Galloping Cats

When I started business school seven years ago, I, like some of my classmates, was there to get the credentials required to further my chosen career. I had lost my job in the dot-com bust and every job I was interested in said “MBA required.” Other classmates were coming from jobs outside the business world, most frequently from engineering, and saw an MBA as a way to change and grow their career opportunities. Many people were there to escape jobs they hated in consulting, banking, or marketing. And for every person looking to get out of those fields, the most common paths for MBA grads, there were five looking to get into them.

We were all doomed, I realized, right from the beginning.

This weekend I went to my five year business school reunion, and I found that things had worked out pretty much as expected. Most people there felt the way I do about my job: they like it okay, but it’s just a job: they’re not especially excited to get out of bed every morning. The notable exception was my classmate who followed his passion and became an indie film producer. He hasn’t made any money yet, but his film was just purchased by MTV, so he is headed in the right direction.

(I am proud to say that he claims that my support of his career choice when we were in business school was very influential! He also says that I look even better now than I did then, so it was fun talking to him all the way around.)

So here is what I would say to anyone considering business school: It’s a great thing to do if you want to continue your career or are looking for an entree into corporations, consulting, or banking, and it will help you make anywhere from decent to unbelievable money. But following your passion, if you have one, is a more likely route to happiness.

Because I never found a true passion, I am saved from career regrets. I only kinda sorta had interests in graphic design and film editing, for instance. I’m not ecstatic about going to work every day, but I have learned to be grateful to have job that is intellectually challenging, pays decently (though a pittance when compared with some of my classmates in finance), and leaves me enough time for my true loves: Gatito and A. (Cheeseball sentiment, but true through and through.)