An MBA explains what life is like a year after business school

Alex Dea

It's hard to believe, but it's been a year since I graduated from business school, packed up my boxes, moved out west to San Francisco, and reacclimated into the working world. They told us that things would move fast, but there's always some shock when you look up and realize how quickly time goes by.

The past year has been rewarding, challenging, exhausting, and fulfilling, all at the same time. As a naturally reflective person, I wanted to share some thoughts on what it's like one year out.

Transition sucks, until you reframe the opportunity

Reality checks suck. But reframing your mindset to understand the opportunities ahead will help you pull through.

I was always nervous about life after business school. I won't sugarcoat it — there is definitely a transition period and it sucks. I remember the first few weeks after I started work staring at my computer screen while I was in training and thinking to myself "how am I going to survive the next 30 years?!"

Fortunately, we as humans adapt and evolve. There are so many opportunities that lie ahead of you that spending too much time reminiscing on the past only makes you miss valuable experiences. Accepting the past for what it is and giving its due acknowledgement is fantastic. So is experiencing in the present all that life has to offer.

The mix of confidence and humility  

I value and appreciate what an MBA gives me, while acknowledging the importance of other backgrounds.

Each year, about a few thousand people graduate from top MBA Programs, and I am fortunate to be one of those people. I don't take that for granted and understand the inherent privilege and responsibility that comes with it. As such, I have developed a mindset that blends confidence and humility.

Confidence means that I have a set of skills and knowledge that enables me to envision a unique perspective along with the tools to execute that vision.

Humility means being self-aware enough to know that that the best thing I know is that I don't know everything, and there are plenty of other insightful perspectives and approaches out there.

Prior to business school, I often would develop ideas or thoughts but wait to share them until I felt like everyone in the room respected me. While there are merits to this, it also meant I missed out on potentially sharing and impacting the greater good of the team.

Now, I feel confident in sharing my opinions and ideas, regardless of how junior or senior in the room, even if it means in some cases, being the one to say that I don't have the right answer, but I'll find someone who does.

An (even deeper) appreciation for relationships

Business school accelerates the bonds and relationships you form. It's exciting to watch them evolve and grow.

When you are in business school, you're in a bubble, surrounded by the same people every day for two years. That  shared purpose gave everyone the opportunity to form relationships and relatively quickly.

In the real world, building and sustaining relationships doesn't come easily. I am glad I took the time to build meaningful relationships when I was in school.