Notably, we participate in a two-phased leadership development program wherein we hone our interpersonal leadership skills. The first phase occurs during Term 1 and the second during Term 5 when we participate in Fuqua’s leadership development courses. These courses enhance our ability to influence, lead, and motivate not only in a professional environment but also in personal and social contexts. All areas of leadership are addressed, from presentation techniques to inspiring peers, subordinates, and seniors to follow our lead. Professor Sim Sitkin, who instructs both phases of the leadership development program, inspires us to rigorously examine our leadership attributes and take corrective action where necessary. Self-reflection is encouraged by completing personality assessments along with peer evaluations of our ability to present and demonstrate leadership attributes. This self and peer analysis is honest, insightful and practical and, for me, long overdue. I have progressed from assuming I understood all there was to know about leadership to recognizing that my leadership skills require refinement.

The interpersonal skills are learned outside of the traditional classroom setting. For instance, many assignments are team based and require the ability to negotiate, navigate, and ultimately serve as a member of a high-performing team with representatives from diverse industries and backgrounds. These team assignments include complex case studies, and often, at least one (but sometimes more than one) team member has expertise in the subject area. We have to discuss everyone’s insight and we all have to work together (and sometimes negotiate) our final prognosis of the case.

Lastly, there are opportunities to hone interpersonal skills outside of the curriculum. Weekends at Fuqua, well … are weekends. And despite the academic demands, we regularly build lasting relationships and expand our networks while enjoying the bars and restaurants of Durham and the surrounding hot spots.

All of these opportunities have diversified my skill set. The WEMBA program is not just a rigorous academic experience. It’s also about developing interpersonal skills – soft skills – and creating a network of like-minded and supportive friends who enrich your life beyond the traditional academic and professional settings.

I am a testament to the fact that completing the Weekend Executive MBA program is feasible regardless of how busy your life becomes.

While the chances of avoiding significant life events during the Weekend Executive program are slim, there are a few ideas that will allow you to reasonably balance the challenges of life and school. First, recognize that you’re not the only one. Personally, by the time I graduate I will have moved twice, changed jobs, married and had a baby. I took final exams while surrounded by moving boxes, and panicked when I realized I had packed away my calculator. I eventually dug it out (naturally I found it in the last box I opened) and I frantically completed the exam before time expired.

Despite the significant events that have occurred, I’ve taken comfort in knowing that many of my classmates have experienced the same. Talk to your teammates and classmates over dinner, beers or during breaks from class, and you’ll quickly appreciate that everyone is juggling similar demands. Take pride in your ability to multitask and promote yourself as a time management expert. In a recent job interview I was asked to describe a time when I had to manage my time. Naturally, I referred to my MBA experience. Your ability to simultaneously handle demanding situations sets you apart — it’s an asset and a major reason you’re considering, or have already chosen, Fuqua.

While there is no secret formula for successfully balancing life’s demands and the challenges of the Weekend Executive program, rest assured that you’ll be surrounded by an exceptional support community (family, classmates, professors and staff). Leverage the community, talk to your classmates and take comfort in knowing that we’re all in this together.

Before I offer a strategy for staying fit during business school, allow me to put a few ideas into context. During my entire life, but especially during the last few years, fitness has been a great passion of mine. I’ve participated in endurance races all over the world and regularly devoted 12-15 hours per week to training. While I’ve cut back on my training regimen, I have not eliminated working out completely. Instead, I’ve devised a few creative techniques for staying fit while pursuing my MBA and balancing life’s other demands.

Between work and school, I find myself traveling on a regular basis. To make the most effective use of time, I’ve developed a habit of traveling with easily portable fitness equipment. For instance, I keep a kettle bell and a TRX strap in the trunk of my car. Other easily portable equipment includes jump ropes and dumbbells. Notwithstanding the inquisitive looks I receive while working out in rest stop parking lots, this strategy allows me to train while on the road and in nontraditional places (my backyard, Fuqua’s student parking lot, local athletic fields, etc.). As a student, I’ve found that Duke’s campus offers many convenient training venues. Wallace Wade Stadium (running the stadium stairs is one of my favorite workouts) is within walking distance of Fuqua and the Duke Forest offers a 3-mile running trail that’s also easily accessible from campus. Students also have the option of joining Duke’s gyms, for a fee. So you can use residency weekends wisely, and exercise before or after class.

For those of you with kids, I offer the following: take your kids out for a bike ride. My 7-year old daughter loves riding her bike while I ride alongside her. It’s a wonderful way to spend time with your kids while getting miles under your feet.

My suggestions follow a common thread — keep your workouts brief yet intense and look for opportunities to train in nontraditional venues. With this attitude and approach you’ll mange stress and maintain the energy needed to focus on all of life’s other requirements.

In search of answers, I contacted a friend and Weekend Executive alumnus who offered a straightforward response to my query. He explained, “… the experience will change your life.” At the time, I thought it was an overly simplistic comment … hyperbole that alumni routinely offer. However, now that I’ve passed the half-way point in the program, I realize that my friend’s comment was wonderfully profound.

Life-Changing Experience

The experience has changed my life in both long-term professional ways and in day-to-day situations in which I view the world through an entirely different lens. The career advantages associated with a Duke MBA experience are now obvious. Fuqua’s Career Management team is superbly equipped to assist students throughout the program with a host of professional development tools. The career management resources have been especially helpful for me as I find myself switching jobs midway through the program. I also now have access to an alumni community that I can query for professional insight — an often overlooked benefit with significant life-changing possibilities. At the same time, the program’s faculty provide the knowledge and confidence needed to meaningfully contribute to any boardroom conversation.

Aside from the professional benefits, it is the day-to-day intangible benefits that surprise, entertain and offer the most. For instance, when I confront circumstances in my personal life I often analyze the situation using a mental decision tree which I learned about in the program — this a model and framework that did not exist for me before. Conditional and joint probabilities have a new place in my vocabulary, I read about math for enjoyment (The Drunkard’s Walk is excellent), my 7-year old daughter now understands the basics of game theory and I’ve managed to convince my father-in-law about the economic benefits of free trade. These experiences are tangential, difficult to articulate in a campus visit, website or brochure, yet offer tremendous value that one might not immediately associate with a Duke MBA.

My friend was correct — the Fuqua experience is changing my life in welcomed and unanticipated ways. It is difficult to articulate intangible benefits through school rankings or other quantitative ways. Yet for me, these influences and benefits have the greatest impact because they surface in surprising and unforeseen areas of my life.