Why MBA?

Okay… I’ll admit, I messed up. I announced this newsletter and then did not follow through on it.

That’s on me. It’s been 3 months since my last post and I’ll let that number scare me into writing things quicker. It has been a busy 3 months though. I finished my summer internship and then had a 4 week traveling bender (more on that later)

But welp, here we go. This one overwhelms me. And I have been putting it off for a while. I legit feel like I am just about to start a long hike, and I see the insane climb ahead of me.

And it’s a lot. But small steps will get us there. Join in.

This post / or series of posts, is meant to be a look back into my MBA experiences and then may also be used a guide for things to do (and not to do).

But before we start, I think its a good time to reflect (again) on the ✨ question ✨ that every MBA school loves asking as you apply to them.

WHY MBA?

Here is my professional answer - the one I spent months perfecting

Closing my skill/knowledge gap:

I was an engineer doing PM. To be a good PM/Founder, I needed to learn business skills. I didn’t know what a balance sheet was (or that there are also the income statement and the statement of cash flows which are equally important).

I was looking for a man in finance - to teach me something about it. And my knowledge of supply chains had major bottleneck. As I grew in my career, I wasn't just building products, I had to build business cases for them as well, and this was a way to get all in a quick manner.

Change my geography:

Say what you want, the US is the heart of innovation and commerce. They are the largest economy, hubs of many industries and have the most prestigious educational institutions. By this time I had spend 3 years in Japan, and don’t get me wrong - Japan is the perfect place to live. But only if you have reached a level of contentment in your life and want to settle down. From a professional perspective, it’s very hard as an expat to break the career ceiling once you reach a certain point. I was 25. If I had stayed another few years in Japan, my complacent self would have never wanted to leave.

Entrepreneurship:

My goal for business school was inspired by my dad. He did an MBA in the 90s, worked in corporate for many years and then started his own business. As I grew up, I started to realize how important the MBA label and network was in unblocking major issues that come in starting your business. Whether its finding co-founders, getting investments, leading an organization or exploring an industry you are passionate about - an MBA will give you the platform to achieve these things.

Are you convinced? And don’t get me wrong, these reasons were genuine. But looking back I realized there were a few more intrinsic reasons that led me into applying to business school.

WHY MBA? (This time for real)

Chaos

Lowkey, I just wanted to shake things up. I think the biggest levers of growth in my life have come when I’ve been put in the middle of an unknown environment and been challenged to adapt. This forces you to learn things more quickly and deal with ambiguity. This could come from changing your job, your location, or even going in or out of relationships (especially out 😂)

A Productive Sabbatical

Have you ever had that feeling few years into your career that if you ever got a chance to go back to uni, you would do things differently? Be able to explore more avenues, talk to more people, travel, do side projects and take on lesser stress? Is it just me? I never got to take a gap year in my life, and as my 20s escaped me (3 of them in COVID), I really wanted to take a step back from work and focus on reshuffling my priorities and follow my curiosities without compromising on my obligations.

Networking

I read somewhere you should aim to be the dumbest in the room. Japan was an interesting place to be, it’s like a transitionary country for many expats. People leave within 5 years, or stay forever. Eventually I found myself in a weird middle ground where most people in my industry were either starting their careers, or were already 10+ years in. I was desperately seeking for more people from a diversity of backgrounds who I could learn from, and build meaningful relationships with. People doing exciting stuff, who work hard and play hard, and raise the bar for you. Other Type As like me who can’t sit still.

So did i get what I wanted?

I’'ll be honest - I am still not sure whether my professional needs have been met yet, some of it is because of my own shift of priorities, reducing my interest in academics and moving to a more social experience

• On one side, I got exposed to so many interesting courses and professors, however the quarter system goes by so quick, it’s so hard to retain the knowledge I am gaining.

• Geography has changed and I have been able to immerse myself into the American culture, but it’s temporary for me. Both from a logistical as well as personal. The US immigration office doesn’t make it easy for me to stay here long, but on the other side, but while I am here, I am making the most of it. Do I want to stay here long term? Well that’s a dilemma I will spend majority of this year thinking about.

• As for entrepreneurship, I haven’t been able to dabble in it as much as I would have liked to in my first year. I am trying to change that, by being more intentional with the courses and projects I focus on in the 2nd year. But it’s very distracting to do this at a school where everyone securing a job is the biggest priority.

On the flip side, I think I am satisfied with all my personal needs.

• Chaos? Ohhh I got all of it and so much more. Life is a constant roller coaster from the day my MBA started. I am consistently on my toes juggling 50 things.

• Definitely got that break from work and have been able to use it effectively, diving into whatever I have found interesting

• And yes I have effectively become the dumbest in the room. 😇 People here are insanely smart and dedicated to whatever they put their mind to. Additionally It’s definitely a strange place where you could gain 100+ friends in a few months time. And they are all gonna go ahead and do great things, I’m super excited to see their journeys.

In the end, I guess my goal with this post is to try to shine some light on my motivations for an MBA. If you are a prospective student or someone just curious about why people do one, these might be a few of those reasons.

Of course there are other reasons like - switching industries and roles, being sponsored by your firm, gaining credentials to be accelerated within your company as a leader, or maybe you are just bored and have a bunch of money lying around 😉 

I will conclude by saying that I am very satisfied with my MBA experience because my priorities have changed a lot since I actually got in, and also I see a bigger picture of how this experience has changed the trajectory of my entire life for the better.

There may be a lot of random stuff as I figure out my rhythm! But I have a lot more to come! Hope you stick around.

Till then cheers to Business and Pleasure 🥂 

Some ideas of what’s brewing!

• Why Kellogg?

  • Day in the life of a Kellogg Student

• Why MMM?

• Summary of my first year at Kellogg across

  • Academics

  • Social

  • Professional

  • Extra-curricular

• Product Management Recruiting for an MBA

• My summer at Google/YouTube

• Features on my awesome classmates and what they are up to

• My thoughts on life in Chicago, New York and San Francisco

Stay in touch!

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