To do or not to do? This is the question that haunts most of the MBA aspirants. Most of the times this could be because of the enormous amount of effort that goes into securing your seat into a dream B-school. But when do you know that doing an MBA and putting in the effort to get that coveted place is actually worth the fight. Read the below chain of thoughts if you still haven’t been decisive enough about this life-changing course and want to know if you fit into it:
Firstly, in order to get started with an MBA, you need to pull up your socks and have profound knowledge about almost everything in your environment be it business news, current affairs or the world economy. An MBA is a degree that is going to mould you into a Manager wherein you will have to manage skills on a larger scale.
People Management is really a tough job you know so while in the building age, you need to start taking up more responsible roles. If you feel you are not comfortable leading groups, presenting your best side in front of them or taking up important positions then you should rethink your decision of doing an MBA. Job roles after doing an MBA will be completely different from those in a technical environment after completing undergrad. Leaders are supposed to know their strengths and weaknesses and analyse their behaviour objectively. The ownership level and the involvement with the clients will be completely different in a managerial role. So let me write down crisp points as to when you know an MBA is not your cup of tea.
- You do not feel like you can think in an unstructured manner with innovative approaches to solving problems
A lot of MBA education and work revolves around thinking differently. In today’s fast-paced world where technology is making innovations obsolete at a rapid pace, a manager can no longer keep following the traditional and age-old structured approaches and expect different business outcomes. If he does, he will be left far behind in the race.
- You do not feel you can take up commitments and ownership
Executing jobs end to end is one of the most important attributes for an MBA graduate who wants to be successful. A leader is supposed to supervise, accelerate and execute the tasks under him until their completion. If you are the kind of person who leaves tasks midway and loses the motivation to finish off the tasks at hand, then an MBA is not for you.
- You are not comfortable working with teams
A leader should make sure his team is feeling safe in a work environment so that they are able to put in their best at the workplace. For this, one needs to be a people’s person, be inspiring and extremely good in getting work done. If you feel you are thrown off guard when you work in a team or lack organizing and leadership capabilities, then you should reconsider an MBA course.
These are just some of the basic parameters that I feel are important to be successful in the business world. However, if not MBA life doesn’t stop there. You could evaluate various other post-graduation areas that you could be interested in. An MTech, MS or civil services could be your perfect fit. So think clearly and make an informed decision before you tread on your path for doing an MBA.