A new member in the Marshmallow clan!

Well, 2014 was already lining up to be a year full of life changes, self-discovery, hard-work and lack of sleep. To make things that much more exciting, Ashley and I are adding another dimension to our adventure:

We are having a baby!

10 things I'm looking forward to about living in Switzerland

• #1 - The chocolate
I really think I may have the biggest sweet tooth of anyone I know. Well, except maybe for Andy, my brother in law. I suppose the second biggest sweet tooth is still pretty serious. So it's not shocking that I am very excited to sample all the delicious varieties of Swiss chocolate out there. Forget the IMD restaurant. The real reason I will gain fifteen pounds next year is because of the Swiss chocolate!


• #2 - The cheese
I'm almost as excited about the chesse in Switzerland as I am about the chocolate. I know this list is starting off as a massive cliché, but what can I say, I love my cheeses and my chocolates. I did have a chance to try some fondue in Lausanne - all those cows out in Switzerland sure make some delicious cheeses, and I can't wait to try some more!

Applying for a Swiss visa, part II - the trip to the Embassy

As I mentioned yesterday, Ashley and I took the trek to the Swiss Embassy this morning to put in our application for her visa. It was quite the ordeal! It didn't help that we hit some good old-fashioned DC traffic on the way up there, so we were already a little cranky when we arrived.

We walked in a few minutes after 9am, shortly after the Embassy opened. The lady behind the desk looked none too pleased to see us. We told her why we were there and started to pull out the pile of documents we had prepared. The lady starts listing the documents we needed to present, almost as if she already knew we didn't have the right stuff. And sure enough, we didn't.

Applying for a Swiss visa

One of the most important hurdles Ashley and I need to clear before we can move to Lausanne is making sure we get all the paperwork squared away. Right now, that means we need to figure out our visa situation. Fortunately I am an EU citizen (Grazie mille to my Italian ancestors!), and even though Switzerland is not in the European Union, there is an agreement in place which means I don't require a Swiss visa. But Ashley is not an EU citizen (well, not yet anyway) so we still need to make sure we get her application taken care of. After all, if my girl can't come with me, I'm not going anywhere!

We are hoping to submit all our paperwork to the Embassy in the next couple of days. Having to go through this process makes me slightly apprehensive, because it's crucial to make sure everything goes smoothly. Doesn't matter how hard I worked to get into IMD, if the visa doesn't get approved, well, there goes that plan! (And that big first deposit too!)

"In 30 days, my startup will be dead"

I came across this fascinating blog, written by an anonymous entrepreneur in the tech/web space who sought out Venture Capital to grow his project. His start-up is now about to fail:

My startup has 30 days to live

It's a really compelling read. There are lots of interesting insights, both about the business aspect of trying to grow a start-up, and the emotional aspect of being so personally invested in a failing project. You can't help feel for the guy! Here's a scribble from one of his posts:

I can’t count how much advice I’ve gotten on work life balance. You can try time management schemes, forcibly limit your working hours, and even tear yourself away from your mac for time disconnected. The thing is, none of this works for a founder. In my case, it’s because of a serious emotional attachment to my work.

I find it especially valuable considering how much time and effort I will be spending working with a start-up during my Entrepreneurship Project at IMD next year!

Event heads up - Info Sessions hosted by current IMD students around the world

Wanted to spread the word about some upcoming information sessions IMD will announced recently. Sounds like a unique opportunity to meet some of the current MBA students, who are off enjoying their summer break. They will be available in many cities across the world to answer questions and give their perspective on their year at IMD and their experience in Lausanne. Here's when and where you can meet them:

Date	Time	City
July 8th	18:00 to 20:00	Athens
July 9th	18:00 to 20:00	Tel Aviv
July 10th	18:30 to 20:00	Sydney
July 15th	12:00 to 15:00	Tokyo
July 18th	19:30 to 21:00	Hong Kong
July 18th	TBD	Buenos Aires
July 19th	19:00 to 22:00	London

Here is the link to the registration page in the IMD website.

Too bad there won't be any near me in the US. I would have enjoyed meeting up and with one of the current students.

While we're on the subject of ice hockey

I was reading a little more about ice hockey in Switzerland the other day and I came across a hilarious article about a Canadian hockey player that spent a few months in the Swiss League during the NHL lockout last fall.

"Canadian ice hockey star Tyler Seguin wowed fans while playing in Switzerland’s top league during the NHL lockout, but neat-and-tidy Swiss are also remembering him for his messy habits."

Here are some examples of this *shocking* behavior, apparently reported in Switzerland's most read online tabloid:

“The parquet floor was littered with coins worth 220 francs”

“He ... did not know how to operate the dishwasher... when he ran out of clean plates, glasses and cutlery, he bought plastic tableware"

"Coca-cola bottles, garbage and dirty linen lay scattered across the floor"

"... the cleaning company spent a full day tidying the apartment"

The horror!

Clearly the Swiss have earned their stereotype for being clean and orderly. As a bit of a neat-freak myself, I actually admire this aspect of Swiss culture. But I didn't realize messy habits could make headlines!

Here's a link to the full article:

NHL star branded as 'slob' in Switzerland