Inside the London MBA

Summer Ball rocks to No Donuts for Hilda

The line-up might change every year, as may the playlist, but one thing that doesn't change is the presence of the London Business School Band - No Donuts for Hilda - at all the major social events in the calendar. Whether it's the MBA Tournament in Paris, MBA Admits Weekend, a Thursday night in Sundowners or the Summer and Winter Ball, you'll always find them playing to a packed house of students, staff and faculty.

So, we thought it was time they got a mention on this blog. Here they are playing at last Saturday night's Summer Ball, the traditional end of year party. And if you watch this and want to hear more, you can find extra clips on their You Tube site at http://www.youtube.com/user/LBSBAND

Mountain Biking Around London

Yesterday I took a 4-hr mountain biking course for beginners with Surrey Hills. The place is a two-hour drive away though only fifty miles from St. John's Wood. There are bikes and relevant gear (helmet, gloves and water bottle) for rent thus it seemed all quite easy. I got no pictures but promise the forest was beautiful and the trails challenging. I learnt a few basic maneuvers (e.g. moving along the bike, braking, corners) which I tried to set in practice unsuccessfully, evidenced by my biggest fall ever. Fortunately I came out in a reasonable shape though not spotless. I strongly recommend the experience but definitely upon practice in easier terrain and preferably on your own bike.

Some other MBAT notes

I should also add a few lines on my MBAT experience. Awesome!

I was part of the x-country race in which twelve of us ran seven kilometres across hills and mud around the HEC campus. I was also the captain of track & field events: 100, 400, and 1,500 meters; long jump; shot put and relay. In both: x-country and track & field, London Business School came first.

Indeed, there were some very skilled people out there, for example: Christian Wentzel got medals in the 100-meter race, relay, long jump and shot put, while Karen Milligan came second in x-country and first in the 1,500-meter race. People like Peter Biskup also did a great job putting the teams together and coordinating the events on the day.

It is by far one of the best events of my MBA experience and strongly encourage you all to be an active part of it in any way you can.

Bringing home the gold

An LBS three-peat it was at MBAT this year - our annual European MBA "Olympics"

For me, the experience was not quite what I had expected it to be. The nine hour bus ride over wasn't as long as I had dreaded. With stops before the border crossing (and almost leaving a couple people behind), a train container ride under the channel, some inter-bus activity (to be left unnamed), and lots of laughs.

The first night there, the teams all danced to the tunes of No Donuts for Hilda, our official band. I turned in early to make sure to rest up for the next day's activities. Spent the morning watching the badmitton tournement, along with the basketball team (kick another school's @ss), and the rock climbing team scaling up the wall of the gym. Around 11, I headed over to the lake, where the football, tennis and rugby games were happening. Also where our big red Booz(e) bus was parked.

The women's football started playing our first game at 11:30 - two beautiful goals by the unstoppable strikers - our team captain, and our macroeconomics professor :)  A bit after half-time, I subbed in for who usually is my defense partner. Less than two minutes into the game, I found myself on the floor, having attempted to take on the opposition, holding onto a very sorely sprained left knee. That was it, I was out of the games, and out of the whole weekend's competitions.

Heartbreaking to say the least. All those Saturday morning football trainings. All those 50 hours of salsa preparation. But after coming to terms with it, I realized things could've been worse and I should enjoy the good weather and the relaxation of being a spectator. I could even be one of the judges for the salsa competition.   

Luckily, one of the salsaros' girlfriend was a pro dancer, and learned in 4 hours what we learned in 4 weeks. No one could even tell she was the sub. And our team brought home the bronze! Tough competition, I'd say. I'm happy to see that the team did their best show ever.

And the Women's football team? The next games, they finished 9-0 and 6-0. 5-1 in the semi-finals. And 3-0 in the finals on Sunday! They brought home the gold!  And so did the men's football team too!! 

Though I didn't get to participate as much as I had anticipated, I know I have lots to look forward to next year. With Apples (my awesomest study group mate) and Stella (a fellow Texan) as the new Student Association sports reps, we're bound to have an even better time!

Beautiful European Places

After twelve weeks of hard work, I decided to take a break in Nice, Monte-Carlo and Luzerne. These places are so beautiful. For months I limited my weekends to Amsterdam and London and only by accident I ended up in Southern Europe, from where I moved to Switzerland by mere luck. I liked Switzerland and Monaco the most. Luzerne is so small and authentic, and with places like Mount Pilatus (2,132 meters high). Monte-Carlo is charming and just beautiful, and only a few minutes from Nice. This time I limited my travel to Europe because I had to be back in London for my last school term. Yet, there are many others who are either already working, or taking a long time off to do more serious travelling around Asia or South America. Indeed, our flexible MBA programme has given us a broad range of options to develop and enjoy.

Duke Duke Duke!!!!!

Somewhere in a land far far away, a team of brave warriors came together to take on the biggest challenge of them all.....the 2008 MBA World Rugby Championships.

These warriors landing on foreign shores, training hard and training well in order to achieve what had for so long eluded them - a place in the grand final of the World Champs.

Following an intense period of training both on and off the pitch, the LBS Rugby Football Club fielded two extremely capable and prepared teams for the 2 day event hosted by Duke University in Danville. Given our performance from the previous year, we started from a medium position in the seedings, with both teams pitched against competent opponents.

Both the Red (Warrior) Team and the Blue Team fought hard through terrible weather conditions in their initial matches, successfully securing positions in the quarter final and knocking out the Harvard 'B' Team, an important step in reclaiming the club position following the HBS dominance at the previous London tournament. Due to the fantastic playing skills and points accumulation, LBS 'A' (Blue Team) managed to finish top on the first day, and was seeded in the number one spot going forward to the final day activities.

The final day was a question of survival, with many members of the Red and Blue team broken and new recruits actively sought for some of the most prestigious positions on the field. These brave new warriors fought with verve and vigour, taking with them the team spirit into battle and successfully suppressing formidable opponents including Wharton 'A' who had already assumed a position in the final, only to be thrashed by the more capable and passionate LBS Blue Team.

Despite their dominance at the London tournament, HBS were nowhere to be seen in the final and an all-European showdown ensued with London pitched against the 2007 winners, UCD Smurfit in what was to be an epic battle. Running bravely through the mud the LBS warriors fought hard against a team of younger, fitter and well drilled opponents. Although at the final whistle the score-line reflected a Smurfit victory, no-one watching the match or leaving the field could be in any doubt as to the passion and thirst for the game shown by the LBS RFC.

The female RFC also did astonishingly well, almost bringing home the crown but unfortunately pipped at the post by North American teams who had a legacy of success and a much stronger level of experience.

The first final in ten years and a fantastic positioning of all teams in the final 16 is something to be extremely proud of. If you are going to join ANY of the clubs next year, then make sure it is the RFC. A brand of brothers (and sisters) who will go out of their way to support each other, battle for each other and show the true spirit of LBS...friends for life and without doubt the best network there is in any business school bar none.

Warriors Unite!!

      

LBS Men's Rugby Club

Milton Keynes Half-Marathon

A week ago, five of us travelled to Milton Keynes for a half-marathon. Steve McCurry rented a black Golf at Streetcar, and drove us there and back. The race route was hilly and with a few narrow paths but enjoyable. By chance, we ran into Nely Villegas, a Mexican studying at UCL and attending Entrepreneurship at London Business School. The six of us - all with different fitness levels, proudly made it in under two hours (and a few minutes). It is the first time I am in a race with friends and I really liked it. Karen kept smiling throughout the race and pushing me beyond my speed boundaries. Nely and I will likely run Paris marathon together next April and that will be awesome!

The Belle of the Winter Ball

So, I really should attend more social events here. There are quite a few of them. I have been going to about 50% of things. I mean, what can I say, putting up a 150-word blog once a month can be a full-time job. Anyways, I did go to the Winter Ball. And it was a lot of fun. The theme was James Bond and Casino Royale, and since I have had martinis in the past, I considered myself qualified to go. Everyone was dressed up and they had a poker tournament (one item of note is that in the actual book, they played baccarat and not poker). It was a great time. The thing is... great times like these require selfless people who are willing to put in a lot of work to plan -- to effectively receive nothing in return. Yes, I do work for LBS by posting blogs, but I get the line on the CV, the fan club, and job offers. For planning something that will adequately entertain over 300 people with live music, food, and drinks, somebody must put in a lot of work. For our class, that person is Hilary. She put in a lot of time to make sure that everything turned out perfectly. She also happens to be in my stream, and she consistently plans social events for our stream that are always fun. So much so that even I started showing up. So, if you are a prospective 2010 or beyond, you might want to think about what you can do to make your class as fun as possible. Maybe you can be the next Hilary.

Sidenotes:

1) I will be going to the annual Japan Trip in 3 weeks. I am very excited. Take full advantage of these wonderful trips when you are here.

2) I was asked by the Development Team to write a letter to Alumni panhandling for donations to help fuel the rock and roll lifestyle. I felt that it was about time to expand in to the print medium. I imagine that what comes next is global domination (from the Rupert Murdoch Guide to Life)

3) In May, there is a huge tournament called the MBAT, where numerous business schools compete in sporting events. It sounds like a lot of fun, but it will cost over 400 Pounds to go. I am considering either auctioning off my kidney or my body (whichever gets more money).

Short break

During the past weekend some nice events took place. First of all of course the annual London Business School Rugby tournament. The Rugby club really runs this school – those of us who participated took an early sitting in the Finance exam (yuk 7.15 is too early for Modigliani/Miller) and then took a coach to pitches near Heathrow. The London Business School male teams A and B faced Harvard A and B as well as INSEAD while the female team faced Wharton, Columbia and two more teams. The wind was chilling but at least it was not raining.

I played in the B team in the second row scrum. I still don’t really understand much of what is going on so my strategy was to hit anyone really hard who was not wearing my colour. That sort of worked – and I learned that it is beneficial not to have your hand on the ground (people can step on it) and not to fall down (people step on you). But it was great! The girls even won the tournament!

The next weekend my girlfriend and me flew to Munich and went skiing in St. Anton am Arlbergand in Obertauern – both among my favourite skiing areas. The snow was really good and even off-piste skiing and mogul slopes were great. The Sunday we spent in a beergarden in Munich at leisurely 22 degrees before flying back to London.

Last week the rugby team played the alumni - and the students left no doubt on who was better! A great dinner and drinks evening / night followed - all very classical in black tie / suit / dress outfit.

Next up is the Lisbon trip organized by the Portugal trip. There are multiple things happening every weekend – the challenge is to choose which one to take!

Enjoy,

Don

Tien's Happy Birthday

Yesterday was Tien's birthday. She is a wonderful girl from Taiwan, with experience in P&G, and planning to join an oil major upon graduation, next July. Her birthday party took place at the Ordnance Arms pub in St. John's Wood. I could see a few people coming and going, in the few minutes I was there. Here they are - in the picture: Tien and Christoph. Christoph is a German guy who used to work at Merck and is not joining a top consulting firm. They are both really cool. I hope Tien had a great time.

More pictures of the event

Brighton Half-Marathon

Yesterday, I ran the Sussex Beacon Half-Marathon in Brighton in 2:05hrs. The race and the city were a great experience and strongly recommend it. Leaving at 07:11hrs from London Bridge at 0 C was odd but by the start of the race (09:45hrs), the weather was much better, even sunny. The run was pleasant: through the city and then along the beach. I stayed at the New Steine Hotel (a few steps from the start of the race and from the beach), went to the pier and ate tasty Thai food. I really liked Brighton - so different from London: small and quiet and yet, a great quality experience and only an hour away!

The last laps of the MBA

Everytime someone has asked me "how is it going?" in recent weeks, I have had pretty much the same thought. This is a great time in the MBA for most second year students. Things seem a lot more relaxed now and most of us are beggining to plan our breaks and our future months in London or wherever we are going to be working post MBA. The typical subjects are:

-start dates i.e. when we all go back to corporate life

-future housing - for those staying in London this is probably a big one because staying around school, although very attractive has the huge downside of being expensive

-the big break

I have been planning my holiday for the last few weeks and we have shortlisted a few candidates. Luckily staying in London gets you close to so many great destinations that we are spoilt with choice. We pondered over Costa Rica for weeks but then had to drop it for multiple reasons. We have now set sights on Africa.

A few of us decided to scout around some burbs for future accomodation. We ended up picking Hampstead for our first outing. Of course we ended up not seeing any flats because the ladies decided to go shopping on the high street. We were also blessed with the opportnuity to eat the best Crepes ever, See attached pic for proof. This place has been serving crepes in Hampstead for 40 years and the awards they have received are well justified.

One other thing many of us are looking forward to is the upcoming Portugal trip. We will be going there with the Portuguese club in March. It's a shame that I missed most of the cool trips that happened in the first year. But I was determined to go for at least one such trip before graduating.

Anyways, It has already become very evident that this time is going to be severely missed and I want to make the most of it while I can.

Kyle's Birthday

Yesterday's was Kyle's birthday. He is an American man with a big smile and charming personality. I remember him most with a beer in his hands, when at the pub, or with glamorous movements, when presenting in class. Stream B (made of 70+ students who shared the classroom during our 1st year) and others were invited to the event. We drank, ate and laughed a lot. Interestingly I did no take a single picture of Kyle but here are some of others.

The first weeks of Spring term for us 2nd years

Mohit's farewell party became hillarious when Shri invited Mohit for a dance. Khizar Khan was enthusiastic about the event too. On the other hand, our Brand Management week was made of friendly encounters after a long time no see.

The end of the second autumn term

My second autumn term at London Business School ended a couple of weeks ago. I am now in Mexico, enjoying a great life! (see my sisters and mom in picture)

Last term, I invested most of my time in activities related to the Consulting Club, lectures and travelling. There was some running and even some learning about opportunities in Private Equity and Venture Capital (surprisingly, the job search never ends)

My experience as head of training for the Executive Committee of the Consulting Club was really worth it. The club is really demanding, being the biggest club on campus, and is also a great opportunity to help and learn. Last term only, we delivered over 670x30-minute 'crack-a-case' training sessions and improved the quality of trainers by recruiting more experienced 2nd-year students to help out. This is a considerable improvement over last year's figures. I am really proud of this

My electives were Project Management, Analysis of Marketing and Decision Making, and Thinking Strategically. The latter, delivered by Jean-Pierre Benoit (one of the best professors at school) became one of my favorite lectures in the MBA programme

I continue to appreciate living in London, able to travel to other European countries so easily and even enjoy such a dramatic weather. Last term, my mother and aunt came to visit and we went around France, Spain and Netherlands. Again, a great time

The good habit of long-runs over the weekends has come back as we prepare for Paris Marathon in April 6. I am so excited and hoping I do better this year

Finally, the never-ending job search might actually have ended, difficult to tell. There are some untapped opportunities I cannot neglect and must try

WOWOWIE ENTREPRISES & INT'L SERVICES

Lunch time (i.e. about 3 PM) in between 2 company presentations, Irfan (one of my roommates for the trip) and I felt we could use a little bite. Despite my one stop strategy (hearty breakfast around 9AM and then barely anything for the rest of the day) I was keen to try some local food as Irfan suggested.
We were wandering around the International Financial Center mall, asking people around when we ended up in this secret wing where we found this authentic Filipino food place: Wowowie. No tourist around was a good sign! We ordered the best Filipino food around to eat in, in this lovely little shop, no bigger than the lifts of the tall buildings!
We had some lovely beef and chicken with pancit bihon and karioka for desert. A delight! Not to mention the very warm welcome from Marria and Siony as you can see on the pix!
So if you're in Hong-Kong, need some good seat-in or take away food, just go to Wowowie, it's the Shop 133, 1st floor at 19 Des Vouex road, Central Hong-Kong!
Tel: +852 2522 3727
Mobile: +852 9105 6903

Santa Pub Crawl 2007

The fall term might still be in its last gasps, but the partying has already begun. I attended one of the great London Business School traditions this past Saturday - the Santa Pub Crawl. A night of 400+ students dressed in Santa outfits, spreading merriment, bewilderment and various other 'ments around the streets and bars of London. Other than a few traumatized children, a great time was had by all. I somehow managed to come home sans any remnants of my Santa costume (disclaimer: Santa costumes worn over regular clothes), so I can only hope it was given a good home/burial.

But enough talk, I'll let the pictures below do the 'splainin. Preparation for next term's job search begins now, and on top of the clubs, event planning and competitions I'm involved with, time is scarce. Conventional wisdom says I should probably study for my accounting exam too.

Thanks to Mike O. for the pics and for bringing sexy back.

Goal! Goal! Goal!

I think it's safe to say that at least 25% of the MBA class was on a sports trip last weekend. The guys football team, and girls rugby and football teams were in Barcelona last weekend for our own tournaments.

For me, it was less about the winning than it was about building up the team spirit, learning how to play better football, and having fun. There were 10 of us playing for the Women's Football team - coincidently all from the Americas - except for Sandra - my German study group mate who had lived in Barcelona before. I'd say it was the first time we've actually played as a real team - we had previously only practiced periodically on Sunday mornings. And thanks to the support from our coach, Guy, from the Men's Football team, we saw each player shine in her own way.

As for me, having never played team or contact sports before, the whole experience was exhilarating. There's something so real when you feel the pain in your whole body the next days from the intense strain of the games and the cold. Favorite memory: Simone roaring out the taxi window back at the hustlers on the way to the club Saturday night. Worst moment: discovering that we were all shafted by the budget hotel: no heating and no hot water. Oh, but in the end, it was a trip totally worth it.

Ah yes, and the results were a draw:

IESE 3 - LBS 2

INSEAD 4 - IESE 1

LBS 1 - INSEAD 0

The best game was the friendly match to the ones who wanted to play one more. Thanks to the partners who refereed for us, cheered for us, and played goalie for us in the last match.

Cheers to the 2007-2008 LBS Women's Football Team!

London Business School 40 - INSEAD 0

Well I think the title probably captures it all...... A brave group of 58 Rugby warriors set out on the Eurostar to Paris this weekend. The mission - to return the BCG Trophy to its rightful position in London. Following an extended period of travel and culture we arrived on the battlefield of Fontainebleau. Warming up on the sideline, a group of victory hungry and focused individuals, we immediately won the mental battle and forced our opponents into the admission that they did not, in fact, have a "suitable" front row. Uncontested scrums would not be at all to our advantage, having spent the past 6 weeks building up the strength and quality of our pack......

So into battle we went, and within 15 minutes it became clear that this would be the year of London Business School. The rugby was fantastic, the tackles hard and fast, and shortly into the first half the "mighty" INSEAD had fallen to the tune of three tries. The whitewash continued, and the London Business School R.F.C. demonstrated the quality of rugby any club team would have been proud of. Despite a few injuries on the pitch (the team doctor was busy!) the overall outcome was hugely positive. INSEAD failed to score a single point and the warriors left the pitch having put 40 points past their opponents.

We were kindly hosted by our sponsors BCG in the evening and set about, once more, broadening our cultural understanding of the local city (with the odd beverage along the way) and returned the next morning victorious, over-joyed and hungry for the next tour!

In case anyone missed it, the final score was:

London Business School 40 - INSEAD 0

and the BCG trophy is now well placed back in the rugby locker on Park Road - vive le London Business School!!!!!!

The Secret Diary of Steve Jobs!

So I feel the time has come for bloggers to unite, one and all and give a hand to one our MBA clan!

My colleague and friend Gabriele is on a mission to 'shadow' Steve Jobs, the brain of Apple Inc. and one of the most unconventional CEOs in business history. We had the good fortune of studying the rise, fall and rise of again of Steve during our Understanding General Management (UGM) classes and I have to say he is certainly a 'leader' rather than a 'manager', a visionary and a sure fire indication that success in business is more complex than simply having the right 'tools'.

Gabriele has worked hard to contact Steve through a number of avenues and has his own blog dedicated to shadowing Steve which you can read by clicking here 

There is a rather famous 'Fake Steve ' blog that has actually mentioned Gabriele's efforts (click here to read it) and although not entirely complimentary (this is the usual 'style' of the blog so it is actually quite in keeping with how Mr. Jobs himself might actually write!) it will increase the chances that the real Steve will actually read it. Rumour has it that Steve Jobs does actually read the 'Fake Steve' blog so there is some hope for Gabriele.....

The shadowing project (although now no longer compulsory) provides the opportunity to spend up to a week with a high profile manager/CEO/CFO etc. watching how they 'do business' in real terms, in the work-place and whilst following their normal, daily routine. I think it is a fantastic idea, although at present have no idea who I want to shadow (now that Steve Jobs is taken!!!). London Business School is very supportive of experiential learning and we are encouraged to really experience business within the corporate setting rather than simply be 'spoon-fed' a business education. It is one of the main reasons why I like the school curriculum and why I believe the students here are a bit more rounded when they enter the work-place!

So although 'Fake Steve' is not a big fan of business-school education, the hope is that the 'Real Steve' might realise that what Gabriele is trying to do is simply emulate this experiential learning but on a grander scale. I personally wish him every success and promise that next time the 'Mac parade' happens I will come along with my shiny white MacBook and support his efforts. Anything as high profile as shadowing someone like Steve will not only be a coup d etat for Gabriele but also a great achievement for us at London Business School....

If you wished to do the same, then have a look at his blog and send him a message of support!

More Tattoo!

What a treat! African food, pisco sour, bhangra AND salsa dancing all in one night! Not to mention all the cute kids at the Halloween Party during the day. It was quite tiring as a volunteer photographer for the day, but I had a great time. Can't wait till next year! (As Kajra Re is stuck in my head...)

TATTOO!!!!!

So my fellow bloggers have been asking me where I have been.....'off the blog scene' for a week or so I say but this is a tactical maneouvre on my part! Why? Because I wanted to be the first to blog about this year's amazing international multi-cultural event that is TATTOO!

So what is it?

1. An amazing multi-cultural show with representatives from dozens of countries all over the world
2. An opportunity to experience the national dress, traditions, food and entertainment of 50+ nations
3. A chance to learn all about your business school class-mates and see them in their own cultural surroundings
4. The best deal in London - £15 for an all-you-can-eat international buffet and booze cruise!

This year we were entertained by two student bands, a mariachi group, flamenco dancers, gypsy musicians, samba dancers, indian music and dance......the list truly goes on and I could not do justice to all the entertainment that was laid on for our delight in this short blog - you will just have to come to next year's event or check out the photos which I am sure will start appearing on the school website soon...

For my own cultural stall (the Great Britain and Ireland club) we had a combination of 'toffs' and 'chavs' as well as some good ol' english grub - fish & chips, sausage & mash and the ever-popular cream teas. We discovered that for next years event we will go heavy on the cream teas and light on the fish & chips. Even if the most popular of our national foods was the sweet, it was good to have people coming back for more and telling us it was the best dessert they had ever tasted.

Oh and to top off the evening England won the rugby as well!!! All in all a great night for all :o)

Best study group: B9

That happened last week at the end of the Managerial Economics class. The lecturer, excellent one by the way, very funny too (no wonder he's French!) made an announcement: "I have an announcement to make. Somebody's turning 30 today. I told myself "hmm interesting, somebody in the stream is born the same day and the same year as me". Then he added "being 80 in the room, the odds are that he will be somebody's birthday every week so we are not gonna celebrate them all". And I thought "this is a bright teacher".

But whose birthday was that? Well when one of my study group mate stood up, I was like "crap, that is me". I was quite embarrassed and extremely touched at the same time. All the more touched as they pulled out from nowhere the biggest cake I had ever seen. Alex invited the all stream to have a bite at the cake, which everybody did. That was quite impressive. So as soon as you receive your offer from the school, make sure you're in study group B9, because that is the best one.

PS: Alex, Jack, Kanwal, Sangyoung, Udi: a big thank you!

Sore body and a full stomach

Yesterday, my Spanish flatmate D was singing Manu Chao’s Me Gustas Tu and since our American flatmate hadn’t heard of him, we let him listen to it (from my ipod) and showed him a video from his Mano Negra times. Seeing a young boy dancing on the video reminded me of the girl from Madonna’s Hung Up video. And this in turn had me jumping up and down to the beats, ready for a run – or better yet, for yoga. I was told that Triyoga in Primrose Hill was where Madonna goes for yoga so I looked their schedule up and found a Yoga 1 course at 15:00.

Invited my best friend to come along (she has been battling allergies all week). I ran to campus to pick up my bike and we cycled to the studio – one of my new favorite places in London.

A cute café up front, smells of incense, warm wood floors and furnishing, and racks of super-high-quality yogawear. 20% student discount. Yeah. Mats, polsters and blocks were all provided in each room. The main one had a little stage up front for the instructor, and colorful window panes. Sunshine pouring in cheerfully. I hadn’t done yoga in over 3 months, except for the Kundalini session I went with S to at the International Youth Hostel last week. It was wonderful to feel the down and up dog stretches again – building up the heat through deep breathing and holding simple poses. I’m plenty sore today.

Heavy drinking before and during our Karaoke session at LuckyVoice might’ve added to the pain.

Now though, my stomach is happy – full of a wonderful Chinese lunch-dinner and mooncakes organized by a Singaporean and a Malaysian to celebrate the Chinese Mid-Autumn Festival. The best part was debating over the "right" versions of the holiday legends. Apparently my versions have been Americanized.

Help....I am trapped in the Windsor Castle!!!

Now I don't want to alarm anyone here, so I will point out straight away that we fortunate few at London Business School have our very own 'Windsor Castle', the spiritual home of the MBA 2009s for the past few weeks and a great asset to the school community. Although not 'officially' part of the campus, the fact that we have our own secret entrance into the pub through the back and have a 'welcome' sign that actually sits on the wall within the courtyard that borders the school, I think technically we could say the pub is on our campus! The Windsor provides a very homely surrounding for us newbies and a place where you can almost guarantee seeing one or more class-mates after a hard day or week, sinking a few cold 'Maisel Weiss' German beers and chatting about the previous few days.....

Friday was our final day of UGM - Understanding General Management, and as a Pass/Fail course we were fortunate enough to be fairly confident that without any real shockers the vast majority of us will have passed comfortably. We had a couple of rather interesting assignments over the week (it is weird to be having homework again having spent the last seven years doing a 'proper' job) including describing our 'dream' job and also writing our own eulogy. The latter assignment might be considered a bit morbid by some and so we were given the option to write our retirement speech instead. It was very interesting to see the correlation between the dream job and eulogy in some cases and the divergence in others. Conceptually some of us are here to find the dream job that will also be part of our life path (myself included in this group) whilst others are fairly sure they wish their 'job' and 'life' to be two separate entities. Either way it was very interesting to see how our minds our working already and even more interesting to find a future potential 'Governor of Mars' in our class!!

So with a slight edge of confidence (we have not found out if we have actually passed yet!) my 'stream' caught up in the Windsor for a few hard earned beers, settled down to watch the rugby, and despite my home team getting a thrashing from South Africa the atmosphere was enough to temper my disappointment and make the evening pass away without so much as a tear....

The fact that the landlord lost a bet on the score and was serving free pints to those of us lucky enough to be in the rugby club did help :o)

So here it is...the mighty, the wonderful, 'Windsor':





     Windsor Castle Pub, Park Road





Next time you fancy a pint on Park Road make sure to come by and if you can find me amongst the throng of MBAs I might even shout you a pint of Maisel Weiss!

San Francisco Exchange

Its been awhile since I last wrote a blog entry, so what have I been doing? Of course there was the internship. But the less said about that the better. Now I'm in San Francisco on exchange at UC Berkeley. I have much more positive things to say about the Bay area, so I think I should focus there.

But first I feel like providing some advice if you are currently thinking about internships for next year. Firstly,  do your homework and research exactly where you are going, what you will be doing and who you will be working with \ for, before you commit. My other top tip is that if you aren't sure exactly what you want to do then do something really different, what do you have to lose?

Berkeley is amazing. I came here 2 days after finishing my internship and classes have been running for nearly 3 weeks. Yes their term starts early! My first purchase was a mountain bike, renting an apartment came third on the list, after getting a phone.

I have been training on the Olympic athletics track, running in the hills behind Berkeley and mountain biking around Mt Diablo. I have a weekend of sailing in the bay this weekend and some golf lined up for next week. If you like the outdoors lifestyle then this is the place to be.

I also met a lot of other students and we have been having a great time exploring the area. Last week we went to San Francisco and checked out the 'summer of love 40th anniversary concert'. See pictures.

I spent the weekend in Mexico for my study group mates wedding. CONGRATULATIONS Poncho! There were lots of LBS students attending. The wedding started at 9pm and the party went on until the next morning. By the end it was only the Bride & Groom, some teenagers, the MBAs and very tired looking sets of the wedding couples parents. The Mexicans certainly know how to party. Hopefully, I will be able to post some pictures when I get them.

   

And I thought I knew about time management!!!

So here I am, settled in the very nice Seminar Room trying very hard to catch up with my new MBA life....

My previous job was all about time management, balancing a range of different meetings, clinics, treatment sessions and staff work. My new 'job' is much more simple yet 10 times more complex...how on earth do I fit in the million different social opportunities, clubs and sports around the class schedule. It is a challenge and a half and I have never before been quite so reliant on my beloved Mac and iCal to 'sort my life out'. But the fact I am having to 'worry' about how much of the social scene I can squeeze into the day is nothing to complain about and the fact my diary is already full for the week reflects just how amazing this new experience is!

I am now signed up for the Rugby tour to Peru (12 days of socialising, working on local volunteer projects, playing rugby and the odd 'small beer'!) and we have pretty much most of our outlook calendar filled until Christmas. The range of classes include General Management, Statistics, Strategy and Leadership to name but a few. The schedule definitely balances work with a life and despite the many (many many) warnings about not over-stretching ourselves, the opportunities are amazing. This week it has been the Pratham Club (helping education street kids in India), the Responsible Business Club and Rugby Club on my radar. Next week will be the Finance Club, drinks with the new Dean, the ever-popular Sundowners (basically free drinks sponsored by a club) and a whole host of dinners, pub crawls and parties with friends.

Bottom line is that if you want to really learn about time management, you can safely swap that dry workshop offered by your employer and sign up for an MBA at London Business School -  it a way cooler way to learn how to balance that diary!!!

Watch this space.....

Preparing for the Start of the Term

Alternate title: "The Ongoing Destruction of my Liver." I'm about to head off to the fifth night of the Flathunter's Pub Crawl, a two week long party that is designed to meet flatmates and share advice. Finding a flat and moving in seems to be foremost on everyone's minds right now, although, after a few hours, the next round of drinks seems to work its way to the top of the list.

I am lucky enough to have already found flatmates and a place, however, my mind won't be at ease until I am physically lying in my new bed. Living in a hotel may contribute to my Hollywood-like image, but it is certainly not the most economical way to carry on.

Most other preparation, for me, revolves around getting situated in London and the UK. Trying to look the right way before crossing a street, trying to keep my mouth from being agape when bills come, trying to improve my umbrella unfurling speed, etc.

As someone who has moved around a lot, this currently just feels like another move; the reality of me being in a classroom soon has yet to fully sink in. After meeting many of my new classmates, and tasting a bit of London, however, I am excited to embark on this new journey.

Chat online with Manish and David Simpson, Associate Dean, MBA Programme

Chat online with David Simpson, Associate Dean, MBA Programme, and Manish Gajria, MBA2008 and MBA blogger, on Wednesday 25 July, noon (New York), 17.00 (London), 21.30 (Mumbai).

Join this BusinessWeek.com hosted live event and put your questions to Manish and David about everything from campus culture and living in London, to admissions requirements and the essays that make the Admission’s Committee stand up and take note.

For full details on how to take part visit the BusinessWeek.com website.
The event starts at 17.00 London time.

View the transcripts from previous events.

The Race to the Finish

Where did the year go? It only seems like 5 minutes ago, when we were sat in Lords Cricket ground during the course orientation and now we are within sight of the end of the first year. I'm just relieved that I listened to the people who advised me that a 2 year MBA was the only option. I have so much more I want to do next year.  Including, the exchange to San Francisco, some great elective courses and perfecting my French.

The first year has been extremely hectic at times, but every part of it has been enjoyable. I now have hundreds of new friends, new skills and have tried new sports. It has been a productive time and I really feel that I have moved into the fast lane.

All that is left are lots of end of year parties, including several BBQs, dinner at Cafe de Paris and a talent show. Oh yes, and then there are the exams. I have Finance, Accounting, French, Operational Mgmt and Economics next week. These exams can sometimes get in the way of your social life and it always seems to be the case that the parties and the exams come together, at the end of semesters. 

There won't be much time for me to reflect on the past year. I will be starting my internship at Barclays Wealth Management 2 days after the last exam. A large portion of the students will be missing the last week of term as they have been sent abroad by their employers for training. The best advice I can give regarding the summer internship is to make sure you build as many contacts with your current employer as possible. It is infinitely easier to secure employment somewhere you have a proven record.

The day after my internship finishes I will be flying to San Francisco to start the autumn semester at Berkeley. If you are starting the MBA this year, make sure you make the most of any summer holidays you have before the course starts. You don't know when you will have another.

Congratulations to fellow blogger Sean who is the new SA President. Another fellow blogger, Martha and I will be in charge of the running club next year with help from Joe and Karen. We are planning to participate in some marathons and other races.   

"Doth the moon shine the night we play our play"

The 3rd annual London Business School summer play was held last week on 2 nights. Roughly 3 weeks of preparations culminated in a night of 3 performances which included scenes from Denise Deagan's "Daisy pulls it off", Charles Webb's "The Graduate" and William Shakespeare's "A mid summer night's dream". The summer play was organized by the acting and creative communications club and was attended by over 200 members of the school community including students, alumni, faculty, staff and partners.

The plays were directed by David Lightbody (MBA2003) and John Lightbody, who have been involved with the club since its inception. The best part about this experience was that while the summer term of our MBA has been grueling and there was really no time for anything but projects and homework, every minute spent on rehearsals was unbelievably relaxing. Most of the participants had taken acting I classes offered by the club. I was an exception though and it was a pleasure learning from John and David (thanks for shepherding us!). One of our actors had painstakingly put together wonderful costumes for our play (case in point ‘the magical Puck’). I played the part of Snug the joiner in "A midsummer night's dream". Kudos to the school facilities staff that helped us put together a great night with food, drinks and performances.

It was great to participate in this fabulous event because it was an opportunity to exercise our creative sides (and as they say, use the left side of our brains).

Mighty Mighty London!!! MBAT Champions 2007...

It is official, London Business School are the greatest athletes in the MBA world!

The London squad spent the weekend battling against the best the other business schools around Europe could muster and destroyed them in almost every sport. London Business School won rugby (men’s and woman’s), cross country, tug of war, swimming, volleyball, salsa, woman’s football, cricket, partying, drum playing and many more.

MBAT took place at the HEC campus just outside Paris. The squad travelled together on the Eurostar on Thursday and returned victorious on Sunday night. Other schools involved included Oxford, Cambridge, CASS, MBS, IESE, IE, HEC, Rotterdam and Bocconi.

With a squad of around 250, London Business School was the best represented of any school at MBAT. We also had the distinct advantage of having a big red bus full of beer. This kept the athletes and supporters refreshed for the many battles that took place on the field and provided a base for post competition parties.

I was involved in some of the running events. The standard was extremely high. For example the 1500m was won by a guy from IESE in 4:21. The same guy thrashed me in the cross country by 5 minutes. However, Cross Country was a team competition and because London had 5 people in the top ten we won. Overall, in athletics London came a close second.

Thanks to the SA and in particular Martyn Buttenshaw for organising the London team this year. We will be back stronger than ever next year.

Pictures from the weekend. Thanks Brendon -

http://picasaweb.google.com/brendon.moss/MBAT2007?authkey=_qfo5eCM6so

Marthita Marathon

Difficult to believe but I made it to the finish line after 5 hours. This was my first marathon, which filled me with great excitement on the day. However, my smile only lasted about 20 miles, after which, it was really difficult to keep going. The running club and Steve -blogger-, did a great job getting me ready for the day. Other than my foot injury, it all went as planned. I am thankful to those who supported me on-line and in practice. It was a fantastic experience; I already want to do it again.

Pictures: 17 hrs before the start of the race, I went to pick my number and bought a couple of souvenirs. Minutes before the race, drinking, thoughtful. And, after...

Marathon Mishap

Last Sunday was London Marathon day. I set off on the familiar route to the start line at Greenwich and I thought I was set for a good finish time. The training had been injury free and smoother than any previous year I have competed.

Then the ultra reliable London Transport system failed and I was stuck 3 miles from the start line. The only alternative rail route would have guaranteed getting to the start late. So, together with hunders of other runners, I walked the last few miles in a desperate bid to get to the start. Unfortunately, by the time I arrived at the start area the place was a ghost town. Still cursing the docklands railway I started the marathon.

I spent the next 2 hours weaving between people dressed in Rhino suits or as Rupert the Bear in a deperate bid to get ahead. It got me nowhere. I did 5 miles at 12 minute mile pace. This was very frustrating and by now I was cursing the DLR and the London Marathon organisers. Eventually, I resigned myself to the fact that I wasn't going to break away from the crowds and tried to enjoy the festivities that surround the marathon. The support from the crowds was phenomenal. I finished eventually in 3.56.

I was cheered on Monday by being accepted on the international exchange programme. I managed to secure a place at Berkeley HAAS for one semester next year. Since the start of the MBA, I have realised that my lack of international experience really stands out amongst my peers. This made me quite concerned when my first round exchange application was rejected. Berkeley was not my original first choice, however I have a growing interest in entrepreneurship and getting Berkeley must be fate giving me some kind of sign. I'm definitely looking forward to spring in California.