What if all this work is worthless!
My friend is smart and successful. He recently completed an MBA from a small Midwestern university on US News’ Best Colleges 2010 list. He’s also honestly skeptical about whether the time and money was worth it. Does he know something I don’t know?
Don’t get me wrong – I’m not thinking of quitting. There are five classes between me and graduation day, and I’m determined to stick to it. But what if my friend’s fears have foundation? The craziest delusion is to continue on with a fool’s errand when the folly becomes apparent.
I put these questions to some classmates recently. Here’s what they told me.
“I’ve been moved three times by my company – always against my will. I see the MBA program putting me in control of my future.”
A fellow IT worker recounted how his company downsized his department repeatedly – each time retaining him by moving him further from friends and family. “If I’d had my MBA, things would have been different,” he reasoned. “I’d have had more options.”
“My studies have given me the tools to distinguish opportunity from fantasy.”
One of the younger members of the class told about helping her mother avoid a potentially disastrous business venture. “My mother was all fired up about opening a health food store near her beauty shop,” she explained. “But she couldn’t explain to me how the store would compete against the others in the area.”
“I’m working on projects now that would have completely baffled me a year ago.”
Recently promoted to a better job with his employer, another classmate talked about the difference that his classes had made in his approach to complex problems. “I just think about the cases we’ve studied and use the lessons learned to tackle these difficult assignments.” He’s convinced that his new job is a direct result of the work he’s been doing on his MBA.
“In the CPA world, an MBA is nothing. In my real world, it has enriched my life.”
An instructor talked about the changes she’d seen in her own life since graduating a few years ago. “The MBA program opened up opportunities I could never have foreseen,” she explained.
“The lessons my classes and classmates have taught me will save me a lot of painful mistakes.”
This classmate’s response was heartwarming for me. Sometimes I feel like the “old man in the room” – probably because I am. Everyone agrees that I talk too much, but this comment reminded me me that we can help each other by sharing what we’ve seen and heard.
This was a good conversation. It was more than mutually assured sheepwalking. Everyone had concrete examples of how this education was making a difference. What are you doing to get ready for the future?