Your Venture's Unfair Advantage

1. Unique Venture/Idea: I think that my idea is something people have thought of, but just didn't think it would be worth the time. There are currently no widely available seat belts for a passenger to lay down with.
• Valuable: This gives me an advantage because when people see the product, they will be curious due to its uniqueness.
• Rare: I'm sure people have thought of similar ideas before, and just because there are no similar products for sale doesn't mean it can't be successful. 
• Inimitable: My product is unique today, but if it were to be successful, it would be fairly easy to copy by a more established company.
• Non-substitutable: The idea is very niche so there arent many things that will replace it, but there are other solutions to the problem that my idea solves.
2. Relationships with other aspiring entrepreneurs: All of my friends share my interest in creating things that are unique and innovative. 
• Valuable: Having other people around me who are following similar goals to myself is valuable as a motivator, and they can also provide ways to improve my idea.
• Rare: This resource is not necessarily rare, as it is easy to relate with other entrepreneurs as it is common for people to know at least someone who shares the desire for innovation.
• Inimitable: The relationship with my friends is not inimitable, as it is not a concrete thing. It is possible for others to share similar relationships however.
• Non-substitutable: This could be substituted by relationships with more prominent or established entrepreneurs, who would provide better advice.
3. A supporting family: This is something I think is very important. Having people who support you emotionally is a great motivator, and stress reliever. 
• Valuable: This is valuable because with no support, it is easier to give up on your goals.
• Rare: This is not specifically rare, because emotional support can come in many forms.
• Inimitable: Similar to relationships with people, this is not a concrete thing, but it is possible for others to gather support and have the support of the people around them.
• Non-substitutable: Support is not substitutable. It is what it is, although it can come from many places.
4. Related to an engineer: My grandfather was an airplane engineer/mechanic. He is knowledgeable when it come to building things by hand. 
• Valuable: This is valuable because it means I have someone who could help me establish a prototype.
• Rare: It is somewhat rare to be related to an engineer/mechanic, but it is not rare to know one.
• Inimitable: Other people could hire or find an engineer or mechanic.
• Non-substitutable: It would not be necessary to know someone with mechanical knowledge, if I was knowledgeable myself. Also, engineers can be hired by people with financial capital.
5. A end goal/outcome in mind. Because I came up with this idea based on my personal needs, if I were to develop the product, I would be able to test whether it is a success for what I want from it.
• Valuable: This is valuable because it gives me an end goal and will keep me on track towards what I want to be solved.
• Rare: Many entrepreneurs come up with ideas for problems they don't have personally, but many also share my path where they have a problem, and innovate to solve it.
• Inimitable: People with an entrepreneurial mind could fairly easily put themselves in the perspective of potential buyers, and figure at the end goal from there.
• Non-substitutable: being able to think from the perspective of potential customers is easily a great substitute for being a potential buyer yourself. 
6. Access to possible investors: I have a few friends who's families are very well off. Also the neighborhood I live in has become a more upscale neighborhood, so a lot of my neighbors are wealthy as well. 
• Valuable: Investors are very valuable to get an idea going, especially when you have no financial capital like me. 
• Rare: Investors are not rare, but possible investors that you know personally can be.
• Inimitable: It is the goal of many entrepreneurs to find investors, so it is possible to be put yourself in a similar place by talking to the right people. 
• Non-substitutable: For a startup with little to no financial capital, there is little to know replacement to what an investor can provide. And of course there is no replacement for money.
7. Niche market: The group of customers my product would be purchased by is pretty niche, and so it will be successful for that group of people.
• Valuable: Having a fairly small market is not great for sales, but does make advertising a product much simpler.
• Rare: It is not rare for a product to have a niche market.
• Inimitable: It is quite possible for people to design a product that caters to a very specific market.
• Non-substitutable: The simplicity of advertising to a niche market is replaceable by financial capital to market your product on a larger scale. 
8. I am a student at a UF
• Valuable: This is valuable because being a student, I have free access to many resources that are fairly expensive to acquire otherwise.
• Rare: There are many university students, but not all take advantage of the resources they have for being such.
• Inimitable: It is possible for anyone to copy this asset, because going to a university requires mainly some financial capital, and time.
• Non-substitutable: Access to various resources that being a student provides is of course replaceable by just purchasing the resources as an individual. 
9. I have learned a lot about entrepreneurship and the work that comes with innovation by taking this class on entrepreneurship. 
• Valuable: When it comes to entrepreneurship, everyone has to start somewhere. Taking this class has given my insight into the thought processes and work behind innovation.
• Rare: Having access to learning material is something I take for granted sometimes, but not everyone in the world has the same access, so it can be rare.
• Inimitable: It is possible for many people to go out and learn about entrepreneurship, from books, the Internet, etc.
• Non-substitutable: Where you first acquire the knowledge to innovate is highly variable. For some people it just comes to them. For other, a class can help, or a book, or a parent.
10. Freedom to innovate: This is something I don't usually think about, but here in the US, I have the freedom to learn, speak, and work as I please as long as I follow the laws of my country. This is not true for everyone.
• Valuable: This is extremely valuable, and something I take for granted. If someone lives in a country that is very strict over its citizens, innovation can be difficult and many times unrewarding.
• Rare: Many people live in places that they are free to innovate, but there are also many who don't.
• Inimitable: Copying the freedom I have as a US citizen is not possible for some people, while others it is a matter of moving.
• Non-substitutable: This freedom to innovate is not replaceable. If I did not have the freedoms I have, innovation would be very difficult if not impossible.

After doing the VRIN analysis, I think that my top resource is the freedom and ability I have to innovate. If it were not for that, nothing else would matter. While many people live in countries that provide them with such freedom, there are those who do not, and so for them, innovation is impossible. While most of the world does provide such freedoms and it is not rare, it is to me the most valuable thing to have. While laws and regulations may slow down progress, success is up to the individual.  Everything else can make achieving success easier, freedom is what makes it possible.