MBA: Why focus?

You will now read why focus is important in a business school.

I am amazed at the reach of blogs. In less than 20 hours, people in 80 cities across 15 countries have accessed my blog. Here comes the post on "Focus", which I had promised in my previous post on "First quarter is the most important quarter." Although, I think Ritesh, my good friend and a fellow Boothie, will disagree with the emphasis I place on focus, I will stick to this personal view of mine.

Focus:

Focus in recruiting: Although I wanted to be an investment banker, I was seduced by the breadth of opportunities available at Chicago Booth. I knew that understanding each opportunity requires me to interact with those who have been there and have done that. Therefore, I tried to get my foot into the door of every career group. I was a member of Investment Banking Group, Entrepreneurship & Venture Capital Group, Private Equity Group, and Management Consulting Group.

Because I was seriously overstretched, I realized that I needed focus sooner than some of my friends who focused on just two industries. I was overwhelmed by the demand on time imposed by the need to reach out to second years, professionals and alums in so many industries. Moreover, the looming financial crisis knocked some sense into me.

I quickly cut out the noise, and focused on finding an Investment Banking internship. I realized that either you learn something and connect a little bit with many banks, or learn a lot and connect deeply with few. I chose to do the latter, and focused on finding the right bank for myself. It was a gamble. If I messed-up interviews with those few, my Investment Banking Career would have been over even before it kicked off. Meeting recruiters, alums and previous interns from those banks, and preparing for those meetings was a huge time-sink, and the pressure made the decision for me.

Focus worked well for me, and I am among the fortunate people who are going to the bank they wanted to go to.

Focus in finding leadership opportunities: In similar vein, you cannot be a co-chair of everything. A friend of mine who runs a popular student group told me that she rejected a person for the co-chair position because he was already officially involved in quite a few student groups. She considered him "not dedicated enough". Otherwise, he was one capable young man, and handsome too! Therefore, you need to find your niche. You have to volunteer for specific events, contribute to specific efforts and have to be seen as an active member of a specific group. There are broadly two ways to become a co-chair – through selection by existing co-chairs or through election by all current group members. Both require relationships with many people. Therefore, sooner you segment your market, better it is for you.

Focus in social setting: My intent was to get to know people in every region in the world. Am I not ambitious? Far less than Alexander the Great I guess, who wanted to conquer or kill everyone else. Nevertheless, I became a member of South Asia Business Group, European Business Group, Latin American Business Group, Chicago Asia Pacific Group, and Greater China Club. However, I realized that the Booth schedule is packed, and often the events conflicted with each other. As a result, choices, and the consequent focus, were forced upon me. I managed to form large number of good relationships in only those groups whose events I attended repeatedly. Therefore, save your money by subscribing to the groups you really care about.

Focus in personal life: You know all about it! Don't u? (Revised in response to some people's comments)

Thank you for reading this relatively long post. I dedicate it to Ritesh, who would agree with very little in it. My next post will be – "A second year is your best friend." Watch out!