Reference no: EM132827014

Many college students pull all-nighters to study for midterms and finals. What Andrew Kozlovski noticed when he was a freshman at the University of Southern California was how many students were using Adderall to allow them to stay awake and concentrate. Andrew explained, "Kids all around me were exchanging it like money."42 Individuals with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) may be prescribed Adderall to in-crease their attentiveness. But Andrew saw a potential national problem: 38.5 percent of college-age individuals report using ADHD medications for nonmedical reasons. In other words, they officially don't need Adderall but are using it to increase their focus. Andrew did some research on Adderall and found out that it is highly addictive.

Also, Adderall has all kinds of side effects that students taking it as a study aid often do not know. Andrew had issues with attentiveness himself, but he wondered if there was a safer option than Adderall. He immersed himself in research on natural supple-ments that could help focus, reduce stress, and improve overall mental health. Andrew found a lab that was licensed by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). They were willing to create small batches of pills that used different combinations of the natural supplements on his list.43 After some trial and error, Andrew came up with a formula and received FDA approval for it. He launched his company, Brainz Power, which sells this "non-caffeinated cognitive enhancement supplement."44 To get his company going, Andrew focused on connecting with potential custom-ers via Instagram. "It's about connecting, the sales come after," Andrew said. The sales did come. Brainz Power averaged $10,000 in sales per month, rising to nearly $30,000 per month several years later.45 Andrew spent most of his college years working on his company. As he put it, "the hours are long. I don't sleep that much anymore. I work on the weekend. I work when all the other kids are partying ... if you think about it, I'm always busy, but I do it with a smile on my face the entire time."46 Andrew didn't need to look for a job when he gradu-ated from USC in May 2018. He had created his job-and a company-as a freshman.

-What personality characteristics of entrepreneurs do you think Andrew has? Which of these characteristics were likely most important to his success?