“Feel the rhythm, feel the rhyme, get on up, it’s bobsled time!” – by Ryan McPhail

At this point I think it’s safe to say that the honeymoon period is over. The first few weeks are done, and with them went the pleasurable experience of meeting new people and being back in school. Now it feels more like, well, school.
We’ve already completed our Business Strategy course and now it’s a steady diet of Marketing, Leadership and Teamwork, Economics, Accounting, and Data and Decision Making. Sound like fun? Well it shouldn’t.
Last week featured a couple of 12+ hour days at school and a lot of stress. I’m not complaining. I expected this kind of experience when I chose to enter an accelerated MBA program. There isn’t really much you can do to lighten the workload. However, there are things that you can do to reduce the stress and make it all bearable.

If you asked me what my passion is, my first answer wouldn’t be business unless you’re in an HR department at a potential employer. My real answer would be sports.  I’ve played them my whole life and I still ENJOY thoroughly playing when I can, and watching my favorite teams on TV.
It’s important to remember what you really enjoy when things get tough. For example, I only made it through last Thursday knowing that I could look forward to playing hockey later that night. It was a long day, and things didn’t really go my way, to put it nicely. I won’t sugar coat this: I was as upset as I can remember being in a long time when I left school that evening. I was still pretty steamed when I was on my way to the rink, but as soon as the game started I instantly felt better. When I got home that night I was relaxed and able to laugh at myself for getting so worked up.
Not everybody enjoys sports, but everybody enjoys something. Whether that be arts and crafts, exercising, or reading – preferably not enjoying a pint at the local pub in this case, there are better times for this – you have to find some time to do these things in order to hold on to your sanity.
To make it all better, the worst of it is over. Almost all of the heavy midterm work is complete, and we all came out on the other side alive and well. Our class is getting along pretty well for such a diverse group. Like I said earlier, there are times when knocking a few back is appropriate. Our cohort usually chooses Monday evening and Friday happy hour. It’s another great stress releasing activity and a great way to meet more people in Vancouver, people who will one day be important figures in the business community.

That’s it for now. Have to go back to studying for the accounting midterm. Fun stuff. At least I know that ski season is right around the corner. Oh and one more tip: coffee.