Archive: B-School

Not Exactly Networking

Dec 5, 2008 in B-School

I should've known when I missed the first turn to the Marshall Alumni Holiday Reception and my next four chances to turn around were blocked off by LAPD auto and bike officers that things did not look good. But I drove around the northern half of Downtown and finally managed to get headed in the right direction to park and head into the event.
Read on...

Boy, I'm Glad I Applied to Business School

Apr 14, 2007 in B-School

So, not only did I get an MBA, but I had my identity stolen from two schools (USC and UCLA), and now a apparently peripherally involved in an IRS investigation at UCLA, where I didn't even go. To wit: Read on... (plus 1 Comments)

Oh Yeah, The Big News...

May 15, 2006 in B-School

So did I mention that I graduated on Friday? I'm officially an MBA. I think the description for what I'm feeling now is "bittersweet, elated terror." I definitely feel as if I've accomplished something incredible, but, gosh, the pressure to now accomplish something even more incredible is that much greater. Read on... (plus 3 Comments)

Well, I Guess That's It

May 8, 2006 in B-School

I turned in my last paper at about 12:30 pm today; I think that means I'm done. I'm completely in shock, I don't believe that I really won't be going in to class in just a few days, or working on a group project, or booking another study room. I still expect that I'll be having the Cobb salad, served every Tuesday at Popovich cafe, for lunch tomorrow, and the taco salad the day after. I mean, this can't be it, can it? What will I do with 80-100 more hours every week? Um, yay? Hee, I'm going on vacation!... Read on... (plus 2 Comments)

Lastday: Taurus 23 Year of the City 2006

Apr 28, 2006 in B-School

Yesterday was my official last day of class at Marshall. Barring an incredible reversal of fortune on the two papers and one final left, I'll officially have my MBA in just two weeks! It's an exciting thought, and I'm thrilled about what is in my future. But, ya know what, I'm kinda sad too. Read on...

Regret Theory

Apr 26, 2006 in B-School

I spent the last two days thinking that if I just worked reeeally hard this semester, I could manange to graduate with some kind of honors or something. Now, this will shock those of you who know me, but I had actually made a mathematical error when computing my GPA and had myself at a 3.56, rather than the actual 3.48 GPA that I earned with all of my hard work etc. etc. Read on...

Hello, Navel!

Apr 22, 2006 in B-School

This morning I got up early and fought my way through LA Freeway accident traffic and several packed-full parking lots to sit in front of over 100 prospective members of the class of 2008 (n.b. grammarians -- "over" = "more than" dates back over/more than 400 years) and talk about my business school experiences. Apparently someone was deluded enough to think that I'd say good, positive things that would make these desirable admits come to school. Read on...

Surprise Business School Speaker!

Apr 7, 2006 in B-School

Read on... (plus 4 Comments)

Channeling The Spirit of Evil

Mar 26, 2006 in B-School

I'm designing slides for this upcoming C4C event, the '80s Prom. Yes, that's right, I'm finally on the prom committee. I do not, however, have a date. Figures! Anyway, so I'm researching a lot of '80s design to make '80s-style powerpoints to go with the charity auction. And boy is a lot of that '80s design awful! It hurts me to make it happen. I am channeling the dark visuals of Reagan and Don Johnson and Tom Cruise.... Read on...

Buy a Hip Laptop Bag and Donate to Special Olympics!

Mar 22, 2006 in B-School

As some of y'all know, I'm a board member of Challenge for Charity, a non-profit run by West Coast business schools that raises money for the Special Olympics. C4C is a big deal at Marshall, and we get great support from students and alums. Just recently, alums with a hot newfashion accessory bag company have pleged to donate for each purchase we make. Check it out: So help Special Olympics, and help Marshall win the challenge, and get yourself something cool to boot! Update: I'm sitting in a room with a bunch of donated bags from this company, and I can say that they look great. The finish quality is quite high and the details are attended-to.... Read on... (plus 4 Comments)

MBAs Gone Wild on Spring Break!

Mar 20, 2006 in B-School

Oh maaaan, I had the wildest spring break. I went craaaazy, all out, no holds barred, put it all on the line. That's right, my spring break was oooooouuuuuuut of control! Yeah, like a major playa, I stayed home and worked on research and planning for my new business, that's hardcore, dude. Read on... (plus 5 Comments)

New on WadeArmstrong.com: Quick-and-Dirty Go/No Go

Feb 9, 2006 in B-School

Have a brilliant idea that will shake the world of business to its very core? Here's a quick and dirty way to figure out if you should kill any more neurons thinking so hard about it.... Read on... (plus 1 Comments)

Me, Meet Box

Jan 31, 2006 in B-School

If you're interested in classifying yourself -- and goodness knows, I classify everything so such an exercise certainly appeals to me -- a good place to start might be the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator, a scientifically un-validated test that classifies everyone into one of 16 groups with four-letter names. I'm an INTJ; every time I've taken the MBTI -- whether a fake version online I found in college or the real, authorized one I took in b-school or the several in between -- I've come out an INTJ. But I took this other test for a class, the IPIP-NEO, and, well, the overlap between the two makes it clear that I'm in that little box formerly labeled Misanthrope. Read on... (plus 7 Comments)

I Am A Rock Star

Jan 28, 2006 in B-School

I am a rock star.

I can make any project rock.

I bring the atmosphere of rocking with me. Read on... (plus 8 Comments)

99 Days

Jan 27, 2006 in B-School

In 99 days, I'll actually be an MBA. Seems far off; seems like I've been in school forever. Being in the real world will be a bit of a shock!... Read on... (plus 4 Comments)

How To Disrupt Business School

Jan 24, 2006 in B-School

I'm sitting in the courtyard of the business school right now, and an enormous smell of marijuana just descended over the place. About two dozen formerly hard-working MBA candidates looked up from their work, started peering around, started checking each others' hands for traces of smoking materials, and even walked around following the smell. The verdict? Some passing homie, I guess (we are in South-Central).... Read on... (plus 2 Comments)

If You're Spending Money These Days...

Jan 14, 2006 in B-School

Why not spend it in a way that gives to a charity? Even better, why not spend it in a way that gives to a charity that I support and in a way that makes me look good? I'm a board member of Challenge for Charity at Marshall, a coalition of business school students raising money in a super-competitive manner (we're b-school students after all) for Special Olympics. We've set things up so that you can spend your money in the usual way and give to Special Olympics as well! Just use this link to shop at Amazon or e-mail your Albertson's and/or Ralph's Preferred Card numbers, first and last name, and the address and phone number associated with the card, and I'll set things up so that 5% of your total shopping goes to Challenge for Charity. Please note that no C4C staff is paid and there is no overhead; all of the money goes straight to Special Olympics. Thanks!... Read on...

1-800-Autopsy

Nov 10, 2005 in B-School

Did you know that less than 2% of the people who die in hospitals are autopsied? That the autopsy rate has been dropping for the last 40 years? That all of this could somehow end up making somebody money? Me neither! But that's who we met in class today, East LA's own Vidal Herrera, former CSI, autopsy tech, and founder of 1-800-Autopsy. Read on...

Dear System Administrator

Nov 5, 2005 in B-School, Dear So-And-So

Thank you for capping my mailbox size at 45 megabytes. I very much appreciate the periodic message telling me that I've used up all of my space and can neither send nor receive any messages. I particularly appreciate how you bounce back any mail sent to me, returning it to the sender with a cryptic error message. Read on... (plus 1 Comments)

Things I Learned At The Marshall Halloween Party

Oct 29, 2005 in B-School

Life is a series of lessons, often painful and traumatic. It's at times like these that we need to write down the lessons we learn so that we don't have to undergo these trials again. Simple, clear lessons can often be distilled from life's most awful experiences, and set down, for review as we all strive and grow.

Of course, sometimes those lessons come from alcohol, friends, and excessively loud music. Then they're just fun. Here's what I learned at the Marshall Halloween party. Read on... (plus 5 Comments)

Día de Fiascos

Oct 20, 2005 in B-School

Today was an interesting day, a day that offered me a unique range of the experiences avaialable at business school. Or -- in another way to look at it -- I got to build up my bad karma, then reap the rewards. Read on...

Back on Top

Oct 19, 2005 in B-School, Food, Spurts

I got back on track tonight with a win in the cooking competition. My Thai Beef Noodles turned out tasty -- I believe the flavor was described by one of my competitors as "very smooth." Read on...

2-3, 2-3, and Now 3-1

Oct 13, 2005 in B-School, Food, Spurts

I love to compete, so it's no surprise that I'm in two Fantasy Football leagues and one weekly cooking competition; I like to win, too, which is why it's a little bit surprising that I'm 2-3 in both leagues and, now, have dropped from 3-0 to 3-1 in the cooking competition. Read on... (plus 1 Comments)

First Flu of the Season

Oct 12, 2005 in B-School

I thought it might be important for you, the two members of my reading public, that I post before I die of what may in fact be the Deadly Avian Flu (certainly, I am regularly exposed to a bird).

Actually, this is a pretty miserable thing I've got, whatever it is. Congestion, fever, aches -- sounds like a flu of some sort. I can't believe it so early in the year, I'm usually one of the last people to get the flu. While everyone is getting sick in November and December, I typically last 'til February or even April, when people just think I'm making up this whole "flu" thing. Read on... (plus 4 Comments)

A Bite Here, A Bite There

Oct 7, 2005 in B-School

One of the things we do a billion of here in b-school is informational interviews. The goals of these interviews are typically to learn which skills we need to broadcast in order to get into an industry, as well as make a contact in the industry who can later point us to jobs. I always try to tack on to that a few questions about how I can get the most out of the remainder of my MBA education. The guy I was speaking with on Wednesday had what I've come to realize is an excellent insight: there's not enough time in an MBA to learn everything you'd like, but that first class in an area outside of your concentration will give you a lot more learning than that fifth class inside your concentration. Read on... (plus 1 Comments)

Tarred With The One Brush

Oct 4, 2005 in B-School

Something sometimes happens in b-school, something that scares me as someone who's seen it from the outside. In b-school, there's group projects in every class; and, every now and then, there's a group member who doesn't contribute. News of this individual's worthlessness in a group spreads quickly, and, soon, if you mention that person's in your team, you get snickers from other hard-working people. Soon, wherever you go, that person is known as a Bad Team Member. Read on...

Working Hard or Hardly Working?

Sep 28, 2005 in B-School, Photos

So this morning I wrote a 10-page paper. This is either a sign that I'm working really hard or that I'm a total slacker who puts big projects off 'til the last minute. Since I'm finding time to blog right now, one might be inclined to pick the latter.

Anyway, this brings up the big question of the second year, which is: "do I work hard and learn a shitload and get out in the world ready to take on any challenge, or do I take the easiest classes I can find and try to get out of here with as much of my sanity intact as possible, given that I get the same three letters after my name either way and Marshall doesn't report GPAs to potential employers?" Read on... (plus 4 Comments)

Help Me Help Special Olympics

Sep 20, 2005 in B-School

This weekend, I'll be hobbling through a one-mile fun run to help raise money for Special Olympics. I know everyone has given a lot lately, for the victims of Katrina (hopefully thorough the banner above!), but it would make a tremendous difference in the life of these kids if you could help me out with a donation to support my hobbling. You can donate through my Active.com site at http://www.active.com/donations/fundraise_public.cfm?key=juniorbird. Thank you!... Read on... (plus 1 Comments)

She's A Real Boy Scout

Sep 13, 2005 in B-School

Yesterday we had a fun power outage. Popovich Hall was blacked out (making my bathroom break rather interesting), but at least it was a beautiful day out and we could all sit in the courtyard comfortably. But then came the problem of class. The lights were back on by the time my Advertising and Promotions Management course started, but the computers were down. Every session, Prof. Badame shows Clio-winning ads and we discuss them; then we work through a case, with the help of her PowerPoint. Well, no ads, no PowerPoint this time -- but Badame was prepared with the old-skool solution of transparencies that she could put on the overhead projector. This was pretty impressive, given that she gave an entirely new lecture for this year -- she wasn't just pulling from an archive, she had printed out transparencies just for us, just as a backup. And this sure makes me think! I would have kept my PowerPoint on the network, and had a backup copy on CD-ROM or USB thumb drive. Neither of those works when the computer doesn't. Sometimes it takes someone with long experience to be prepared for the failure of modern technology. Next time I have a big presentation, I think I'll bring transparencies myself. Still, the case sucked. So there were two sides to it all.... Read on... (plus 5 Comments)

B-School vs. TiVo

Sep 2, 2005 in B-School

It's always difficult when two important, beloved parts of one's life conflict. Well, that time has finally come for me. While watching Cold Case, I realized: I should't let myself fast forward through TV ads anymore. It's not just fun anymore; now it's education. Read on... (plus 1 Comments)

Information Density

Sep 1, 2005 in B-School

Overall, I'm inclined to say that the electives this term are of higher quality than many of my courses last year -- but one really stands out. Financial Analysis and Valuation is about gaining the skills to dig fairly deep into a corporation's financial statemtents and use the numbers in these to discover things about the company's financial health, growth (or shrinking) prospects, and true value. This course is spectacular; I've never been in such an information-dense environment. I live in fear that my attention will wander for even a second, because every sentence that comes out of Professor Linda D'Angelo's mouth is clear, meaningful, important, actionable, and packed with information. The homework is great, educational but not too heavy, as well. If my poor brain is able to retain even a quarter of what I learn, I'll have spent my b-school experience well.... Read on...

Rio Beaches PRIME Photos

Aug 17, 2005 in B-School, Photos, Travel

I've had all of these galleries of photos from South America, but the number one question I get is: "what about those beach babes in thongs on Copacabana and Ipanema in Rio?" Well, this is the entry in which I finally answer that question. Read on...

Fort Copacabana Rio PRIME Photos

Aug 13, 2005 in B-School, Photos, Travel

As promised, pictures of the impressive Fort Copacabana in the Rio Harbor. Click to zoom. Read on... (plus 3 Comments)

Corcovado In Rio PRIME Pictures

Aug 9, 2005 in B-School, Photos, Travel

One of Rio's most famous landmarks is the large statue of Christ on the Corcovado mountain. This was one of the banner stops on my second day in Rio. Click to zoom, etc. Read on... (plus 1 Comments)

Internship Presentation Stress

Aug 8, 2005 in B-School

We interrupt your regularly-scheduled PRIME photos in order to bring you this breaking stress-out about the three presentations I have to make tomorrow. Three! Including two to people who are substantially senior in grade to me and to any position I might gain in the next few years at Intel, were I to take a job there. Read on... (plus 7 Comments)

Pao de Azucar at Rio de Janeiro PRIME

Aug 6, 2005 in B-School, Photos, Travel

Pao de Azucar, or Sugarloaf Mountain, is one of Rio's major attractions. In our first day of sun, we climbed up the mountain and took in our first sights of the city. Click to buy mousepads from Smugmug, etc. Read on... (plus 1 Comments)

Churrasco in São Paulo PRIME Pictures

Aug 6, 2005 in B-School, Photos, Travel

Brazil is famous for its Churrasco -- all-you-can-eat barbecued meats served tableside by waitrons bearing skewers of the food and sabers to cut out the portions. I especially recommend the chicken hearts; drink with copious guaraná. (Click to enlarge photos.) Read on...

São Paulo Churches PRIME Pictures

Aug 3, 2005 in B-School, Photos, Travel

São Paulo has some lovely churches in it. As mentioned here, these include a lovely old cathedral and and old cemetery, both in the middle of the downtown commercial district. Read on... (plus 1 Comments)

More Santiago PRIME Pictures

Aug 1, 2005 in B-School, Photos, Travel

These are from the Cerro Santa Lucia, which I wrote about with (hopefully) some minimal skill here. As usual, click to enlarge! Read on...

Santiago PRIME Pictures

Jul 30, 2005 in B-School, Photos, Travel

As long promised, my pictures from PRIME. Presented without commentary, because I already provided a lot of that (which you can read here and here and here if you want). Read on...

Now That's a Leader

Jun 6, 2005 in B-School, Bidness

Sometimes, bosses say the stupidest things. Their mouths open and out come the worst cliches. But -- even more incredible -- that cliched phrase works. And then -- poof -- motivation! Caring! Inspiration! All the fruits of leadership! Read on... (plus 1 Comments)

PRIME: Eu Falo um Poco de Português

Jun 2, 2005 in B-School, Travel

I'm very happy that I took the time to learn a little bit of Portuguese before traveling to Brazil. Having the ability to understand, and to communicate with, many of the people I met there really improved my trip. Of course, it also got me stuck riding in the front of cabs and talking to cabbies, so it wasn't all upside. Read on...

PRIME: Chile vs. Brazil Deathmatch

May 31, 2005 in B-School, Travel

We got to see two countries. Both were pretty cool! But which should I go back to (or, maybe, go back to first)? Let's figure this out for once and for all with this one-on-one deathmatch between these two South American countries. Read on...

PRIME Brazil: Fort Copacabana

May 27, 2005 in B-School, Travel

So there was this flu-like thing that was making its way slowly through the whole PRIME group; I got it two weeks ago. Fortunately it only lasted a day and a half (as compared to up to a week for other people), but, as soon as I felt better, I went out for churrascaria and several caipirhinas, and that was pushing it too hard; the flu turned into a stomach thing that laid me up for most of another day. So, today I took it easy, walking down Copacabana beach to the beautiful Fort Copacabana. Read on...

PRIME Brazil: The Sights of Rio

May 25, 2005 in B-School, Travel

Vacation at last. After a week of PRIME activities, a day of travel, and, admittedly, a day by myself in São Paulo, it's finally time to really get free and have fun! Read on...

PRIME Brazil: Samba!

May 25, 2005 in B-School, Travel

With fortune on our side, some members of my little group in Rio made friends with some locals, and said locals invited us out for dinner and dancing at a Samba club. And I have discovered why Brazillians are so skinny: Samba! Read on...

PRIME Brazil: São Paulo -- Chicken Hearts, Being "That Guy", Pinacoteca, and Leaving São Paulo

May 23, 2005 in B-School, Travel

I've been a bad blogger! But I've been a busy traveler. So here's the update for the last three days of São Paulo, including one day of PRIME class; one day of walking around the city; and, of course, travelling to Rio de Janeiro, from whence I am posting. Read on...

PRIME Brazil: Leavin' 'Em Speechless

May 19, 2005 in B-School, Travel

"I have no questions. I have nothing to add." That's what you want to hear from the CEO of a major cable TV company after you've presented to him, and that's what my PRIME consulting team got from the president of Brazillian cable leader NET Serviços. Two days in Brazil, four fun and interesting site visits, some good food, and a funny tour guide -- plus that positive response -- how can you do better? Read on...

Santiago PRIME, Day 3

May 16, 2005 in B-School, Travel

Today I made a mistake. We went to the Vinos Concha y Toro vineyard, and I thought we'd be there just for meetings and speeches; instead, we got a tour of the whole complex. And me not with my camera! So there will be no photos of Concha y Toro. Nor will there be -- and I doubt you'll be unhappy about this -- any photos of the teams presenting to Bice Bank or Banco Santander Santiago. (Yes, we are here to give real actual consulting presentations!) Read on... (plus 2 Comments)

Santiago PRIME, Day 2

May 15, 2005 in B-School, Travel

Santiago is very European town; it could pass for a French or Spanish city, with parts of historical beauty and parts of awful '80s architecture and parts of deteriorating '50s concrete buildings. The people are also very European, with only, apparently, the road workers and cooks showing much Indian ethnic background. This makes for a very different feel than most of Latin America -- especially Mexico, to which I'm somewhat used -- and it means that Santiago mostly lacks the "exotic" women I typically go for. Also, it's not that I'm all that, but I'm kind of used to the Mexican women checking me out. In fact, I've been hit on even in front of the Wonderful Girlfriend. Maybe it's the camera around my neck, or the little memo pad in which I take notes, or the not-in-style clothes, but the women in Santiago won't even make eye contact. Apart from that, this town is a ton of fun. Read on...

Bienvenidos á PRIME Chile!

May 14, 2005 in B-School, Travel

Welcome to day #1 of my PRIME trip. It's 8:30pm and it's almost time for dinner in Santiago, Chile. Read on...

The Other Key to Finals Success: Stop Sassing Back!

May 5, 2005 in B-School

I have this attitude problem: if I don't agree with what The Man is saying, I'll express my opposition through homework and test-taking. That's right, I'll rebel by expressing my opinions in soundly-formulated, grammatical, written arguments. Watch out, I'm a wild man. Read on... (plus 1 Comments)

Wrist Fitness: The Key to Finals Success

May 4, 2005 in B-School, True Life Stories

Coming out of our Globl Strategy final on Monday, and then our Management of Organizations final today, my poor classmates were cradling their wrists and complaining of all of the pages and pages of answers they had to write out. But not me. No, I trained long and hard for tests just like this through two solid years of High School AP History. Read on...

Jack Welch Gives Straight Talk About Winning

Apr 26, 2005 in B-School, Bidness

In a much-touted event, former GE CEO Jack Welch spoke at the Marshall School today to pitch his new book, Winning, and, since I RSVPd for a ticket immediately I actually got to get into the event and look at the back of someone's head while listening to Welch talk for two hours (Jason, you have exactly five gray hairs). Actually, it was a really incredible speech and I was very impressed by Jack Welch's clear, straightforward style and his blunt (although non-offensive) honesty. A good role model for us all and a lot of great food for thought. I'll probably turn into a corporate tool and buy Winning now to read what Jack Welch had to say in print. Read on...

Potty Mouth

Apr 24, 2005 in B-School

While I have no particular memory of taking GSBA 547: Cursing for Managers this semester, I've either received some cutting-edge new subliminal training in how to drop f-bombs in class, or I've contracted Tourette's Syndrome. Either way, I'm contributing to the moral turpitude of the Marshall School. (Note to entrepreneurs: turpitude.org is apparently not taken!) Read on... (plus 1 Comments)

Feelin' the 6am

Apr 22, 2005 in B-School

I will never publicly admit that I like having 8am classes four days in a row. But I am now officially a convert to the whole morning person things. A flurry of e-mails at 6:05am? Makes me feel hardcore. Read on...

What, Me Relax?

Apr 17, 2005 in B-School

It's day three of a three-day weekend. And have I chilled out any? Of course not. I spent a whole day on activities. I spent a whole day paying bills and taking care of un-attended-to tasks. I'm in the midst of spending a whole day trying to get a summer job. TiVo has about 30GB of stuff I'd love to watch but Dean Voigt has a lot more stuff I need to do. Yes, it's clear, what I really need is an intern. Read on...

Going Once, Going Twice, Sold to the Trojan Who Bid 700 Points For That One Course

Apr 7, 2005 in B-School

The way you get into electives here at Marshall is to bid on the courses you want. We get 1000 points, a list of the classes that will be offered in the fall, a prospective list of spring classes, and a list of the last 3-4 years of waitlists for classes, then we get to bid our points on the classes we want. The theory is, this procedure makes sure that people get into the classes they value the most; but that ignores all the things besides desire that go into a bid. Which made me ask: what, exactly, is it that bidding on classes measures? Read on... (plus 1 Comments)

ApplyYourself Hack: What Should Be Done?

Mar 10, 2005 in B-School

If you applied to b-school, you probably had the fairly mediocre experience of using ApplyYourself, a service that allows you to apply, and track the status of your applications, in the most inefficient way possible. This year, some smart boys figured out how to get their admit decisions weeks early by exploiting a security hole in ApplyYourself. Harvard has decided to reject everyone it thinks took advantage of this hole. I'm not sure that's right; there's more nuance here than meets the eye. Read on...

I Can't Get No Satisficetion

Mar 8, 2005 in B-School

My teammates this term are great, but one half of my team has a profound difference with the other half -- hopefully, it shan't be irreconcilable. See, half of my team is made of perfectionists; the other half, including me, is made of satisficers. Read on...

I Am In Charge Here!

Feb 21, 2005 in B-School

I love my group this semester, but they're very different from last semester's group. In The Ocho, leadership was a sort of rotating affair -- everybody was inclined to take leadership, at least some of the time, and if I didn't want to be in charge I'd just wait and someone else would take the reins. But Group A-6 is different. There's some evidence that I might actually be in charge here. Read on...

I Figueroaed It Out!

Feb 10, 2005 in B-School

I park in this brand-new parking lot this semester. And I've been having some serious trouble finding my car there. I've been blaming my easily-confused memory; after all, it's not easy to remember, at 5:30pm, where you parked at 7:45am. Was it the third floor? The fourth? The sixth? Some days it was easy. Some days I searched for my car for minutes on end. But today I figured it out. First, a little background. Last semester, for the low low price of half of what I'd spend parking anywhere else within walking distance of campus, at least legally, I had a permit for the Parking Center. Or, as we called it, The Ghetto. The Parking Center was cheap, sure, but it was far. A converted warehouse relatively near USC, to get there required me to take one of three routes: The long way, up one whole side of the campus, across two six-lane streets, past a construction site, beneath a freeway overpass, and across a freeway exit ramp. The short way, across a three-way intersection with no crosswalk, beside a six-lane street with no sidewalk, beneath the freeway overpass, past the homeless man getting a blowjob from a crack whore, across another three-way intersection with no crosswal, and past an abandoned warehouse. The only safe route after dark, a 20-minute bus ride around campus (5 minutes if you got the right bus, or 60 minutes if you got the wrong one and got to take a ride all around campus, up past fraternity row, past all the student housing, past the convenience stores, and back to where you started, leaving you just about 20 minutes to get the right bus and make it to the Parking Center in an even hour). So when the new Parking Structure 1 opened, at the corner of Figueroa and Exposition, directly across from the business school, I happily paid double to park there. Now, the building's not done yet, so you can't park on the roof or against some walls, if they're working nearby, and sometimes the stairs are closed and often the elevators are, and the one time I took the elevator it forgot what buttons you pushed every time the door closed, which I took as a solid vote for the stairs. But it's a parking lot that I'm allowed to park in and it's nearby. And now I can find my car in it! I made a discovery today that explains why I'm never parked on the floor I think I'm parked on, and why it always seems like I get to the exit in no time. Now, this place looks like a staggered floors, two-way center ramp model, but there's a twist: the floor on the west side is flat, so if you turn west off of the ramp and go around you just go around the level, but the floor on the east side is sloped uphill, so if you turn east off the ramp you actually go up another level. I know it sounds crazy but that's the way it is. And that's why I'm always parked on level 5 when I only went up two center ramps.... Read on...

You've Got Bad Bad Luck

Feb 1, 2005 in B-School

Mike Ness notwithstanding, today started out great. I got up rested, motored right though a bunch of homework, and had a great workout. But then it started. Read on... (plus 4 Comments)

New Year, New Team

Jan 15, 2005 in B-School

Sadly enough, I had to give up my beloved Ocho as the first term ended. Second term brings with it a new team, and I appear to have struck it lucky again. I'm fortunate to be grouped with five smart, hard-working people; and I'm fortunate because I needed to be in a team like that, as we got assigned a case right after getting assigned a team. Read on...

Down With The Curve!

Dec 10, 2004 in B-School

This afternoon I took my Finance final. So this evening I'm doing that evil thing that everyone who's ever had their grade set on a curve has done: hoping that my friends and colleagues did more poorly on their Finance exams than I did on mine. I like my classmates, or, at least, select ones. It's not right that I hope for them to fail, but The Man makes me do it. It's just the Program Office's way of keeping us down. The curve is a seductive, and deeply crappy, concept. By fitting all grades to a normal curve, most people become average -- which is nice, because, statistically, most people should be average. Except in school. School isn't about being average; it's about learning and applying that learning. These are nice, measurable things, and we ought to have expectations of what should be learned -- and, perhaps more importantly, what professors should be expected to teach. Curves avoid expectations and standards. Does the professor teach the material? Do the students know the material? The answer may be no, but the curve hides this; average can be mediocre at best, but mediocre is curved to a B (in the case of Marshall) and moderately knowledgeable curved to an A, when moderately knowledgeable should be a B-. The curve also hides individual differences between learning. Sometimes professors are good at teaching people who learn in certain ways but not people who learn in other ways. A very large standard deviation can indicate that some people just aren't learning, while others are learning very well; but the curve subsumes the standard deviation. A person who gets 15 points under the mean could get a B-, when that person's score really indicates a failure to understand important parts of the topic. The curve also encourages professors to write extremely hard test. Is your mean score a 60? Well, the curve takes care of that -- 60 becomes a B, 75 an A, and, well, if the mean is 60 there probably aren't too many people with 90s. But too-hard tests can turn students off from a topic or even from pursuing their degree. And why should a test be traumatic? What is achieved? Tests should measure learning and encourage students to achieve further, or serve as a capstone. Worst of all, the curve pulls students apart. We root for our classmates to do poorly -- to set the bottom of the curve, to pull the mean down, to widen the standard deviation. This doesn't promote school spirit or teamwork, it promotes concealing information and bitterness over the achievement of others. Let's be happy when people get As. Let's hold professors to standards of teaching and students to standards of learning. Let's abolish the curve and test against set standards. And if grades inflate, then let's raise our standards.... Read on...

If Life Is Like A Box Of Chocolates, Then Business School Is Like A Portfolio Of Risky Securities

Nov 22, 2004 in B-School

On one level, it's a little disturbing that my high-effort, high-stress business school experience can be reduced to such a simple, clear, and exactly descriptive metaphor. On the other hand, it's convenient, and we're all about efficacy and efficiency at b-school. So, here it is. Businees school really is like a portfolio of risky securities! In a major exception from my usual practice, I'm actually going to try and explain what it is that all this means. What, 2/3 of my readers are asking, is a portfolio of risky securities? Well, it's pretty much what it sounds like: it's a stock portfolio. An agglomeration of stocks that you -- yes, you -- own. It's risky because, well, stocks are risky. They might be worth more tomorrow, they might be worth less, so you might end up with a profit or a loss on your stock transaction. The individual stocks change value in certain ways, and the whole portfolio changes value in related ways that I'll get into later. Make sense? So, how is b-school like a portfolio of risky securities? Well, imagine that the market return -- the return you'd make if you invested in all of the stocks in the market -- is the mean return from business school, mean return being some function of grade, activity leadership, and job placement. Just like you want your portfolio's return to exceed the market return, you want your b-school return to exceed the mean return of your classmates. Just like in the stock market, you don't want to make more than other people because you want those others to lose; you want to make more because more is good (stop me before I go all Gordon Gekko here). In the stock market, you can increase your returns by investing in riskier securities (riskier securities have a greater return than securities with lower risk because the market demands more return for putting up with the risk, so the companies represented by the securities have to step up and deliver high returns or be unable to raise money by issuing more equity, or stock). In business school, you can learn more by taking harder classes, or by being more involved in activities, or by looking harder for a job. All of these increase your risk because they take time away from other activities, leaving you open to not getting such good grades, or not getting a job or internship, or letting your clubmates down. If you're overcommitted, you can get some great experience but you can also flunk out. Now, with a portfolio of securities, you try to get securities that don't all vary in the same way. If you own an airline stock, whose value may go down if the price of oil (and, thus, jet fuel) increases, you can "hedge" your portfolio by also owning, say, ExxonMobil, whose value will go up if the price of oil goes up. You can do the same in b-school too; I may take two Marketing classes to balance out the effect on my GPA of taking another Finance class, for instance. You try to balance out the potential gain in knowledge but loss in GPA by taking easier classes from which you may learn less. It can get more complicated than that, too. If... Read on...

A Mentor? For Me?

Nov 18, 2004 in B-School

The Marshall Career Development Office has a program in which, every year, they match a small number of students with volunteer alumni mentors. About a month ago, on somwhat of a lark, I applied. It was a lark because I didn't really think I'd get it. There are a ton of qualified, ultra-competitive people in my class, and I figured they'd be right on the ball; there are also a number of really bright career-switchers who could use a push in the right direction. Between those two groups, what kind of a chance does a middle-of-the road, reasonably erudite, reasonably set-in-his-ways marketer stand? Well, I'm always one for a fight, so I put my hat in the ring. Even wrote my first ever non-crappy cover letter for it. And, apparently I got the mentor; out of over 90 applicants, I was one of just 19 selected. So I now have a really talented alumni mentor, a smart guy who started his own communications business that finds really interesting and unique approaches to marketing. I'm very much looking forward to meeting him and learning new ways to approach the marketing industry. Maybe he can help me find a unique way to package me! At any rate, it's great to have another opportunity to take everything that Marshall offers. Now, if only Marshall was better at offering a good night's sleep!... Read on...

You Say Finance, I Say Finance

Nov 11, 2004 in B-School

Finance scares the stuffing out of me. Not only is it hard and often non-intuitive, it's also something I'd like to be good at. Budgeting, planning, starting and buying companies -- all of these are applications of Finance. Wouldn't it be wonderful if I had any idea what I was doing in the class? I've got a midterm tomorrow and I haven't a clue as to what grade I might get. Now, there's plenty of other liberal arts majors at Marshall, so that at least gives me hope that there's a bunch of people out there in the same boat as me. But who wants to count on their friends' failure to make them look good in comparison? And then there's the people who, no matter what, will make me look bad -- the former market analysts, bond traders, and portfolio managers. But I know how to be as good as them. You see, I've watched carefully, I've paid attention to all of the little things, and I've learned something tremendously important. Something that may change the way that Finance is taught forever. Something that will allow you, the reader at home, to also become as good at Finance as the professionals. This secret, provided to you by this blog at absoloutely no added charge, is: Liberal arts majors all say "fEYE-nance" People who've worked in the Finance industry all say "FIHnance" Therefore, to be good at Finance, one must learn to always say "FIHnance" It's a simple method, and I'm sure it will work; the correlation between pronunciation and past employment (and thus skill in the area) is simply too strong. While my classmates have been wasting hours with past years' tests and textbook problems, I've been practicing my pronunciation. Tomorrow I'm going in there, saying "Yes, Professor Draper, I'm ready for my FIHnance midterm," and Professor Draper will give me a knowing look, I'll be implicitly welcomed into the brotherhood of Those Who Understand Finance, and, my test, well, I'll undoubtedly get the grade I so richly deserve.... Read on...

It's The Students Who Make It Happen

Oct 28, 2004 in B-School

Just time for a quick note about two really great experiences I've had in the past two days: GMA Marketing Wine & Cheese Roundtable Night Entrepreneur's Happy Hour GMA Marketing Wine & Cheese Roundtable Night The student-organized Wine & Cheese Roundtable Night brought some great companies to Marshall, and gave us all the opportunity to speak one-on-one with marketing executives from those companies. I, hopefully, made some great contacts that will help me in my internship search, and learned a lot of great information about CPG and technology marketing. All thanks to my great mentor, Sandin Wang, one of the organizers of the event. Entrepreneur's Happy Hour This is a little casual event that I suggested to my Core Rep at the Entrepreneur and Venture Management Association. The EVMA has some more serious and focused events for committed Entrepreneurs, but I'm not nearly that dedicated; I don't want to fall short on some committment and make Marshall look bad. Our Core Rep, Carlie Yapp, got a bunch of us together at the end of the day and we got drinks at the Raddison across the street. We bounced ideas around some and moved in great directions. Will great businesses come out of this down the road? I wouldn't bet against it with that set of folks. It's times like this that I feel lucky to be at Marshall. It's nice to be in a good school, but it's best to be around good people. Good people get stuff done, and I know I'll have tons of opportunities over the next two years because of that.... Read on...

Unexpected Value Added

Oct 20, 2004 in B-School

Yesterday's Leadership class was actually pretty good. Great, even. That's a shocker -- Posner really added some value! I did benefit disproportionately from the class, it's true, because I was up there for 30 minutes getting my presenting style critiqued. I actually learned a lot! I wish that I had been prepared in some way (one of the main complaints was that I read directly from my notes, which happened, of course, because I wasn't prepared), but, honestly, since none of the previous classes had been of any value, I didn't think there was any justification for me putting the time in to get ready for class. Practicing a speech two or three times can take, well, minutes, and Posner hadn't even justified that so far. But he did yesterday. Class was fun, a lot of people got to speak and get critiqued, and Posner was even relatively brief when he talked. Now, I'm saying relatively, here -- he still droned on at a few points and lost my attention completely, but the point is that, later, I started paying attention again, because I thought it might be worth it. This, folks, may be a breakthrough. We'll see if he keeps it up!... Read on... (plus 2 Comments)

Leadership Training With The Marines At Camp Pendleton

Oct 16, 2004 in B-School

Unlike other members of my family, I've never been particularly inclined to pursue a career in the military. That wasn't enough to stop me, however, from a fun idea like traveling to the desert and running around to learn about one approach (the Marines', obviously) to being a leader. After Finals, on Wednesday, we took a bus down to Camp Pendleton in north San Diego county. On the way down, we stopped for food. Once we got to Pendleton, three Marines pursuing their MBAs at Marshall spent over an hour helping us to understand Marine history and just how things work when you're a jarhead. After the presentations, I made a rookie mistake: I volunteered. The Marines have this little trick they play -- first they ask for volunteers, then, after you've volunteered, they tell you what you volunteered for. I volunteered and ended up being made head of a "fire team," a group of five pople who would work together on the next day's challenges. Then they marched us down to a barracks and bunked all of us men in a "squad bay," one of those long, open rooms that everybody bunks in: Everybody chose themselves a bunk bed, or "rack" as the technical term goes: Every student was issued a sleeping bag, to go with said rack, and in which said student would then spend the hours from 11:30pm lights out to 5:30am reveille. That's right, 5:30am; that's the lifestyle that doesn't attract me. But there was one part of the kit that was attractive, the helmet. Everyone dug the helmet! Of course, issuing all this "kit" leaves a mess. I volunteered again -- this time, to have my fire team count all of the unissued kit and make sure that nobody got charged for any unissued "lost" equipment. I called my fire team around and broke the news soft; I said, "I've got good news and bad news. The good news is, I got us out of cleaning out the head in the morning. The bad news is, we have to police up the unissued kit." I think anything sounded good after hearing about "cleaning out the head" (bathroom, including showers, toilets, etc.) and my team tackled the task with enthusiasm and efficiency. Sleep was harder to get than I'd expected; I was amped up after a whole day of anticipation and, frankly, when you get a few dozen guys in one room you're guaranteed some snorers. I woke myself up with the start of a snore once and I ended up spending the whole night sleeping on my side to make sure that I didn't wake anybody. Morning came too soon; 5:30 is early! They marched us down the the mess hall where we had eggs and a starch and exactly one meat option, not two. Then they marched us to a classroom for a few hours of instruction on Marine leadership and maneuver warfare. The morning's instruction, given by two of our three class Marines and one of the base's Colonels, was quite instructive. One interesting nugget is that tiredness is frowned upon in the business and education world. You cannot admit you're tired or fall asleep (not that tons of people don't sleep in class). For Marines, however, it's different: a tired Marine gets... Read on... (plus 3 Comments)

And The Last Shall Be First

Oct 6, 2004 in B-School

Isn't it's amazing how something truly bad can make the mediocre seem wonderful? Unfortunately, I've managed to run into the truly awful in my truly expensive business school education. Yes, incompetence is thou, Steve Posner. For many a week my least favorite class was Microeconomics, taught by Rich Eastin. Eastin's clearly a smart guy, and he communicates pretty well, but he was stuck delivering way too much information in way too little time (one of my classmates, an undergrad Econ major, said that a 1 hour 20 minute class covered three weeks of an undergrad class), and he's a little resistant to prioritizing said information. But Eastin's lectures were filled with (curmudgeonly) effort, and, at the end of the quarter, it's all starting to come together. Or at least I think it is; we'll know after next week's final. Steve Posner, however, is either both incompetent and lazy or else trying to set a powerful anti-example for all of us. Posner teaches management communications, and, thus far, he's not managing to communicate in any way at all. He talks a long time, he talks quietly, he lulls you to sleep, and he doesn't have concrete points. He gives us speaking rules and then breaks them. He gives us nonspecific assignments and then rebukes us for not achieving specific goals. I'm being too hard on Posner here, really. I think his strategies work well with freshmen -- those young, skinny, attractive people who haven't ever really worked hard before, are as yet unmoulded, and have tons of free time. But us b-school students are busy and set in our ways. We need concrete answers now, not philosophical change over a period of time. Posner doesn't offer that. And he's apparently lost buy-in from the class; nobody that I've run into did any substantial amount of work for our last presentation -- not because they were too busy (although they were plenty busy, b-school students are good at making time for things they care about), but because they didn't care. So here's the upshot. I like Micro better because it's all starting to come together, sure, but the real reason is: Eastin's way better than Posner. Most everyone is way better than Posner. He's setting the bottom of the curve, and he's setting it low.... Read on... (plus 7 Comments)

A Paean For SPSS

Sep 25, 2004 in B-School

I'm old. Officially old. What is it that makes me old? Why, it's my ability to reminisce, with a twinkle in my eye and a wistful tone, about the good old days when I wrote batch files to run statistical tests on SPSS, which, by the way, ran on the server, not some dinky desktop. Ahh yes, I miss firing up Kermit, telnetting into the server (bambi.pomona.edu, I think) running pico or vi to write a command file instructing SPSS what to do with my data, FTPing the data to the server, running SPSS from the command line (there was no user interface, you'd just type SPSS nomanager inputfile outputfile), hoping there were no errors (and repeating the whole process if there were), and, if the whole megillah worked, waiting 30-45 minutes for the computer center staff to pull the 60-70 green-and-white pages of output for my job off of the large-format dot-matrix printer and drop it in the "names starting with W" cubby. So yeah it was a little obtuse, as these things go. But I loved SPSS. It could do whatever you needed with as much, or as little, data as you had. It had this user's manual -- oh, that manual! -- that was better than any other stats textbook I'd ever seen. You knew, when you used SPSS, you held power in your hands. Or at least you had a non-exclusive connection to power via a 14,400 baud modem line. We just started Stats. The prof seems great, but I'm not sure about the statistical package we're using, Palisade StatTools. Graphs seem to have randomly-labeled axes. RECODE? Feh, use a PivotTable. Sadly, with only about 460 rows of 7 fields of data, and 768 MB of RAM, I managed to run out of memory trying to use a PivotTable to automagically make my data useable. Oh, and the descriptive statistics don't include the mode. What's up with that?... Read on... (plus 2 Comments)

Two Days Of Terror

Sep 22, 2004 in B-School

Or two weeks, more like -- last Monday's Microeconomics midterm plus yesterday's Accounting midterm and today's Strategy final. If you're keeping track at home, that's two entire weekends of studying for classes that I'm not sure I really get, plus last night studying for a class that I thought I got real good but maybe I'm not so sure after that final. Econ wasn't that bad. I knew I didn't understand most of what was going on so I kicked my ass studying in a really systematic way: Making a list, and then flash cards, of all the formulae described in the chapters in question Making outlines out of the parts of the chapters in question that I highlighted Doing a few strategic problems and making some graphs The result? I think I did better than I expected. Not great, but within a standard deviation of the mean. Accounting was awful. I though I understood it, I'd been giving people advice on it for weeks -- good advice too, from what they said -- but when I got a copy of last year's test from the prof, I couldn't even start to figure out how to do about half of the problems! So I shut myself up for an entire weekend and made ouutlines of every chapter. Then I tried the practice test again; couldn't start about half of the problems! So Monday night was pretty stressful, although I managed to keep well short of panic. For a change, I did problems in the book; actually, that worked pretty darned well. After a few hours of that, I was able to begin to approach the practice test. But I was also out of time and had to go to bed. In the morning, I studied the answer key to the practice test, and then took the test itself; not so bad, at the end. I'm not sure how many questions I got right, but I had an idea of how to approach all of them. So, yay partial credit, I hope. Certainly better than I'd hoped. After Accounting, it was hard to get hyped about Strategy. I've been strong in that class so far and didn't feel worried at all. I read the case, on McDonald's, and the S&P report on the restaurant industry. I made a five forces model and a value chain for McDonalds. I took notes on the case and reviewed some of the supplemental readings. And then the test completely threw me for a loop. Multiple choices? Not once during class had we had to make hard, cut-and-dry determinations, so this format was quite a surprise. Other questions were easier to approach but most of them -- even the short answers -- could have been a full essay. I was fine on all of this section except for one essay, which asked how the four threats to sustainability affected McDonalds. The four threats to whatsit now? I managed to remember two of the threats (slack, hold-up), and made up two more, one of which was half right (the answer is "imitators" and "substitutes"). But I think I did OK in the end. I'm trying not to worry; you know my new watchword: "within one standard deviation of the mean."... Read on...

Marketing Institute

Sep 19, 2004 in B-School

One of the best uses of my time this year was the Graduate Marketing Association's Marketing Institute. I'll admit, I was pretty skeptical at first; the GMA has a reputation for being very CPG-oriented, and I've publicly declaimed my tech marketing orientation. After a week of midterms and Strategy projects, the 5:45 wakeup for six hours of presentations didn't seem like the most fun. Happily I was proven quite wrong! There were a few particularly good speakers, one of whom fortunately presented first. Greg Pollack from PBM Marketing. In my first job, at Pacific Visions, we built strategic partnerships between government and non-profits; PBM marketing does the same for commercial entities. It was fun to think that something I understood could be applied in more ways then I'd known. But that wasn't the speaker that made the most impact on me. Rusty Ortiz from Nestle really blew me away. He was a personable man himself, but what was important was the story he told; for the first time, brand management and CPG sounded like a good idea. In all of my jobs since PVC, I've been a bit dissatisfied that we in marketing were running to catch up with everybody else in their departments. We couldn't drive what happened; we could only follow. But, in CPG, marketing is the driver. Rusty told fascinating stories of moving brands forward with thoughtful consideration, of being in the driver's seat, of being able to look into the consumer and act on what's out there. An earlier speaker, Nancy Zwiers of Funosophy, made a very cogent distinction between marketing-driven companies and sales-driven companies. Sales-driven companies look for marketing to change sales numbers; marketing-driven companies use marketing as a lens through which to see the world, and marketing drives planning and sales. What marketing wouldn't want to work in a marketing-driven company? Nestle -- and Dial, for which Rusty had earlier worked -- seemed just that kind of a place. A few speakers after Rusty came Ned Ward from Mattel. Now, when a toy designer gets up to speak you know you're going to have a good time, and Ned didn't disappoint. Funny, with great stories, Ned again showed the value of working at a marketing-driven company. There were other speakers, and they were all good; but Rusty and Ned, and, to a lesser extent, Nancy, turned me around completely on CPG. I'll certainkly be seriously considering a CPG internship for the summer, probably more seriously than an internship in tech marketing. Yes, those were six well-spent hours.... Read on...

Accounting Fraud 101

Sep 10, 2004 in B-School

One of the most famous accounting frauds ever perpetrated in the US is the Salad Oil Caper, which, surprisingly enough, has nothing to do with small, green berries. The story behind the caper is this: back in the '60s, an Italian American-owned firm in Chicago looked to the then-well respected accountancy of Arthur Andersen to value and underwrite bonds that would be issued, backed by the 1.8 billion pounds of salad oil posessed by this firm. The Andersen auditors dropped by the storage facilities to confirm that the firm did, in fact, have said 1.8 billion pounds of salad oil. These auditors, in crisp white shirts and pressed suits, didn't want to get covered with salad oil, so they just climbed a ladder to the top of the giant vats of salad oil, opened a hatch, stuck their fingers in, and determined that yes, Virginia, there was salad oil in there. The gigantic bond issue was approved and underwritten, and the bonds (certified to be particularly low-risk) were extensively purchased by widows and orphans. Whereupon it was discovered that the gigantic vats of salad oil were actually filled with water, on top of which the oil floated; and, as the Andersen auditor had traveled from one vat to the next, a complicated system of pipes had pumped a relatively small amount of oil from one vat to the next. The bonds were worthless, people were pushed into penury, and the world learned a lesson about asset valuation! Another famous accounting fraud was carried out by a hard disk drive maker in the lat '80s. The entire industry had fallen on hard times and one manufacturer after another was losing money. One company was taken over by the VC firm that had financed it and a new, whip-cracking boss was put in charge. This boss became famous for having big all-hands meetings at which individuals were singled out, asked about their sales performance relative to their targets, and, if they fell short, fired on the spot. This created a climate of fear, so the CFO hatched a devious plan. Sales staff had put up good numbers, but production was lagging; already-made sales would be lost because the hard drives to fulfill those sales hadn't been made yet. But if the sales were lost, then people, probably including the CFO, would be fired! Shipments absoloutely had to be made to the purcharsers in the current year. The solution: the CFO drove to the hardware store, bought a pallet of bricks (the red kind, that you use to make buildings -- about the same size and weight as a hard drive, at the time), and brought them down to shipping. Into each hard drive box went a bridk and a certificate that entitled the bearer to redeem the brick for a hard drive, when one was available. The brick-filled boxes were shipped, and the revenue from sales duly booked. The company made its target, and nobody was fired, of course until all the customers noticed that they had bricks and not hard drives and then people went to prison. It's all true. Every word. I swear.... Read on... (plus 1 Comments)

Already Overcommitted

Sep 1, 2004 in B-School

Some of my best memories from college come from times during which I was horribly overcomitted. Seeking to recapture these memories of my youth, I'm busy being way too busy at Marshall. I've got, of course, the requisite 2 hours 40 minutes of class per day, with the requisite 2-3 hours of homework for each hour of class (I'll do the math for you, this adds up to 7 hours of class + homework every day, at a minimum), mixers and lunches with fun people, time, of course, for my beloved Team A-8 The Ocho, and the following activities: The High-Tech Association, a group that pursues contacts and jobs in high-tech The Graduate Marketing Association, as above, but for marketing The Entrepreneur and Venture Management Association, as above, for starting your own company or working in VC MBA Read, in which I'll spend an hour a week tutoring kids at a nearby junior high Trojan Toastmasters, so I can speak English good and stuff Marshallwear, because all the swag with the Marshall name on it sucks and I would like to actually purchase some branded items at some point in my career here As Program Director Lida Jennings says, who needs sleep? If only Dean Voight didn't play Principal, roving the halls every morning and berating those who trickle in late, I'd be with her on that statement.... Read on... (plus 1 Comments)

Bhambriffic! DeFondtastic!

Aug 27, 2004 in B-School

I've only had one week of classes, but two professors already stand out as exceptional teachers. These are the guys who could teach me how to properly skin and dress skunks, and I'd like it, darn it! One is my Strategy prof, Arvind Bhambri. Yes, the guy to whom I just turned in an exceptionally mediocre two-page paper on Airborne Express and the dynamics of the overnight delivery industry. Complete with unattractive diagrams. So, Bhambri. Many people are scared of him. There's a rumor that two PM students already quit because he scared them too much. It's true that he demands a lot, and that he runs his classroom with an iron fist. Maybe it's just that I'm not easily intimidated (or that I lack a healthy sense of self-preservation -- last weekend I went up to my tattooed, muscled, ex-gangster neighbor and told him that I expected to never see his car blocking the alley again), but Bhambri doesn't scare me. Sure, he won't let you raise your hand while anybody else is talking, but that's just to make you pay attention to what they're saying rather than think about what it is that you're about to say. Sure he cold calls (probably about 35 people today), but he spreads it around fairly. And when you do cold call -- or even when you successfully raise your hand and get called on -- he doesn't hold you out to dry, he'll help you work towards the right answer. You're sure never to fall asleep in his class! Mark DeFond is the opposite. Fun, active, he teaches Accounting. I think he may have a secret mean streak -- if you don't know the answer to a question when you're cold-called, you'd better not 'fess up, else he'll ask you to pick someone else to answer for you. But he's fun and high-energy, and he makes everything simple and even comes at the same problem from different directions if you didn't get it the first time. While every textbook, and most professors, talk about widget manufacturers and their need for new frobulation equipment, DeFond tells a fun story about his dream chicken feet restaurant. Mmmm, chicken feet. Oh, and his hair is way better than in the picture.... Read on... (plus 1 Comments)

I'm An Official Caffeine Addict

Aug 24, 2004 in B-School

So at some point in time it seemed like a good idea to start drinking coffee to get going in the morning. This quickly progressed to a venti soy latte every day (following a quest to find a Starbucks that sells soy somewhere on campus). Hey, it wakes me up. But not after today. Starting tomorrow, it's a tall soy latte. And I'm going to make that up with more sleep. For real! Six hours is now my official minimum, not my target; if I don't have an 8am class, it's seven hours, non-negotiable, excepting complete disaster. Sleep is important for me, and I don't seem to be one of those people who gets along well with four hours of shut-eye. If I want to stay awake through class, the best thing seems not to be to drug myself against sleep but instead to not be tired in the first place. I realize this puts me in opposition to the stated goals of the Marshall School, but, hey, my bed is comfy and its cost has not yet been fully depreciated. The no-caffeine thing will also help with the working out thing. I hit the Lyon Center gym for the first time today and actually got some exercise; I think I need to put workout times on my calendar next. Caffeine doesn't play well with exercise so I'll be happy to improve my endurance by upping my water intake and dropping out the venti lattes. If only the choice weren't $4 small-sized bottles of water vs. skanky tap water. Maybe I could keep a 2-liter Arrowhead in my 1/3 locker?... Read on... (plus 1 Comments)

First Case Competition

Aug 21, 2004 in B-School

Friday was our first case competition. First time we had to read about somebody's business decision and develop an alternative and present that in front of a bunch of people. And you know what? The Ocho rocked! Have I mentioned I love my group lately? What was best was our approach. Everybody was helpful, everybody was creative, everybody was goal-oriented, everybody was having fun. We made a plan, we executed it, we took breaks, we came together and reinforced each other, we showed faith in each other and finished before the deadline. Then we practiced our presentation together, everybody listened to everybody else's suggestions, and we went home at a reasonable hour. In the morning, we nailed our presentation. We came out of the case room knowing we'd advance to the semifinals, and we did. We stepped in front of our core to present and immediately our PowerPoint started getting compliments -- I guess all those years of PowerPoint design work finally came in handy! I was pretty darned scared during the presentation to the entire core, with the dry mouth and everything. About a minute into my part of the presentation I realized that I hadn't breathed. This did, however, offer me a good opportunity to look around the room and make eye contact with my classmates. Apparently, I looked as if I knew what I was doing; just as apparently, MBA candidates are easily fooled. The rest of my group looked like they knew what they were doing, too, and we made a great presentation. Unfortunately, we weren't picked to progress to the finals; given that none of us were experienced public speakers or big, stage-hogging hams, I've got to say that we all did wonderfully. And the final winners? I don't understand why the Strategy profs picked them. I'll have to ask on Monday. The team that beat us was strong, the teams from cores A and B seemed to me to have better presentations than those from C and D.... Read on...

Go, Team! Yay, Team!

Aug 14, 2004 in B-School

Both of the teams I'm in did pretty well in their first week! My core group, A, took second in the Teamwork at Marshall day (tied with B), we came in second in the mechanical bull ride (I did my best to help us out there -- even my former Wonderful Girlfriend was impressed with my ride), and we got 50 extra points for having the most spirit. My study group -- perhaps the most important group in my first year -- did great too. Not only did we do well in naming, etc, but, in our first exercise, we placed tied for second among 12 groups in Core A! The exercise was simple. We were locked in a room together and shown a video of a plane crashing in the arctic wilderness. We were given a list of things we'd salvaged from the crash and asked to rank the things in order of importance. We did this individually, then merged our individual lists into a group list. Then we compared the list to an expert's list and came up with a score that was the difference between our ranking and the expert's ranking. The Ocho had both the second-highest score and the second-highest improvement between our individual scores and our group score -- the improvement meant we worked better together than alone. One poor group had a substantial decrease between their individual and group scores; they might not work so well together. But The Ocho came through strong. We got off on the wrong foot, but came together and finished with a good process that gave us a result we were very comfortable with. I'm excited about my group! Let's see how it goes in the second week.... Read on...

Team 8: The Ocho

Aug 12, 2004 in B-School

At Marshall, each class is divided into four core groups, each of which attends class together for the first year. Each core group is also divided into about a dozen study groups, each with five or six students in it, each study group working together in all non-elective classes for the first year. Membership in study groups is assigned, but each group is designed to have a balanced membership, with an accountant, a finance person, a marketer, a slacker, etc. So yesterday we got assigned our core groups and study groups. I'm in Core A, group 8. Go A! Yeah! We were the most boisterous group, so we got 50 points in the race for ROI, an unfortunately-named plastic horse who comes with a keg. Then we went to Union Cattle in Hermosa, and I rode a mechanical bull for charity and the greater glory of my Core. Go A! We also had to pick a name for our study group. Since too many of us had seen Anchorman, the answer was obvious: Team 8: The Ocho! Actually, I love my teammates. I think we'll get along ok, and, even better, we've got compatible goals. We actually had a big teambuilding workshop, led by this great prof, Dave Logan, who moved everything along with great energy, insight, and clear examples. Dr. Logan's basic point was that everything we'd learned about teambuilding was wrong and had, at best, no measureable effect on team unity. So we discussed our core team values and turned them into actionable and measurable operating guidelines. This whole process brought our group together, and I'm happy to say that we were efficient at it and built strong consensus. Those guidelines: Creativity: For each project, we will set aside a specific, finite, agreed-upon time during which everyone's ideas will be listened to equally and completely. Fun: We will set aside breaks during study sessons and get-togethers outside of school, at which time we won't discuss any work at all. Strength: We will individually show confidence in expressing ideas and solidarity in expressing and carrying out the group's ideas and plans. Respect: We will listen without interrupting, keep personal disagreements out of the group, and understand and work with the many demands on each others' time. Efficacy: At the beginning of each project, we'll develop a project plan, with specific goals and milestones for the overall project and specific goals for each meeting. I'm excited about the group. At the least, I feel comfortable that I'll be well-supported academically for the next year.... Read on... (plus 2 Comments)

Orientation, Day 1

Aug 9, 2004 in B-School

Today was the first day of Orientation at the Marshall School. I'm not sure that I have enough info at this time to really know how it will be, but signs are good. There was no period of more than two minutes during today's free times that I wasn't getting acquainted with my very friendly classmates; everybody was happy approaching me, and everybody was happy when I approached them. It was quite comfortable! And new Dean Yash Gupta seemed quite smart and visionary. The brainwashing has begun. Updates to follow.... Read on... (plus 2 Comments)

My My My My TI-34

Jul 27, 2004 in B-School

Since I'm taking remedial math, I figured I should bring a calculator to class; so I dug out my trusty old TI-34. My TI-34 has been by my side since at least 1992, and probably 1991 (sadly, I didn't keep my receipts back then). Probably because it has almost no moving parts, it's plugging away today, giving me the right numbers assuming, of course, that I put the right numbers in, which is a rare enough occasion. I hadn't touched my TI-34 since Calculus II, 8am Monday-Wednesday-Friday of my freshman year of college. Fortunately, it comes with a great reference card that tells me how to use all of the functions. What's funniest, though, is that I can't find a picture of the calculator on the web; it doesn't look like what's shown in the Texas Instruments link above, nor is it quite what you see in this japanese picture; the colors are more tasteful and muted. But I'm too lazy to take a pic. The TI-34 helped me get a couple of questions right in class today, and it helped the people sitting next to me too, since they hadn't brought calculators. Nothing like a little unplanned bonding experience; I met two of my future classmates (well, present classmates I guess): a real estate finance guy and a chemist making a career change. Next time maybe I'll steal all the handouts and make everyone introduce themselves to me!... Read on... (plus 1 Comments)

Remedial Math

Jul 26, 2004 in B-School

Insofar as I haven't used my post-algebra math in seven (stats) to ten (calculus) years, I scored poorly on Marshall's pre-entry math assessment test. My sentence: three half-day refresher classes. These are my first classes of any type since 1997. Class, may I say, is weird. Where else does everybody sit in a semicircle around a room while one person at the front holds forth, making notes on whiteboards and projecting PowerPoints? AA, maybe, but I wouldn't know anything about that. So, dashing Kiwi prof Gareth James attempted valiantly to get 16 or so students, none of whom had been in a class in years, to ask questions and interact and stuff. By the end of class, people were starting to speak up. It'll be odd being in class, just having the normal lecture/discussion interaction; class isn't something that happens in normal life, or, at least, not in mine. But folks seem smart, not just knowledgeable but, best of all, clever and quick to catch on. Plus I got a few answers right. Never too soon for an ego boost!... Read on...

One More Thing...

Jun 2, 2004 in B-School

There's one more thing I wouldn't do: apply to business school online. I'm a nerd, I've liked computers more than (most) people since 1982 or so, and I can say with conviction that the simple act of applying online may have as much as doubled the hassle of filling out b-school apps.

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If I Had It To Do Over

May 31, 2004 in B-School

In the end, I got into one top-20 school, waitlisted at two others, and shot down by a fourth and a top-five school. Not a bad outcome, especially given that I did the whole thing at the last minute. Would I do it all the same again? Mostly.

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Response: Rejected by UCLA

May 5, 2004 in B-School

Somewhat belatedly, the Anderson School has responded in the negative to my application. Of course, now that they won't have me, I have more interest in getting in! But still not nearly enough to change my mind about Marshall, given the option. Although there are moments when I think I might take an offer from Stern, if it came.... Read on...

Finis

May 4, 2004 in B-School

So I thought about it for a while. I know I'd enjoy NYU. But I've got the offer from USC, and I know I'd enjoy USC a lot. And I'm happy in my friendships and my relationships and even happy with my little home here in LA. So I sent in my acceptance of USC's offer of admissions today. So that's it. I'm in! We'll see how it goes in the fall. And I am excited!... Read on... (plus 1 Comments)

USC Admit Weekend

Apr 24, 2004 in B-School

Admit weekend: a chance to get to know a school or an emotional roller coaster? Find out in today's episode!

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Response: Waitlisted by NYU

Apr 23, 2004 in B-School

I've been waitlisted by NYU as well. I'm going to hit the e-mail hard and maybe see if I can't get an extra recommendation sent there and turn this into an admit. I would very seriously consider such an offer.... Read on...

Decision: No UNC

Apr 22, 2004 in B-School

After some obsessing, I've decided not to fly to Raleigh-Durham and try to get off the Kenan-Flagler waitlist. It's really because of my visit to NYU that I'm doing this.

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Response: Rejected by Stanford

Apr 14, 2004 in B-School

I have learned that I did not get into Stanford. This is really not much of a surprise, as the school was a big reach -- my GMATs and GPAs were both below their median -- and not the focus of my applications activities. I'm happy with the opportunity I have at USC and hope to also hear I got into NYU (although then I'll have to -- gasp -- make a choice).... Read on...

Being The Entry In Regards To The NYU Visit

Apr 9, 2004 in B-School

The Stern school at NYU invited me to interview. How could I possibly pass up a chance to visit the Big Apple and catch the tail end of winter? Plus, the phone interview was right out. So, last weekend, I flew clear across the country and girded myself to face New York.

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Response: Admitted To USC

Mar 29, 2004 in B-School

I returned home to a big box on the doorstep, return address the Marshall School. Rejection comes in small envelopes, so I suspected the best; my suspicions were borne out. I'm in to USC. I need to tell them by May 1, so we'll see what kind of schedule Stern and Kenan-Flagler can move on.... Read on...

Response: Waitlisted at Kenan-Flagler

Mar 16, 2004 in B-School

I got my first response last night; UNC Kenan-Flagler has waitlisted me. I'm actually kind of enheartened, as I didn't think I did so well on the phone interview. In my interview at USC the interviewer suggested keeping in touch after being waitlisted; I'll make sure to do that. We'll see how the other schools turn out as well.... Read on...

More Interviews: USC & NYU

Mar 13, 2004 in B-School

I interviewed at USC on Wednesday. I've thought the experience over several since then, and I feel the same every time: I think the interview went well and that the interviewer helped make me more excited about the school.

And getting an e-mail the very next day from NYU asking me to interview didn't hurt my sunshiney attitude at all.

Read on...

First Interview

Mar 2, 2004 in B-School

I had my phone interview with Kenan-Flagler today. There were ups, and there were downs, and the person who interviewed me was skilled at her job. It went ok -- not great, but ok. All in all, I'd never recommend that anybody else choose a phone interview over any other alternative.

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Phone Interview

Feb 26, 2004 in B-School

I've rescheduled my Kenan-Flagler interview. I'm pretty sure I did the right thing canceling due to my sickness -- I just don't think there was any way I could have impressed the interviewer. I'm not sure that I did the right thing in rescheduling a phone, rather than in person, interview.

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Done!

Jan 31, 2004 in B-School

I'm done! On Thursday, my last application was due (and, yes, I did get it in on time). For the first time since the middle of September, I'm free!

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One Essay Or Many?

Jan 20, 2004 in B-School

Many a business school applicant has been tempted to re-use one school's essay in an application to another school. I know I sure was. I had to decide: would I?

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Essays Everyday

Jan 17, 2004 in B-School

So, no new posts for a while. There's one simple reason for that -- essay after essay. Two for Stanford, three for Marshall, three for Stern, five for Kenan-Flagler. On top of that, Additional Statements, various permutations of resumes and work descriptions, and lists of various accomplishments. That's a lot of writing!

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Transcript = Business Model

Dec 26, 2003 in B-School

For some reason, business schools seem to actually want proof that I've gained academic success in the past, so I've ordered transcripts from all two of the colleges I've attended. The transcripts tell a lot about me, but they also tell a lot about the schools.

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Resume That Resumé

Dec 21, 2003 in B-School

Nobody ever told me that, when I grew up, I'd have to be continually revising my resumé. New jobs, new areas of concentration, and now business school -- everybody wants my resumé. And the perpetual topic of conversation and fear of every job-seeker -- is my resumé up to snuff? Is it good enough? Does it head straight for the circular file or for the hiring manager's desk? And, gosh, now I have to figure out how to market myself to business school applications committees.

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Oh Those Recommendations

Dec 13, 2003 in B-School

Applying to business school is, apparently, hard work! All of my free time this week has disappeared into recommendations, transcript requests, and the various administrativa of assembling my applications. Recommendations have a particular focus, not only because they form such a key part of my application but also because I want to give my recommenders enough time to write.

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Making A List, Checking It Twice

Dec 7, 2003 in B-School

Business school applications have a lot of pieces, and I sure don't want to miss any of them. So I decided to get organized. Getting organized is a wonderful thing: either you get your act together, have everything in the right place and are ready to forge ahead, or you create a great deal of the old sturm und drang and can at least tell yourself you've been working.

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UCLA, On The Eve Of The Big Game

Nov 21, 2003 in B-School

I visited UCLA two days before the big game with USC, which was not intentional but was entertaining. Living in LA, I'm already steeped in the lore of the rivalry, so it wasn't a surprise to see everyone worked up over the competition, but I'd never been on campus right beforehand. There's nothing like an information session, especially when you can hear the mellifluous tones of the marching band playing "Sons of Westwood" and "Mighty Bruins" only a half mile away.

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USC: A Lesson In Marketing, Apparently

Oct 22, 2003 in B-School

The first of my school visits was today; I started out with a local option, USC. As I was already passingly familiar with the campus, and had taken some time to become fairly knowledgeable about the program, this seemed like a comfortable place to begin. Of course, it helped that I was very interested in the school and excited to attend a class and meet students at what was becoming, based on my research, one of my top choices.

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GMAT, Episode The Last: Taking The Darned Thing

Oct 15, 2003 in B-School

The quest is at its end. The odyssey is over. I've taken the GMAT, and it was, well, not so bad.

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GMAT, Episode 6: Practice Makes Perfect

Oct 12, 2003 in B-School

The last major step in preparing for the GMAT on Wednesday was taking a practice test today. Did all of the studying have a payoff? This evening, I found out.

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MBA Blogs Out There

Oct 11, 2003 in B-School

One of my friends is applying to law school, and to help this friend learn more about law school I tracked down several law school blogs. Reading these blogs piqued my interest in law school -- why not, I asked myself, find good blogs that I can regularly read to better understand the b-school experience?

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GMAT, Episode 5: Last Chance For A Slow Dance

Oct 10, 2003 in B-School

My GMAT is next Wednesday. I've practiced every night for the last two weeks, and am much better prepared. I've a good idea of what kind of content is needed in the essays (typing complete answers on a computer in 30 minutes won't pose a problem -- I used to write 800-word movie reviews for my college newspaper in less than 45 minutes). I'm making fewer errors in the math section and I feel I can really get my score up.

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To Info Session Or Not To Info Session

Oct 6, 2003 in B-School

Tomorrow evening, I'm scheduled for an info session for one of the schools I'd like to attend. This info session is quite some distance away, down in Orange County. The question: to go or not?

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GMAT, Episode 4: It All Evens Out In The End

Oct 4, 2003 in B-School

After a week and a half of pretty intensive review, I've managed to get my math scores up quite a bit. I'm making fewer mistakes and I'm more often choosing quick approaches to get problems solved in the least time possible.

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Visiting Hours

Oct 1, 2003 in B-School

Since the beginning of this process I've felt like I was behind. Most of the folks I know who have decided to go to business school were learning about getting their MBA for a year or more before their applications became due; I only decided to embark upon this journey two months ago.

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GMAT, Episode 3: Movin' On Up

Sep 30, 2003 in B-School

After a solid week of practice, I've moved from getting the medium-level questions on my practice GMAT to getting hard questions. This is good, because the harder the questions you get (at least on the computer-adaptive test), the higher the score you're eligible to get.

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GMAT, Episode 2: Attack Of The Math Creatures

Sep 25, 2003 in B-School

When I was preparing to take the SAT, one of the most important things I learned from my Princeton Review prep book was how to spot the trick questions and answers in that test. My Princeton Review GMAT prep book is doing the same thing, and I think it will be very helpful. With many of the wrong answers in the test designed to look "right", it's important to know how to spot these answers and stay away from them.

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GMAT, Episode 1: The Early Years

Sep 24, 2003 in B-School

For many years, I imagined that my next test would be the GRE, either in Poli Sci or Psychology, depending on whether I wanted to be a spook for the CIA or an industrial psychologist modeling workplace behavior. Well, it turns out I'm taking the GMAT instead.

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Catch-Up Time

Sep 23, 2003 in B-School

After leaving my Web design firm, I took a few months to really think about what I wanted to do next. Going to business school quite has filtered itself to the top of my list, and I'm very excited about the prospect. But the fact is, I'm behind.

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