Build Social Capital

Build social capital. Business school is extremely time-intensive and stressful. Because your time is so limited, you may feel uncomfortable investing that little bit of free time in someone other than yourself. However, I would argue that sometimes giving to others is much valuable use of your time than if you had spent it on yourself. I am not condoning having no personal time because that is important. What I am suggesting is that instead of spending 1 hour on Facebook or watching mindless television (I have definitely been a culprit of this in the past), that you should use that time to help someone else.

What does that look like? Some ways I like to help others are as follows: As a Teach For America alumna, I have been interviewing candidates, helping the recruitment team by sharing my experience with prospective candidates from Columbia University and doing informational interviews for University of Chicago undergraduates interested in education. As a Columbia alumna, I also interview prospective students and share my experience with young high school students. At Chicago Booth, I try to be as involved as possible to make my school better while also building social capital. You don't have to participate in alumni affairs or big school activities. Sometimes it is a matter of spending 20 minutes to help a classmate, who is going through a rough day by just listening to him or her ramble on about their struggles. Some day, you may be on that side of the fence and need a shoulder to "cry" on as well.

Another important way to build social capital is by being a good mentee and a good mentor. As a mentee, one must follow up on promises. I have been blessed with great mentors and they usually suggest next steps to help me become more successful. These steps usually involve them reaching out to their contacts or taking extra time to help me resolve a problem. You must respect your mentor's time and take the actionable steps recommended that you feel will actually help you succeed. Otherwise, the mentor will feel like he or she has wasted time. In addition, it is important to build relationships with people who want to be where you are. One of my interns from Teach For America has been admitted into the program and will be teaching in Colorado next year. This was due to his hard work and follow through on some of my advice. I have mentored and am mentoring many college students and young professionals with which I enjoy spending time. These young people are brilliant and have a lot of potential. Most of the time, these mentorships are mutually beneficial. My favorite mentees have connected me to their other mentors, professors, friends or offered me ideas on how I can be successful.

Ultimately, I just want to leave you with the following message: All relationships are important whether you choose to leverage them now or later but make sure to nurture them. Build social capital. Give back.

The Beauty of Working in Groups

Imagine working on a difficult accounting or microeconomics problem. You are tearing your hair out and no matter how many times you re-read the text, you have no idea what the author is trying to say. Now, think about that same scenario but now you have 2 or 3 lifelines that can rescue you at any moment. That is the beauty of study groups. Of course, everyone can contribute their knowledge because otherwise, why would you have been admitted to a top school? However, when you are stuck, your best buddies are your study group mates. As a matter of fact, one of my male friends swore off dating. He said, “The only dates I go on are study group meetings.”

The most important aspect about being in a study group is choosing the right people. I know not all business schools allow students to choose their study groups and most of the time, you have the same study group for all of your classes but for those of you who go to schools like Booth, where you can make that decision, choosing the right combination of people is key. Right now, I am in 3 study groups. One group I was asked to join. Another group, I built and the last group was formed by magic. In all of these groups, every person on my team has a different work or cultural background. Diversity in thought leadership is incredible and it manifests itself best through group work. You thought you did your due diligence and then your teammate points something out and you have that “Aha” moment.

The most interesting part of study groups is what happens when you are no longer working on a homework or project. You learn so much about the people around you. You learn about their family, culture, interesting (sometimes strange) experiences they have had and more. In addition to study groups, you also spend a lot of time with people you are recruiting with, the people in your student groups and cohort buddies. Because of frequent interactions, you become close friends with people you would never have even spoken to before. Some people call it networking. I call it connecting.

Female Leadership

So here is an interesting debatable topic, I have not covered yet: What is it like being a woman in a leadership role? Earlier this week, I had dinner with 2 powerful women, both alumni of the Kennedy School of Government; that same afternoon, I attended a luncheon for women in business at Chicago Booth. Both groups of women broached the topic of being a woman and how that impacts their leadership style.

I went to an all girls’ boarding school, where I held many leadership positions and subsequently at Columbia, I was more willing than some of my female peers to take on leadership roles. Despite my willingness to be a student leader, I had a slightly difficult time adjusting to being a woman in power in a co-educational setting. Sometimes, I felt that my decisions were second-guessed by my peers or that members of an organization would defer to the male opinion regardless of the authority that was granted to me as a leader. Not all student groups worked this way and it depended on the students that were involved in those groups but it was still an interesting phenomenon considering I was in college from 2002-2006. One would think that most people, especially in my generation, would suspend any form of female stereotyping.

Now, a bit older and hopefully much wiser, I am a woman in business school where there are only 35% of us. I expected women to be less represented due to the social pressures of competing with men. I though leadership positions would be overwhelmingly filled by men but as a matter of fact that is not the case. I am my cohort’s president on the Graduate Business Council and noticed that 3 of us were women (30%), which shows that we are fairly representing the female voice. In addition, you barely notice that women are a minority at Booth. In activities such as Random Walk (6 women, 10 men), my squad (2 women and 5 men), the women are respected and our male counterparts enjoy hearing our perspectives as much as other students.

However, I would say that being a woman in business school is different than being a woman in corporate America. I have not yet experienced this but the Harvard alumni I mentioned earlier explained the difficulty of being overly assertive in politics and senior management positions. They conveyed the fact that if you are not a threat (competing for the same job or on track to a very lucrative role), mentors will support your career success. However, once you seem to be overly successful or you surpass peoples’ expectations, those people that supported you earlier may begin to challenge your authority.

Women are still underrepresented in top leadership roles. For example if you look at MSNBC article about women CEOs, the author cites, “Women account for only 3 percent of the CEOs at the helm of the biggest 500 U.S. companies and that number hasn't budged over the last three years.” This may also be accounted by the fact women’s leadership style is different, which is discussed in the book, “The Female Vision, Women's Real Power at Work” by Sally Helgesen, Julie Johnson and Marshall Goldsmith. This book describes how women’s visions are different that those of their male counterparts and how having a different leadership style can sometimes positively impact the bottle line. Nonetheless, women’s leadership may not be accepted in male-dominated environments.

Since my current experience of working with male colleagues has been positive, my hope is that men will continue to respect and acknowledge women as leaders. I also hope that women who do want to be in top executive positions do not crack under the pressures faced by women in the workplace and are able to maintain success throughout their careers.

Leadership from Multiple Perspectives

The best part about attending business school is hearing ideas from classmates who come from very diverse backgrounds. One of my squad members and I had a great conversation on our way back from LOE (Leadership Outdoor Experience) about the amazing people we have met and how enriching conversations with our classmates were during these past 3 days. He and I both met a very different set of students but our take away was similar: "Wow!"

One topic that we Booth students discussed in depth at LOE was leadership. I met up with some of my friends from Random Walk (10 days traveling in a foreign country with classmates before school starts) in a very casual setting and ended up talking about our thoughts on the qualities of a good leader. We were all from different industries: military, nonprofit and investment banking, but came to similar conclusions on what leadership means. The interesting part of this conversation was that we had very different experiences at our jobs but still managed to exercise some of the same skills like motivating people, deferring to expertise, maintaining integrity and listening to the ideas of others. However, our leadership styles were very different depending on the culture of our company or firm. For instance, assertiveness may be more valued in investment banking than in nonprofit but either way, you have to find a way to engage the people around you.

Another interesting thing I learned about leadership is how to leverage others' expertise or style. As an extrovert sometimes it is difficult to be quiet and just listen. As a former teacher, listening was very important for my job but a challenge for me. Thus far, I have found incredible leadership in my classmates, who may not be as talkative or outgoing as myself. I have worked in groups with less outgoing people, who have interesting backgrounds and so many brilliant ideas. I would like to continue to participate in discussions with these people and other outgoing people. Everyone in my class is at Chicago Booth because they are highly talented and intellectual so I am going to invest a lot of time listening to their perspectives in class, student activities and social settings.

In order to really enrich your perspective, it is important to learn from others. I want to challenge you to 2 things:

1) Reach out to people who are different from you. Remember, diversity is not just about race or ethnicity.

2) Engage people around you and really listen to what they have to say.

Outside of the box

As an effective leader it is important to think outside of the box but how can you do so if you have always lived within the constraints of the box? Business school is the perfect opportunity to challenge yourself due to the access to resources, opportunities, diverse people and new experiences. Going into business school, it is critical to maintain an open mind to get the most out of this unique experience. Your perspective on the world and yourself will be altered. You never know who will be your next best friend or which career opportunity you may come across that may potential change your life.

One of the most important aspects of business school is creating your personal and professional network. A good friend of mine who is also starting her first year of business school and I had a candid conversation about building new relationships with classmates. One thing we discussed was making your own judgment about people rather than relying on external sources. It is very easy to use others' opinions on people when you have hundreds of classmates to meet in a short period of time but if you give people a chance, you may be pleasantly surprised. Before starting school, many friends warned me that students at my school may not be friendly but I still have not started school and have already met people, who have extended their generosity beyond my expectations. When I was ready to sleep on the floor because my bed had not yet arrived, my classmates gave me an air mattress, sheets, pillows and helped me move in all of my boxes. Small acts of kindness like this are not unique. As a matter of fact, when traveling abroad with classmates, I witnessed the same level of commitment to helping others.

In business school, it is very easy to pursue traditional "business" careers. As I recruit for jobs, I plan to keep a similar mindset of being open to new possibilities. I imagine I will be exposed to some jobs and careers, I may have never thought to pursue before. I will spend as much time as possible with companies to form my own opinions on whether or not the company, industry or function works for me rather than rely on what others say or think is a good fit for me.

Business school is a time to challenge yourself. Take that interesting class, spend time with the international student, travel on that school trip, join a study group with people you don't know well, try a new sport, visit the country you never heard much about and attend the networking reception of the boutique firm. Push yourself beyond your boundaries and your life will be enriched by all of these new things. I am excited to feel uncomfortable, nervous and overwhelmed but in the meantime, I will be learning so much about others and myself. Life outside of the box is much more rewarding so take the first step today and peer over the box flap.

American Dreams Bridge

As an American studies graduate, I am obsessed with culture and assimilation. Perhaps it is due to the fact that as a Dominican American, I have always found it difficult to define my cultural identity. I feel strong ties to my roots in Dominican Republic. Eating arroz, habichuela, tostones, sancocho, johnnycake. Speaking a crazy tongue-tied Spanish. Hugging and kissing everyone on the cheek. Dancing merengue and bachata. However, I also felt a strong American presence that I acquired from being in a New England boarding school for 4 years away from my Dominican parents and attending a liberal arts Ivy league university with a strong American history.

I have always felt stuck between two cultures. I think the best description of this feeling is in Gloria Anzaldua's Borderlands/La Frontera: The New Mestiza. Anzaldua says, "Deep in our hearts we believe that being Mexican has nothing to do with which country one lives in. Being Mexican is a state of soul-not one of mind, not one of citizenship. Neither eagle nor serpent, but both. And like the ocean, neither animal respects borders." This feeling of cultural ambiguity is shared among many first generation Americans. I understand how one although having been Americanized is still deeply entrenched in the culture of one's home count. There is in fact a benefit to belonging to two cultures, which is the ability to fluidly move between both and feel like you belong yet also not completely be a part of either group. You become a bridge that connects two very different worlds and as the bridge, you have no borders because you can pass through both cultures easily.

As I prepare to enter business school, a lot of my mentors have repeatedly said "Stay humble." It is hard for me to imagine not being humble but I can see how one can lose touch with his or her true self. That is why I chose to spend 2 weeks with my family in Atlanta and it has been a humbling experience from hearing my mom's stories of growing up in her small Dominican village to observing the illegal immigrant workers standing on the side of the road waiting to be picked up my vans to work hard labor and earn minimal pay. I feel very connected to these people who have lived or are trying to fulfill their American dream while also knowing that I have the opportunity to live beyond any American dream my predecessors ever had. As the bridge between American scholarly study and third world countries, in business school, I will challenge myself while remaining humble.

MBA student using 6th Grade English Pre-reading strategies

When I was an English teacher, before reading any book as a class, my students and I would use pre-reading strategies which are as follows: activate prior knowledge, preview the passage, make predictions, establish a purpose and generate questions. My good friend Albert Ntiri recommended a book called, Integrity, the courage to meet the demands of reality. He spoke so highly of the book, I decided to purchase it. Before I start reading this book, using these pre-reading strategies will be beneficial.

Activate prior knowledge
What do I know about integrity? To me, integrity is about making decisions for the overall good and always being honest with everyone. According to the dictionary, integrity means 3 things: 1) adherence to moral and ethical principles; soundness of moral character; honesty. 2) the state of being whole, entire or undiminished. 3) a sound, unimpaired or perfect condition. Writer, Stephen Carter writes that integrity requires three steps: "discerning what is right and what is wrong; acting on what you have discerned, even at personal cost; and saying openly that you are acting on your understanding of right from wrong."

When I think of integrity, I rarely think of the meaning but actual actions in which I have shown integrity or seen others doing so. For example, I have a friend who was making a great deal of money as a consultant for the public sector. However, after realizing that his job was in fact hurting the people he wanted to impact, he decided to leave and take a much lower paying job working for a nonprofit organization. He admits that graduate school loans are much harder to pay off but he has already been very successful in using his talents and graduate training to help this nonprofit accomplish its mission.

As a leader, I have made mistakes as well but after realizing what I did wrong, I admitted my mistake to my colleagues even if it meant making myself uncomfortable. One thing I will say is that it takes a lot of courage to own up to your shortcomings. You are out of breath, your hands are clammy and you can’t find the words to express your sincere concerns. The greatest fear is that your team will no longer admire you but once you start speaking the truth, the people around you embrace your humanity. They do admire you even more for acting with integrity rather than hiding behind walls of deceit.

Preview the Passage/Make Predictions
Most people do this in the bookstore when they want to decide whether or not they should read a book. The best way to preview is to read the back cover and to read the different unit and chapter titles. One unit in this book that draws my attention is Character Dimension One: Establishing Trust. The author addresses building trust through connection, extending favor and vulnerability. I have read many books about networking and they mention these 3 ideas when building relationships with people, which makes me think about how critical integrity is when networking. When you meet a new contact whether it is a potential friend or employer, it is important to connect with them on genuine terms and be your true self. It is also important to think what you can for others before what they can do for you and it is true that you must be vulnerable because whenever you have a true connection with someone, you expose some of your weaknesses.
After previewing the text, my students would make predictions on what they think the book will be about. Based on my preview of this book, I assume that I will learn about different qualities that make up integrity in business.

Establish a purpose
Some books are read for pleasure or to acquire information. Two people can read the same book for very different purposes. I have re-read a lot of my books from college after graduation. The reading experience is much different when reading for fun and not to write a paper or prepare for a class discussion.

My purpose for reading this particular book is to grow professionally and personally. Perhaps, I will discover some critical piece of information that will help me discover something about leadership

Generate questions
Lastly, I had students make a list of questions that they would most likely get answered by reading the book. Below are some of the questions I have compiled for this book.
What are some examples of tough situations that leaders face and how did others deal with these situations?
What does integrity mean to the author?
How does one maintain integrity in the business world?

My students would be so proud of Ms. Guzman for going through this pre-reading exercise. I hope this book lives up to my expectations and I look forward to using more reading strategies as I read this book.