How to increase your MBA’s ROI right now
I believe in efficiency. I believe that if person A shares with person B his or her learnings person B is better equipped to experience these faster and, on top, gather new learnings. As I embark on my second year as an MBA student at the University of Chicago Booth School of Business I wanted to take a moment to share my learnings from the past 12 months in hope that as you start your own MBAs all over the world you’ll free capacity to gather new learnings to increase your respective ROIs.
When it comes to top MBA programs and the resulting six-figure average income, a positive ROI becomes only a question of time. But as with most large companies, we often fail to set the right objectives and when we do we struggle to determine KPIs that help us work towards them in a meaningful way. We shy away from dimensions that are tricky to quantify and over-emphasize tangible ones, such as financials, because we understand their contribution. Arguably, though, the hidden gem of the MBA value lies in the unquantifiable returns; the moments that make us feel grateful for this very unique experience, the insights we uncover that we didn’t know existed and the dots we will only connect many years out.
To help you get to these highs faster, here are 9 ways to increase your MBA’s ROI right now:
1. Pump even more money into it
Spending money when you don’t earn a dime and are looking at tuition fees that might exceed your pre-MBA earnings can feel very wrong.
It is, it really is, but it’s also very right!
Coming to the US from a country known for its beautiful skiing resorts, it seemed ironic that one of my most expensive vacations yet would be to go skiing. I closed my eyes and with an elevated heart rate submitted my payment for what turned out to be one of the most amazing trips of my life.
I was overlooking the beautiful mountains in Colorado, surrounded by peers I never anticipated becoming close friends with, when I realized how whilst I might be financially better positioned for this trip in a few years, the opportunity to go on holiday with over 400 incredibly intelligent and exciting people my age would probably be long gone by then.
So go ahead and spend it, spend it on experiences and unique moments, and trust that your positive memory bias and post-MBA job will take care of the rest.
2. Replace “networking” with “learning”
One of the biggest energy drains during your first few months as an MBA student could come from networking. Even for the most outgoing person there comes the time when saying who you are, where you’re from and what you were doing pre-MBA turns into a blank stare.
Networking is also known as one of the most unnatural parts of the first year experience. There seems to be a protocol for just about any type of interaction — crop circles, coffee chats, thank you e-mails, sharing elevator rides. Luckily, one of my first interactions with an alumnus yielded a vital piece of advice. He said: “Just have fun!”, and he was right.
As MBAs we get to learn about and from incredibly successful and inspiring people who we otherwise wouldn’t meet. Naturally, some of the people we meet resonate with us more than others.
Take a moment and repeat: “That’s ok!”
You do not need to become besties with every person you meet, or force periodic updates with senior people you struggle to connect with. However, if you are fortunate enough, keep an open mind and approach this as a learning opportunity you will end up making lifelong friends, maybe even high five some pretty awesome alumni and, ideally, enjoy making these real connections along the way.
3. Skip FOMO
I take pride in this one: I successfully avoided FOMO during my entire first year of business school! With all the amazing, fun, unique and overlapping events happening, the fear of missing out is a well-known concept to MBA students. It’s best described as an absolute waste of energy and time, two things we constantly seem to be running out of anyways.
So what does it take to skip FOMO successfully?
Be very clear on what matters to you and why!
From what you like to focus on this quarter to the type of social setting you enjoy most, developing a set of personal guidelines helped me turn into a very brutal, efficient and happier decision maker because my choices were aligned with my priorities. If you aren’t doing so already, train that muscle!
4. Humble. Humble hard.
You’re attending a top MBA program, and it’s taken mountains of accomplishments to get there, congrats!
You’re probably riding a high. Reality is, you are now surrounded by over-achieving high potential individuals who have done at least as much as you have, if not more. Think a deal you pulled off was special? Try setting up a water pipeline and business that improves living conditions in an underdeveloped country, as a side to your full-time job. Yes, that’s the type of people you breathe air with now.
Feeling humble yet? You should, and that’s good! Feeling humbled will keep you grounded, while continuing to push you to thrive for more.
But it comes with a warning: Don’t let it overwhelm you!
Not feeling like the smartest person in the room does not equate being the dumbest. Always keep in mind that your individual journeys are different and so are your respective strengths.
5. Be a somebody to somebody
Before passing on the torch as second years, our departing seniors shared their stories in a ted-talk session on what they take with them and what they leave behind. Consistently, there was a sense of relief and pride as they talked about the latter. Whilst I understood the pride, I was slightly confused about the relief and so I asked one of the presenters where that sentiment came from.
“It’s like you made your time here worthwhile. You will be a somebody to somebody, who you probably inspired to become a somebody to somebody else.”
His words reminded me of the butterfly effect and the many exciting opportunities my peers and I enjoy because an alumna or alumnus once created a small cause that even years later has huge effects. This sense of purpose and impact more often than not helps us experience genuine happiness and feel empowered to make the impossible possible.
6. Get rejected, and then, get rejected again and again.
As hard-working individuals, most of us have almost gotten used to doing great and achieving ambitious goals. But the level of excellence and determination which every single student brings to the MBA environment means that things might not shake out the way you initially anticipate.
You are likely to not see a 100% success rate during recruiting season, so there is almost certainly at least one rejection coming your way. And yet, even with a sense of the outcome, it is easy to feel like you failed when you receive that dreadful call.
But it’s not failure, it’s an opportunity to build resilience and get comfortable with outcomes that deviate from your original plan. Learning how to kick the heck out of option B when A became unavailable to me has not only guaranteed that I went off to land an amazing summer internship opportunity when my long-term plan didn’t work out, but also return to recruiting conversations and leadership situations in general as a stronger person because of that very journey.
Overcoming the fear of rejection frees capacity to turn ambiguous situations into positive outcomes.
7. (un)Screw the boxes and kick the tire
With recruiting starting soon after you set foot on campus, one of the first questions you will try to answer is “what kind of career box am I?” so you can follow the process and gather relevant learnings. The tougher version of this question, which will likely increase your ROI, is to ask “why do I REALLY think I am that box?”
Is it a particular type of problem you enjoy solving, an industry you prefer learning about or an environment that makes you thrive? Uncovering drivers and your passions instead of fitting a box unlocks an ocean of career opportunities you may not even be aware of and, more importantly, puts you in a better position to pursue a path that makes you truly happy.
There are plenty of ways in which you can test your assumptions and learn from the experience during your MBA — from classes to student groups or simply speaking with people who have pursued a similar path and are ahead of you.
Don’t feel like you are bound to any pre-defined job titles or career paths. Now is a damn good time to kick the tire and make adjustments or even completely shift to live the life that feels good and authentic to you.
8. Live like you’re on THAT Vegas trip
People often go crazy in Vegas and engage in games they otherwise wouldn’t despite knowing that the odds are not in their favor. Yet, they still go ahead and play.
The beauty of an MBA experience, however, is that when it comes to taking risks, the odds are IN your favor. In fact, your downside risk has probably never been lower than during these two precious years.
No one, and I mean no one whose opinion should matter to you, will ever blame you for having tried something during your MBA time and decided it was not right for you.
We rarely regret the things we do because we find a way to rationalize our decisions, but we almost certainly will regret the things we really wanted to do and never did.
Ever wanted to become a fireman, teacher or astronaut? Find that intersect of your long lost dream and your MBA skillset and give it a try. Whether it will blow your mind or lead you back to a more traditional path, chances are you will not regret it.
And worst case, what happens in Vegas, can stay in Vegas.
9. Optimize.
This is the big one. If there was one item on this list you wanted to try and implement, I’d make it this one.
Last year I attended many conferences and listened to even more speeches, but the speaker who stood out to me most was one particular MBA alumna.
Beyond being an insanely successful entrepreneur, she is an incredibly warm hearted and inspiring human being, who poses only one question when she interviews people:
“What do you optimize for?”
Now I know I already wrote about how identifying what matters and why is important, but optimizing goes a step further. It’s about more consciously implementing those values in the way you operate on a daily basis.
Every time I start a task, feel overwhelmed or question why I’m spending time on something, I ask myself “What are you optimizing for?” My calendar even holds a section to capture what I will optimize for on any given day to help me stay focused and cancel out any unnecessary noise.
Optimizing allows us to maximize the benefits of any type of investment, and more importantly, continue challenging ourselves to grow professionally, as well as personally.
Sooner than you wish you will notice that time is running faster than ever when you do an MBA and, therefore, it’s crucial to take enhancing actions immediately. Take this list as a starting point, but recognize that it’s not exhaustive; every day, every interaction and every decision you make forms a new chance for you to influence and increase your MBA’s ROI right now.
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