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Sunday, May 29, 2011

Week 4, Semester 3

First exam in Finance completed!  Leading up to the exam I felt our professor give some great coaching through examples and practice problems.  Although, compared to the exam, on a scale of 1-10, I'd put the practice problems at a 4-6 and the test at a 8-9.  I have to say I'm really happy with how our professor seems to have a great handle on dispelling anxiety and plays a great offense :).  Its not even been a whole week and I already know my grade on the exam and know we will talk through the exam in our next class.

I'm working on my second Case Study paper.  2 page papers used to never take this much time to write in the past, but these days its almost more difficult to cover the expected content in the brevity required.  It reminds me how in undergrad we became kings and queens of beating around the bush and long windiness.  Now the key is to be succinct!  This week I focused on ethics of marketing targeting a population's perceived vulnerabilities. I stretched this concept to include how those in development and fundraising should maintain specific ethical standards to prevent any issues that could arise when providing an appeal to any target market.

This week I have to really put my rear in gear, because I have some vacation time planned, and I don't plan to bust out my laptop from Yosemite!  Two weeks done in one week, but it will be worth it!

Tuesday, May 24, 2011

No rest for the weary

I've struggled a bit the last couple of weeks, to be honest, in trying to determine what to post about, but I want to maintain the integrity and honesty of my postings, so I'll be true to what stage I'm really in currently in my MBA.  Semester III has been a bit like hitting some kind of wall.  I've wondered what the cause may be, but have recently discovered 2 other students in my very own group had this same experience.  I'm not sure that the cause has been completely discovered, but last week, over lunch I experienced a bit of a revelation.

I was asked to have lunch with two of the new Cohort 3 students, and it was my pleasure.  I sensed their excitement, and at the same time recognized their sense of being a bit overwhelmed at the pace of getting back into school.  I remember feeling the same way in what seems to be ages, but was really only 9 months ago.  They also are attending the Main Campus, so they have the opportunity to have Professor Warren and Dr. JoJo.  They asked me questions about each teacher and about projects that are coming up.  It seems like so long ago that the same mountain of projects laid before me, and now those are only distant foothills behind me.  The lunch reminded me of the quick sprint that is Semester I.

One of the best selling points of this program is that its a very quick 6 semester program.  I guess where I and some of my fellow students are at, is that this program is taken at a sprint pace, but the race is a full 2 years.  From my experience, the first semester is dotted with projects, homework, writing assignments, and the sheer caseload can be daunting.  However, you make it through and feel like conquerors knowing your efforts now have you 1/6th of the way done.  Semester two seems lighter in the number of projects and papers, however the ones you do have are deeper in nature and takes more attention over weeks, rather than being knocked out in a weekend.  The dialogue opens in Semester II, and I felt that the majority of professors were true facilitators of the educational process.  Accounting was a bit heavy in assignments, but thats the nature of the course... to know how to do balance sheets, income statements, and the like, it takes alot of practice.  We ended with Organizational Behavior and Change.  Our experience was unique in that our Professor moved to San Antonio, and won't be back for future cohorts.  I loved Dr. Green, and her style of managing the classroom.  I'm also a great fan of Dr. Werner.  His teaching style is perfect for me- highly organized, however, clue to future students- he is an excellent writer and expects the same from his students.  SPEND TIME PUTTING YOUR PAPERS TOGETHER, PAYING CLOSE ATTENTION TO APA FORMATTING.  Anywho, enough of that rabbit trail- Semester II closes, and you can't believe you are 1/3rd of the way through the program

And so here we are at the great wall that is Semester III.  Professor Moten is amazing, and I didn't know a foundational course like Finance could be so well taught.  I'll be honest, the concepts are all new to me since I didn't have a finance course before in my life, so its taking some time to really comprehend the concepts.  This next week is our first exam, and I dreamt all night about Net Present Value and the Discount Factor.  I'm a little nervous, because up until this point, before most tests, I would take the day off from work and meet other students in the library for a study session for a final cram before the test.  I just don't have the luxury of that kind of time off, and honestly, the time I do have I want to spend with family and not these books.  Ah the price of being an MBA student!

Ethics has tons of reading this semester, and the class is open discussion, but sometimes proves to be a challenge for me.  Having a background in Theology and Psychology, when discussing morality and truth, people often bring into the conversation faith and human psyche.  I find myself frustrated sometimes  just because I've had extensive instruction in those areas, and I have to remind myself that because I have "been there, done that", that I need to have patience with the course.  Much like my friends who have extensive Marketing backgrounds as we covered some of the topics in the Marketing Course, I sat on the other side of the spectrum in that class, and am thankful for their patience then. 

This semester also has what I'd call "strings attached".  In 10 weeks of Ethics, there are three case study papers, a group debate with group paper, and individual paper,weekly readings, and weekly a topic to research and email the professor about and weekly a question to ask the professor about the readings for class discussion (which I have learned leads to him asking a series of questions back, calling for further research).  In the other 15 weeks Finance class there are tests, and off hand I can't fully remember about a group project, but there is an individual paper.  It's pretty intensive, and I know I'm not the only one who doesn't feel that I have my head wrapped around all of it or even a good grasp on a plan for getting it all done.  I have a fantastic group, and we have plans in place for the Ethics group project done, so I guess we have one leg under us.

So as you can see from my lengthy description- I would categorically summarize the semesters like this.  Semester I- High Quantity, Semester II- High Quality and Independent Thinking, Semester III- High Quantity and High Quality Expected.  Add to this "equation" that between Semester II and III is only a 1 week off (a "perk" of getting through the program quickly), and you can sense that some of us are feeling a bit ragged, and like the students of Cohort III just entering the program... a bit overwhelmed.

Back when I was working in Tajikistan on project that took on a life of its own I learned something that has helped me through times like this before... No matter anything, that second hand keeps ticking.  The minutes and hours shall pass, and in time this too will pass.  No matter the effort, we will end up on the other side of this and it will be over, and its just up to us to give the best effort.  Until then, there is no rest for the weary... its time to keep going.  Remember, around Friday, June 17th, we will be on the pinnacle of this mountain.  Done with the first half, and heading down the second half of this journey that is the Concordia MBA.

Monday, May 16, 2011

A Dash of Light

This week we started early with a special session of our own to discuss the impending capstone and portfolio.  Dr. Ford gave us some great introductory information about what to look for in a capstone project, and the heads up to keep every project we've worked on to ensure we have content for these final portfolios that will demonstrate mastery and proficiency in each of the subjects we've taken.

We then moved to our normal classroom and proceeded with two hours of ethics and two hours of finance.  Hard to believe our first test in finance is already coming in two weeks!

This weekend, like many around the US, I traveled far distances to attend my brother and sister-in-law's graduations from college.  Like so many years we sat there, but this time that repetitive graduation song held a different tune.  This time, that "strange small group of masters students who make up the first two-three rows of the graduates" didn't seem so strange.  I knew the path of their journey, and in as little time as someone saying their first, middle and last name and a hand shake, they reached their final goal.  Their prize had been won. All those group projects, late nights, and chapter and chapters of reading were completed, and they were done.

Seeing all the robes and caps made me envision how in 15 months, these familiar faces of my cohort- my friends that I see weekly, will all be garbed in these similar gowns, and as quickly as it is to say all 20 of our names, this journey will be over.  We'll have the prize and accomplishment of knowing we did it!  And as quickly as this all will end, it will just as quickly begun.  After completing our capstone, and inspiring some positive change in our corner of the world we might just have the taste for what victories lie before us, and this might just lead to the question that got many of us here in the first place... How can I grow?  How can I make a bigger impact in the world around me? What's next?  And so it ends, as, really, it just begins.

Friday, May 6, 2011

Semester III: Two Parts Ethics, Three Parts Finance and a Dash of Leadership- a Recipe for the Half Way Mark

This week our cohort began the final leg of the uphill journey of our Concordia MBA.  After this semester, we will be halfway through the program... the tipping point.... the epic turn before the downhill run!

I just can't begin to explain how quickly this time has passed.  Last August, starting the program feels as though it was just 5 months ago.  Its so hard to believe that a full 9 months have passed!  Its hard not to be overcome with the sheer intensity that has gotten us here, and the mass of knowledge that we have compiled... everyday I'm still drawing new connections between the courses we have taken!  And the thing I feel that has grown the most in all of this- my confidence in what I know.  Sometimes you can be a confident person, knowing who you are, but if you are uncertain about venturing new ideas due to a lack of a solid knowledge foundation... well, I found that it can limit potential.  Its a very uplifting and empowering experience to stand on this kind of solid foundation.

As a student, to be honest, I'm feeling a little overwhelmed right now.  We just had team changes and the accomplishment of another semester under our belts, both were positive experiences.  But then you are brought back to reality that this isn't over, and semester three, in a way, feels like you are starting over again.  (A positive way of wording that would be "a fresh start")  Right now we've got emails flying in our new team trying to determine a brand new structure of operating than from our previous teams.  We also are engaging in two new classes that from the syllabus are a little intimidating.

(Course, isn't that the way it always is?  You look at a syllabus, and you think- "they've got to be kidding, right?" Then when you complete the course, should you remember to look back, you see that little by little everything was completely accomplished).

So in feeling a little like this all needs to start to get organized I opened an excel doc and lead off.  I went through both syllabus and made row headings of "Date", "Week", "Ethics", "Finance", "Leadership", "Group", and lastly "Unavailability".  For the columns, I then had a date, then below I had the week numbers 1-15 across 15 columns.  Then I went through each syllabus and put all the assignments in so you could see week by week what each class was expecting.  I highlighted when group projects were due, and then listed my name under weeks where I knew that weekend I would be out of reach.  I then posted this document on Google Docs and invited my teammates to list the weekends they are unavailable.  Now that we've all posted, we are going to meet prior to the second class at 5:15 to start mapping out the projects progress over the timeline, and take advantage of the weekends we all have available.  This will then be mapped out in each column with the Row Heading "Group".
(I tried to insert a print screen, but couldn't.  If you want to see it laid out, comment with your contact.)

I'm not out from under feeling stressed about this semester just yet, but I know with the right amounts of preparation and getting things done early on, this will make for a great last semester til we are half way done!