Summer at the GSB: an MSx ’19 Reflection

Phil Lee
Phil Lee
Sep 2, 2018 · 2 min read

46 down, 287 days to go.

Most countdowns are towards some large celebration. This, however, is a little different — 287 represents the number of days I have left in this one year MSx Sloan Fellow program here at Stanford with my amazing cohort before we go our separate ways, and despite the multitude of days, it doesn’t feel like enough to do all we want.

I came into this program not really knowing what to expect. I had gotten into Stanford GSB, the top business school in the world, wondering what I had signed up for and if I was simply paying for additional pedigree to compete in the competitive tech industry within California. My expectations were that, being Stanford, my class would be filled with tons of former consultants, bankers, and tech folks. I’d network with them, party a bit (or a lot), and at the end of the year, get in with a good startup and call it a business school experience.

Instead, I’ve found myself surrounded by 79 other brilliant minds from all walks of life around the world, challenging me to do more than just cruise on autopilot with their broad dreams and vision. In the past 46 days, I’ve had conversations on political theories, broad implications for macroeconomic policies, and various startup ideas, all outside of the core curriculum that we spend hours each week learning through class and readings.

Somehow in all of this, my class nominated and elected me one of two social officers for the summer quarter (granted, I ran unopposed), the Stanford golf course hosted me twice as I hacked my way around each hole, and my wife and dog somehow haven’t forgotten who I am.

My month and a half have encouraged me to set higher bars for this year. Why not be the first MSx class to plan our own international trip, to change the world ourselves and find new problems to solve? Why not become the MSx class that turns the tables on pre-existing stereotypes, and have the rest of the school request and demand our presence rather than permit it?

287 days to go. 287 days to go chase new dreams, build and rekindle flames of friendship, and create indelible experiences across the world.