Friday was my last day as an employee of Recycled Paper Greetings. I'm trying to let that sink in a bit, but the feeling is odd. It's an interesting dichotomy that I've got going on: On the one hand I think 'oh my God; I'm leaving this all behind' on the other hand 'Oh my God; I'm heading towards a great place that will be both exciting and full of opportunity'
Unemployed: Well, what can I say - it's not a great feeling. But, should it be - not under normal circumstances, no, however my circumstances are anything but normal. I have (let me rephrase; had) a great thing at RPG. I had a lot of cool coworkers, a great boss, fun projects to work on and a steady workload, great social life outside of work with friends and family all in/around Chicago. Oh yeah, and a paycheck. So, now for the next few weeks I've got none of that. Not that I won't be staying in touch with my coworkers and my boss (truly friends), but its just peculiar to leave that all behind ON PURPOSE.
BUT, I'm NOT leaving IT (work, friends, etc.); I'm taking a big step in improving myself and my career. I'm going to be starting as a first year MBA student in just about 2 weeks at the Kelley School of Business. Now let me let THAT sink in...THAT feels good. Not odd, not peculiar, not particularly scary (though everything is a risk), but GOOD. I've been aiming for this point in my life for a long time. I'm quite confident that this time in my life is going to be some of the best years of my life; definitely some of the most exciting. I'll have the opportunity to entrench myself into the program's offerings. Everything from clubs, leadership opportunities, leading experts/professors, the chance to travel (or study) abroad, etc. will be at my finger tips. And I plan to experience it all.
For these reasons the hand that is excited (rather than thinking about leaving another good thing behind) wins out. It's not that I'm leaving something good; its that I'm heading towards new opportunities and experiences. I'll have plenty of time to work again (and make money), but for now, the time is to learn and grow and experience new and exciting things during my time as an MBA student.
Monday, July 27, 2009
Sunday, July 19, 2009
Well, there isn't too much news yet, but I figured it would be good to give some updates.
Proctor and Gamble: The P&G brand camp fell through for me, but no worries; I am not discouraged. There were only about 40 applicants chosen, so the chances were always quite thin. Besides, my interviewer stated that she would still like to speak to me about internship opportunities once recruiting for that begins.
Tuition: I still have no idea how much my tuition bill will be - btw, I move in two weeks and classes (Jump Start) starts about a week after that! It's a little worrisome that this is the case, but I also know they're working on it and it's not the school's fault. The state of Indiana waited until about 8PM on the final day of the fiscal year to pass their budget...Come On! 4 hours to spare...Of course their constituents (including Indiana University) is behind with their own budgeting. I just hope to hear something soon.
Work: I'm about to enter my last week of work at Recycled Paper Greetings. This experience is a bit troubling in some regards and extremely exciting in others. On the one hand I'm worried about leaving a paycheck, voluntarily, in the middle of a recession no less to go back to school - oh, and pay some huge dollar figure in tuition (which, as has been mentioned; I don't know the figure yet!). Also, I have greatly enjoyed my time at RPG - I like the work, I like the people, and I like what is going on there in general. There's been a lot of change in my time there, but I thrive on change so that has just been a lot of fun! One of the hardest parts is dumping a lot of my work on the rest of my team - we weren't able to secure a replacement, so I've been going through the transitional motions with others on my team. Seems sort of unfair as they still have their own job to work on, but I guess that happens - I know they'll find someone soon - I just hope its in time for that person to take on some of the new initiatives I'll be launching in my final week (I know right - why am I working on NEW projects at this time!?) On the other hand I have been planning on (and working towards) this moment for a long time. I have known since Sophomore year of college that this was merely an inevitability, so it's nice to see it all come to fruition...the hard work has paid off and I now get to experience two of what I expect to be some of the greatest years of my life. Also, getting ready for this time - move and leaving work - has its benefits. A few friends hosted a going away party for me this weekend which was a ton of fun, and this last week will consist of a department lunch and two happy-hours! Sounds like fun to me!
Moving: as mentioned I'm moving to Bloomington in about 2 weeks and couldn't be more excited. The place my roommate and I secured sounds great - two floors (plus basement), W/D in unit, yard (for grilling), bonus room, larger bedrooms, and in the heart of campus (directly between the b-school and downtown; I'll spend the majority of my time between those two places so having this location is great!
So, I think with that, I'll sign off - have a great week everyone; you know I'll be trying to myself.
Proctor and Gamble: The P&G brand camp fell through for me, but no worries; I am not discouraged. There were only about 40 applicants chosen, so the chances were always quite thin. Besides, my interviewer stated that she would still like to speak to me about internship opportunities once recruiting for that begins.
Tuition: I still have no idea how much my tuition bill will be - btw, I move in two weeks and classes (Jump Start) starts about a week after that! It's a little worrisome that this is the case, but I also know they're working on it and it's not the school's fault. The state of Indiana waited until about 8PM on the final day of the fiscal year to pass their budget...Come On! 4 hours to spare...Of course their constituents (including Indiana University) is behind with their own budgeting. I just hope to hear something soon.
Work: I'm about to enter my last week of work at Recycled Paper Greetings. This experience is a bit troubling in some regards and extremely exciting in others. On the one hand I'm worried about leaving a paycheck, voluntarily, in the middle of a recession no less to go back to school - oh, and pay some huge dollar figure in tuition (which, as has been mentioned; I don't know the figure yet!). Also, I have greatly enjoyed my time at RPG - I like the work, I like the people, and I like what is going on there in general. There's been a lot of change in my time there, but I thrive on change so that has just been a lot of fun! One of the hardest parts is dumping a lot of my work on the rest of my team - we weren't able to secure a replacement, so I've been going through the transitional motions with others on my team. Seems sort of unfair as they still have their own job to work on, but I guess that happens - I know they'll find someone soon - I just hope its in time for that person to take on some of the new initiatives I'll be launching in my final week (I know right - why am I working on NEW projects at this time!?) On the other hand I have been planning on (and working towards) this moment for a long time. I have known since Sophomore year of college that this was merely an inevitability, so it's nice to see it all come to fruition...the hard work has paid off and I now get to experience two of what I expect to be some of the greatest years of my life. Also, getting ready for this time - move and leaving work - has its benefits. A few friends hosted a going away party for me this weekend which was a ton of fun, and this last week will consist of a department lunch and two happy-hours! Sounds like fun to me!
Moving: as mentioned I'm moving to Bloomington in about 2 weeks and couldn't be more excited. The place my roommate and I secured sounds great - two floors (plus basement), W/D in unit, yard (for grilling), bonus room, larger bedrooms, and in the heart of campus (directly between the b-school and downtown; I'll spend the majority of my time between those two places so having this location is great!
So, I think with that, I'll sign off - have a great week everyone; you know I'll be trying to myself.
Sunday, July 12, 2009
My First Post (and hopefully not last)
Hello blogging world.
I'm going to be perfectly honest here; I have no idea if I'll stick with this or not, but I would like to. I have a little brother that has kept up his blog since early high-school through his freshman year and I've always been told that it's good to keep a journal - maybe that's how I'll treat this...my first attempt at recording my experiences. So, here we go:
A little about myself:
I have moved around my entire life (9 states, 16 cities, 20+ 'places of residence' and counting). I've known for a long time that I would ultimately pursue an MBA and now that time has come. I will be joining the MBA class of 2011 at the Kelley School of Business (Indiana University). I attended Purdue University for undergrad and studied Management and Marketing then; my studies at Kelley will be a extension of that (I'll likely major in Marketing and Strategic Management and join the Consumer Marketing Academy), as well as putting myself out there for Networking, Networking, Networking!
My ultimate goal is to gain a position in brand management at a large CPG firm. I've worked in Marketing Research for the past few years in both the Automotive and Greeting Card industries. I'm hopeful that I can utilize this experience (marketing related, and heavily analytical) to position myself for success as an ABM (Associate Brand Manager) in the CPG industry.
Proctor and Gamble hosts a Pre-MBA marketing summer camp for incoming first years. This is put on as a way to introduce new students to the Company, offer a chance for some early networking, and they even give you an internship interview at the end of the week. As that is coming up really quick and I've yet to hear anything I'm starting to lose a bit of hope (which is fine), but I still have to ask - how cool would that be!? Not many people get to start their MBA program with an internship interview (and/or offer) wrapped up.
I have 2 weeks left of work (crazy, I know!) and am getting really excited to start as a 'first year' with Jump Start on Aug 10. I move to Bloomington in about 3 weeks and have about a week to get settled and get my bearings straight around the town.
Wish me luck and have a wonderful rest of the summer - I'll do my best to keep this updated with my adventures in b-school.
I'm going to be perfectly honest here; I have no idea if I'll stick with this or not, but I would like to. I have a little brother that has kept up his blog since early high-school through his freshman year and I've always been told that it's good to keep a journal - maybe that's how I'll treat this...my first attempt at recording my experiences. So, here we go:
A little about myself:
I have moved around my entire life (9 states, 16 cities, 20+ 'places of residence' and counting). I've known for a long time that I would ultimately pursue an MBA and now that time has come. I will be joining the MBA class of 2011 at the Kelley School of Business (Indiana University). I attended Purdue University for undergrad and studied Management and Marketing then; my studies at Kelley will be a extension of that (I'll likely major in Marketing and Strategic Management and join the Consumer Marketing Academy), as well as putting myself out there for Networking, Networking, Networking!
My ultimate goal is to gain a position in brand management at a large CPG firm. I've worked in Marketing Research for the past few years in both the Automotive and Greeting Card industries. I'm hopeful that I can utilize this experience (marketing related, and heavily analytical) to position myself for success as an ABM (Associate Brand Manager) in the CPG industry.
Proctor and Gamble hosts a Pre-MBA marketing summer camp for incoming first years. This is put on as a way to introduce new students to the Company, offer a chance for some early networking, and they even give you an internship interview at the end of the week. As that is coming up really quick and I've yet to hear anything I'm starting to lose a bit of hope (which is fine), but I still have to ask - how cool would that be!? Not many people get to start their MBA program with an internship interview (and/or offer) wrapped up.
I have 2 weeks left of work (crazy, I know!) and am getting really excited to start as a 'first year' with Jump Start on Aug 10. I move to Bloomington in about 3 weeks and have about a week to get settled and get my bearings straight around the town.
Wish me luck and have a wonderful rest of the summer - I'll do my best to keep this updated with my adventures in b-school.
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)