Review 1

I finished the last of my Kellogg essays on Friday night. I would have preferred the completion date to have been Thursday, but unfortunately, my cold got the best of me and sent me to bed. My body needed the R&R, however, the deadline is approaching too quickly for sick days. I was hoping that my friends weren't like me, but they are. They disconnect from the world on Friday and don't reconnect until Sunday night, hence the lag in reviews. I didn't realize how quickly these dates would come, but sure enough - 3 days until D-day. Stu and I hashed out my essays last night. Sometimes I think I have my A-game and other times, I'm definitely coming off the bench.

It seems my problem is focusing. Why Kellogg? Why NOW? I know the "why now", but perhaps I'm not articulating as I should. To be frank, I'm bored and ready for a new adventure. The learning curve has straightened and I spend more time at work doing 'other things' than actual work. Hence this blog post. On the other hand, the business does not excite me anymore. Where do you go in a company if you are not interested in any of the other positions? You move sideways until you're willing to break out. This will hopefully be my step to break the mundane days I currently lead.

Back to the essays. I feel like all I write about is work, soccer, and Spinsters. There's more to me than that right? And if so, what is it?? Passion, introspective, evaluative - all themes these essays need to convey. Back to the grind.

It's Early

Working on weakness gets you to competence, working on strengths gets you to excellence.
-- Prof. Kim Cameron on why we need to work on both strengths and weaknesses.

Another Tweak

It's another Sunday on the Polo fields with Fear. The game I love so much has been a source of so much frustration and pain, but for no other reason than not being able to play. I went to pass the ball with the outside of my right foot, but hit a pothole, barely got the pass off, and quickly stepped off the field. It's official, my brace was lose and I now have another tweak. It's like notches on the belt - one more is never a good thing. I wish I had some incredible medicine that would heal the ligaments in my ankles, but all I can do is strengthen them and hope I miss that next hole.

It's been 5 days and the ankle is officially feeling better. It it wasn't for Marie and PT, I'm not sure what I'd do. She is truly a savior. I'm going to attempt to warm up in my women's game tomorrow. This is assuming the game happens with all this rainfall. I haven't quite decided if I'd rather the game be canceled or rather attempt to play. Another week would probably be a good idea for this mild sprain, but who said that I listen to good ideas. I've already decided to miss co-ed on Sunday. It's hard because I feel that I'm an important member of the Rip Tide back line. I played stopper last Saturday for the first time in years and I had a SOLID game. To go from feeling solid to injured is just frustrating.

Snail Mail

In the digital age where we are all connected via internet, text messaging, cell phone, or blackberry, snail mail seems to fall by the wayside. People envision this method of contact as still having horseman ride the letters across the country. Granted it's not the most efficient way for a response, but it may be one of the most intimate, in my opinion.

Sometimes good quotes need pretty colors.

Homecoming 2007

The mountain towers the football stadium and places itself in the bright blue sky. The cheers blaze - "shoulder to shoulder, we will fight, fight, fight fight fight!". It's the true treasure of college football. The big game - CU, an unranked opponent of number 3, OU. The endzone is packed with fans in red. They were all convinced that OU would come out on top. With a 24-7 lead at half, I was almost convinced as well. But not a moment too soon did CU start one of the best offensive/defensive drives I've witnessed from the sideline. It was breathtaking. The boys in black and gold put their heart into this game and came up on top - victorious - in one of the best games since CU trampled Nebraska in 2001.

The city was fully alive. We walked to Pearl to grab pizza at Old Chicago. Everyone was out in full force and celebrating. I'm not sure any of them went home between the game and the evening of debauchery.

It's days like that, that remind me why I fell in love with Boulder. Strangers are never strangers for long and friends are plentiful. It's your quintessential college town nestled at the base of the Flatiron mountains. The perfect weather begs you to walk to your destination instead of drive. I wish I had time to stay longer, but I don't think my body or liver would have liked it.

Simply Off

Do you ever have those days where you want a friendly voice and a big hug? They aren’t bad days, but by no means are they good. It’s a day you’d rather not have in your repertoire, but because it’s over, you move on. Yesterday, was that day for me. Not only did I run late all day, I just couldn’t grasp myself or articulate my thoughts. Both huge problems when you have the first of your business school interviews, Georgetown. I felt under prepared, but perhaps I couldn’t have prepared any better. I honestly can't decipher how it went, but seeing that's the exact feeling I had about the GMAT, I'm thinking positive.

I’m a bag of mixed emotions right now and stressed seems to be at the top. I’m excited for this weekend and seeing a bunch of old friends, but I realize I need more time for everything that is on my plate and specifically, more time for my essays. Some days I feel like I’m a competitive candidate and my story makes sense. Those days are offset by the ones where I wonder what the heck I’m doing. How can you radiate confidence if you’re not sure you’re confident? I need to take a step back and reflect.

I picked up a book yesterday called "Now, Discover Your Strengths". It was recommended by one of the panelists for the Forte Foundation. She said it helped her figure out who she is and how to articulate it. I'm hoping it will do the same for me. I also browsed a book titled, "You Don't Need to Have a Title to be a Leader". I took some notes and opted not to buy it, but hopefully those notes will help me convey my message. I am your classic behind the scenes leader. I am not a manager and I'm not in the management position, but I have developed leadership skills and I'm often at the forefront of an initiative. I easily adapt to where I'm needed, although I prefer to be in a realm that feeds off my current skill set. I'm hoping this book will help me focus the conversation I'm having with adcom reps and put forward my best foot with my essay. I guess only time will tell.

In the meantime, I continue to cultivate ideas and add to what I've already written. I have also started anew quite a few times because I didn't like the direction of the story. I was struggling with not repeating myself in my interview and I'm hoping to dig up more examples from my last 3 years at Ensemble.

"There's only so much you can do, but if someone doesn't give you the chance, there is nothing you can do." - Charlize Theron