Party Rocking in the (FUQUA) House Tonight

I’m shocked at how time has flown. The weather is still mild and it is surreal that two quarters have flown by this fast. School has been a flurry of resume drops, company presentations, informational interviews with alumni, team projects/papers, quizzes and exams. After Thanksgiving, the social scene picked up yet again with Fuqua Prom, Hash Runs, Fuqua Vision hilariousness, club-sponsored parties, and much more. The Class of 2013 loves to study, but really loves to party.

Bottom line: It has been busy!

All of the planning in the world couldn’t have prepared me for business school – and that might just be the point. Life is unpredictable. Change is constant. Get used to it. As I head out to winter break for some rest and relaxation with my family in New York (just kidding, it’s hard to rest in NY!) here’s a quick list of things I’m very grateful for and will be mentally reviewing from Fall Term 1:

1. Knowledge of Opportunities – I worked for a great company with great people before I came to business school. What I didn’t know was just how myopic my world view had become. In these few months I’ve been reminded that there is a lot that I still don’t know. I’ve learned that opportunities to explore and to dare to be different are as limitless as one’s imagination. There is always risk of failure and there will always be tragedy in the world, but there is also hope and people committed to creating new things and living in new ways. It’s exhilarating.
2. A Great Learning Team – Teamwork feels like the buzzword of the decade. The reality is that working in a diverse environment is challenging, but super rewarding. A group of 6 strangers met in August and through the chaos of the first term have come out stronger than before – Cue Real World theme song. I may have been lucky, but my Fuqua learning team has been the rock of my experience and it’s been great. I have opinions – lots of them – and it’s been great to share them, have them questioned, have them torn apart, and then have them rebuilt. Highs, lows, arguments, let downs, hours in team rooms, laughter, YouTube breaks, lots of meals, shared stories, shared responsibility, and shared learning are now our shared experience.
3. Living to Learn, and Learning to Live – I made a personal decision several years ago that I (Deidre-Ann Nelson) wanted to be more than my job. My life needed to have more meaning than whatever I did to earn money. As the days go by, I am constantly reminded that even that decision was too narrow. I’ve absorbed a ton from my classes. I’ve also discovered new knowledge from club activities, events and presentations. The surprise is that the real learning happens every minute of every day. A little ‘soap-boxy’ but this full-time experience has given me time to take some risks and immerse myself. I still have a long way to go in my personal adventure, but I’m looking forward to the year of 2012 to make that happen.