To write a highly effective MBA personal statement, you need to write with passion, honesty, and vision. These are three of the most important factors in an effective MBA personal statement, or collectively, the short essays that you are required to write. First, let’s talk about passion. Writing about your passion and with passion does several things for you. It helps to communicate to the admissions committee that you have a firm idea of what you want to do with your life, that you are focused, and that you’re extremely motivated. Top business schools don’t like to accept students for whom the only purpose of getting an MBA is to make money. Top schools want motivated students who really care about one or two things. The more a student is driven by underling intrinsic motivations, the more likely the student will achieve great things in the field they are most passionate about. So write with passion and let it show. If you truly let your emotions shine through your words, the admissions committee will see that you are an ambitious and goal-driven individual set out to do great things in your field of interest.
Second, using honesty in your MBA personal statement can be a very powerful tool. When you write with honesty and you genuinely admit your mistakes, business school admissions committees will appreciate your candor, and more importantly, your ability to self-reflect in the most productive way. For example, HBS often asks its applicants to write about one big mistake they’ve made in their life or career. It’s easy to try and talk about a mistake for which your real intention is to spin it as a strength. Trust me, business schools see through this. They read thousands of essays year after year after year. I’m sure they’ve seen every possible tactic and every possible manipulation any applicant has tried. By being really honest about your weaknesses and the mistakes you’ve made, admissions officers will be able to see that you’re an open-minded person who has the ability to self-reflect as you advance in your career. This is an important skill to have. Executives are constantly looking for ways to improve themselves, to be introspective, and to be honest and open about their blind spots. If you can do this genuinely in your essays, the admission committees will be able to see this “executive” quality in you.
Third, write like a visionary so that your MBA personal statement can inspire the admissions committees. Top schools don’t like students who only have average levels of ambition. To write like a visionary, you have to write about big sweeping changes and improvements you want to make in business and in society. You have to paint a picture of your future vision for the world and convince them that you have the ability to play a big role in this grand future vision. Don’t talk about small visions. Small visions are for people who don’t need an MBA. We have enough real estate brokers, insurance agents, and other types of people in the world who make a nice living but don’t transform industries. Talk about revolutionary ideas that have the potential to make a big impact. Really convince them you can change the world in your specific way, through your specific goals.