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"There are no words"

Tonight I went to an internet cafe and watched CNN's original September 11th coverage from about 8:30 PM until 11 PM. Now I am back in my hotel room listening to the coverage that occured just after noon that day. I do not feel 12 timezones and 5 years away. As if it was yesterday, I still remember the shock hearing on the radio that the towers had collapsed, I still remember the sight of all of southern Manhattan seemingly going up in smoke, I still remember fighter planes screaming over Manhattan, I still remember the smell of burning debris wafting uptown for many weeks.
And I remember wondering what we as individuals can do to fix our broken world.

Tonight, I wish I was in New York.

Shades of grey

After not writing for weeks, I turn to this blog to procrastinate while I should be studying for finals. Hopefully these few minutes of reflection will revitalize me and enable me to study harder. Thanks Mr. Blog for a higher accounting grade!

I continue to be impressed with my classmates. They are not only accomplished in the business world, but in other spheres of life as well. Last week, one of my classmates gave a talk on art. Her story especially interested me because it dealt with the intersection of art and politics, a subject I've discussed many times with my art history friends. She traveled to the South Pacific and painted entrepreneurs who had been granted loans by a microfinance institution. What was the outcome of this project? In addition to garnering support for this particular microfinance organization, she alluded to a much more powerful effect that she hoped for her art to have. To paraphrase, she said that artists can present a subject in black and white so that we may ultimately understand the shades of grey. By using hyperbole that highlights a hidden aspect of reality, the artist reminds us that reality is more complex than we lead ourselves to believe. Art allows us to see those aspects of reality that are not immediately evident at first glance.

That was refreshing... I'm off to study!

Dice

There is nothing quite like switching career goals between entrepreneurship, consulting, social enterprise, investment banking, and hedge funds, several times in one day. That's what happens when you meet with career services, talk with classmates, meet social entrepreneurs, go to search fund panels, go to seminar on finding a job, etc.

I did find a tool to help me with tough decisions: decide which side of a coin represents each option, flip and while it is in the air listen to your inner voice hoping for one side or the other, put the coin back in your pocket without looking at it. I'll have to find coins with more than two sides.

It is also interesting to try to buy Chinese airline tickets and to realize that the website only takes Chinese credit cards.

eye contact

I felt like I was in the waiting room about to get a blood test. Or perhaps like I was climbing the hill of a rollercoaster on my way to plunging over the edge.

Actually I was waiting to be called on during my impromptu speaking class, called on to pick a random question out of a box and speak for a minute. Turns out that I did better than expected and felt fairly comfortable on stage in front of the crowd. I spoke about an activity I enjoy - surfing, about what I would do about the earthquake situation in India/Pakistan - I would go volunteer there, and about what means the most to me.

The consensus seemed to be that I need to improve in a few areas:
-make better eye contact with people. I will try this during regular conversations as well.
-sound a bit more relaxed and not totally serious.
-figure out how much to walk around

My biggest take-away was regarding a key skill related to impromptu speaking. A great impromptu speaker can think of a structure for answering a question very quickly and can also think up a way to start strong and conclude in a memorable way. I need a webcam so I can practice!

In other news, I'm going to the Philippines over winter break!

Reflect!!!

The last couple days have been full of reflection. In addition to academics, what type of experiences do I want to have during my time here? What activities whould I take part in, simply because I will enjoy them at the present time, and which will prepare me to be the type of person I want to be in the future? Which activities can I put off for the future and which are unique to the grad school life?

Let's start off with the basics: I need to stay in shape. I will try to do yoga regularly as I feel awesome and awake during and after. I really liked surfing the other week, and what better place to learn than the home of the Beach Boys? There are a few more activities that sustain my happiness: good food, sleep, playing music, and a regular dose of religious experience. I realize that some activities would be fun, but are simply not priorities right now - like the sailing class I just quit. Of course, I want to have some time to spend with new friends in small groups or on-on-one to form deeper relationships as well.

As far as preparing for the future: I'd like a more focused career direction. I went to a career visioning seminar the other day and came away with this advice. Do not stress about not being sure of your passion. Follow your interests and gather more information. Passions take time to develop and can even change over time. I do want to focus on gathering more information on various careers: VC, private equity, ID, etc. My personal development needs include leadership in general and specifically public speaking.

I don't need to do it all at once, and maybe some things are better saved until after I graduate.

In other news, I heard the EU ambassador to the US / former PM of Ireland speak. His main points - the EU is important because of the size of its trade with the U.S. The EU is an important historical development, and its biggest potential threats are ignorance of history among its member countries' populations, and politicians who blame the EU for their own failings.

Presenting

After a bit of a hiatus, I'm back for a moment. This moment happens to be between statistics and economics. I'm a bit disappointed because my goal was originally to be quite disciplined, and reflect on what I learn at least every other day. Anyhow, today I heard the man who wrote 'Say it with Charts' speak. How will this impact my future presentations?

-I should be the center of the presentation and will turn off the projector most of the time, and only flash the powerpoint when there is an important visual aid to be used

-I will interact with the audience

-I will keep my objective in mind throughout the process

In other news, NYC is experiencing a subway terror scare.