Today, we take a new step forward in that pursuit with a new feature: “Two Things I Wish I Knew.”

With 2TIWIK, the goal is to collect thoughts from a diverse cross-section of MBA graduates and share them with you, the pre-MBA.  And this is accomplished by simply asking the question “What are the two things you wish you knew before you started business school?”

So if you’re a pre-MBA reader, please help us get the word out by forwarding, posting and tweeting this.  And if you’re an MBA grad or current MBA, please take a minute and fill out our quick Two Things I Wish I Knew survey.

Thank you so much for your participation.  We will be posting responses periodically as they come in.

B-School Preschool is still on vacation (call it an extended Summer break – wish you were here!), but the faculty and administration is hard at work updating the site and making improvements so that it can be even more helpful to you, as an incoming MBA.

If this is your first visit, please take a spin around and read the posts that are currently up — we hope you find them informative and interesting.  And please check back in the coming months as we get the site ready for 2010.

See you soon…

So, now that you’ve done a little thinking about yourself in part 1 of this post, let’s get down to business.

The Classes

In case you haven’t gotten your hands on a typical first-year schedule yet, the major quant classes you’ll likely be taking are Accounting, Statistics, Economics (either Micro-, Macro- or both) and Corporate Finance.  I say “major,” because depending on your program, there may be others.  In fact, another class that will probably involve lots of numbers is Operations, but most of the math in Ops is likely to be pretty basic so I’m not going to focus on it here.

What You Can Do

So, is the suspense killing you already?  Well, here’s a short list of ideas that is by no means all-inclusive, but should give you a start. I’ve listed them in approximate order of time, effort and money involved from least to most:

1. Online research
   An interesting site I’ve recently come across is QuickMBA, which is broken down by subject/class and has some information on key concepts (for both quant and non-quant classes).  Also, if you Google “basic accounting concepts” or something along those lines, you’ll have many sites to choose from to read up on the basic things that are likely to be covered in your classes.
2. Talk to current students/academic advisers/professors
   I’ve listed these three groups of people in the order that you should probably reach out to them – and the likelihood they’ll be able to help you.  Keep in mind that if you go to a current student or academic adviser at your school ask, “Should I prepare for X class?”  You’ll likely get a somewhat wishy-washy answer.  But if you ask, “I’m looking to prepare to for X class, what do you recommend if I don’t have much experience with this subject?”  You’re likely to get something that should be a little more helpful, especially if you make it clear that you’re serious.
3. Get a copy of the textbook you’ll be using (and the syllabus from this year’s class if you can)
   If you do end up talking to an academic adviser and/or a professor, you probably want to ask which textbook you’ll be using in the class you’re asking about, and see if they can share the syllabus from this year’s class, too.  Once you know which textbook is being used, you can pick up a copy at the school bookstore, try to buy it from a current first-year who no longer needs it (if you’ll be using the same book they used) or buy it new/used via the online bookstore of your choice (my personal favorites are Amazon.com and Half.com, which have pretty comprehensive textbook areas).
4. Take an online class or an offline class at a local college
   Taking a class, either online or off-, is probably above and beyond what most pre-MBAs need, but it’s certainly an option.  Before you spend the time and money that this step is going to require, you’ll probably want to see if your school offers some sort of “math camp” or “jumpstart” for these quant classes before your regular classes start.  Many schools do and some even mandate that pre-MBAs take diagnostic tests to determine if you need to participate in these pre-school sessions, which is like built-in prep.

The Reality

Since it’s easy to get carried away with this stuff, and some people will never think they’ve done enough, let’s take a step back here and remember the following:

• You’re going to school to be trained in business administration (i.e. management), and whatever sub-specialties you choose.  You’re most likely not going to b-school to become an accountant or a statistician, and if you are, you’ll end up registering for a bunch more classes on those subjects.  Your goal with these required classes to learn the basic concepts.

• These are introductory classes.  That doesn’t mean they won’t be hard – they likely will be – but it means you don’t have to come in with a complete understanding of these subjects, just the building block concepts that you likely learned in undergrad or high school.

• I’m going to repeat myself from part 1, but keep this in mind – the people who understand the rigors of the curriculum the best – the administration – already believe you can succeed because they admitted you into the program.  Trust their judgment.

• Finally, remember why you’re going to school and that “getting really good grades” probably isn’t on your list.  Be more concerned with getting what you need out of these classes vs. trying to ace every test and project.  But I’m getting ahead of myself, there will be plenty of discussion about b-school grades in a future post.

So there you have it.  Pre-MBAs, what are you planning to do to prepare?  What have you done already?  Any questions that weren’t answered above?  Please post a comment.  MBAs and post-MBAs, what did you do and how did it work for you?  Don’t be afraid of the comment box, use it!

When I talk to pre-MBAs, one question that invariably comes up is this:

How should I prepare for all of those MBA quant classes?

And even though there is no one single answer to that question, it’s one of my favorites to respond to.

Even so, it’s often difficult to get a straight answer out of your school’s administration – the people who you would really like to give you a simple answer.

But that’s because there isn’t a simple answer:  Everyone is coming in with such different backgrounds and experiences, so there’s a different answer for each of you.

With that in mind, let’s see if B-School Preschool can step in and help.  If you’re unsure of how should be preparing – or if you need to prepare at all – keep reading.

Before we get into the classes themselves, let’s start with a little introspection.  Think about yourself and your relationship with numbers (seriously):

• How much experience do you have with numbers?  Either at work or in other parts of your life.
• How number-phobic are you?  In other words, when you encounter numbers in your life, what’s your gut reaction? Stay and play, or run and hide?
• Is Microsoft Excel just some program that came with your laptop that has a little green icon or something you’ve actually played around with?
• How interested are you in learning this stuff? Remember: your level of motivation will play a big role in your success!

Based on your honest answers to those questions, you can probably put yourself into one of these three general groups:

Quant Experts: Highly experienced, and number-loving.  You probably work in a quant-related job already and are ready to learn more of what they are going to teach you in school.  You are the people that your classmates will seek out for help.

Motivated Novices: Not a ton of experience working with numbers, but interested in learning more.  You don’t work in a quant job now, and might never do so, but you know this is a big part of your MBA and something you want to conquer.  Some people in this group might even decide that they like finance and accounting and take a few quant classes beyond what’s required.

Fearful Uninteresteds: Numbers are not your thing.  You haven’t figured out how to split a bill among friends or calculated a tip at a restaurant in 10 years.  Your quant score on the GMAT (which helped get you into school, by the way) was, in your mind, either a) an act of god, b) total luck, or c) a computer malfunction.

So, what now?

Well, this doesn’t give you any absolute answers, but right off the bat, if you’re in one of the first two groups you’re probably in pretty good shape.  That doesn’t mean you shouldn’t at least think about some prep, but you’re definitely in the right mindset to succeed in the quant classes.

And if you’re a “Fearful Uninterested,” it’s not the end of the world.  You can still succeed – and in fact many schools have specific tutoring and programs for you and your fellow group members – but your biggest hurdle is likely going to be convincing yourself that you can succeed.  And if you got into school, you’re probably the only one who still needs convincing!

Ok, that’s enough to chew on for now.  Click here for part 2 with more on the classes themselves, specific things you can do to prepare, and some of the other academic realities of b-school.

Pre-MBAs, are you freaking out about quant?  MBAs and post-MBAs, what did you do to prepare? Did it work?

For better or worse, money will likely play a big role in your business school experience.  From living on a budget and taking out loans all the way to taking classes that revolve around money and getting into a career that has a focus on money (hint: no matter what job you take next summer or after graduation, there’s a good chance that having an MBA will immediately make you a ‘money person’ in the eyes of your co-workers).

And while there will be plenty of time to talk about the serious aspects of loans and budgeting, I want to start with one possibility that many people will never even consider:

Canceling your cable.

I know how incredulous that will sound to most of you.  I say that because it’s something I could never do.  The combination of cable and TiVo were one of the ways I was able to relax during b-school.  And so, every month I would write Time Warner a check, even though I was watching WAY less TV than I had before school started.

So how can I be suggesting this now?  Technology, my friends!

The rise of TV shows on the internet has made it feasible to get most of your favorite television shows via online.  By combining free sites like Hulu, TV.com and Joost with pay services like iTunes (this link points right to the iTunes application), Amazon.com’s Video Store and Netflix’s Streaming Service, you can pretty much get anything online that you can get on TV.

While this isn’t not a perfect replacement for cable — it’s still not as easy to watch some sports and live events online — and it may take a little tinkering to get the image from your computer on to your TV (should you want to go that route), you could potentially save a ton of money.  A quick cost-benefit analysis alone makes it worth thinking about.

And who knows, by the time you get to school, you might be able to watch NFL and college football online, too!

If you want to see what this might look like, I invite you to check out a series of posts from my friend Heidi’s blog, Caffeinated Venom — she’s doing this right now as we speak.

So, if you’re currently thinking about budgeting and where you might cut costs while you’re in school…this is certainly an option to consider.

Photo courtesy USB via flickr.

So, pre-MBAs, what do you think?  Ever considered cutting the cable cord?  Would you ever go through with it?  Current and post-MBAs, how did you handle this?

How is B-School like the NCAA Basketball Tournament?

They probably have more in common than you think.  So, for all you sports fans, here are some of the things that quickly come to mind:

1.      The Madness. The Tournament is often referred to as “March Madness.”  The first year of b-school could easily be nicknamed “August-May Madness.”  A little cheesy, but oh so true.

2.      Practice, Practice, Practice. Successful Tournament teams have put in substantial practice time.  The same can be said of successful MBA students — if you haven’t started preparing yet, or if you’re looking for a little direction, there’s no time like the present.  Two places to start are here and here.

3.      In-game Adjustments. Teams that win the Tournament have a strategy that suits their strengths, but are able to adjust as they meet opponents who play different styles of basketball.  The same holds true for many successful MBAs: they have a strategy for approaching school and know themselves, but are flexible enough to adjust to the demands of classes, the job search and anything else that comes their way.

4.      Role Clarity. Good teams usually have some star players, but more importantly, every player has a well-defined role.  Role definition is also a key to successful group projects.  The cool thing about b-school is that unlike the Tournament, where the star players are pretty much set, anyone can step up and be the star on any given day.  (More on this to come.)

5.      Focus, AND Have Fun. The teams that win Championships are focused on winning the title, but they take one game at a time and have fun along the way, celebrating (in some way) each of the five wins it takes to get to the title game.  In b-school, you’re likely to be focused on the end goals — graduation, finding your post-school career — which are important.  But it’s equally important to have fun and celebrate the intermediate victories – the group projects you survive, the internship you land, the events you organize — which will make reaching your end goals all the more gratifying.

With these similarities, there are also a couple of key differences between b-school and the NCAA Tournament that are worth pointing out:

• It’s Not One and Done. In the Tournament, a bad game will almost always have disastrous results – one loss and a team’s season is over.  In b-school, that’s not the case.  You can recover from an off-day most of the time — if you flub a test or a project, it’s likely not the end of the world.  Of course there are certain big events — like finals and job interviews — that if you mess up, are harder to fix, but that’s why you prepare and, when necessary, make time to stop and think.
• Everyone Can Be A Champion. A common mantra you’ll hear during the Tournament is “survive and advance.” 65 teams start, but only one can be the Champion. On the other hand, b-school, in most cases, is not a weed-out type situation.  If you’ve been accepted, your school wants you to come and be successful.  Your school wants you to do well academically and land a great job.  They want that for everyone in your class. (A lot more to come on this as well.)

Good luck with your brackets – and more importantly, good luck with your school prep.  In the spring of 2011, I’m sure you’ll all be cutting down the nets and having your one shining moment.

Current and post-MBAs, have any other thoughts you want to share on this topic?  Jump on in by posting a comment below.

This is one of my favorites, and if you take a Negotiations class, you’ll become intimately acquainted with the BATNA.  Its an acronym that stands for Best Alternative to a Negotiated Agreement.

Essentially, when two parties sit down at the negotiating table, each side has a BATNA — which is the course of action that side will take if no agreement is reached.

If you’re interested, there’s plenty more to be found at Wikipedia.  Enjoy!

Like this feature?  Hate it?  Current and post-MBAs, have some phrases or words you wish you knew before you got to school?  Or ones that have just stuck with you?  Let me know by posting a comment below.

Every MBA project team since the advent of email and Microsoft Office has had to deal with the same problem:  how to transfer/share the inevitable ginormous group PowerPoint.

Email is an ok solution, but dealing with big attachments can be a serious nuisance – especially if your school has strict limits on the size of your mailbox.  And what if you have a bunch of files that you want to share with your team?

My Dropbox:  After a quick sign-up by each of your team members, My Dropbox puts a folder on each of your desktops that automatically syncs every time you’re connected to the internet.  The folder holds up to 2 GB of data and has a web interface where you can view all the files currently in the Dropbox folder (in case you’re not at your computer and need to get to a file).  Best of all, it keeps a revision history of every file so if you accidently save a bad version, you can go back to an older one.  How cool is that?

Syncplicity:  Very similar to My Dropbox – same 2 GB limit and it also has a web interface (which is slightly more graphical than Dropbox’s), but the main difference is that Syncplicity lets you choose folders on your machine to share, so you don’t have to throw everything into one folder if you don’t want to.

Drop.io:  If you’re a little more tech savvy, this is probably the most interesting service of the bunch.  With this service, you get a free “drop” in the cloud that you can upload 100 MB worth of files to.  Then it’s gets interesting: Each drop also comes with a unique email address, voicemail-box  (voicemails are saved as mp3s), fax number and conference call number, and the service also allows you to share files in your drop in just about any way you can think of: email, RSS, Twitter, text message, Facebook and more. This video does a good job of showing how this all works.

Google Docs:  For yet another take on file sharing, there’s Google Docs.  Many of you are probably familiar with this service that lets you collaborate with a group by editing your word processing, spreadsheet or presentation file online.  Once each of your group members gets onto the service using their Google account, it’s pretty self-explanatory and the editing environments looks very much like their MS Office counterparts which makes for a pretty quick learning curve.

Of course, this is just a small sampling of services that can help with the problem of large attachments – with new ones being launched all the time.  If you like any others please share in a comment below.

Did you enjoy this?  Have you come across any good services lately that you’d like to share or see highlighted?  Pondering an issue that you think might have a technological solution, but aren’t sure?  Let me know by posting a comment below or getting in touch.

“Order of Magnitude”

Officially, order of magnitude has to with estimating something within a power of 10, but in the business sense, it’s often used to describe an estimate that is within a range that allows for meaningful discussion and decision-making.

Some interesting discussion on the phrase can be found here. (Thanks, Hoover’s!)

Like this feature?  Hate it?  Current MBAs, have some phrases or words you wish you knew before you got to school?  Let me know by posting a comment below or getting in touch.

At some point during the first few months of school, you will encounter a situation like this:

You’re hunched over a computer and have 10 minutes to send 5 emails during a break in-between classes or before you head to bed at 2 a.m.  Maybe the email is to a project team, maybe it’s to an alum you’re trying to network with, or maybe it’s something else entirely.

No matter what it is, you’re tired, you’re cranky, and you’ve got way too many things to do and not enough time to do them.

And because of all these circumstances, the email you’re about to send is, shall we say, “not your best work.”

When you find yourself in this situation, or one similar, do yourself a favor and stop for 20 seconds.

Take a break and think about what you’re about to do, say, send or write.  Does the person you’re emailing need some more background on what you’re sending them? Does that networking email need another proofread? You get the idea.

It may not seem like a big deal at the time (and sometimes it might not be), but those 20 seconds, and what you do after them, can literally change your life.  I’ve seen it happen many times, both to me and to others.

So please, save yourself lots of aggravation by using stopping and thinking.  It’ll be worth your time.

Have any “stop and think” stories of your own that you want to share?  Please leave a comment.