I did find this assignment difficult because obviously this is a personal business, which

means a heightened level of sensitivity is required. I think Jennifer has a good business idea that

could potentially help a lot of women. However, the major risk I wanted to point out is that if her

state decides breast milk is a “bodily fluid” she will not be able to conduct her business anymore

and she would likely lose all her assets. This would probably destroy her livelihood, so I did my

best to make sure she understood this without sounding like she was already doomed. I also think

it was important to make sure she knew you could challenge the decision if it happened, but that

came with its own risks as well.

I did not really have trouble showing respect for Jennifer’s situation and choices. I think

this is an interesting business idea that other women might be interested in. She would definitely

have a target audience for this business. There was one point where I wanted to make sure she

knew that if her financial situation was tight, she was putting it at further risk, but I think I

touched on that without being offensive. I would have rather had this conversation with Jennifer,

so that I could gauge her reaction to my advice and tailor the conversation to her needs, but

filming the video forced me to think about every different way Jennifer could perceive my

words.

If I were advising Uber or Airbnb pre-launch I probably would have discussed some of

the same topics. However, there are obviously different concepts to discuss with those

businesses. Also, this conversation would have been different had I been speaking to someone

who obviously had more business experience. I think it is important to consider your audience

and make sure the conversation fits them.

The critical encounter conversation impacted my advice in that it reminded me that I am

learning business law so that someday I can genuinely give people with great business ideas the
advice they need to be successful. Everyone has different skills and talents. I am good at school,

and I enjoy learning, reading, and studying. I would have never come up with the idea to open a

hot dog business for hungry students or to sell breast milk to mothers in need. I am amazed at the

people who are creative and brave enough to see a need a fill it. When the law punishes people

for using their talents as it did to the men in the critical encounter society suffers.

Business laws are designed to protect businesses and consumers. The conflict between

allowing people to freely utilize their entrepreneurial skills and laws that regulate the industry is

what influenced my advice to Jennifer. Someday, I hope to be a practicing lawyer, so I have to

believe the basic concept of law is good. At the same time, I recognize that the law cannot

possibly account for all the fundamental societal flaws that exist. The critical encounter reminded

me that although the law will continue to fail certain people and society as a whole, it is my

mission to use it in a way that can be helpful and encouraging. I tailored my advice in such a way

that I emphasized potential risks but promoted Jennifer’s idea because she deserves a chance to

participate in the business world.