Welcoming our 44th President: Barack Obama..how great art thee

Tokens of inspiration I collected from Obama's Inaugural Speech:

"...a nation cannot prosper long when it favors only the prosperous."

"With hope and virtue, let us brave once more the icy currents, and endure what storms may come. Let it be said by our children's children that when we were tested we refused to let this journey end, that we did not turn back nor did we falter; and with eyes fixed on the horizon and God's grace upon us, we carried forth that great gift of freedom and delivered it safely to future generations."

Halfway Mark Reflection

I have now submitted 3 of my anticipated 6 bschool applications, and since I can't sleep tonight, I'll take some time out to reflect since I think it may help others who either will be submitting their apps or plan to apply in the future.

First off, hats off to Clear Admit for their insightful essay analyses. I highly recommend pasting them into your word doc for each school you're applying to and then doing a complete outline of your answer to each question segment. It's very important to make sure that you answer EVERY portion that is being asked.

Secondly, free write and try not to worry about the word count just yet. Although I did find that one of the most challenging parts when condensing my large essays. However, take it as a bschool lesson in the art of effective, yet concise communication skills.

All in all, I am happy to report that as I clicked the 'submit' button for each school, I was really content with my work. I believe it is an honest portrait of who I am and the values that I hold dear. I poured my heart into them and I know that whatever happens, I can honestly say I was genuine in my responses and if that's not good enough, then there is something else out there for me. Dreaming the dream for bschool was great, but actually going through the process has shown me that I do have the courage of conviction to make my dreams happen. It has been an amazing journey thus far and although I have 3 more apps to conquer, I am confident that 'it's gonna be all good!'

Harvard:
It's all about the L word..yup, leadership! And luckily for me, it has been my defining feature. As I reflected on my life experiences, I realized the unifying thread for me has been the element of leadership, which is why I chose to apply to HBS. I don't believe it's about the number of people you supervise, but the lessons that you learned from those experiences are what you should reflect on.

I had a lot of fun writing Essay 1 on my accomplishments because it really made me think long and hard about what gave meaning to my life. From there, I was able to settle upon 3 of the ones that I believe really impacted me. However, this was not the case for Essay 2 on making a mistake. I often found myself stepping away from my computer and then wake up in the middle of the night with my 'A-HA! moment where I'd have to put a note in my iphone about what sparked my train of thought just so I wouldn't forget it when I woke up. In the end, I did end up with what I feel is an honest mistake example and what I did to strengthen myself as a result of it.

Stanford GSB:
First of all, read the director's insights on how to write an effective essay. It really helped me articulate my thoughts as if I were speaking with a good friend rather than an adcom. I absolutely HEART the Essay 1 on speaking about my values. I think it was the easiest essay to write because it was really personal and the word limit was pretty generous at 750. The best approach to this is jot down several things that are important to you. From there, find the linkage between each one by writing down key words/phrases that define those experiences. It's like connecting the dots. You should see a pattern and yes, my friend, that pattern is your set of values. I know everyone has one, and I sincerely believe that if you live life guided by these principles, you will have no problem relaying this info to the Stanford adcom.

NYU Stern:
Halfway through my essays, I had second thoughts about what really made Stern stand out in my mind besides the fact that it was in NYC. Obviously, everyone is going to write about the NY advantage. In any case, Essay 2 was be far the most difficult because the question subsets initially seem so unrelated. I had already completed 3/4 of my essays when I realized I needed to take a mental break and step back to see what really made Stern click in my mind. I had hoped to submit my essay on the Saturday and then start packing for my cruise but then I realized I didn't have my best essays yet. When I read my Essay 2, it seemed so fake...ugh! I hated it! Why did I try to sound like somebody else? I thought it was weird, especially since I had already completed 2 applications before Stern. What makes Stern unique is the question it poses. Stern wants to know why exactly you want Stern and this made me realize why I had such a hard time. Well, I remember vividly a particular interview experience at a school that will not unnamed when the interviewer specifically asked me exactly what about me made me right for the job. Seems simple enough, right, but I realized that at that moment, I honestly didn't know. Yes, this is so not the best way to go into an interview. Needless to say I didn't get the job and I know my response to that question had a lot to do with it. If I don't know why I want Stern, why the hell would Stern want me right?

So, the time is ticking away and I just told myself I'll sleep on it and take my work with me on the cruise, but hopefully the answer would come overnight and I wouldn't need to. I think Somebody heard me up there and I woke up from my nap re-energized to tackle the question once more. This time, my thoughts flowed effortlessly through my fingertips onto my laptop. Before I knew it, I had the application completed and ready to be submitted. It was a true moment of revelation and elation. Now, off to Mexico baby! Adios!

More than Money...indeed!

Just thought I'd share a little bit about my journey so far. I was able to submit my Harvard & Stanford apps and am feverishly completing my Stern app as we speak, but it's been an incredibly amazing experience to say the least. I've learned so much about myself than I had originally imagined and I know that wherever my lucky stars take me, I am living life with a sense of purpose.

Today, I was able to wake up bright and early to attend the MBA Preview Day at the UC Davis GSM. Some of you are probably wondering why I've decided to consider this particular bschool, but first up, I was inspired by a special somebody who went through the program and had such awesome things to say about it that I just couldn't pass up the opportunity to indulge my curiosity. As it happens, they have a small, but wonderfully active Net Impact org whose members are so down to earth and genuine. I was fortunate to meet both of the co-presidents today during my time on campus and they were very supportive of my decision. So, I'm not sure how many of you bloggers out there know, but Net Impact is this national network of bschool students who have the passion to use their MBA to create social value. Yes, MBAs do have a moral code of ethics, contrary to what the incidents on Wall Street may lead you to believe. In any case, last week, the founder of Net Impact, Mark Albion, came to the Davis GSM to speak to their students and I thought, "WOW...how cool is that!" Every year, top bschools from around the U.S. send their best and brightest to attend the Net Impact Conference; this year, it was held at Wharton and next year will be at Cornell! If I should be so lucky, I would like to count myself in the group of attendees. We'll just have to wait and see. In any case, Albion also wrote a really neat book, More than Money, and from what I hear, it's going to be on my books to read for 2009 list for sure!

I think that regardless of where your MBA dreams will take you, it's important to nurture your values and incorporate them in your path to success. If it's anything we learned from Wall Street's plummet it is this: There are always going to be difficult choices you'll have to make and unfortunately, those of us who are not guided by our own moral compass will make poor decisions that will ultimately cost us in the end. For the rest of you who know why you want an MBA and what you hope to do with it, I hope that you do it with a sense of compassion and humanity and that you won't become the dreaded 'one of them' because if that's what really what your life is all about, then my friend, you have some serious rethinking to do. Maybe this is why I love Essays 1 for Stanford so much: What do you value and WHY? As I penned my words, I realized that I am quite fortunate to be doing a job that speaks deeply to my values. I cannot tell you how many times I've heard people complain about their jobs and how they hate it. What does this mean essentially? In my book, this means you need to start thinking about who you are and what matters to you. If you can find the answer, then start living your life to reflect those ideals.

So, check out the video and let me know if what Albion says resonates with you...it already has for me.

My First Bschool Submission

Wow..I did it! After pulling an all-nighter, I laid down 235 hard-earned smackers and finally (and nervously, but anxiously) hit the 'submit' button, relinquishing my fate to the hands of the HBS adcoms at exactly 10:22:22 AM E.S.T. I just thought I'd document this moment before I take a nap and then return to Stanford apps. So, 1 down and 2 more to go for this week, 1 for next and 2 more for a month out before I'll be officially done and crossing my fingers to score an interview. Whew!

Tis the Season: Holiday Parties=Free Food.

Just got back from my friend's holiday party at a ritzy dim sum place in SF and I gotta say I'm glad she invited me. You see, every year, my office throws a holiday shindig too, but since I telecommute for work, I'm a plane ride away, which in turn means that I also telecommute for the party..catch my drift? With the budget crunch this year, I told my boss I'll opt out from the party thing...but then there's a piece of me that misses it. Thank goodness for awesome friends who invite me to theirs..thanks ladies! Next week, another lunch that's not on me. So, how can I not love the holidays? Free booze, food and entertainment.

So, the interesting part of the whole night had to be seeing my friend's face light up as she opened her gift from the office..that's right, folks..it's called a bonus, something that is all too foreign for me to envision. This brought me back to filling out my MBA apps. There's usually 2 boxes: one to indicate your salary and the other to indicate your bonuses. It was pretty sad (okay, I lied..it was downright depressing) as I placed a big fat "0" in the latter box b/c the entire time, I kept thinking: "Damn, other people get bonuses...unless you work in the public sector where there ain't no $$ to be had." So, I guess it's good that I'm blogging this moment b/c years from now, I hope to be perched on the other side of the fence..one can only hope, right? Yes, hope seems to be the only thing I can bank on right about now.

Up at 4am...it's all good!

"Yours is the kind of love, makes nothing else feel good enough and I'm never gonna give you up...No, no!"

Okay, that's what's in my head right now. It's 4:04 am, I'm listening to Natasha Bedingfield's new album and it's going to be okay. I've got my brain juices flowing and I'm working on my Stanford essays...yay yay! I know it's been a while, but trust me, I can explain:) And you haven't slipped my mind b/c I've still been checking the ClearAdmit blogs every week...yup, still alive and kickin, guys!

It's been a week of nocturnal behavior as my days turns into nights, nights turn into MBA essays and sleep is during the days for me. What the heck? I know, many of my MBA aspirants out there can understand what I'm experiencing right now. I feel like I'm in college all over again studying for finals, but this is good stuff. It makes me feel hopeful that my future's in the works and it's going to change for the better.

Oh, before I go any further, I just wanted to say "Congrats!" to all of you who've been accepted to your choice bschools. You must be sooo excited! (I know I would be!). And for those who've receive less than steller news, don't worry..hang in there--we will all have our moments to shine (at least that what I've been told..no, but really, it's true) At first, I felt like crap for not being so diligent in submitting my stuff in R1, but now, I'm okay and I feel that I'm going to hammer out kick-ass essays to really make it count. I've decided not to take my GMAT and I know it's going to come as a disappointment to you bloggers out there, but I put some thought into reading Tiny Dancer's post many moons ago and I think she makes a valid point of not sacrificing the essence of everything else in my app just to raise my GMAT. In any case, I've got 1 month to get my apps into all my top 4 schools since I'm leaving for a cruise to Mexico come mid-January. I'm going to take it as an early celebration of surviving the grueling app process b/c if this is the hard part, I'm thinking bschool should be just fine.

So, in case you're wondering where else I've been..I went to NYC!! Yup...my hubby ran the NYC Marathon and I got to be a bandit for the last 2 miles...at least I can lay my claim that I did run part of it, right? It was too tempting to resist, but the trip did solidify (once more) my plans of applying to East Coast schools. Who does not looove the City?! It was such a packed weekend, but I did visit Columbia, except the school was closed since it was Saturday. Darn....I know, but it's all good since I've been there before and already fell in love with it since. I was in the NYU neighborhood, and I've got to admit that in terms of culture and vibe, I really enjoyed the NYU campus. Well, being a foodie...you just gotta love all those good, cheap college eateries nearby....what better way to study for finals, right? Haha....anyhow, catchya later. I'm going to get back to work on my essays and possibly go to bed at 5 in the morning.

Barack the VOTE!

After a near-month hiatus, I just couldn't help but blog this moment down in history (as I'm sure whether or not the outcome is in my favor), everyone will remember November 4, 2008 in the books. Yep, so I am happy to report that I did my civic duty and for the first time in my life, I've never been so elated to see a line...at the polls, that is! My hubby (first-time VOTER ever since he blossomed into a U.S. citizen) and I cast our ballot and with that, made our own mark in history as the 207th and 210th voters, respectively, at our polling station.

Yes, I did VOTE for CHANGE, but regardless of who you ended up voting for, I hope that each one of us realizes just how important this election is for generations of folks who've fought and perished for this historic moment as well as our own future sons and daughers, mothers and fathers, and brothers and sisters. For me, it's a resounding call for what progress truly embodies. Nonetheless, I do believe that the man who can deliver this progress comes in the form of hope and by the name of Barack Obama.

Early this morning, my friend text me this message and I hope you'll join me in passing it on:

" Rosa sat so Martin could walk...Martin walked so Obama could run...Obama is running so our children can FLY! Keep the progress going...we can only go up from HERE!"