)

6. If you need help thinking of different viewpoints about
your idea, try using these prompts:
Who and what is affected by it?
Who is involved?
Who might care?

7. Whose perspective?
From the viewpoint of:
● the principal
● parents
● school council members
● a student leader
● Health organisations
● IT business owner
● Innovation Education and Finance Company
● Biomedicine Faculty Monash University
● Engineering busines owner/consultant
● Lawyer

8. eg. different menu at canteen -
I am thinking of ... different canteen menu… from the point of view of eg.
● students
● teachers
● canteen managers
● people interested in sustainable food
● people with food allergies
● experts in business and higher education
● potential investors

9. 2. What questions would you ask if you were….
Take turns to ask questions from the viewpoint of your chosen
person/organisation.
Student: Will I still be able to get hash browns?
Canteen manager: How will I know that changing the menu will not be a risk
to my profits?
Food allergy person: Will I have a greater choice in what I can eat?
Health organisation: Is there a reduction in sugary foods?

10. More questions (Discuss in your group):
What new ideas do you have about your idea that you didn’t have before?
What new questions do you have?

11. Think a bit more… (jot down some group ideas)
What excites you about this idea? What’s the upside?
What do you find worrisome about this idea? What’s the downside?
What else do you need to know or find out about this idea? (What additional
information would help you to evaluate?)
What’s your current stance or opinion on the idea? How might you move forward
in your evaluation of this idea?

12. the selling

14. Seth Godin:
Seth Godin is an entrepreneur and blogger who thinks about the marketing of ideas in the digital age
It's frustrating. You've got this great idea, but no one wants it, or they're going to steal it.
Here's the essential distinction: Selling ideas is a fundamentally different business than having ideas.
It's like being a really fast runner but being unwilling to take a hit or unable to block. You may be
fast, but you can't play football. Two different skills are involved, and having one is insufficient.
Remember, the selling is a business onto itself, not something that you do after you get a great idea.
(What to do with your ideas for other people - Seth Godin)

15. Seth Godin:
The challenge is this: If your audience doesn't think there is a problem, they won't be looking for a
solution. They won't wake up in the morning dreaming about how to solve it, or go to bed wondering
how much it's costing them to ignore it.
And so the marketing challenge is to sell the problem.
(Interesting paradox: a lot of people aren't willing to embrace that they have a problem unless they
also believe that there's a solution... so part of selling a problem is hinting that there's a solution
that others are using, or is right around the corner.)
(adapted from Sell the problem - Seth Godin)

16. Dragons’ Den (TV show)
https://www.youtube.com/user/dragonsden/featured
Enter the Dragons' Den, where aspiring entrepreneurs pitch their business concepts and products to
a panel of Canadian business moguls who have the cash and the know-how to make it happen.
They've all been there themselves, so you'd better not walk into the Den unprepared. It takes more
than passion to convince these boardroom giants that your idea is worth their attention.
The Dragons are ruthless, and rightly so — it's their own personal money on the line.

17. Dragons’ advice to you

18. What did you learn about how to sell your idea?
How can this understanding inform your presentation?
now think again -

19. Try to think about your idea as a purple cow.
What will make your idea and its presentation more than average - different?

20. Make something happen.
Just go.
(Seth Godin)