Month: April 2019

One thing I’m proud of is the completion of my Duke MBA this past December. There are several reasons for this including:

• Taking on the intense pressure of the MBA while also working full-time
• Gaining new international experiences by traveling to 4 continents (and seeing 2 Wonders of the World in the Great Wall and Taj Mahal)
• Befriending and learning from a diverse student cohort

However, what sticks out to me isn’t just the MBA experience itself but also the events and lessons I gained leading up to me pursuing the MBA in the first place.

None of It Was Supposed to Happen the Way It Did

If you were to ask me what I think about college and graduate programs in general, I’d say they aren’t worth the exorbitant cost unless you have a very clear plan for why you’re getting it. I’ve had this sentiment for years as I observe many good people succumb to debt and career troubles which is why as recently as late 2016 I would’ve never paid for an MBA without a clear and intentional plan.

For my situation, I was fortunate to be working at a company that offered full tuition reimbursement (with no obligation to stay for a set period post-completion). However, I regularly wrestled with the notion of pursuing an MBA while working due to the extra time and energy I’d have to commit toward it. My thinking in early 2016 towards getting an MBA was either, “maybe one day I’ll reluctantly take advantage of the company’s tuition program for practical reasons” or “I would never do it.“

In April 2016, I was brought in to my Director’s office and told “I didn’t have a future at my company” due to poor performance. This news didn’t blindside me much and I am the first to admit that I struggled in my role at the time. Despite this event, I was offered until the end of the year to figure out my next move whether it was a new job at a new company or pursuing my education further (i.e. getting an MBA full-time).

In my mind, pursuing a full-time MBA was a no-go. I didn’t want to do it just for the sake of it or in the hopes of something good maybe happening as a result and go into extreme debt.

While I was stern in this viewpoint, I had close colleagues (including my Director) in my ear telling me of the benefits of graduate school and how it can work out really well for me. I decided to outwardly go along with the path of pursuing a full-time MBA even though internally I felt it wasn’t for me. With that being said, I took the application process one step at a time starting with the GMAT exam under the guise of going full-time. I knew its scores were good for 5 years so I had nothing really to lose minus some time dedicated toward studying. I told myself, “I’ll just complete this step and go from there. I won’t do an MBA right away but at least I’ll have this test done should I change my mind within 5 years.” This led to me studying and subsequently scoring very well on the GMAT exam by November 2016 which would allow me to apply to top programs and enroll full-time in 2017.

Soon after I completed the exam, it was time for year-end performance reviews with my company. In a turn of events, my Director informed me that I turned things around significantly over the past 6 months to the point that the company wanted to keep me on board. Now I had employment for the foreseeable future along with a high scoring GMAT score.

In early 2017, I had the option of pursuing an MBA while working as a result of my good performance (I even got promoted during this time period). This would allow me to earn the benefits of tuition reimbursement while getting a prestigious degree. As I continued to listen to colleagues, friends, and family, I half-reluctantly figured I’d at least apply to a program and go from there. I remember not being stressed out about getting accepted because it wasn’t something I had planned to do anyway.

Fast forward a few months and I had identified and got accepted to the only program I applied to which was at Duke University. The MBA program I specifically entered had a strong international component to it and made me genuinely interested and eager to be a part of it after learning what it had to offer.

Looking back there were several unique circumstances that had to occur for me to embark on the MBA journey I went on:

• I had to do poorly enough in my job to the point I was told in April 2016 I would be let go by the end of the year
• I had to have caring colleagues and peers who would offer advice and perspective. I also had to be flexible enough to listen despite my staunch personal beliefs.
• I had to be at a company that offered a very strong tuition reimbursement program (having to personally pay or contractually stay at the company would have been barriers for me)
• I had to subsequently do well enough to turn my performance around and thus become eligible for the company’s reimbursement program.
  
  

Takeaways

With such an odd journey toward pursuing my MBA, I observe a few key takeaways:

• Be flexible and open to others’ opinions. This doesn’t mean you have to abandon your beliefs, but if you have people around you who respect and want what’s best for you – at least listen.
• Take things one step at a time. If I knew the end result of 2016 would be me performing well at my company to the point I’d be staying there, I wouldn’t have taken the GMAT or gone to grad school. Instead, I took things step by step starting with the GMAT; making no promises that I’d go full-time. You won’t always know how things will pan out
  so it’s alright to do what’s best for you based on the given information you have at any point in time.
• Push Yourself. Simply put, the rigor and intensity I had in 2017 and 2018 helped build my character and confidence. I was able to perform well both academically and professionally taking on an MBA and full-time work, but the “hard work” and “time and energy commitments” made pursuing this path a no-go for me in the past. You don’t always know what you’re capable of until you put that pressure on yourself.

“Around the time that he reached the unnerving milestone of turning thirty, Leonardo da Vinci wrote a letter to the ruler of Milan listing the reasons he should be given a job. … In the first ten paragraphs, he touted his engineering skills, including his ability to design bridges, waterways, cannons, armored vehicles, and public buildings.  Only in the eleventh paragraph, at the end, did he add that he was also an artist.  “Likewise in painting, I can do everything possible,” he wrote.”

The passage above is an excerpt from Leonardo da Vinci by Walter Isaacson, a biographical study I’ve recently picked up that offers insight into the Renaissance man’s life and work.  I consider Leonardo a role model in many respects; not because of any one particular field he excelled in but for the fact that he was able to masterfully contribute to so many diverse endeavors within his lifetime.  It’s remarkable that painting, likely the most common association with Leonardo, was merely a brief footnote in his mind compared to everything else in his repertoire per his letter above.  I find it awe-inspiring that he could accomplish so much and I’ve regularly wondered what enabled him to do so.  This book offers insights into the inner workings of Leonardo’s mind and the external influences surrounding him in order to show how others can incorporate the valuable insights from his life into their own.

As I read every couple of chapters from this book, I’ll provide a high level synopsis of the information I gather and attempt to distill both the main takeaways and possible recommendations for how to act upon them.  My hope is that this will allow myself and others to actively use the lessons from Walter Isaacson’s in-depth analysis to better improve our own lives.

Part I will be focused on the first two chapters of the book which are titled Childhood and Apprentice.

Chapter I: Childhood

• Summary:  Leonardo had a variety of circumstances in his childhood, many of which could have been seen in a negative light at the time, that shaped who he was and fostered his creative and imaginative spirit.  He was an illegitimate child of his father – who was a notary and came from a proud lineage of notaries.  Fortunately, he lived in a place and time where bastards were not publicly shamed as they once were.  Also by not being a legitimate son, Leonardo did not have societal pressure to follow in the footsteps of his father’s profession and could pursue what he wished.  Furthermore, he did not receive much formal education (again as a result of being an illegitimate son) which allowed his mind to be free from the common orthodoxies of the time period and instead became a “disciple of experience.”  Leonardo as a child also displayed an insatiable curiosity and sense of wonder for the world by vividly observing and imagining the natural countryside of his hometown of Vinci.  This curiosity and observation would remain throughout his life and greatly influence his creative work.

• Recommendations/Reflections:  Consider the influences, events, and circumstances in your own life and see how they have positively shaped who you are today.  Do not however, fall in to the trap of seeing the negative of your situation; Leonardo had many things about him which could have been seen as an obstacle or hindrance in his time (he was illegitimate, not formally educated, left handed, easily bored and distracted, and more) but instead are seen as a positive.  Doing an inventory of the experiences that shaped who you are can provide greater appreciation and understanding for one’s own situation and life direction.  As a brief example in my own life, a childhood experience that has influenced me includes:
  • Growing up in a military family resulted in many moves in my childhood both in the US and abroad.  These travel experiences as a kid have given me a better appreciation for both the differences and similarities found in all of humanity.  I truly believe everyone is connected and that there is no clear right or wrong – just different perspectives.  I feel this has enabled me to better connect and relate with people of nearly any background in some capacity.

Chapter II: Apprentice

• Summary:  Leonardo took inspiration and knowledge from many things around him – both directly and indirectly.  A direct example includes: being an apprentice to the Florentine artist Verrocchio, whose workshop regularly provided a creative atmosphere filled with artists and merchants working their craft.  Indirectly, Leonardo took inspiration by virtue of living in Florence, a vibrant city that was a hub of innovation, science, arts, and commerce.  It was through this broad reaching exposure that Leonardo could play with various ideas and theories across a range of disciplines and find ways to combine them which fed his curiosity.

• Recommendations/Reflections:  Leonardo not only had a variety of external experiences surrounding him as sources of inspiration, he was also very open to receiving such inspiration internally.  Both needed to happen to have the level of impact in ended up having on his life and work.  It is important to intentionally design your life where you can be an apprentice of sorts.  This can include directly finding a mentor who can guide and teach you in a certain area of life or acquiring relevant knowledge via books, online, or other mediums.  Also consider the impact that one’s living environment plays in regards to inspiring ideas and experiences.  Consider the culture, people, and atmosphere that any given location can offer to you.  You may not know what exactly can be gained by being in a creative location, but immersing yourself wherever you are gives you a chance to potentially experience something impactful.  Lastly, remember to be receptive to your surroundings and experiences – this will allow you to see opportunities that others may easily miss.