Here's to a new opportunities and new experiences! Happy New Year!

Parties and Pajamas

The last few days have been a welcome recharge period. I have spent a lot of it in my pj's. There has been shopping, Mexican food, dinners and a few parties thrown in. It's been great to be home, be lazy and catch up with my family. I really needed this!

Home Sweet Home

I got in last night and was greeted by my family in baggage claim wearing santa hats and garland necklaces. So awesome! Was great to see them after a long and tiring flight.

In true San Diego fashion we hit a taco shop on the way home and picked up some rolled tacos. Yum! Good to have some real Mexican food again. Finished off the evening with some Sprinkles cupcakes and crawled into bed.

Glad to be back!

Rolling up the sidewalks

When class is in session it is hard to remember that Bloomington is a small town. After taking our friends to the shuttle and Charlton too, it got really quiet. I dropped a box off at school and it was pretty eerie, where is everyone?! Why isn't anyone studying?! Oh wait. No more class, or core.

When I wasn't playing shuttle driver, I cleaned out my closet and dropped off my cast-offs to Goodwill and cleaned off my bookshelf. Oh and spilled root beer on my laptop. Good times!

On more night in here in B-Town, then I am Cali bound too. A little relaxing and sun should do me good.

you are wonderful, and you kept fighting to the end....

Want to ramp up and try it again? :)

Great job.
And its just beginning…

You are a great class – keep positive, keep upbeat, keep smiling.

Don’t have a lot of clever, witty sayings – but I do have a simple and sincere thank you for you – thank you.

So, what’s the last Friday (and maybe a Saturday here or there) tune?

C’mon, it can’t be anything but: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_FF22cBZJsU (you have to feel a little like a champion)
(always around if you need me, I will be updating you soon on the process for grades)

((I really am proud of you))


Our Core Chair really does know how to pick a girl up off the floor

Final Final & Friday Recap

I had all of the intentions to write a huge wrap up post for yesterday, but in between activities I was too burnout and then after getting my exam results back I wasn't really in the mood.

Econ was another morning final, so we left our complex at 8:15 so we could get there on time and get a seat and get all set up. Felt okay going in, but it was a brutal 33 questions. I took all but 3 minutes of the 3 hours provided. ugh! Afterward most of us were loitering around like a bunch of zombies in the atrium. When everyone had finished up we headed down to Yogi's to unwind a little.

Then it was back to the apartment where Charlton took a nap and I vegged out in front of the TV and played around online. After partially recharging our batteries we headed back to campus for Kelley Iron Chef that was being held in the HPER. There were 4 teams of second years that had to work with the secret ingredient...potato! I was the only 1st year judge and got the first bite of all the various dishes, 3 from each team. There were some great items and everyone did a great job. It was a great way to celebrate....

But for every little up there is always a down to bring you back to reality. We had already got our operations grade earlier (ouch!) but we got an email that econ had already been graded. None of us could just let those exams just sit in our mailbox so before we headed to the end of the core party we thought we would swing by and pick up our tests. BAD IDEA! It put me in a crummy mood to see it and there was no way that I could go out after. Just need to hide out at the apartment. So while I was bummed I didn't get to hang out with everyone it was good to just have some time to myself and go to bed early.

But whatever happens happens. It's all over now

Why my Management Professor is the Coolest

Because he sends our assignments with comments like this on them:
















Love it!

And its over!

For better or for worse, all of the Core is behind me. It's a weird feeling but I know I am going to be a little bummed not to see my team's sleepy faces on Monday morning but I know I will be happy to sleep in. Some of the toughest weeks of my life are behind me, but who knows what will lie ahead!?

So close you can almost taste it!

3 more hours and then no more Core! What a ride but I am glad that its almost over...Yogi's here we come!

Is it Friday yet?

Finals week, and this is what I have been reduced to! A slob in sweats pouring over ppts and word files regarding monetary and fiscal policy until I am cross-eyed. I washed the dishes for the first time this week just a few minutes ago, eww!

I am ready to be done, and I think the rest of the class of 2011 is too. It cannot be noon tomorrow soon enough!

Closing in

on what has been the most intense 16 weeks of my life. And because I am days away from being doesn't mean I can slack, I think I scheduled more stuff today than I have had in awhile. First up, Finance final. Didn't leave crying, but I think the other finals have made me dead to getting worked up. Then picked up my Accounting final from the MBA office, not stellar but not the worst grade in the class, something I have really had to get used to this semester.

Then the fun began...MOCKS! I had arranged back-to-back mocks with 2 second years that have a lot of knowledge about one of my top companies so they could coach me and help me shape my answers better. They went better than expected, have I really gotten better over the last 16 weeks with that too? Wow! Just have a few minor ticks I have to work on and need to polish up a couple answers. Interview stream here I come!

Next up, my transition meeting for Kelley Women. I sat down with the former VP and talked about the role and some of the challenges and things I will need to handle. Then a major data dump onto my jump drive so I am all set for next semester. Going to have to fly on my own as soon as I get back from break as she won't be back to Kelley until after Spring Break, must be nice to study abroad in Switzerland!

And then because I was dead, we headed to Target and then walked around the mall before heading to Bucceto's to grab a pizza. Since then I have gotten some gifts together to some of my favorite second years who have helped me out a lot and NOTHING! A girl needs to recharge her batteries so I don't crash and burn before Friday. Studying is what Thursdays are for!

I have a feeling this won't work....

I just have a hunch "that a miracle happens" or "you give me a fantastic grade" are not acceptable answers to our Finance final today. Bummer!

We spent all day working back through the take home portion. Having a midnight study session with our neighbor (with peppermint fudge! There is now no hope for me fitting in my suit in January!)

I got up early this morning to put some last minute notes in my book and made sure I packed everything:
Calculator - check
Take Home - check
Book -check
Pencils and erasers - check, check

Let's do this!

I was never good at this game

A if you didn't see the massacre on the wii a few weeks back, it was back in all of its glory during tonight's final.

I thought I was prepared, went to the review on Sunday, and spent all last night and today studying. Felt I got thrown by rewording on questions though. Wasn't anything that REALLY threw me, I knew what all the questions were getting at...but getting there was another issue.

Felt I spent a lot of time hitting the sides and getting shocked, but we will have to wait and see.

We went to Uptown to lick our wounds before coming home and relaxing. Tomorrow is dedicated to studying for Finance then more finals fun on Weds.

I ♥ Green 2!

I am going to miss you guys! Although after 16 weeks I am sure they are all sick of me.

Crowded?!

Here is a shot from our Ops review yesterday. I had to sit on a table in the back with a friend. The review helped a lot and hopefully I will be able to put it to work this evening. Fingers crossed!

Another one bites the dust!

So accounting is done. It was a brutal exam, with full financials to analyze from Dow Chemical. Fun!

After feeling like we had been through a meat grinder, Charlton and I headed to the Irish Lion for dinner (delicious!) and then to BluBoy Chocolate (okay)

I have spent the rest of the evening going through applications for committee chair positions for Kelley Women. I am so impressed with the backgrounds of all classmates, we have some tough choices to make!

Planning to go bed early again tonight, we have an exec meeting early tomorrow to finalize our decisions. Then time to kick it into high gear for Operations!

1 down...

4 more to go! Yesterday was our marketing final and most of us spent the full three full hours darkening bubbles and writing until our fingers felt they were going to fall off. It was a relief to get one out of the way, but today's will be a lot more difficult ACCOUNTING!

It doesn't start for another 3 hours so I have a little more time to cram, but in all seriousness my brain can't process anymore writedowns and expense changes. Let the torture begin!

resume...DROP!

As if we didn't all have enough on our plates with our marketing final this afternoon and accounting tomorrow, resume drops for on campus interviewing began today. I probably was the only first year that popped out of bed when the calendar appointment went off on my phone and logged into GCS to get it taken care of. But now its done, and now I wait. Preference lists don't come out for a few more weeks so until then...fingers crossed!

Last day...

of the Core for me, and of teaching for Metzger. It made me all teary, it is a really special place we have here.

Goodbye Green!

This commercial is partly to blame for getting me in this mess

Are we there yet?

We are almost done, but it is hard to focus when you have 5 finals competing for your attention, prep for interviews and anything else that goes on in what I call a life. Today was our last accounting class, last operations class and a fun intro to the GCS resume and bidding process. After class I had a lunch date with my peer coach to go over some of my CARs then home to study for the rest of the day. 8 days to go...

Another Day Down

I am that much closer to being done with the Core. Not sure how I feel about that though, there is something very comforting to show up to the same seat everyday surrounded by the same people. I am excited for all of the new classes next semester but I am going to miss all my Core professors. Especially Management! We had one of the best sessions today (our case was on AirAsia) and to close Professor Semandi had one of the most moving speeches I have heard, I was getting a little teary by the end. The whole class was really moved and gave him a standing ovation on top of our typical Kelley clap.

After class I had a quick trek meeting to try to get everything straightened out with the rest of the trek leaders, then Charlton and I headed out for lunch and to the grocery store to stock up for finals week. At the Kroger I had a total geek out moment when I say the Joy of Cooking line in the freezer section, we had done a case on it with Jewel-Osco during CMA week so it was interesting to see what Kroger chose to stock and where they placed it. You know you are a CMA'er when you get super excited about that kind of stuff.

Back at the house it was time to study, eat dinner, send emails and have phone interviews. Oh and find out I will be VP of Internal Affairs for Kelley Women! We had some great candidates running and I am really honored that I was selected, so excited to help lead the organization next year.

Almost done, so hard to believe it!

Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow!

Our first real snow! Although exciting, and kind of fun to wake up to a snow fallen Bloomington quickly the logistics associated with it start running through your head: Walk Addie in the snow? Are the streets going to be plowed? Will they be salted? What is the traffic going to be like? Addie didn't get her morning constitutional but did have a little fun running around in the grass with all the snow. We found out quickly that parking in the garage is "a good thing" but snowy/icy roads in Bloomington are not. We left at our normal time and got to school 5 minutes after class started, we definitely have room for improvement there.

After class got started on the Finance take home exam, watched a little Martha Stewart during lunch then practiced my presentation for VP elections a little. We headed over to our friends' place for dinner to celebrate a birthday (delicious!) and I then headed to Kelley for election presentations. I did the best I could and should find out the results tomorrow, there is definitely some stiff competition.

Only 3 more days of Core, can hardly believe it!

2 weeks and counting

Sunday is coming to a close. I didn't get half as much done as I wanted, but that is really something I have started to get used to. I read through my preliminary marketing notes and worked through the first accounting practice exam with Charlton (in a word brutal!). For a much needed study break we headed to College Mall and did a little shopping and got each other books for Christmas at Borders.
When we got back to the house it was time to get ready for our various evening activities. First up was the Business Marketing Academy's holiday party (Charlton's academy). I didn't get to stay long though as I head to head across Bloomington for an SAC dinner with some prospies, our biggest turnout yet! With a belly full of Nick's pizza it was time to head home to watch the Amazing Race finale.
Now it is a 11:30 and I really need to get to bed. Want to be on the top of my game tomorrow so I can get through class, study and hopefully knock the socks off the members of Kelley Women during my VP election speech. Wish me luck!

Weekend, What Weekend?

Friday has come and gone, it was pack full of CMA activities focusing on the dreaded case interview questions. It was a great session, but totally wore us all out as it went from 9am-4pm. That gave me just enough time to head home and catch up on my email before heading back to school for China night. The event put on by Asian MBA was fantastic and had excellent food and even better cultural performances put on by our classmates. After that it was off to Bluebird to celebrate our friend's birthday.


Staurday was a weird day. I felt like I got nothing done, and the day was broken up by trips to school so didn't allow for much of anything to get accomplished. I did, however, read all the cases for this week. Not huge but at least its something. We did have our first KIP Israel meeting as well, to get us all pumped for the trip! We got to have some tasty Israeli snacks as well, then it was time to hit the books again before heading off to the Kelley Women holiday party!

I got up at 8:30 today and have been slowly cleaning off my desk and sending the emails I had planned to send last night. Hope to get a little more done today than yesterday, although tonight are more holiday parties (BMA) and then the final SAC dinner of the semester. It will be a major test of my time management skills, that's for sure.

It keeps going and going and going...

Another day of class, an afternoon of informational interviews, an evening of slam sessions (with the director of GCS no less) and elections. Just another day at Kelley, sure doesn't feel like the core is winding down at all.

Tomorrow is a day jam packed with CMA activities. Breakfast with General Mills, case question prep with Scotts, and who knows what else. Let the Marketing begin!

Snow Day!

Today was our first snow here in Bloomington. We have had frost, but no snow. Still crazy as a Southern Californian to look out my window and see it falling. I took Addie out in it, and I don't think she is a fan. This could make for an interesting winter.

Another packed day at Kelley: class, peer coach meeting, work on my election presentation, networking emails, and organization. Didn't even get a chance to start reviewing for the finals. Better get on those quick though, the first one is in little over a week.

The semester is winding down, but it sure doesn't feel like it. It's like Week 7 deja vu!

When did it become December?

Wasn't it just August?! So hard for me to think that about 4 months have passed since we moved here and started class. One moment it will seem like it has flown by and another it seems like we have been here forever. Only a few more weeks and we will be done with the core (a day I never thought would come!)

Yesterday was a little hectic, but most days are now. After class I had a quick meeting with the future MBAA VP of Finance to discuss his vision going forward, then I jetted off to Starbucks to meet with the Girl Scouts Council rep for Monroe County to discuss volunteer opportunities here. Then we were back to the house where I finally could get lunch (at 3pm) and catch up on some emails and classwork. At 5ish we headed back to campus for Charlton's slam session and went to the 1st accounting review before the final. And finally at 8 we went out to Yogi's to celebrate our friends birthday with nachos and cupcakes.

Celebrate!

Today it was back to the Core, after a long two week break. I think we were all trying to get into the swing of things today, I know I was! Not used to being out the door and ready to take notes at 8:15 in the morning anymore. Hopefully, tomorrow will be better and I won't be rushing in minutes before the professor starts again (Sorry Cattani!)

After class today, my team headed to Chow Bar to celebrate the end of case comp. We had hoped it would be a victory lunch, but we were all happy to be done and could celebrate our A- finish. After catching up and having some Chinese (had to incorporate where we thought Eaton should go!) we concluded our "team meeting".

I headed home where I wrote some emails, brainstormed and decompressed. Charlton and I made quick turkey sandwiches (thankfully our last!) and then headed to school for various election activities. Me to Marketing Club, Kelley Women faculty auction debrief meeting and Kelley Women's presidential elections; Charlton to work on his Asian MBA slate. It wasn't until 10:30 we left the Godfrey Center, giving me just enough time to catch up on my emails, vote and throw my hat into the ring for Kelley Women VP elections. The next few weeks look like they will be interesting!

So tomorrow is the last final push before the end of the semester. That meant this weekend was filled with all the week's readings and some shopping trips. Lots of things are crossed off the to-do list, however, more things than have been crossed off have been added. There is light at the end of the tunnel...December 19th!

Trip in Pictures

Treks

Happy Thanksgiving!

Got back into Bloomington yesterday afternoon after a couple crazy travel days trekking. It's great to be home!

Charlton's dad is here visiting us from Cleveland and to help us celebrate Thanksgiving here in the apartment. This is only the second Thanksgiving away from my family, so it should be interesting to be away from so many of the people I am thankful for. I plan on calling them all today or trying to skype so hopefully it won't be too bad.

We have had an amazing year, full of once in a lifetime experiences and have met some lifelong friends. We are truly blessed and I am thankful for all we have (including that turkey that is ready to go in the oven!)

Happy Turkey Day everyone!

I'm back!

Just walked in and are in the midst of catching up on my emails, mail and getting some snacks. What a whirlwind trip! Good to be home though.

Homeward bound!

After a crazy few days of traveling its time for me to head to Bloomington. I shared a cab with my friend, and got here hours before my flight. They have an earlier flight to Indianapolis and I think it is worth the $50 price tag to get home and spend a little more time with Charlton's dad who is visiting us from Cleveland. I will get to check in a few minutes so hopefully it works out, otherwise I will get to know the La Guardia airport pretty well.

New York, NY

I got into the city a little early, at 10:25, and hoped into a cab. It was awesome to see the city all lit up before me and reminded me a little of SATC with me dressed up in the back. I had no problems getting to the Roosevelt and took a quick shower and climbed straight into bed as we had another big day ahead.

First thing in the morning we headed down the block to find a little something for breakfast as we knew we would be getting treats at our first company visit. I settled on a yogurt parfait and a coffee and was ready to hit the town. Up first, Dylan's Candybar, where Kelley alum Maggy Siegel is the COO. She opened up the store for us and gave us a personal tour of the 3 floors of candy. It was a blast! We even got a sneak peek of the back room where all the inventory is kept and then we headed to the cafe for some treats (I got pumpkin ice cream) and some question and answer time with Maggy. It was a great experience and gave us a little different perspective of retail than Target and Wal-Mart who come to campus.

We had a little free time before our next visit and a few of my classmates and I went to Loehmann's nd then to Feline's. I ended up not getting anything but a proscuitto sandwisch from the Bed Bath and Beyond cafe.

Then it was time to head to Macys.com's offices. We were able to meet with HOUR and the merchandise, planning, creative and IT team. It was a really neat perspective on retail, and was great to see the differences between a brick and motar store and an e-tailer.

When we finished up there we were on our own, I headed back to the hotel with some of my classmates and changed into "something more comfortable" and then headed off to get some dinner. We walked to Serendipity, and were greeted with an hour long wait! We found a cute Italian place across the street and had an AMAZING dinner of pasta and salad. We hustled out of there to make our reservation at Serendipity, and proceeded to gorge ourselves on Frrrozen Hot Chocolate and a "Can't Say No" sundae. Everything was good but we needed at least 2-3 other people to help us eat everything. With full bellies, we headed back to the hotel making sure to look at all the holiday windows at Bloomingdale's before calling it a night

M-I-C-K-E-Y...

The flight to Orlando was great, got lots of reading done and picked up a Martha along the way. I got to ride the Magical Express to Coronado Springs to meet up with my Kelley girls for dinner. I was already smiling ear to ear and we weren't even in the park, I was already that excited!

We got up early on Monday for Magic hours and headed to Animal Kingdom before our meeting with Corporate. It was my first time in that park, and it was awesome, like a cross between our trip to Thailand mixed with the Wild Animal Park. We rode Everest (so much fun!), the Dinosaur ride, and the Kilamanjaro Safari. Then after a quick french toast breakfast we headed back to the hotel to get ready for our meeting.

Dressed in our business casual, we headed to the Maingate offices. There we met with the Parks merchandising team and were welcomed with our own pair of ears. We had a wonderful meeting and were able to learn a lot about the process from sample to production, I also got a few sneak peeks into the collection for next year.

Then it was time for me to head out, grabbed my bags and said goodbye to the girls and headed to the Orlando airport to make my way to New York.

My bags are packed and I am ready to go...

On the first of what seems like many treks. I left Bloomington at 1 and I will be headed to Orlando shortly. I have my first company visit outside of CMA week tomorrow and 2 more scheduled for Tuesday. Wish me luck!

Time to Breathe

Yesterday was the first day I had in awhile where I didn't have anything to do, and was it great! I got coffee with a girlfrind and spent 2 much needed hours catching up. Other than that Addie got a bath and I dusted the apartment. We finished off our lazy day shopping at Sam's Club and getting a fabuluous dinner at Samira before catching up on Project Runway. Its funny how my weekends used to look like this and how much you really take decompressing for granted. If nothing else b-school has made me appreciate these little pauses a lot more.

What is it REALLY like...

to be a marketer? That was the question of the day yesterday. Our CMA day had a panel of 6 recent alums who talked candidly about their jobs and the cultures of their company so we could get a better sense of what we can expect during our internships. Then we had 4 break-out sessions with them to work on some cases that they have had to work on. It was a lot of fun and they ranged from how do we evaluate what is important to the customer nutritionally to how do we set up our planogram. It was nice after being bogged down with our case competition to be reminded why we are here.

We finished up at about 3, I vegged for a bit and then headed to the grocery store to pick up our turkey. Then it was time for my first "Ladies Club" dinner. We went to Cafe Django, an Asian fusion restaurant. It was pretty good and it was fun for all of us to celebrate the holiday.

It's weird not having to go to school today, or not having to do research. I have a feeling today will be filled with a lot of cleaning, packing and working on my exam for CMA. But what an improvement over case comp! Yay for Thanksgiving break!

What happened outside of the breakroom...

Case Comp in Pictures

So after a week of living and breathing buses, hybrid drive trains, and Chinese infrastructure, I am done! My team made it to the second round and ended up 3rd or 4th in our cohort. While, not the win my teammates were hoping for (no team has ever won orientation case comp and then won the 1st year one) we were able to work through the problem well and spend hours and hours together and not kill each other. I thought our idea was fairly innovative and we were able to explain the story well, so while a loss it really wasn't.

And on the personal side, to be able to speak in front of a room of 70+ for 3 and a half minutes with no notes and just rolling with it...is a huge improvement for me. It really is amazing how much I have grown in the last three months.

There was a lot of stuff going on after, I decided to retreat home and watch a little Martha in my pj's (was glad to get out of my suit!) and finally relaxed. I then had a fantastic dinner at Malibu grill with some friends and called it a night...but not before doing some research for today's CMA day at Kroger.

The Countdown Begins

It's almost the end of case comp, my team is waiting in a breakout room for the drawing of our presentation time. I will be presenting in a room like this in just a few hours. We have run through the presentation and Q&A twice more this morning. I am ready to go! Let's go Green 2!

Again?!

We advanced to the next round, we are still waiting to hear when we will present to the execs and our cohort. The slides can't be changed so all I have to do is practice, practice, practice.

I am definitely taking the afternoon and early evening off. It's Charlton's birthday so I am taking him out and a few friends are joining (shh, he doesn't know yet) us for sushi. Should be fun, then it will be back to work!

Round One...FIGHT!

Sorry for the Street Fighter reference, but going into case comp it always feels like you are about to enter the ring. Your judges can be small and mighty like a Chun-Li or they can be big and scary like a Blanka as a judge. We thought we had drawn a Blanca, with our critical thinking professor, but it wasn't as bad as we had anticipated. The team presented well and we fielded the questions with little issue. So now we wait...We have another hour before we find out if we advance to Round 2 tomorrow. *crosses fingers*

Run over by a bus...

After 4 days of camping out in a breakout room at Kelley that's what I feel like. Not that I have over done it, or put in crazy long hours (although today's 12 hour day was the exception, normally we have been doing 8-9 hours a day) I am just done. Ready to put the case behind us and venture out of the breakout rooms. My team has worked really well together, and our second year mentor has been great as he has checked up on us consistently to make sure we weren't killing each other. It's always good to know that someone else wants you to succeed.

We finished up around lunchtime today with getting all of our data in our finished powerpoint, and the rest of the day was practice, practice, practice. My teammate's wife brought us dinner (yummy quiche, thanks!) and we finally left the Godfrey Center at 9:30ish.

When I got home, I was in desperate need of some non-bus time and watched Martha Stewart's pie show. After talking to my brother and finishing the last load of laundry it was time to hop in the shower and blow dry my hair, a girl has to look good for her presentation.

I have to be at school at 7:45 tomorrow, ready to get the first round over with and find out if I can relax on Thursday or if I have to bring my A game again...wish me luck!

This what I call team work! Go green!

What day is it!?

After what seems like an eternity working on case comp, all the days have run together and I can't keep them straight anymore. Charlton said something along the lines of "the Browns are on Monday Night Football tonight" and I swear I must have looked at him like he was crazy, Monday already! Where did the weekend go? We have to be ready to roll with our presentation on Wednesday morning so that means it has to be done tomorrow night before our practice time at 7. eep! I have to finish our entry method slide tonight and then I will most likely spend the bulk of tomorrow working on what I will actually say with my team tomorrow. This has gone by so fast.

In other news, I have finally booked my trip home for Christmas. I am really excited as it will be the first time I will see my sister and her family since August. I am in definite need of some girl time and a few hugs from my niece...especially after case comp!

round and round, round and round, round and round...

Today was another marathon day of working on our case, 8:30-5:45. We got a lot done, and have a direction that may work for us. I did a lot more research when I got home (thank goodness for the Wells Library Staff and their IM tool!)

Going to turn in early tonight, as I think everything is catching up with me. Here’s to some dreams not about buses!

Case Comp, Mock Interviews and Trivia, Oh My!

So the last few days have been pretty uneventful school-wise as we were gearing up for today and the rest of case comp throughout next week. We had the presentation of the case last night and then were sent out to go pull everything together for the presentation Weds.

However, we took the evening off and went the the International Business Society’s Mexican Business Cultural Dinner at El Norteno. It was a great session, very informative, and the food was good.

Then it was time to get to work, at least a little and watch the case brief and do a little preliminary research. Today and the rest of the week will be interesting to say the least.

At least we get to let off a little steam from today with the trivia night being thrown by MBAA, I have a feeling I will need to!

**In other news, we found a stray cat on Tuesday night and brought him so he wouldn’t have to weather the elements. We took him to the shelter yesterday and they were not optimistic about his future. We are both pretty shook up about it, never a good time for that kind of stuff**

My home for 16 hours each week

It’s that time of year where we all reflect on what we are thankful for and appreciate in our lives. In a year that has brought me more changes, adventures and challenges I can think of so many people who have helped me through, and each one of their contributions means more to me than I can say.

One year ago, I was just a girl with big dreams hoping to leave the world of engineering behind for something bigger, something better…something more me. And here I am, a marketing major at the 15th ranked MBA program in the nation, exploring all the opportunities I never thought I could obtain. Giving myself goosebumps just thinking about it!

When ModCloth, posted about their Thanksgiving Thank-A-Thon blog contest I had to post to thank all the people who helped me get here and allow me to live my dream, there isn’t a day that I don’t think of you all!

Here they are in no particular order (and don’t hate me if I left you off, you know I didn’t do it on purpose!):

• Charlton; for pushing me to constantly improve myself and be always be a better version of myself
• My family; for being supportive through application processes, my traveling, watching my pets, helping me pack and dealing with my venting
• My co-workers; for always being positive and being the ones who would dance with me in the halls to celebrate all my little victories
• Elizabeth (the Brownie troop leader I assisted); for being one of my biggest cheerleaders and encouraging me to no end
• Rebecca (my career coach); for making my happiness a priority and helping me realize the power of today
• Selena & Emily (QC’ers); for being my sounding board
• My new Kelley family; for making this easy, having never left my home they made this my new one. They are my bestest friends and I don’t know what I would do without them. (that goes for all the alums too, they truly bend over backwards to help!)

And now that I have seriously made myself teary, time for a little pick me up and some goofy things I am thankful for:

• Splenda
• Coffee Break Mondays
• Addie, even if she makes me get up early to walk her
• Google Reader
• My Le Creuset
• Mad Men
• Casey, because he is the world’s greatest cat
• McDonald’s salads

Although I am sure to people outside of the MBA program, my life everyday looks a lot like Taz tearing through a scene, today seemed to be the epitome of it.

Classes started late for me today, so I dropped Charlton off and grabbed my dry cleaning from NAWMBA so I would be ready for the case comp this week. Then I read and wrote some emails before jumping right into the econ case on Brazil. When my brain couldn’t take in any more information on inflation and interest rates we escaped from 1050 to go play the “beer game” simulation for ops.

Everyone had a role in a 4 stage supply chain of a beer manufacturer. I ended up with the Distributor role, and after 6 simulated weeks thought I was doing fantastically, and then a monster order came in and killed my inventory. I had such a huge backlog by the end of the session I had to actually use a calculator to get my numbers! Although, we didn’t end up in last place so we weaseled out of having to tidy, but as we didn’t win no cash prize for us! And what better way to understand the bullwhip effect than to see it happen in person, over pocket change instead of in the real world when you have customers screaming at you.

I had just enough time for a quick bite to eat before I had 3 informational interviews with second years regarding their internship searches and their roles in Kelley Women. Finally at about 4:45 I got to head home and prep for another informational interview. By the time 7 rolled around I had to unbury myself from all the emails I got over the day and try to get a handle on whats ahead. Still getting there, is it really only Monday?

After my meeting with the SBA director, it was home for a walk with Addie and some more reading. Then at 6ish, I headed off to Scholar’s Inn for the Kelley Women Leadership Info Meeting. They set it up like round tables and all the current executive members sat at their own table and we moved around to learn more information. I had already decided what I planned to run for, but it was great to get some more information and some ideas on what to do going forward. I came home and set up loads of meeting with the chairs below the position, a current MBAA officer and the MBA office to find out more about how the role interfaces with them. Should be helpful in showcasing my interest and allowing me to show how I understand the role and goals for it going forward. It’s going to be a busy, but good week.

Where else do you go when you have a meeting? I think the epitome of “let’s get coffee” is Starbucks, although I didn’t have any coffee! Yesterday afternoon I met with the director of the Student Business Ambassadors, the undergraduate organization I will be mentoring. We had a great meeting, and have some good ideas to improve the organization forward. I am can’t to help them out and make their ideas come to life! I am really looking forward to working with them.

Welcome to Kelley! Saturday was another packed day of activities for our prospies. They had breakfast, panels, lunch with the 1st & 2nd years, more panels and closing dinner with keynote speaker Maggy Siegel.

As I was not hosting any visitors, I spent my morning walking Addie and reading for class. I got a ton done and then headed to campus for the lunch and the 2 last panels with recent Kelley alums. While a lot of the discussion was directed to the prospies, as a current student it was a great reminder of why I love it here and what a wonderful place this is. Also got to get a little bit of the lowdown on studying abroad next year; is Switzerland or France in my future!? A girl can hope!

But the weekend wasn’t all coming up roses…I took a spill down the stairs on the way to lunch and hit a car while trying to take my friend from San Diego to the book store (smooth one!) Will have to see how much the damage comes out to be and how its going to hit my grad student level bank account, ugh! But at least no major bruising from the fall, unless you count my ego.

But to really celebrate the completion of another class…it was time for Women’s Weekend! First up, was a wonderful cocktail party at Tallent. We had a wonderful turnout of second and first years who could mingle with all the great Kelley prospectives. Then it was off to the Bluebird for the highlight of our week, the Faculty Auction! Most of our professors donated events and experiences, ranging from dinner, wine tastings, laser tag, basketball and even 10 hours of cabana boy duties. We had a great turnout and I was able to get in on a couple events: Superbowl party with our future statistic modeling professor, BBQ with one of the accounting professors, dinner with the director of student services and a knitting lesson with my buddy. Can’t wait to collect on all my prizes, will be a great way to celebrate the end of the core!

Although I can’t wait until the spring to watch my fellow first years dominate my Accounting professor and his team of professors at Assembly Hall. Go Class of ‘11!

Because in the CMA we don’t let a Friday go to waste, we had another Academy Day. We had some awesome second years come and mock interview for us, then we broke into teams and practiced some of our CARs (mine need so much work!) Then we got to liven it up a little and discuss holistic and integrated marketing strategies. It was a great discussion and my academy members had some great observations and insights! I love being able to hear from a Brand Manager and people who were in Creative tell me how their companies deconstructed an ad, it provides so much perspective. Today, we evaluated the Ford Fusion and Pedigree dog food. I love Pedigree’s campaign and get teary eyed watching their ads…can we say building brand equity!?

So another final has come and gone. Although, I don’t think I did as well as I would have liked I have pretty much come to terms with it. Sort of a zen approach to the final. No need to work myself up on something I can’t do anything about now. I did study and http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=994694090181350300felt some of the questions I was prepared for and then there were the curve balls…but really there are more pressing matters! Can’t get hung up on Quant anymore, it’s OVER!

Yesterday I had the honor of acting as the Green cohort’s CEO for Lincoln Electric! It was fun to actually get to challenge my classmates and challenge them to think about LE’s potential expansion issues. It wasn’t as easy as one would think, they brought up a lot of great points. I love how much we end up pushing ourselves to be better and evaluate choices differently. Still think I have a long way to go before I will be making choices like this though!

Other than that, yesterday was a pretty straightforward day. Had class until lunch time, did 2+ weeks worth of laundry (eep!), studied for Quant and attended a Women’s Weekend logistics meeting.

Today in a nutshell:

• Class from 8:15 - 12:30
• Lunch of lukewarm tomato soup from the cafe downstairs
• Another session of accounting from 1:00-2:00
• Get home at 3:30
• Have a snack while watching Martha Stewart and reading Smartbrief
• Research the company for my Slam Session
• Read for Quant
• Have a Lean Cuisine at my desk while reading more Quant at 6:00
• Head to my Slam Session at 7:00
• Slam Session 7:30-8:30
• Grocery Shopping 8:45-9:20
• Read for Quant while having some snacks 9:30-10:00
• Research internship opportunities 10:00-present

Don’t feel like I got anything done either! Now its time to hit the sack and try to get a little more sleep after I get in a few more pages of Quant.

Women's Weekend

This weekend is the first ever Kelley Women's Weekend! An opportunity for the current Kelley Women to showcase the school and what makes Kelley special to about 30 prospectives. We have some great alumni visiting and a lot of great sessions planned for the attendees, should be a fantastic event!

This week has been hard for me to get motivated. I just feel really behind, and can’t seem to get that little push to get me though it. I feel like I have major Attention Deficit Disorder, and find it hard to focus on the littlest things. Am I burnt out? Just tired from the conference? Who knows! Just have to dig deep and push through the last day of classes before the Quant final. Wish me luck!

Dream Internship

Posts like this get a fire lit under me, I feel so behind. Hope I can land the “dream” one myself in January and don’t have to grasp for straws in the spring.

Congratulations are in order! The Kelley Case Competition team took home 2nd at NAWMBA, a great way for us to end the conference!

Saturday was full of more great presentations and opportunities to meet other MBA students. And not to mention the case comp, where we got to see our team present their solution to creating a NAWMBA global leadership retreat. They did a fantastic job. Then we all went to the closing ceremony, and then all went our separate ways to celebrate Halloween.

I spent mine in Disneyland with one of my Kelley buddies and then went trick-or-treating at Sephora. Was a great night.

We left really early on Sunday, but I was able to get in a visit with my parents which should tide me over until winter break.

All in all a great experience and a wonderful weekend.

Class coming to life

We have been talking a lot about game theory, pricing and competition in class and this article really hits it on the head. Better yet it discusses companies we have been evaluating in class and to top it off throw in a little econ with the restricted supply. I love seeing how what we learn plays out in real life.

I wish it were that easy! This week marks the start of the real prep outside the classroom to the conference room. I have my first mock interview (on my own tomorrow) and then Academy Slam session on Friday. ugh! Really need to get pumped about this, just hard to focus on me when there is so much other stuff going on.

Today was jam packed with class, emails, CARs, and then review sessions and professional development seminar. Throw in some time working on our Operations simulation and some ad creation and tool analysis of our marketing case and you have my day in a nutshell.

And its only Monday! Gotta work in some studying time, and some more interview prep…Friday can’t get here soon enough

Happy Halloween from Jack Skellington!

NAWMBA update

After a day full of flying on Thursday, 9 of us first years arrived in Anaheim with no incidents. We piled into a taxi van and went straight to the Disneyland hotel, which has to be one of the greatest places to have a conference…Mickeys in the carpet!? Love it! It’s like the wink to where we are even when we are in conference rooms. We checked in really quick and got ready for the various receptions.

First we headed to the IU reception and it was really nice, very intimate and a great spread. We got the chance to chat with Maggy Siegel, the COO of Dylan’s Candy Bar and a Kelley alum. We also we are able to meet some really nice girls from University of Utah.

Then it was off to the kick-off reception. They had many of the planning committee members speak. It was a nice time but we were all exhausted. We talked with some students for Kansas and then headed back to our room to hit the sack, we are on EST still!

This morning we all got up super early, 4:30, and couldn’t go back to sleep. After trying to rest for about an hour and half we went down to the gym, before getting into our suits and hitting the sessions. We had a great student breakfast where the CMO from Meredith publishing spoke. Then I headed to the Campbell’s presentation before catching Maggy’s and a sample of Dylan’s newest candy which will be unvailed next week! It was delicious! Then it was lunch on the patio, a requirement when in So Cal, before I hit the career fair.

I am trying to recharge my batteries a little and get some school work done before we hit the park and the reception they are having there later.

Career fair in action! Not as many companies as we were hoping for but we were able to get some face time with a few. Lots of handhakes and card exchanging. And I met a really cool entrepreneur that started the marketeersclub.com that specializes in free online tools for marketers in brand management. Good times at NAWMBA

Getting my networking on, watch out NAWMBA here I come!

Yesterday was a marathon day, 8 full hours of class with only a 30 minute break for lunch. I am glad I got everything in so I didn’t miss any of my classes when I head to the airport today but it was a doozy! I am so glad I don’t have the Blue cohort because I don’t think I would be able to get home at 6 every day, all that productive study time after class is gone! I am so much more of a morning person anyway.

So lots of class, dinner, a run and packing like a fiend for the Women’s Conference and an informational interview, just a normal Weds in the Core!

Another day, another day full of tasks and meetings. Got through a triple session of Management/Econ tag team and scarfed down my lunch while a team mate and I worked on some polishing of our team Operations paper. Then it was downstairs for the lounge for an informational interview with a second year, before I did some Quant homework and met with the GA to work on my portion of the team assignment. Then the logistics meeting for the Women’s Conference. Then finally at 6:30 got home for the day, made dinner then sent emails, posted my resume to GCS and did a little more homework. And now that it is 11:20, I am not really getting to bed early. Where did the day go?!

So yesterday was our first experience registering for classes. It was surprisingly painless after I got over the fact that I would not get the pricing class I had been eying as it was going to be given to all the second years. Did a little emailing during class and my friend and I were able to find a replacement and I seem to have a pretty good schedule for the next semester:

• Strategic Cost Analysis and Control
• Applied Marketing Research
• Marketing Performance and Productivity Analysis
• Brand Asset Management
• Supply Chain Management & Technologies
• Introduction into Spreadsheet Modeling
• Power, Persuasion, Influence & Negotiation
• KIP Israel
• Academy Intensive Week 2

Looks pretty good so far, ask me an May and I will tell you how it goes!

So Weds night was capped off by receiving my ACCTG quiz grade (just barely squeaked by so I don’t have to retake !) and then a visit to the Kelley Retail Association panel discussion. While there was some great resources: buyers from AE & Macy’s, product designer from Dick’s and merchandising and store management from Kohl’s the evening was a bust. Tons of undergrads and not many questions being asked. Although I know I could have stepped it up and asked some questions, didn’t feel it was my place as it was their org. Oh well, was an experience to say the least.

Don’t know why I feel so on top of everything today? Is it because I spent 4 days on the couch reading, when I wasn’t coughing my brains out or watching Say Yes to the Dress?

Today I got a walk in with Addie in the morning, seemed more awake in class than usual, met with my peer coach, tweaked my resume, sent out loads of networking emails (to get GREAT responses!), got the NYC trek nailed down, started two quant problems for the assignment next week and then created charts for all my ops simulation data. In the words of NBA Jam, “She’s on fire!”

Tomorrow should be another jam packed day: with an informational interview, diversity conference prep, team meeting, and GA study session for quant. Here’s for keeping it up!

So after a 4 days chock-full of Say Yes to the Dress and Whose Wedding is it Anyway? its time for me to head back to the world of the living. I am sure my immune system was weakened from the intense hours I have been putting into the core, but if I had to get sick I guess I couldn’t have asked for a better time. Should be all ready to attack week 9 full force and with a renewed appreciation for wedding dress consultants ;)

So got up this morning and didn’t feel any better. I would have loved to stay home but I felt I needed to go on the Academy trip for participation points. Picked up my friends and one of them was feeling as miserable as I was. After an hour or so of sleeping on the bus, we got to Eli Lilly headquarters. Their building was really nice and the presentations we were able to catch were really great too. We only lasted until lunch and then the two of us were done. We hoped to just hang out on the bus but our gracious hosts at Lilly took care of us and got us a cab back to Bloomington (thanks!)

Once back in town we headed straight to the health center to see what we really had. Long story short, we were both diagnosed with H1N1 (swine flu) So after dropping my friend off basically crashed on my couch. Emailed some professors to warn them about next week and emailed some classmates. Had to cancel an SAC dinner and a brunch we were hosting. And miss P&G.

Oink, oink…I hate being sick!

Give it a whirl!

Weds was a great visit to Whirlpool. However, I had started to get sick so it was hard to be on my A game. However, I did get some great questions in and we got to learn some great stuff about the company and have lunch with some recent full time MBA hires.

At around 2 we headed back to Bloomington, where we didn’t get home until 8. I was starting to feel really sick at that point but really couldn’t get ready for the bus ride today. Just went straight to bed. Thank god for Nyquil!

Best dinner in 2 months! And got to spend with my buddies in St. Joseph. Then spent some time walking around town, and it totally reminded me of the movie Pleasantville, its that cute. Then came back to the hotel for some much needed girl time and to plan my classes. Now its time to go to bed in my private suite. Tomorrow Whirlpool!

Off to Michigan

Today was another packed day! We were abroad the bus by 7:45 and headed toward Miller Coors. They took us straight to the in-house pub on the 16th floor. We got to meet with brand managers, media, sports marketing and on premise marketing. We got some great exposure to the brands, how they interact with retailers and distributors and try to postion their product. Then we grabbed a box lunch and headed to Itasca to meet with Jewel-Osco. It was good to get a sense of another aspect of marketing and how they work with various BMs.

Now we are we headed toward Michigan to meet with Whirlpool tomorrow for an all day visit. Should be exciting to peek inside a durable goods company. Now if I could fight off this impeding cold, I would be all good.

Bye bye Chi-Town!

It’s time to head to Miller & Jewel-Osco

Movin' On Up!

After having a fun filled day with Kraft and the Weinermobile it was off to Chicago for the CMA. While 4 hours of bus travel is never that much fun, I did get some reading in, some sleeping in and some episodes of Scrubs. And it is always nice to escape to a big city even if it is just for a little while.

However, I was really disappointed we didn’t find out that we would have the night to ourselves sooner. I would have definitely looked up some restaurants and really explored the foodie scene here instead of just going to Rock Bottom with a bunch of classmates (Although that was fun, we had like 1/3 of the CMA there so that was cool) Didn’t get to see much of the city, there just isn’t enough time. Hopefully I can make a trip up here after the core to really make use of being so close.

Tried to turn in early but yet I am still up! Better get to bed because I have a bus to catch at 7:45.

We’re here! Chicago watch out, Kelley CMA is coming!