Isaac Newton's Mini Golf

You have probably heard friends or co-workers say that a MBA is not worthwhile if you want to start your own business.  Why bother spending 100K and two years of your life instead of actually doing whatever it is you want to do?  After all, Steve Jobs, Bill Gates, and Larry Page did not go to business school and they did pretty well.  Dean Bruner says he frequently hears this claim from prospective students.

But why do folks portray this as an either/or scenario?  Should I go to business school or start my own business?  What they should be asking is – How do I do both? 

That question is probably best answered with a short vignette from two of my second year classmates.  Jim Thomas and Kevin Bennett’s venture, Isaac Newton’s Mini Golf, was born in one Darden course and developed throughout other courses, as part of the curriculum.  

Isaac Newton’s Mini Golf is an innovative product developed to teach children foundational science concepts and reinforce math skills through the game of mini golf.  The idea was born in the second year course, Starting New Ventures.  Jim and Kevin took the idea to another second year course, Developing New Products and Services, to design and build a prototype for their product idea.  They worked with a team of three other students, learning to discover “user’s needs” and built a series of working prototypes (Darden provides teams with money for materials).

From there, Isaac Newton’s Mini Golf was further developed in other courses, such as Digital Marketing and even Accounting (yes, Accounting).  Many second year courses require a project or paper that relates to a real business and there is no reason why an aspiring entrepreneur cannot use his/her own venture.  In fact, that is encouraged! 

While developing the idea in Darden courses, the venture received some seed capital from Darden’s Batten Institute in the form of a “De-Risking” Competition.  And most importantly, Jim and Kevin are able to get help and advice from fellow students and faculty.

The founders came to Darden with very different perceptions of entrepreneurship.  Jim was already an experienced entrepreneur, having co-founded a software company, and intended to return to a start-up.  Kevin came from the military with no entrepreneurial experience and little desire for it until a first year elective caused him to re-think what entrepreneurship really is.  Both came to understand the value of starting their own venture in business school and took advantage of Darden’s many resources.  At Darden, it is possible to get a world class MBA and start your own business.

Jim and Kevin both say this experience forced them to bring to bear everything they were learning in the classroom: Strategy, Marketing, Operations, Finance, and yes, even Accounting.   For those interested in entrepreneurship, Darden has some tremendous resources, these are just a few:

·    The Batten Institute is a world class organization for entrepreneurship and innovation;

·    Darden Business Projects (DBP) and the Incubator program enable students to work with small businesses as part of the curriculum;

·    and today Darden’s iLab celebrates its grand opening, which will foster collaboration through the University and Charlottesville community.

For more information about Isaac Newton’s Mini Golf, visit their webpage.

Second Year Electives

While the first year is often described as mastering the core curriculum the second year is all about smoothing the edges.  In my second year, I have had the good fortune of being able to take a set of classes that I will look back upon with fond memories.

Leadership Ride:  The first few class meetings are facilitated by Gary Gallagher, a leading Civil War historian who communicates information on the Confederate and Union forces as well as provides context leading up to the Battle of Gettysburg.  In a partnership with the United States Marine Corps University, we then travelled to Gettysburg for a two day field experience.  Over the course of two days we would walk to a specific place on the battlefield, be placed in the situation of a specific leader, and discuss the actions we would have taken in that role.  The most fascinating aspect of the class was the ability to make parallels between the military leadership, both its successes and failures, at the Battle of Gettysburg to leadership in the contemporary business environment.  Far and away, one of the coolest classes I’ve ever taken.  Ever.

Character Traits and Success:  Professor Colley has assembled a list of 200 character traits and each week, we read a piece by Plato or Emerson.  The idea is that through reading these great works, we are able to relate the reading to our own personal character traits or to character traits exhibited by various leaders.  One of the things that makes this class so unique is that it is a ten-person seminar made up of five Darden students and five undergraduate students.  If that isn’t cool enough, it meets in Professor Colley’s Pavilion on the Lawn, a UNESCO World Heritage site, and the conversation is accompanied by wine and cheese.

General Managers Taking Action:  Another very different class that operates as more of a speakers series.  Each class session a Darden alum comes to present caselets, or situations that they have found themselves in as business leaders.  The experiences of the alumni vary greatly, from the CEO of a quarry company to a Managing Member of a private equity group, but the one common thread of each class is that the students come prepared to take action and discuss the decisions we would make.  After class, many of the alumni are available to go to lunch with interested classmates.  Not only has the class helped develop my decision-making process, it also presents a great opportunity to network with some of the most impressive Darden alumni.

The Tutoring Program

This year, I have had the privilege of serving as one of the Co-Chairs of the Tutoring Program.  The Tutoring Program is a student-led program where second year students work to support the core curriculum by reviewing conceptual frameworks and fundamental mechanics as well as providing an intimate forum to ask questions.

While working with the Tutoring Program this year, I have come to see it as a really great example of the strength of the Darden community.  One of the reasons I was attracted to Darden was because of its close community.  When I was looking at MBA programs and talking with current students, everyone I spoke with at Darden talked about its collaborative community.  (Seriously, when I asked students what made Darden unique, 100% of them mentioned the community fostered at Darden).  As a second-year at Darden, I see why this universally discussed.  There are myriad events that illustrate the strength of the Darden community, and I’ve come to realize that the Tutoring Program is another great example.

This year, the Tutoring Program has roughly 70 tutors who have signed up to volunteer as tutors.  To put it into perspective, that’s approximately 20% of the second year class volunteering their time to sit down with first years to clarify course material.  Perhaps more important than the sheer quantity of students supporting the academic success of the first year students is the attitude of the second years.  Many of the second year tutors have approached me to indicate their willingness to be more involved in tutoring.

The strong Tutoring Program is just one of many ways in which the second years are actively engaged to foster a strong community between the two classes.   I guess the motto is No Darden Student Left Behind.

Happy Thanksgiving!

On Saturday, my first year section reunited for a Thanksgiving feast.  The Thanksgiving potluck was a great way for some of us to share our culture with the international students, particularly after they put so much effort into the International Food Festival earlier this fall.

It was a beautiful fall day filled with four of my favorites Fs.  Friends, Food, Fire, and Football.  Happy Thanksgiving!

Hanging out by the fire pit

 

AJ, the turkey king!

Section B

 

The Thanksgiving spread

Two five-month-old-puppies!  The black lab is named Edgar, after Edgar Allen Poe, who lived on the historical Range and attended the University of Virginia.  The yellow lab is named Ginny, another reference to the University of Virginia.

 

Delicious food

Dessert.  A Virginia apple pie and a Section B Bird!

 

Trick or Treat

Happy Halloween!  The University of Virginia is a historic institution steeped in tradition.  One of my favorite traditions is an event known as Trick-or-Treating on the Lawn.  The Lawn is living history.  It is the original University that still houses students and faculty in the rooms and pavilions that line the terraced grassy court.

For Halloween, student organizations typically sponsor a Lawn Room and distribute candy to eager children, dressed in adorable costumes.  This afternoon, I walked around the Lawn with many of my classmates and enjoyed the atmosphere and of course, a Reese’s Cup.

 

From Friday to Monday

Is it already second year?  For the past few months, I have been interning with a consulting firm in Washington, DC.  The experience was challenging, but I felt fully equipped from day one to be a contributing member of the team all thanks to the preparation of the Darden first year curriculum.  My summer engagement was heavily analytical and I found myself thankful that I was paying attention during the quant-heavy cases of my first year.

The last day of my summer internship ended on Friday, so that evening I packed up my apartment and prepared to hit the road to Charlottesville on Saturday.  I was in a hurry to get back to Charlottesville because I wanted to attend the Darden Community Picnic that Saturday afternoon.  I remember being a first year at the Picnic, feeling only moderately overwhelmed.  I was in a new environment, making new friends, meeting new faculty.  Most of that afternoon as a first year was a blur, but what I remember more than anything was how excited the returning second years were to catch up with one another after a summer away from Charlottesville. 

Remembering that was motivation enough for me to make it back to Charlottesville.  And it was well worth it.  It’s hard to describe how I felt at the picnic; excited to be reunited, thrilled to hear about my classmates’ successful summers, and afraid that this year is going to pass too quickly. (Is this what my second year has succumbed to? Am I really talking about my emotions at a picnic?)

If Saturday was all about catching up, Sunday was all about ramping up.  Sunday was my day to get organized.  I figured out what classes I was taking and made sure to prepare the cases for my first day as a second year.

Monday afternoon, my class assembled in Abbott Auditorium for a Welcome Back address.  The strangers I sat among at my Welcome address as a first year are now some of my best friends and principled leaders at our Welcome Back address to start off the second year.  What a difference one year can make.

Here's to Section B

During the core curriculum at Darden, students are randomly assigned one of five sections, lettered A through E.  For the first seven months at Darden, you will attend three classes a day, four days a week (that’s 300 cold calls), with the same 60-65 peers in the same classroom, while the faculty rotates in and out.  Your section becomes your family.  Your section becomes your life.  I remember when I first arrived at Darden, a wise second year forewarned me that I would quickly fall in love with some people in my section.  Over the course of the year I would fall out of love with some of them, but by the end of the entire shebang, I would be enamored of them once again.  And sure enough, the year unfolded just as predicted.

Fortunately for me, I was assigned to Section B.  It is one steeped with tradition.  We have a song that we sing after the final class of every week; a song that has been passed down through the section for decades.  But perhaps the most unique tradition in Section B is the bird.  Each week, as a section, we award the bird to the classmate who made the most ridiculous comment that week.  Bird-worthy comments include:

1.     During an Operations case that focused on improving the effectiveness of a hospital, a classmate suggested that the hospital upgrade to bunk-beds for the patients.

2.     When asked during a class on Managerial Accounting what was the most important four letter word, our classmate’s response was “Love.”  This at least garnered him a hug from the professor.

But Section B doesn’t stop in the classroom.  Each year, Darden sections compete in athletic and philanthropic events in an attempt to win the annual Darden Cup.  This year, Section B won in Softball, Soccer, and Cricket.

And of course, there have been no shortage of social events.  When all is said and done, Section B has helped define my first year experience.  We’ve learned a ton, we’ve struggled through tough cases together, we’ve pushed one another, and most importantly, we’ve laughed a lot.  So here’s to Section B!

Learning to Think Like a Manager

Darden is well-known for its focus on developing general managers.  Darden is also well-known for having arguably the best teaching faculty among MBA programs.  Combining these two elements results in a curriculum that really challenges students to think like managers.  But what does that look like?

Take my accounting class as an example.  I could spend hours working on, say, determining what the differences in accounting were for inventory using FIFO or LIFO accounting methods.  Yes, I would feel a sense of accomplishment, but in truth, this is only the start.  After reviewing the math in the first ten minutes of class, the majority of the time is spent discussing the managerial implications of the different techniques.  In my finance class, it was very common for the professor to come in and lead with the cold call Brian, what is your recommendation?  This is a very different question than Brian, what answer did you get?  To make a recommendation, you have to put the numbers into context and, like a manager, use the analysis to shape strategies and recommendations.

More recently, the faculty have been teaming up to facilitate a more robust class discussion.  The Ethics and Decision Analysis faculty led an energy case on hydraulic fracturing.  By team-teaching, the class is forced to think about how decisions-making actually plays out in the real world.  The Marketing and Operations faculty co-taught another class.  They did a great job of demonstrating how managerial decisions can have competing consequences for marketing and operations personnel, and again, forced students to think more broadly through a decision.  Another example is a finance negotiations case led by the Finance and Decision Analysis faculty.  In each of these classes, you are challenged to bring together material covered in each class independently to make more informed strategic decisions.

Having just completed the first-year core curriculum, I am convinced that it is the faculty's dedication to continually push students to think about the managerial implications of our decisions that is one of the largest catalysts for our future success.  By teaching in a style that closely mimics the decision making process for general managers throughout the world, I am not only developing essential functional skills.  I am also applying techniques for decision-making and communicating these decisions three times a day.

Brazil: Global Business Experience

Each spring, Darden students have the opportunity to enroll in a Global Business Experience (GBE). This year's opportunities led Darden students to India, Spain, South Africa, China, Brazil, and Argentina and continued the strong Darden tradition of experiential learning.

I had the privilege of travelling with thirty of my peers to Brazil. With stops in the Amazon, Sao Paulo, and Rio de Janeiro, it was definitely learning-by-doing-and-seeing at its finest. Layer thirty inquisitive and bright minds on top of face time with academic professionals and corporate executives within Brazil and you have a recipe for a wholly unique global experience.

While the GBE was distinctive in many ways, it was during this trip that I really recognized the value of the Darden core curriculum. In one day in Sao Paulo, we had a discussion on Brazil's opportunities and challenges that aligned perfectly with what I learned in my Global Economics and Markets class, followed by a dialogue on cultural differences reminiscent of my Leading Organizations class. This was capped off by a tour of a manufacturing facility, bringing to light many of the kaizen concepts we'd covered in our Operations class. The Brazil GBE provided a great avenue to synthesize the core curriculum.

Of course, education doesn't always have to be visiting companies and sitting in classrooms. I've included just a few of the items from the Brazil itinerary below, but suffice it to say words (and pictures) are a horribly inadequate substitute for the experience.

Meeting of the Waters (confluence of Amazon River and Rio Negro):

Municipal Market Negotiations Activity:

Exploring Rio de Janeiro (view from Christ the Redeemer):

Fun and Games

As a first year student at Darden, this week has been a whole lot of fun and games.

Earlier this week, we had a class facilitated by our Operations and Marketing professors. The class was divided into competing teams to participate in a beer distribution simulation. Individuals within each team assumed various roles throughout the distribution process from manufacturer through retailer (no, nobody was assigned the role of consumer). The purpose of the game was to meet customer demand for beer while managing the entire supply chain. The winning team walked away with Darden beer steins.

Outside of the classroom, this week was the official start to the Darden Spring Bowling League. On Tuesday evening after learning team, Kegler's Lanes bowling alley was the place to be for Darden students. Our team ended up losing the first two games in a best of three matchup, but we still had an amazing time.

The weather has been an adventure as well. The week got off to a good start with the first actual snowfall of the year. On Sunday, a few of my classmates and I were working at Darden when it began to snow. For some of our international peers it was the first time they had witnessed snow falling! Of course, we had to take a break and enjoy the beautiful scene in Flagler Courtyard.

Snow accumulation on Sunday, high of 70°F today. Even the weather decided to get in on the fun and games this week.

Building Goodness in April

Those unfamiliar with Building Goodness in April, or BGiA as it is commonly referred to throughout Saunders Hall, may be wondering why January just ended and I’ve moved on to discuss April. You may feel like February has just started and that I’m not giving any credit to the month of March. Well, contrary to the name, here at Darden, Building Goodness in April is a year-long philanthropic undertaking aimed at strengthening the local community.

Each year, come April, the Darden community dedicates itself to rehabilitating low-income homes throughout the greater Charlottesville community. The largest fundraising effort, a set of auctions (in which the items donated are from students and faculty members) followed by a black-tie holiday ball, occurs at the end of the fall semester -- this year raising $65,000.

The Auction: I was the lucky winner of a handful of items, including a Mexican fiesta thrown by two of my classmates, a round of miniature golf and jello shots “caddied” by two of my classmates, and one week’s worth of Whole Foods groceries delivered to my doorstep. This weekend, I cashed in my on my week’s supply of Whole Foods and now my refrigerator is overflowing with fresh produce. Choose My Plate would be proud.

The Holiday Ball: The Holiday Ball for BGiA has been hands-down, one of my favorite events to date. Not only was it an incredible social event, but it was a friendly reminder that it’s not all about “increasing shareholder value” (gasp). Having had so much fun at the last charity ball, I am excited about another upcoming charity gala. Tomorrow evening, Darden’s National Association of Women MBAs is throwing the 22^nd Annual Shelter for Help in Emergency (SHE) Gala and silent auction. The proceeds go to support SHE, an organization that provides a variety of services in support of domestic violence victims. Here at Darden, it’s April all year round!

Time for Term 4

I always suspected that Charlottesville abided by its own weather code. And now I have proof. The other day, I was driving down to Charlottesville from Washington, DC and when I was ten miles outside of town, this was the view from my car:

Spending the past few weeks away from Charlottesville with family and friends outside of the Darden community was healthy and rejuvenating. After the amount of time and effort I put into the first semester, I felt like I had earned a winter vacation. Returning reenergized to Charlottesville, it’s time to kick off my fourth term as a Darden first-year.

Of course, an abrupt cold-turkey separation from Darden would have presented its challenges, so here are two ways Darden played a role in my winter break.

Job Trek in Washington, DC: Thanks to the effort of one of my classmates, Darden students interested in consulting had the privilege of visiting nine different consulting firms in Washington, DC. This was a fantastic networking opportunity that provided us with great insights into the inner workings of various consulting offices.

Interview Preparation with Classmates: While many might not find this fun, I really enjoyed setting up Skype sessions with my classmates to assist in our interview preparation. After spending nearly every waking hour of a semester with Darden friends, it was a good excuse to catch up with my classmates scattered around the world for the holidays. Over the next few weeks we'll be putting this preparation to use as we interview for summer internships.

The Bad News Bears

Today marks the end of Term 3. This means I will not step into another Darden classroom until January 2012. Of course, a lot of Darden ground will be covered between now and the beginning of next term including final exams, Week on Wall-Street, resume drops, job treks, and interviews (to list a few). I definitely feel a sense of accomplishment, but there’s no way I could have survived without relying on my learning team.

Darden first-year students are placed into learning teams comprised of five to six students. Each team is assigned with a conference room where we meet for a few hours the night before classes to review our case material. It’s a great opportunity to clarify case content (or strike a healthy debate over interpretations of case facts), but it is mainly a tool to facilitate preparation and stronger in-class discussions.

Four months ago I stepped foot into Learning Team Room 33 for the first time. I introduced myself to the strangers, my new learning team members, and we began our first team task; determining a team name reflective of something we all had in common. Failing to find any commonalities, we adopted the name Bad News Bears. We hoped this our unique backgrounds wouldn’t result in a dysfunctional team

To give you a sense of what we were working with (our diversity of backgrounds), here’s a brief profile of the Bad News Bears and perhaps more importantly, the roles we’ve taken on.

Non-traditional student: Previously doubled as a Chinese instructor and admissions representative at a boarding school. Talk about a non-traditional but amazing background. She brings energy and optimism unrivaled by any Darden student.

Quintessential banker: Yes, the quintessential banker. He previously lived in New York City, working within fixed income. He is incredibly efficient and does a great job ensuring that our team stays focused during learning team meetings.

International perspective: Formerly served six years with the Israeli Defense Forces, and brings far more than just an international perspective. He arguably plays the most critical role, willing to challenge the team’s assumptions and providing poignant remarks that challenge our methodology.

Media mogul: Has experience in media sales and co-production for an international broadcasting corporation. Another relatively non-traditional student, but he has the intellectual curiosity to push our learning team to think beyond the bounds of the case and is one of the brightest individuals and fastest learners I’ve ever met.

Although we started as a motley crew, we have definitely transformed into a high performing team (our Leading Organizations professors would be proud!) Beyond preparing for classes as a team, we’ve established strong bonds (pleasing the Finance professors) and I would consider these guys lifelong friends. We actively seek each other out at Darden events. On Sundays, we often eat dinner together (the last time my learning team dined at my apartment, I pushed the apple pie, since I was frantically trying to make use of all the apples I purchased at Carter Mountain Orchard).

As we head into 2012, I’m looking forward to forging stronger relationships with my learning team, not to mention all of the free Sunday dinners!

Charlottesville in the Fall

This past Wednesday I attended the eighth annual Thanksgiving potluck with some of my friends from high school. This potluck tradition dates back to our first semester of college, when we gathered for a feast during the Thanksgiving holiday. This year's host unearthed a video from that very first potluck and in the spirit of sentimentality, we relived our past. Rather serendipitously, there I was, proclaiming thanks for the privilege of attending the University of Virginia (where I attended as an undergrad).

I still feel just as privileged eight years later. After spending a fall in Charlottesville, it is very easy to understand why people find fall such a festive season. With Charlottesville nestled along the Blue Ridge mountains, the foliage is overwhelmingly beautiful. Don't want to take my word? Check out here or here or here. It would be a shame to not take advantage of this autumnal weather, so when the weekend rolls around, I find time to get away from the Darden classroom. Here are a few of my fall favorites:

Apple Picking: A few weeks ago my friends and I travelled to Carter Mountain Orchard. We left around midday and grabbed some sandwiches before ascending the mountain. After picnicking with a panoramic view of Charlottesville, we set off through the mountainside, filling our bags with Granny Smith and Fuji apples.

Wine Tasting: Of course, if you are a wine drinker, Charlottesville doesn't disappoint. With over 25 vineyards in the area, wine tasting and wine tours are favorite weekend activities. Just this past Friday, I was fortunate enough to be invited on a wine tasting tour for a company networking event. We met in front of Darden at noon, boarded the bus with prepared bag-lunches from Feast! (a delicious sandwich shop), and for the rest of the afternoon, enjoyed some of the best vineyards and views of Charlottesville.

Football: This year, with Coach London in his second season, watching the UVA football team has been enjoyable. On home game days, it's always fun to tailgate and go watch the team play in Scott Stadium. And for the first time since 2007, UVA is bowl eligible and will be extending its football season into the winter!

A (Wednes)Day in the Life

One thing I've come to realize while at Darden is that the Darden work week is not the traditional work week. As a first year student, I attend classes Monday through Thursday. Each school day consists of three classes. Logically, I spend a good part of my day before class preparing cases for those classes. So while many Americans view the work week as Monday through Friday, at Darden I've adjusted my routine to reflect a Sunday through Thursday work week. (This does not mean that Fridays are official Darden Student Holidays. If anything, I've found Fridays to be just as packed, but with club meetings, conferences, visits to professors' offices to clarify course material, and networking events).

With this adjusted work week, I've quickly come to identify Wednesday as my new favorite day of the week. Wednesdays are my favorite day because I know that when I go to bed that evening, there are only three cold calls standing between me and the start of the weekend. But more recently, my Wendesdays have demonstrated how much fun business school can be.

Two Wednesdays ago, I found myself playing with Legos in my Operations class. My initial reaction? I was confused. I thought that demonstrating sufficient competence in the area of interlocking plastic bricks was a requirement for graduating first grade, not an MBA program. But this wasn't just playing with Legos - this was a lesson in continuous improvement. Kaizen, a Japanese term for improvement, was the topic for our Lego workshop. For the duration of the class, we were manufacturing a specific product (called a Gozogle). In the span of less than two hours we simulated many "months" of operations, and after each month, discussed ways to improve the process and operate more effectively. Undoubtedly, this class gave new meaning to the Lego description "appropriate for children ages 5 and up."

Later that evening, I participated in a networking event with one of the consulting firms. Continuing with the Japanese theme, interested first year students were invited to a local restaurant where we were divided into teams as part of an Iron Chef competition. Each team was given access to a table of ingredients and given 30 minutes to prepare a winning dish. The company representatives then evaluated the dishes across a spectrum of criteria and announced the winner (I'm still convinced my team finished a close second). The event was a fantastic way to interact with a potential employer in a more informal setting and serves as yet another example of the lively environment at Darden.

Fast-forward to this past Wednesday. Instead of our normal three-class routine, our class was divided into groups for company visits. The objective was to take the in-class learning on continuous operational improvement and see how it applied in manufacturing facilities in the area. The facility I visited had one of the most sophisticated automated processes I have ever seen. Some of the machinery was operating so fast that to the naked eye, it appeared motionless. It was readily apparent that this manufacturing company had been practicing the kaizen principles we applied through our Lego workshop the previous Wednesday. With two rounds of final exams at Darden under my belt, I think it's fair to say Wednesday is winning.

Don't Stop the Party

Charlottesville has always held a special place in (and disproportionately large portion of) my heart. As a University of Virginia undergrad, I am what is known as a Double Hoo. After graduating from UVA the first time, I took a job in Washington, DC, working as a consultant for a variety of defense clients. More recently, I moved to Accra, Ghana (about the same time Ghana beat the United States in the World Cup). While there, I served as a business instructor for high-potential Ghanaian university graduates at a school/incubator. Yet despite moving across the globe, I couldn’t seem to stay away from Charlottesville. I now find myself in my first year as a student at Darden. And so the teacher became the student.

I am happy to say that I have successfully completed my first term at Darden. And in my short time at Darden, I’ve quickly adapted to my new lifestyle. After my first month, I’ve come to some preliminary conclusions.

Curriculum: It is safe to say that I have never worked harder. That’s not to say that I haven’t worked hard before. Absolutely the contrary; Darden doesn’t admit students that haven’t demonstrated a strong work ethic in the past. I attribute the academic rigor to Darden’s case method style of learning. This means that as a first-year student, along with my amazing learning team (more on this later), I am responsible for preparing three cases each day. I used to use Wikipedia’s Randompage to ensure continual learning. Needless to say, this is no longer necessary.

Faculty: Having just come from a role as a business instructor, I have mammoth respect for educators. Having successfully completed my first term at Darden, I know that the faculty is unmatched. To illustrate the point, let me use my managerial accounting class. Managerial accounting has never really tickled my fancy. And I haven’t conducted a survey of my classmates, but I suspect that it doesn’t tickle many fancies. That being said, when I look around the room I notice that everyone is smiling and laughing. Really. To take a group of twenty-somethings at 8am and get them laughing about cost allocation is a remarkable talent.

Classmates: I have never been surrounded by a more talented peer group in my life. The diversity of experience is overwhelming. While some people come from traditional roles in investment banking or consulting, my classmates have a spectrum of experiences. Some Taught for America, others were professional athletes. The one unifying characteristic is that everyone is smart and driven.

My time at Darden is just beginning, but I can already tell that I am in a one-of-a-kind environment and enjoying every minute of it. Perhaps my Darden mentality is best stated by the words of the Black Eyed Peas. Don’t stop the party.