More Before than After?

I was talking to a fellow nightbird - like any other night. I like talking to him because of the interests we share. What I do not like is that he is doing his MBA and that reminds me of a few things I want to erase from my mind. Now do not ask me what - I already said I want to forget them. But today's post is about MBA nonetheless.

Well, undo the picture of an ambitious professional contemplating the higher steps in the hierarchical ladder. Even that of an astute entrepreneur giving 2 years of his God-gifted life to 'school' to ascertain which of his 23 business ideas would yield maxmum success. And, I am definitely not someone who would treasure the black-clad hat-throwing photo well into retirement. But if you consider the fact that I am allergic to peanuts and as technically adept as dumbest caller to the helpdesk, you might think that MBA could have been a neat and short way out of my crisis.

So, why am I thinking about all this when I should by now decide the sourness of the grapes? I have seen quite a few MBAs - both impressive and unimpressive. The only point I am trying to make is, I have not seen someone yet who said, or I felt, that his MBA course changed him for the better or made him a great manager. The benefits are always on your work profile or your paycheck. This makes me belief an MBA course is more of a launchpad than a breeding ground of genii.

There is one thing common - though. An MBA - or nowadays even a decent professional services company - does teach you listless jargons. For example, we no longer have meetings to discuss plans. We always go for some brainstorming to strategise the roadmap and take it forward. And so my friend, who is being taught the nuances of effective documentation, has to do a SWOT analysis of the client's existing (you should call it as-is) infrastucture and processes.

"I hate SWOT", he said, "it makes no sense." It makes some sense no doubt - I thought. Your strengths and weaknesses help you evaluate yourself, and then outlines what opportunties/threats they provide/pose, respectively. Someone tells you all this along the four coordinates drawn on the whiteboard and you nod your appreciative head, at the same time trying to hide your inferiority complex.

At this precise point, just sit back and relax. What value does this piece of analysis help you in your real life. If someone instead asked to overcome our weaknesses and improve further on our strengths, what difference would it have made? You would lose your air of an MBA for sure, the air that propels you above plebeian existence.