Former occupation: rodeo clown

One thing I have learned from my classmates is that they've practically done it all. Sometimes, people will rhetorically say things like, "I was a [occupation], so I know" to end a conversation by claiming expertise. E.g., "When I was a South American dictator, I learned..."

In my experience, I have found that people do this jokingly, and claim ridiculous jobs. In school, I have found that when people say these things, they turn out to be true. Some of the random occupations I've heard bandied about include:

- Cinematographer
- Scuba diving instructor
- Health inspector
- Children's book authoer
- Yoga teacher
- Beverage spokesperson
- Professional basketball player
- Marksmanship instructor at sniper school

You get my drift.

learning how to behave

This week, we had case day. This was meant to teach us how to behave in class. In order to encourage us to vary our comments, we were told to use one of three items to speak in class:

- raise hand - introduce a new point
- yellow card - clarifying question
- red card - challenging or disagreeing with previous point

There seems to be some soccer (or football, as my non-NorthAm class mates keep telling me) inspiration in the cards. Not that they correspond to soccer penalties, but the terminology.

Anyway, the cards were illustrative and used for only one class. We turned them back in before the end of the class. I suppose the one-time use was designed to inspire good habits. Interesting experience to have to signal that you're going to disagree with someone before you go ahead and disagree with them. It did make me more aware of the kinds of points I make in class, and that I should challenge classmates more often.

I'm now 37% more disagreeable.

Shortlisted: How I decided on where to apply

I decided last fall that I wanted to get an MBA. I didn't have much time to decide where I was going to apply.

At that time, I was in serious *like* with my job. We were going steady for a while, but I wanted to wear someone else's letter jacket to school on game days. I thought there were other fish in the greener sea, or whatever tortured analogy you'd like to use. While I liked my job, I'd classify myself as a career switcher.

Now, I was already working in a post-MBA position at a consulting firm. I figured, if I get into school, great. If not, I'll stay at my company at a job I like. I had nothing to lose. So, I decided to gamble and maximize my ROI by applying only to top programs. I trimmed the list based on where I would and would not live. I ruled out the Midwest (U.S.), kept the East Coast (U.S.), West Coast (U.S.) and Europe. For now, but probably not for long, the top MBA programs are still in the U.S.

I didn't apply to any safeties. If I'm going to spend $150k in tuition and living expenses, plus a few hundred $K in opportunity cost, I should go somewhere which will open doors for me. Besides, a half-assed application is pretty transparently half-assed.

Ultimately, I'm happy about where I applied. If I had it to do over again, I'd probably sub out INSEAD for Columbia. It was time for me to leave NYC, and this would have guaranteed it.

elections: like kindergarten, minus the naptime and graham crackers

We had cohort elections this week. The election process was simple. First, candidates nominated themselves or were nominated by others. Second, candidates speechified one at a time. The currently non-speaking candidates huddled in the hallway, so speeches were independent and not influenced by each other. Finally, we voted.

We put our heads down and raised our hands to vote. Our Leadership Fellows counted our votes and announced the winners as the candidates were herded from the hallway.

I did win the representative position I wanted, but it was nerve-wracking. Seeing a few rounds of elections beforehand, there was a high level of variance in the quality of the candidates. I didn't want to be the one who was obviously out of place. Also, while we were waiting in the hallway, it was like being in a hospital waiting room, waiting for the doctor to call us in. Lobsters in a pot.

Some people were so clearly fit for the job, they were elected by acclamation. Even other nominees deferred, saying "X will do a wonderful job; I respectfully decline". There were some classy demurrals. And some close elections. We had a few ties and run-offs.

I'm just glad it's over. And I'm glad it didn't devolve into a pure popularity contest, which it could have. Overall, people with the best speeches, platforms and ideas won across the board. Maybe democracy works after all*.

Note*: I recognize that winning the election is just part of the evaluation process. We'll have to wait and see who does a good job. But, based on what I saw today, the right people were elected.

test pattern

Apologies for the long layoff. I've had a whirlwind past few months. I quit my job, moved to school, and most importantly, went on vacation. I'm back now, and starting school in earnest.

All that pre-term stuff was "playing for funsies", as one of my professors put it. Now, I have to play for "realsies".