This week's word of advice is this: you need people. What do I mean by this? I mean study buddies, networking, the co-executives of your club and even someone to hit the gym with. Talk to anyone and everyone. You know that group of 35 people from your section that you pretty much live with? They can act as supplemental reminders to your daily planner. Trust me, with six classes and all your other responsibilities it is not unheard of to forget about that pesky three-page executive analysis due for Human Resource Management next Wednesday (or is it Thursday?). Your second year mentor? They can be your link to the whole network of second-years and offer you the inside scoop on the unspoken rules of the road As for the gym, well, let's just say if I didn't have someone to go with, I'd probably never get past the Au Bon Pain on the ground floor of the Marino Center.
I have also noticed that the people who study independently seem to struggle more with the work load. Now, I'm not telling you to collaborate on work the teacher has specified as an individual assignment, but most professors encourage, nay, insist on group work and will even allow it for individual work up to a certain point.
Another lesson on teamwork comes from clubs. After last week’s call for a treasurer and secretary, I'm pleased to say that the Marketing Club has completed our team. This will make life so much easier with someone to reserve rooms, keep our financials in line (which can get very complicated) and pick up those pizzas for meetings.
Should you find yourself in the position of being a club leader I would suggest staying VERY on top of things. Throughout the paperwork process we have received conflicting information on budgets, registration and even a typo by the administration website telling us our deadline for funding was three days before we even joined the club (as you can imagine, that sent us into panic mode). Also, don't trust that just because you found out about your club position on a Thursday, that the paperwork won't be due the next day. This happened to a friend of mine. She was announced as president of a club only to learn that the deadline for registering the club was that day! Talk about hitting the ground running.
On a positive note, I've finalized my resume, which means I will soon be able to post it to e-recruiting, the software program we use for our residency search. This is making the idea of searching for a corporate residency very real.
Thursday some classmates set up a get-together at Punter's Pub through our Team 58 Facebook page. This bar is a welcome relief to my graduate student budget after last weekends' foray into the fashionable and pricey world of 28 Degrees and 12 dollar cocktails. Plus, it's right around the corner from school so cab rides are not an issue. For those not from Boston, keep in mind, that the subway, or "T", stops running after 12:30 every night so be prepared to pay that hefty cab fee if you decide to finish your night at last call. Here's a link to the MBTA website, if you're not from the area: www.mbta.com/. Northeastern is on the Green 'E' line.
Because of the proximity to campus and the relatively early start time of 5:00 pm we get quite the crowd at Punter's. Both sections are well represented and I have a great time mingling with people from the other class I normally don't get to interact with. Unfortunately, I leave after about an hour and a half to head back to Dodge for the first Entrepreneurship Club meeting.
I’m proud of myself because, at the meeting, they open up the remaining executive position for anyone interested. My gung-ho inclination is to raise my hand and ask to be Vice President, Secretary, anything, but I quickly catch myself. I'm already pretty stretched for time so do I really need another commitment? I realize the answer is a resounding "no". So I sit back and enjoy the prospect of just having to 'show up' to these meetings in the future.
On Friday my fellow Marketing Club execs and I meet with our club advisor. He gives us the low-down on the plethora of opportunities available to us.
We talk about several options for consulting projects, including work for a start-up company conducting focus group research and another for the Massachusetts Horticultural Society. He tells us about big-name lecturers who have come to campus in the past, including representatives from New Balance, Segway and Dunkin' Brands. These would be big events, possibly opened up to the entire college of business (undergrad and graduate). How cool is that? We also broach the topic of setting up an alumni lecture series. These would be held in a more intimate setting for just Marketing Club members. Former MBA students who are now in marketing positions would come sit with us and answer questions, tell us about the job, etc. We also have the opportunity to do some facility tours. Past years have even gone to Hasbro (apparently they have a giant Mr. Potato Head in the parking lot!). It quickly becomes apparent that we have too many options and not enough time. We decide to discuss our course of action with the rest of the club at our first meeting next Wednesday (complete with complimentary Upper Crust pizza, I might add).
Friday afternoon I spend "networking". Career Management this morning was all about reaching out and expanding your network. I'm nervous, but I do some research on Hoover's and cold call a couple of residency executives to try and set up informational interviews. I know it's a long shot, but you never know.
I also reconnect with former employers and ask them to complete a questionnaire on my performance while at their company. This information will become part of our Human Resource Management "Living Document", a 40+ page analysis of our managerial strengths and weaknesses. I'm feel bad asking them to complete the 84 questions (especially after many of them wrote my recommendations for Northeastern!), but I suck it up and send out several requests.
I round out my day with dinner at Woody's Grill & Tap, a restaurant serving up stone-fired pizza. While it was delicious, after Upper Crust, their spicy chicken sausage pizza left something to be desired.
Saturday morning I wake up to the ringing of my alarm at 8:00 am. I'm meeting a classmate at Snell Library in a couple of hours. After our five-hour powerhouse study session dedicated mostly to our looming economics textbook pricing paper we get our butts to the gym.
Fortunately, I get a small bit of socializing tonight. I'm invited to the former marketing club president's house to mingle with some second years. I rack their brains for advice, ask how their co-ops are going and about the adventures of their international field study. It's nice to have some straight-forward answers from students who have been there.
Sunday arrives and with it another adventure into laudromat land where I spend some time fine-tuning my econ paper to the sounds of spinning dryers. I feel a bit guilty because I had set a goal to complete all of my work for Monday and Tuesday this weekend, but as Sunday evening rolls around and I find myself still unsatisfied with my paper, I resign myself to a packed week.
On a side note, my boyfriend is coming out to visit from California for Columbus Day weekend so I know I better get as much work completed ahead of time as possible. I'm sure he doesn't want to watch me read my Information Resources case while he's here. I think we'll do a Sam Adams Brewery Tour in Jamaica Plain (free, for all you budget-conscious beings), maybe grab some dessert at Finale and possibly head over to Cambridge. I'm hoping the leaves start to change soon so he can have a true first-time Boston experience. The City is, after all, the most beautiful during fall.
P.S. - if you want to know how dorky I am, I check the Foliage Network website to monitor the leaf change/fall in the Northeast. Might be fun to check out if you're not from the area.
* The views expressed in this blog are not necessarily those of Northeastern University, its faculty, staff or affiliates and are solely the opinion of Katrina Graves
* The views expressed in this blog are not necessarily those of Northeastern University, its faculty, staff or affiliates and are solely the opinion of Katrina Graves
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