I Thought I Knew Enterprise — My MBA Proved Me Flawed

For the previous two years, I have been balancing two identities: a full-time founding father of two corporations, and a scholar at Trinity Faculty Dublin. I might get into intensive studying periods, and to be sincere, I used to be genuinely enthusiastic about them.

I selected the Govt MBA program, which is made for people with full-time jobs. It allow us to study and work collectively, with plenty of group tasks we made in our free time.

This system lasted 2 years, every year divided into 3 trimesters. Every trimester included a couple of weeks of lectures, 1-2 weeks for preparation, and per week for exams. We took core programs and electives, incomes credit for every course we took.

Returning to a scholar mindset felt nostalgic. I bear in mind making ready for my first examination on Monetary Reporting for Managers at Trinity Faculty Dublin. I felt the identical mixture of nervous power and determination I had throughout my undergraduate days. The thirst for information was alive in me, and I used to be so wanting to develop. I’ve even purchased my first calculator in 20 years!

I spent years making an attempt all the pieces, studying tons of books, however nonetheless felt like one thing was lacking. An MBA appeared like the right solution to degree up my enterprise abilities — and spoiler: it completely was.

Listed below are 4 classes I gained from going again to high school as a founding father of 12 years.

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1. Founders amongst executives

Throughout my MBA, I used to be stunned to see so few enterprise house owners in my group. Out of fifty individuals, solely two of us had been founders — the remainder had been executives from giant corporations. This was a distinction to my experiences in Ukraine, the place I am from. Again residence, MBA packages and comparable programs are sometimes stuffed with small- and mid-sized enterprise founders.

This distinction created an fascinating dynamic. As a founder, your motivation is deeply tied to your corporation: rising income, scaling operations, and so forth. For executives, the main focus is usually on advancing their careers and rising inside an current construction. Each are legitimate, however they carry completely different views to the desk.

Founders often take into consideration the massive image and the way their decisions affect the whole business and convey more cash to their financial institution accounts. Executives focus extra on their particular areas, like operations, finance or advertising.

This dynamic gave me a greater understanding of the priorities and mindsets of individuals working inside bigger organizations. It additionally jogged my memory how distinctive the founder’s journey is, the place the stakes are very private and infrequently tied to your identification.

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2. Filling the gaps

The second main lesson I took from my MBA was studying to see the “skeleton” of a enterprise. Each group, no matter its measurement or trade, follows comparable phases of improvement. Some common ideas and buildings could be utilized to each enterprise because it grows.

Enterprise house owners who study on their very own attempt to reinvent the wheel at each flip. Nevertheless, the MBA expertise has taught me that reinvention is not all the time mandatory. Typically, all the pieces is nearly understanding the frameworks that exist already and making use of them successfully.

Frameworks like McKinsey’s 7s gave me instruments to take a look at a enterprise and see its underlying construction extra clearly. I discovered to establish the capabilities each staff has to satisfy at completely different phases of development. These frameworks have helped me see the gaps in my very own companies and tackle them strategically.

3. Collaboration over solitude

The most effective classes I discovered throughout my MBA was the facility of teamwork. In nearly each course, we needed to work collectively as a bunch as an alternative of on our personal. Whether or not it was a presentation or only a group challenge, we needed to assign roles, talk and work out find out how to work as a staff.

Every time, we got an inventory of names of people that had been presupposed to work as a bunch. There was no designated chief or particular roles — we needed to figure everything out ourselves. It gave me an actual sense of how flat, holacratic organizations function.

The concept was easy: “Inform them what to do, they usually’ll work out how.” This expertise taught me the true that means of range, past the buzzword. Our group of fifty had individuals from 14 completely different nations, every with their very own concepts and methods of fixing issues. Quite a lot of their ideas and views had been so completely different from mine, I could not consider it.

In enterprise, it is simple to get caught in your personal mind-set, particularly as a founder. Working with individuals who problem your assumptions can result in extra revolutionary options and higher decision-making.

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4. Studying via cultural immersion

As I discussed earlier, my MBA cohort was extremely numerous, with individuals from 14 nations. It was my first time being in an atmosphere so wealthy in numerous cultures, traditions and life. So, this wasn’t only a skilled expertise; it was extraordinarily private too.

Dwelling and studying subsequent to such a multicultural group has taught me to be extra conscious of different individuals’s backgrounds. I received to grasp the small but significant methods our every day habits and traditions differ. For instance, in the course of the poker nights we organized in our group, the host needed to think about everybody’s dietary preferences and non secular practices. That is after I discovered how dietary customs work — like Indians avoiding beef — and got here to understand the significance of observing non secular practices, equivalent to Ramadan.

These insights might sound minor, however they taught me to approach situations with more empathy and understanding. In enterprise and in life, small gestures of respect and consciousness can go a great distance towards constructing relationships. This mindset is particularly helpful when creating an advert or promoting a product in a brand new market. It helps you keep away from massive errors in your technique.

Summing up

We completed our research in late July 2024, however the actual spotlight got here in October at our commencement ceremony.

Held within the historic Ceremony Corridor of Trinity Faculty Dublin, it felt like stepping again in time. Every thing adopted outdated traditions; the entire ceremony was held in Latin, and we had an expertise that was just like all cohorts because the 1700s.

We went up in teams of six to gather our diplomas, additionally written in Latin. I had to make use of ChatGPT to determine what they stated! The entire expertise was magical, like one thing straight out of Harry Potter.

All in all, this expertise was very impactful. It did not simply make my method to enterprise extra structured — it additionally broadened my perspective in methods I did not count on.

Once you’re a founder, your tempo is often nonstop, with fixed selections and adaptations. However nonetheless, this was some of the concentrated and worthwhile durations of development I’ve had.

Wanting again, I can say that this MBA wasn’t simply an educational train; it was a journey of non-public {and professional} development that I am going to carry with me for years to come back. It has been simply 3 months after commencement, however these classes are already shaping how I lead my corporations now.