Transitioning to the official blog

It's finally here! Today all 90 of us who make up the class of 2014 came together at the IMD campus for our orientation session. There was a great sense of excitement - you could tell every one of the MBAs had been eagerly waiting for this day to arrive. The day was mostly focused on introductions and some logistics, and we also had a great welcome message from the program director, Ralf Boscheck. Partners were invited too, so even Ashley and Little Marshmallow were able to stop by and join me for lunch!

After a briefing from Suzy, the IMD blog organizer, I have now officially been placed on duty as an IMD blogger! I will try to keep this blog going during the program, although most of my entries now will just be direct links to the official IMD blog. I may add a few posts here and there with personal tidbits which may not quite be in scope at the official blog.

With that said, here's a link to my first entry, where I am boldly trying to predict what my 3 favorite and 3 least favorite things about the IMD experience will be. We'll see how it turns out!

The ultimate lesson in leadership

This year I am sure IMD will have plenty of lessons in leadership. There will be a lot of reading, discussion, self-reflection and constructive criticism on how I can become the best leader I can be. I am excited and grateful for this opportunity.

However, I know the biggest lessons and challenges I will encounter elsewhere. They will come from this incredibly powerful little being, still incapable of walking or talking - but already full of wisdom and wonder.

Welcome to the world, Little Marshmallow. I will be here to protect you, support you, and guide you. I know I will learn as much from you as you will from me. I promise you I will work my hardest to make the world you grow up in is a safe, happy and wondrous place.

Mrs. Marshmallow now has a blog!

Wanted to share the exciting news that Ashley, a.k.a. Mrs. Marshmallow, has decided to start up a blog of her own! She had been talking about starting a blog since well before I started mine - so it's nice to see her ideas coming to fruition!

Among other things, she will be sharing her thoughts on life as an expat in Lausanne, an IMD partner and a new mom. She already has a great post about how complicated (and expensive!) dealing with trash can be in Lausanne. Here's the link to her blog, be sure to leave her lots of comments!

One oui quest (http://oneouiquest.blogspot.com)

Pics from a sunny weekend in Lausanne

This past weekend we were fortunate to have some beautiful weather in Lausanne (which has since been replaced with a lot of rain!). So on Sunday Ashley and I went out for a walk down by the IMD campus and the lakefront in Ouchy. Thought I would share some of our pictures:

Soon I will be walking down Chemin de Bellerive every day

Marshmallow featured on Accepted.com

Something very cool happened recently - Accepted.com, a wonderful resource for MBA applicants, reached out to me and asked me a few questions about my decision to come to IMD and my experience during the MBA application process. I was more than happy to answer, and the article was posted this weekend. Check out the entry in their blog:

Aiming for IMD? An Admitted Student Shares His Story and Advice

I was thrilled when Accepted.com approached me, hopefully it will prove to be helpful for future applicants and others who are interested in applying to IMD or an European MBA!