Reflections (and Advice) From a Recent Hult Graduate

Allow me to set the scene: My team had just won the Hult Action Project, a capstone project on which we had worked tirelessly. Our client, GE Healthcare, had valued our strategic recommendations, saying that they could begin to incorporate them immediately. Our presentation had been solid, and we had clearly gotten our main points across. All that we had learned and worked on throughout our yearlong graduate program had converged in one 30-minute presentation, and we had succeeded. Now that I’ve recently graduated, I’ve had some time to reflect on the past year, and the positive habits I worked to develop in order to be a successful student and effective teammate. But before I get to those reflections, have you ever wondered why executives and members of upper management are compensated more than the people (researchers and the engineers, for example) who do the actual work of creating products and services to sell? Well, I have. And as I got older, I began to learn what makes people successful in the business world and what doesn’t. I knew what side I wanted to fall on, and this shaped my decision to attend Hult. In my view, one of the most important characteristics of a successful management professional is to be organized. It might even be helpful for it to become a â€Å"normalized obsession,† which I argue is a secret ingredient of any successful endeavor. As I learned about the world of management, I began to assemble a set of tools that helped me organize my life, time, and energy level. These tools became enormously useful during my journey at Hult, which I came to refer as â€Å"tools to stay sane.† And they may even help you, whether you are about to embark on your own journey at Hult, or begin establishing a career in the real world. Collaborate with the Cloud Let’s face it: business school is about working in teams, and teams can get messy. The number of presentations, Excel sheets Word documents grow exponentially as projects grow and deadlines get closer. One of the best lifehacks for working on a team is to rely on the cloud for collaboration—tools like Microsoft SkyDrive, Google Drive, and Dropbox can give the entire team a way to work synchronously on the same files without overburdening computers or creating unnecessary piles of paper. Here’s an example from my team’s Action Project. My teammate Ingi Thor, who is from Iceland, and I made last minute changes at 1:30 a.m., the morning of our final presentation, which was slated to begin in just seven short hours. Call those changes poor planning or perfectionism, but it ended up working for us just because we were able to work simultaneously on the same slide deck from two different locations without a hitch. It turned out to be our team’s competitive advantage. Sleep in Multiples of 90 Minutes This might not be for everyone, but it worked for me and could work for you. When you’re in school and overwhelmed with projects and classes, sleep can suddenly seem like a costly luxury. But you still need to sleep right? My solution: sleep in 90-minute intervals. Download a sleep cycle app (there are many) to help you get in the habit, and never go to bed without setting alarm (the more sleep deprived you are, the more â€Å"help† you may need waking up). As a super busy grad student, sleep is a luxury but it’s also essential. Just make it efficient. I started hacking my sleep three months into my program at Hult, during my International Marketing class with Professor Marco Protano, when the workload became insanely high. My method was simple: I slept in three 90-minute intervals, or three sleep cycles (4.5 hours) at night, and one 90-minute cycle during the day (depending on my energy level). I concluded that six hours is the minimum amount of rest an adult needs to stay in good shape, mentally and physically. I survived. So can you! Don’t Forget Your Personal Relationships When you go away to school (especially when you journey to another country to do so), you leave your support network behind. And if you have a partner, the distance can take a big toll on the relationship. In my case, I underwent a break up within a couple months of starting school. I didn’t carve out the time to communicate on a regular basis with my partner, nor did I understand the best tools for doing that. As the school year progressed, I realized that communication is a critical success factor for managers—and that it was critical for me to practice it in a personal context with my loved ones. So don’t forget:  keep them in loop. You can keep your support network strong, even from a distance. Schedule Skype calls or Google Hangouts, even if you calendar them like reoccurring business meetings. Keep an Organizer I am not talking journals here. That’s up to you. I am talking about Microsoft OneNote and Evernote. These cloud-based apps can make taking notes in class much easier. Don’t rely on recall: the faintest ink (even if it’s virtual) is stronger than the strongest memory. Take notes of all the stuff professors say; you never know when you’re going to need a pearl of wisdom or tidbit of knowledge. I even found these notes useful for my Action Project! Take 10 minutes at the beginning of every day to think through and jot down what you want to accomplish during the day in OneNote. It’s even helpful to record an upcoming party or social plan—they may be just notes now, but memories later (especially if you’re not a journal writer)! And it feels good to look back on all you’ve accomplished throughout the year. It was with great satisfaction that I wrote the note that my team won the Action Project competition. Nothing Gets Done Without a Sense of Urgency Keeping your urgency high, means making sure you have your priorities straight. We all know this already. But don’t forget to take some important steps to prepare for an intense school year that will go by fast. Here’s a final checklist: Create a Google Drive using your existing Google account Create a Microsoft Account for Skydrive and OneNote Download and install Microsoft office 2013/365 Download the following apps: Sleep Meister, Evernote, OneNote Start a Twitter account: Network with the world, your future employer is watching you! Facebook: Create private folders. Separate family, friends and work. This is not weird—this is how it is in real life anyway, isn’t it? We are the products of our tools. The better the tools are, the longer we survive (said the caveman who invented fire). So why do executives make the big bucks? Because they’ve mastered a system of organization that allows them to strike a balance between the personal and the professional, practice grit, and exhibit the resiliency to stay sane and function at a high level during times of intense stress. Now, this is not easy. But if you stay focused and committed to figuring out what works for you, your experience at Hult will help you learn how to work in a pressure cooker environment and come out ahead. I wish all the present graduates and the future students a great experience and learning! Ram N recently graduated from Hult International Business School with a Master of International Business degree. He is looking to start his career on the creative side of business in marketing (either branding or strategy). He has a background in Life Science, and codes, blogs, and paints on the side. You can drop him a line at one of the following:  @ramreva (Twitter);  ale., or www.about.me/nram.   Make the most of what your career has to offer with a Masters in International Business from Hult. To learn more, take a look at our blog Tips for the next Hult Rotation offers you a chance to study in a truly global way. Our rotation program allows you to study and be immersed in some of the finest cities in the world. 📠¸: @jasminmanzano . Hult Rotation offers you a chance to study in a truly global way. Our rotation program allows you to study and be immersed in some of the finest cities in the world. 📠¸: @jasminmanzano . Each year, Hult seeks to enroll a talented and ambitious incoming class from all over the world. We look for diverse students with a wide range of experiences, perspectives, and interests—students who will thrive in our unique educational atmosphere. Are you ready for a truly global experience? 📠¸: @iambrunadiniz . Each year, Hult seeks to enroll a talented and ambitious incoming class from all over the world. We look for diverse students with a wide range of experiences, perspectives, and interests—students who will thrive in our unique educational atmosphere. Are you ready for a truly global experience? 📠¸: @iambrunadiniz . We’re excited to start 2020 on a ranking high! Hult is proud to have been placed #28 in Poets Quants 2020 rankings for Best Undergraduate Business Schools in the US. Taking a huge leap of 32 places from our 2019 position, we’re also very happy to have secured top positions in key categories like: life-changing experience, practicality of the degree, and global immersion. . With five global campuses, a student body of over 130 nationalities, and a learn-by-doing approach—Hult offers a student experience like no other. . We’re excited to start 2020 on a ranking high! Hult is proud to have been placed #28 in Poets Quants 2020 rankings for Best Undergraduate Business Schools in the US. Taking a huge leap of 32 places from our 2019 position, we’re also very happy to have secured top positions in key categories like: life-changing experience, practicality of the degree, and global immersion. . With five global campuses, a student body of over 130 nationalities, and a learn-by-doing approach—Hult offers a student experience like no other. . â€Å"I’m from an engineering background and needed a whole new skill set for the industry I wanted to switch to. I learned a lot about myself and how I deal with being out of my comfort zone. I learned both soft and hard skills, from how to work in very diverse teams to key accounting metrics and strategy. I was surprised by how weak I was at certain tasks in English or how strong I actually was in other areas. Hult gave me opportunities to try new things and meet people from places I never thought I would have friends. . My internship experiences gave me the chance to broaden my view of different cultures and different companies. I had the opportunity to work and live with people whose values differed from people in my home country. I thought that this would be difficult, but it gave me the chance to reflect on my own values and assess if they were a result of my home country environment or if they were intrinsically mine. . Diederick ter Kulve (@diederick.terkulve) Netherlands Masters in International Business . â€Å"I’m from an engineering background and needed a whole new skill set for the industry I wanted to switch to. I learned a lot about myself and how I deal with being out of my comfort zone. I learned both soft and hard skills, from how to work in very diverse teams to key accounting metrics and strategy. I was surprised by how weak I was at certain tasks in English or how strong I actually was in other areas. Hult gave me opportunities to try new things and meet people from places I never thought I would have friends. . My internship experiences gave me the chance to broaden my view of different cultures and different companies. I had the opportunity to work and live with people whose values differed from people in my home country. I thought that this would be difficult, but it gave me the chance to reflect on my own values and assess if they were a result of my home country environment or if they were intrinsically mine. . Diederick ter Kulve (@diederick.terkulve) Netherlands Masters in International Business . Say a big hello to our Bachelor of Business Administration program cover star, Elisa Orus Plana âÅ" ¨ . â€Å"I’m excited for the future—especially that I cant predict whats going to happen. Maybe Ill end up in Mexico working for a trading company or maybe in Africa, developing my own business. Everything is possible, and the options are constantly changing. I love the idea that Im never going to be stuck doing the same job until the end of my life if I dont want it to be like this. . Hult really supports me and my ambitions and truly believes that we deserve to be considered as professionals as well as students. Here, I get to express not just my opinions but all elements of myself. From my creative side with the Fashion Society to my finance and business sides in Trading Club and the Management Consulting Club. We get a different type of learning here. Not just essential knowledge and theory, but practical skills and mindset. The school is always evolving. We’re encouraged to innovate and to always look for new ways of doing traditional things. We learn how to be more confident and become aware of how we can impact our environment. The school aims to help you become a better version of yourself and to stand out from the crowd.â€Å" . Elisa Orus Plana French Bachelor of Business Administration Class of 2021 Say a big hello to our Bachelor of Business Administration program cover star, Elisa Orus Plana âÅ" ¨ . â€Å"I’m excited for the future—especially that I cant predict whats going to happen. Maybe Ill end up in Mexico working for a trading company or maybe in Africa, developing my own business. Everything is possible, and the options are constantly changing. I love the idea that Im never going to be stuck doing the same job until the end of my life if I dont want it to be like this. . Hult really supports me and my ambitions and truly believes that we deserve to be considered as professionals as well as students. Here, I get to express not just my opinions but all elements of myself. From my creative side with the Fashion Society to my finance and business sides in Trading Club and the Management Consulting Club. We get a different type of learning here. Not just essential knowledge and theory, but practical skills and mindset. The school is always evolving. We’re encouraged to innovate and to always look for new ways of doing traditional things. We learn how to be more confident and become aware of how we can impact our environment. The school aims to help you become a better version of yourself and to stand out from the crowd.â€Å" . Elisa Orus Plana French Bachelor of Business Administration Class of 2021"> During the final days of 2019, you probably reflected on what you’ve accomplished this year—and even this decade—and what you’d like to achieve in 2020. Let us know in the comments below. During the final days of 2019, you probably reflected on what you’ve accomplished this year—and even this decade—and what you’d like to achieve in 2020. Let us know in the comments below. â€Å"The first time we did group work on the program, I went head-to-head with a colleague. It taught me a lot about how I see people, how people see me, and how conflict can be resolved in a kind and productive way. The best feedback you get, when delivered constructively, is the most critical because it really feeds into how you lead. I’ve completely reversed my leadership style—the result is so much richer and more powerful when you lead from behind and lead with strength. . Studying in tandem with working, whilst challenging, gave me the perfect platform to directly apply learning concepts into my business environment, the competitive landscape, and the real-estate industry as a whole. When I started the program, I was very happy in my corporate role. But my courage and aspirations grew to the point that I took on a whole new direction. Having my career coach, Joanna, as a sounding board allowed me to really be strategic and get to know myself. She coached me thro ugh all the interviews, the research, and the questions. It went in parallel with what I was doing academically and after six months everything just clicked. . I went into the EMBA knowing I had nothing to lose and I’ve come out with everything. Great strength, global friends, amazing learning, mentors from professors, a job I love, and the knowledge that I can set my mind to achieve anything and with the right support and resources I’ll get there.† . Kashani Wijetunga British, New Zealand Sri Lankan Associate Director Senior Strategy Consultant CBRE EMBA Class of 2019 . â€Å"The first time we did group work on the program, I went head-to-head with a colleague. It taught me a lot about how I see people, how people see me, and how conflict can be resolved in a kind and productive way. The best feedback you get, when delivered constructively, is the most critical because it really feeds into how you lead. I’ve completely reversed my leadership style—the result is so much richer and more powerful when you lead from behind and lead with strength. . Studying in tandem with working, whilst challenging, gave me the perfect platform to directly apply learning concepts into my business environment, the competitive landscape, and the real-estate industry as a whole. When I started the program, I was very happy in my corporate role. But my courage and aspirations grew to the point that I took on a whole new direction. Having my career coach, Joanna, as a sounding board allowed me to really be strategic and get to know myself. She coached me thro ugh all the interviews, the research, and the questions. It went in parallel with what I was doing academically and after six months everything just clicked. . I went into the EMBA knowing I had nothing to lose and I’ve come out with everything. Great strength, global friends, amazing learning, mentors from professors, a job I love, and the knowledge that I can set my mind to achieve anything and with the right support and resources I’ll get there.† . Kashani Wijetunga British, New Zealand Sri Lankan Associate Director Senior Strategy Consultant CBRE EMBA Class of 2019 . â€Å"It was now or never. I knew that I’d have likely stayed in my neighborhood for years to come if I didn’t take this opportunity. I’d not lived or studied outside of the U.S. before. So I left my job as a global strategist at an advertising agency and moved halfway around the world. I’ve come back a more culturally aware, well-versed person. I’ve realized that everything is a learning experience and an opportunity for growth. Ill definitely carry this mindset with me into the future. Technology and social media allow us to be different people in several places at once. Im excited to see how I can establish myself in whatever city Ill be lucky enough to call home and still maintain deep connections with people all over the world. I’m inspired by my classmates every day. Hearing some of their life stories and how getting this degree fits into their greater mission has been very humbling. My biggest challenge has been finding the ‘right’ path for me. There have been rooms Ive felt like I shouldnt be in, but now Im proud to feel as though I truly belong, wherever I am.† . Dwayne Logan, Jnr. American MBA Class of 2019 . â€Å"It was now or never. I knew that I’d have likely stayed in my neighborhood for years to come if I didn’t take this opportunity. I’d not lived or studied outside of the U.S. before. So I left my job as a global strategist at an advertising agency and moved halfway around the world. I’ve come back a more culturally aware, well-versed person. I’ve realized that everything is a learning experience and an opportunity for growth. Ill definitely carry this mindset with me into the future. Technology and social media allow us to be different people in several places at once. Im excited to see how I can establish myself in whatever city Ill be lucky enough to call home and still maintain deep connections with people all over the world. I’m inspired by my classmates every day. Hearing some of their life stories and how getting this degree fits into their greater mission has been very humbling. My biggest challenge has been finding the ‘right’ path for me. There have been rooms Ive felt like I shouldnt be in, but now Im proud to feel as though I truly belong, wherever I am.† . Dwayne Logan, Jnr. American MBA Class of 2019 . Happy New Year, Hultians! . Happy New Year, Hultians! .