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MARCH 2004 MBA JOURNAL: YEAR TWO Mike Grossman: Academics, the Placement Process, and More "If you read the first couple pieces I wrote for BusinessWeek Online, I wanted to run the sales and marketing arm for a small IT startup. Now I want to be a foot-soldier in an old-economy monolith. Funny how these things happen." Hitchhiker: You mean work? To hell with the kind of work you have to do to earn a living. All that does is fill the bellies of the pigs that exploit us. Hey look at me...I'm making it. I may live badly, but at least I don't have to work to do it. Video Cameraman: What would it take for you to get a job? Hitchhiker: Hey, I'll get a job...when I hear the "true call." Video Interviewer: What's the true call? Hitchhiker: You know, the true call. I'll know it when I hear it. Video Interviewer (to partner): Anything else you want to ask? Hitchhiker (interrupting): Yeah, there's something else. (into video camera): To all you workers out there: every single commodity you produce is a piece of your own death. Video Cameraman: What was the relationship like with your parents? Hitchhiker: End of interview! (walks off) The above is an excerpt from my favorite movie, Slacker (not to be confused with Slackers, released in 2000). It's about 20-something recent college graduates in Austin, Texas. In this case, a couple of amateur documentary-makers are conducting an impromptu interview with a vagrant about why he's unemployed. Most graduating MBAs compare their situation with other MBAs. This makes sense. Personally, however, I've been comparing my situation now to when I was finishing my undergrad degree at Johns Hopkins. I'm trying not to make the same mistakes this time. I'm not waiting for the "true call". I've seen people do this, and it's a mistake. You can have your hopes and dreams, but for the most part, they're sidelined until you've reached a level of financial empowerment that lets you do what you want. In my case, I'm deliberating about whether or not I'd like to write professionally. In addition to this series, I ghost-write white papers, marketing materials, and memos on various issues for corporate executives. This is the second time that I've been in this situation. As was the case when I was an undergrad at Johns Hopkins, I'm trying to decide if I'd like to write, or take a corporate job. Last time, the mistake I made was assuming it was an either-or proposition. I won't make that mistake this time. I intend to do some freelancing on the side, but will focus on what I do best, and that's not writing. It's selling stuff. Another mistake I won't be making is slavishly devoting myself to living in one geographic region. A wise man once told me to go live wherever the best opportunity was when I first got out of college. I didn't listen. In 1995, I had to live in New York City. There just wasn't any other way. But my friends were smarter, and left NYC as opportunities presented themselves elsewhere. This time, I'm open to a broad range of ideas. LA and Houston are out, just because they're places I would not want to live owing to the smog and traffic. For me, the deal killer is places that have the combination of insane traffic along with poor public transportation. Chicago, D.C., and New York all have bad traffic, but strong public transportation. Minneapolis, Des Moines, and St. Louis have mediocre public transportation, but have reasonable traffic patterns. You get the picture. Don't get me wrong. I'm following a lot of good and interesting leads. But I still haven't worked a satisfactory solution yet. And there are at least three different sources of stress that you encounter as long as you haven't wrapped up your job plans by this time of year (February). You don't know where you'll be living or what you'll be doing. Plus, you'll be moving. Moving, whether or not you know where you'll be going, is a source of stress all its own. Although I have a number of interviews coming up, and my guess is that by March I'll know endgame. I spent three weeks in January over intercession in Chicago working for a software company that hired me to handle a couple of small projects. Chicago's a great town. Very cold, but very nice. I spent this time in a hotel, which, unlike my apartment, has television and of course professional cleaning. I discovered that I don't mind living in a hotel, and could therefore handle large amounts of travel, which is an about-face from what I felt previously.
 
BW MALL
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