Student blogs

When you immerse yourself in medical school, your studying revolves around medical terms, anatomical models, dissections, or even research. Perhaps you are not familiar with certain activities that could possibly grab your attention. I was once in your position until I discovered the workshops given by the Stockholm School of Entrepreneurship (SSES). SSES provides an innovative platform for students or alumni from several universities such as Karolinska Institutet, Konstfack, the Royal Institute of Technology, the Stockholm School of Economics, and Stockholm University.

You can attend their weekend workshops, breakfast talks, boot camps, or even courses for free. I like to try new things, and I think it is a great opportunity for networking. You learn about different entrepreneurial tools with people from different fields. Here I will briefly talk about the workshops I attended.

Introduction to Design Thinking

This was an interesting workshop by Cecilie Hilmer which introduced the double diamond strategy. I learned about the importance of empathy and creating a persona when it comes to understanding the customer. First, we worked with defining the problem and identifying the needs and values of the customer. After specifying the problem, ideation comes in where we brainstormed and focused more on quantity over quality. We used two strategies for ideation which are ‘how we might questions’ and ‘reverse brainstorming’.

Credits to Pu Tai

Find a Scalable Business Model

This was by far my favourite SSES workshop which was organised by Fabian Sepulveda. We were introduced to prominent practices used in business model innovation and focused on the essential elements of our business models to identify new opportunities. We developed a better understanding of how to use lean startup practices. It was interesting to learn about real-life examples of famous businesses that failed to execute a strategic plan for a new product. It is important to stop traditional strategies and instead develop innovative business models to avoid getting disrupted by new contenders. We also touched upon the goals of a Venture Capital (VC) and how funds flow in a VC.

Working on the Lean Canvas

Making Future

I really enjoyed this one by Pomme Van Hoof! You get to train your mental muscles and reframe the way you think in a variety of fields. We learned how to identify relevant drivers, so-called “weak signals”, and speculate on their future implications in scientific and technological developments, new social behaviors, and economic tendencies. The most entertaining part was when each group acted out a future scenario and engaged with the audience. This workshop really transforms your thoughts, and you feel more conscious of the decisions you take.

“The Future is less something being out there, but rather something existing inside our minds.”

Hope I gave you some inspiration and insights into these workshops! Check out the rest of the available workshops at SSES.

Got any questions?

Contact me via my email. 🙂

e-mail: sara.abu.ajamieh@stud.ki.se

LinkedIn: Sara Abu Ajamieh