Less Could be More

Ugh ... Group work ... There is nothing I dread more than a group of seven strong willed people trying to agree on something and maintain friendships.  After a two hour meeting, I needed to run badly.  I ran four miles and felt like I could have kept going forever.

I'm so incredibly happy I started running when I did.  It is always the same, and it always makes me feel better.  Every time, I put on my shoes, and running gear, prep my phone, and put one foot in front of the other, repeatedly.  No matter if I run one miles or six miles, I still experience the "running high."  Apparantly, this is part of what addicts people to running.  That incredible feeling of "I can do anything" you get immediately when you stop running.

I kept thinking today about our group meeting.  Seven people.  Four extremely engaged loud personalities.  Not a lot of room for compromise.  Two shy guys.  One seemingly indifferent, but always adding valid points.  I felt like we talked at each other for an hour and a half about an assignment that is ungraded.  There must be a better way to handle this.  I'm not sure why, but in undergraduate I always received amazing feedback from group members.  I feel like that is not so much the case here.  Before I set out on my run I sent an overly dramatic text a good friend:

Me: True of False, Group projects were designed to ruin your life.

Him: No one is dumber than the person that thinks they are smart.
Me: Thanks Buddha

Is it me?  It very well could be.  I think I'm smart and I have good ideas... Maybe I'm too aggressive.  I'm going to use this as a social experiment.  When we meet again Monday ... I am going to say as little as I can.  I'm going to switch to observing the situation and see how it works.  It's not how I'm use to acting in groups ... but maybe this group needs less of my thoughts all the time, and good thoughts when I really think they need to be brought up.

180 Miles Down 135 Miles To Go

Right Track

I found a new motivation to run.  In the past ... I have always run to be able to eat more cookies, or a second helping of pasta.  Now, It's to avoid homework.  I am not even in school yet, and I have homework that is due before the first day of class.  So today, I ran from homework.  I have roughly 40 hours of homework to do BEFORE classes start, and assignments to do and turn in before I have my first class.

It's been a personal goal to get my MBA for a long time, and I've always known it wouldn't be easy.  I am just enjoying having no responsibilities so much!  I spent two hours printing homework to study, reviewing emails, ordering textbooks, preparing documentation of vaccines, student loan amounts, financial need, etc.  After my printer had been running for three minutes straight ... I got overwhelmed and suited up in my Nike Gear and headed out for a long run to clear my head.  When I got back someone had sent me this article:

http://www.businessinsider.com/best-business-schools-in-the-world-2013-7?op=1

Boston University has been ranked top 10 MBA to receive in the world.  Before I knew it my eyes started tearing up.  What was going on?  My friends are crying over things like arguments with husbands, and babies, and promotions.  For such a long time, I wondered if going back to school was going to end up being worth it, and here was an article telling me point blank, "Yes, It's worth it."

Sometimes thinking about doing something that is completely outlandish is more difficult than actually doing it.  When I got home and started my finance homework, it wasn't nearly as overwhelming as I anticipated.  I know this is only the beginning though.

 

145 Miles Down 170 Miles To Go

Graduate School

Mile 2!! I'm making my first major change.  Today I mailed my acceptance letter to Graduate School.  I'm getting an MBA.  To be fair, I started making this decision months ago when I took the GMAT and put together an application.  I've spent a lot of time and research trying to decide if this would be the best next move for me.  My career started in IT Consulting and moved to Internal Operations Consulting.  I think I've stayed in this area for as long as I have because I hate problems.  I can't stand when things don't get done correctly when it's possible.  I enjoy fixing things and saving time and money for people.  There are so many things about Consulting that made it difficult for me to have the kind of life I wanted, primarily traveling Monday - Friday working 12 hour days.

At the risk of sounding like every other college graduate, I want my work to matter.  Ultimately, I want to be realigning processes and making improvements in a hospital.  As an Operations Consultant, I am currently in the health care industry.  A couple years ago, I spent two weeks in the hospital.  After seeing everything that can happen and go wrong ... I would love to be in the position to help improve that environment.  Plus, who doesn't want to go back to college life for two more years?  So ... I'll be quitting my job, trading in my business casual for jeans, and moving to a new state in six months!

If I keep making drastic changes like this after every two miles ... I could be a foot taller living in Australia next year working as a professional soccer player.

2 Miles Down 248 Miles To Go