I don’t wanna grow up, I wanna be an MBA kid.

I think the title says it all. I went to my first GMAT Sample Test class today at USD, which is basically just an hour-long overview of what their full 42-hour course offers. It was a good way to get me thinking about what I might get myself into. I’ve spent a lot of time thinking about what my future holds and what I want to do with myself. I’m happy with my life but nowhere near where I want to be, which is still rather cloudy. I feel that until you are completely satisfied with every bit of your life and who you’ve become, there are countless opportunities to grow and improve. So one of my goals this year is to complete the GMATs and apply to a business school and start tackling an MBA degree perhaps next year.

First off, why? Well, I’m 9 months out of college and while I do enjoy what I’m doing at work, it just doesn’t feel enough. I know I’ve always wanted to get a post-grad degree, just wasn’t sure if I wanted to go technical or business. I’ve always enjoyed learning the business aspect, so this seems to be a natural next step.

Secondly, I still am discovering what it is I want to do and where to plant myself in the world. Is it in a technical field? Is it in management? Something philanthropic? Something completely different from all of the above? I’m just not sure and I don’t think that working another few years at my current job will allow me to see enough diversity. I think getting an MBA will allow me to see other opportunities that I didn’t get to see as an undergrad, even after minoring in Entrepreneurship. And if I don’t, then it becomes another degree I have under my belt to sell my skills.

Lastly, (and one of the major reasons) my company will pay for it! Or at least a large portion depending on the school I pick or perhaps all of it if I decide to pursue my company’s engineering leadership program. With the way the economy is, I certainly don’t see myself jumping ship to another company any time soon. Who knows, maybe after a few years, I might find the perfect job in this very same company.

Anyone else getting the MBA itch? Or is going through it now? I’d love to hear about your experiences.

2009 Goals

This past vacation that I spent in Dallas, I thought a lot about goals for this year. I’m starting to feel like if I’m not in school and I’m just doing the same thing day to day, I’m not really going anywhere in life. So I decided that one goal of mine is to be productive each day, well for now, I’m shooting for each work day. And this has to be something different from my normal routine — not work, hygiene, chores, etc, but something that either makes a difference in someone else’s life or is one step closer to achieving my own personal larger goals for the year. Perhaps I’ll even blog about it each day (that’s a huge accomplishment for me!). Or maybe I’ll start a calendar to mark each productive day. However any day that I miss will add an extra 10 minutes to my next workout or take away one social event that weekend (in an attempt to save money).

Today I worked out for the first time in who knows how long. I think since I’ve moved to San Diego, I’ve worked out at the gym once. That’s pretty pathetic considering how active San Diegans are and how nice the weather is, so no excuse to not get out. I must admit, I hate going to the gym. After work today though, I got dressed and warmed up dancing to my ipod ready to head out the door and hit the treadmill at my apartment’s gym, but suddenly felt the adrenaline I normally feel when I’m at the club dancing. I decided that if I stopped to walk to the gym, I would lose my momentum and quit early. So I kept up the fast paced dancing and did a variety of calisthenics, even threw a few of my own weird moves in (one that I’d like to call the “Shamu” — ask me next time and I’ll demonstrate…has to do with the Shamu symbol from SeaWorld). It must have been a hilarious sight since my apartment was dead silent and here I was working out at high energy levels in front of my closet mirrors. I even brought out some cans of soup to use as weights. =P In my last minute of the hour, I was nearly dying and stared at the clock on my DVR box. It must have stayed at 7:29 for an eternity. I actually yelled aloud in disgust with how slowly time was moving. Finally, at 7:30 pm, I fell to my collapse and guzzled half my water bottle. Probably not the best strategy! But hey, it got me off my couch! I walked around my complex in the brisk 55-degrees for 15 minutes to cool off, getting strange stares from drive-by cars as to why I was in a tank top and rolled up sweats with my flip flops walking in the “cold.” Alas, my workout was finished.

I’m about to guiltily enjoy a couple Krystal burgers (think: White Castle burger) that have been transported via plane from Dallas. Someone’s gotta eat them! Till the next productive day (hopefully tomorrow), Happy New Year!