What to Do While You’re Waiting, Pt. 2

2. Regroup. Make sure that you are organized and have all of your B school application materials in order and then….put them away. Literally put all of that stuff out of your sight, the prep books, the brochures, the ticket stubs from your trip to visit Tuck, put it out of your sight.

Next, consider what relationships, hobbies or responsibilities you had to put on the “back burner” while you were prepping for your B School applications. Make those a priority now. Volunteer, call your best friends or you parents, take your spouse or partner out for dinner and focus only on them and what they are working on/through. Are there things on your “bucket list” that you can work on with the time you have now that your applications are complete?

Run that 5k, learn to play the fiddle, let Grandpa teach you his secret prize-winning Chili recipe. We know one applicant who is expecting his first child in March and he is grateful for something “all-consuming” to take his mind off of the wait and to “put things in perspective.” I interviewed a candidate last week who is planning a return trip to South America, several that are engaged or about to become, and one who is supporting his family through a major organ donation/transplant process. Life does not stop, no matter how much we wish it would sometimes, and that is a great thing in times like these. It reminds you that you are thriving, productive, engaged and that you have things to do and places to go, people who want to see you and goals to achieve.

Another thing about B school and the application process? It tends to be an all-consuming, self-absorbing process. By putting everything related to B school applications out of your sight, and reconnecting with your interests and hobbies, you ensure that the entirety of your personal horizon is not Business School.

Last but not least, and potentially controversial, what are you doing to help someone else get into B school? Are you coaching, mentoring and sharing your admissions contacts? Are you encouraging friends and peers to stay focused on their GMAT, to not get discouraged, to take that extra class or get their industry certification? Because at the end of the day, or at the end of you career, not to mention the end of your life, if you have truly been successful in business, you will not have achieved that success alone.

So stop biting your nails and checking your application status and that special gmail account that you set up just for your MBA applications (you know who you are)! And reconnect with your communities and families and hobbies, because we can’t wait to hear what you’ve been up to when we see you on the road, at an admit weekend or in the Fall.