Friday, April 14, 2006

Confusion (Hidden)

I haven't really expressed the issues I have been having concerning the entire MBA process.
I am thoroughly confused about the decision I made to sacrifice two years of salary to further educate myself. Part of me really just wants to leave North America and try my luck back home where I will most likely find a decent job paying enough to maintain a lifestyle I am used to.
It helps that I would be not paying rent. However, life in Haiti is quite stressful and I will literally risk my life every time I step outside of my house. I keep meeting friends who went back home after graduating only to come back to Canada after three years, delusioned with an increasingly chaotic society. I have to face that the idle life I led as a teen is just a memory. I cannot relive my youth.
I still have a shot at NYU but I really don't know when I will know whether I can start realistically envision a move to NYC. The waitlist process is a long and tortureous one. And I am not patient. One good thing about NYC is that I have many friends already living there. I can go see the movies I like to go see, can go to shows,etc. OK, if I actually have time/money to do so while studying. I would be also so close to Montreal and just take the bus whenever I miss poutine and bad roads. It's also a plus that I have many relatives in the Tri-State area who will feed me whenever I am starving. Frankly though, besides the Bay Area, I don't know where else in the US I could live. Although Miami would be a natural, I am somewhat a tad too "intellectual" for that town. I love bottle service like everyone else but I'll be 30 sooner than later and the nightlife is not my main priority in life. I'm more NYT than Miami Herald. However, the fact that Miami is the capital of CALA (Caribbean & Latin America) business-wise is enticing. The weather is great and Miami girls are very nice on the eyes. To be
able to play some tennis in January would be amazing providing I have time.
Speaking of time, why are all these jobs after an MBA require so much time commitment? When I worked in industry, I spent an inordinate amount of time on planes and client sites and it really got stale after a while.
I am still debating about visiting IESE in May. It's a great school but somehow Spain seems so far now. I felt really at ease with potential students I had met. I just feel that I would definitely get out of my comfort zone. Mind you, the best decisions I made involved me getting out of my comfort zone. Yet, I don't know. It's so drastic. One good thing would be the food. I love Spanish food in general. If I were to go the entrepreneur route, I would go to IESE in a heartbeat. Should I spend the money and go in Europe for a week to visit and interview?

As for Columbia, as i didn't hear anything yet, I am assuming a ding. Oh well, that's life.

For film buffs out there, I'd definitely recommend Michael Haneke's latest, Hidden (Caché).
If one has seen Code Unknown with Juliette Binoche, Caché is familiar territory.
It's about the story of a Literary TV show host ( there are so many in France but doens't mean most French people watch them) who starts receiving weird videos that seem related to an event in his youth involving a young Algerian who lived with his parents.
Don't want to get too much in the story but the movie really left a mark on me. It reminded of many things I had witnessed in class-conscious Haiti. Call it liberal guilt or what have you but I was deeply moved.

2 Comments:

At 5:49 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

As a Colombian living in Spain, I understand your comments about how tempting it is to go back home because of the advantages but how different it is, and how it scares you away...

If you can afford it, give it a shot - you'll probably be well surprised by IESE's unique characteristics and see what a cool place Barcelona is to spend some time. When you go to IESE it really gives you good feeling - of a small but highly mature school. But yes, its an MBA geared towards Europe, but IESE has told me

If you do come let me know - mba at venturello.com. I'll be there on May 8, but its my 3rd open day (live in BCN, so its easy). I am applying for this intake at IESE.

Good luck, enjoyed reading your blog!

Juan Miguel Venturello

 
At 5:50 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

ps. Also IESE has told me, and I've read it in interviews with their staff, that they want to strengthen their presence in latin america, which admitedly is weak (ESADE seems to have a better image in our continent).

 

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