Imposter!

Moving day is drawing nigh, and I'm overwhelmed and nervous, and am daily more convinced than ever that the adcom at the university I'll be attending made some sort of clerical error when they admitted me, and are now just too embarrassed to tell me, and plan to let me flounder about until I realize it for myself.

I have the worst case of impostor syndrome.

I'm told, though, that it's a condition that afflicts many in this profession, even among faculty in the higher echelons of the profession.  Which is an interesting paradox (might be worth researching, now that I think about it)--but I'm less interested in interesting paradoxes at the moment than I am in some validation.

And now I've resorted to groveling out here in plain view, hoping for someone to tell me "you're gonna do great!"

In all truth, I'm pretty nervous--very excited, but also feeling a great deal of trepidation.  But I'm reminded, almost daily, of how fortunate I am to be surrounded by such an incredible support system.  My wife (who never dreamed of leaving her home town, let alone moving across the country--and who is the least demanding, and most content person I've ever encountered), has turned out to be an amazing cheerleader.

She's told me at least 10 times (a day) that I'm gonna do great, and that we're going to be fine--in fact, that we're going to flourish.

Yes; we're going to flourish.  Despite a move across country; an income a fraction of what it has been; a house half the size of the one we're moving from; snow (that's bigger than you might think for a girl who grew up in a California beach town); and a baby on the way.

Oh, yeah!  I forgot to mention that, years after giving up on having another child--Shawna is pregnant!  We're ecstatic!  But, of course, this adds a level of stress to an already stressful situation.

But back to the point: despite all of this, Shawna is my biggest fan--and is holding me together when my insecurity gets a little too extreme.

And the kids have been amazing!  Alexis is actually looking forward to this (and as the one in our family with the largest social network--by far--I was a little worried about her), and Gentry is pretty excited.  Even Amiyah is excitedly telling everyone she encounters that she's moving to "Boston, Massachusetts" (yeah; she says the city/state combination almost every time--just in case someone is confused, I guess).

So, my team is charged up and ready to go.  With them behind me, I can't go wrong, can I?

Next up: moving truck arrives next week!

Moving

Moving across the country is stressful.

We're moving to a pretty desirable area, which means it's hard to find available places--and when you find them, they're very expensive.  And the availability issue is compounded by the fact that houses are old in the area, and Massachusetts is a pretty paternalistic state, and has some pretty rigid laws regarding children under six living in houses that haven't been deleaded (we have a 4 year old).

And, of course, I'm 3,000 miles away, so when something pops up, I either have to go for it sight unseen, or get out to Boston ASAP to visit.

Preparing for the move is exhausting, too.  We've been married for almost 15 years, and we've accumulated a LOT of stuff over the years.  But there's nothing like quote of $3.35 per cubic foot moving quote to make you question the wisdom of keeping your My Little Pony collection.  And I'm suddenly not so sure that I'll ever actually need to reference issues Model Train Enthusiast from the mid-90s.

But these are all just unfamiliar circumstances that I have to navigate; the stress and uncertainty are just a result of that unfamiliarity.  I've encountered--and conquered--situations far more complex (and complicated) than this.  In just a few months, I'll be fully engrossed in the pursuit of my dream, and this will just be part of the "how we got here" story.

Until then, though: can someone give me the name of a mover who is trustworthy, shows up when they say they'll show up--and is cheap?

Harvard Bound

As of today, it's official: we're Harvard Bound.

We've been pretty certain of the decision for the last few days, but wanted to sit/sleep/pray on it for a few days before locking it in.  But we've decided.

So here goes!

Sweating Season

I'll try to remember to keep this list up-to-date with interviews, acceptances (fingers-crossed), and rejections (cringe).

Interviews

• Wharton: Skype interview (1/17/2014)
• HBS: Skype interview (1/31/2014)
• Arizona State University: telephone interview (2/3/2014)
• Penn State: telephone interview (2/5/2014)
• University of North Carolina: Interview notification (2/6/2014)

Admits

• Arizona State University (Email 2/7/2014; Offer declined: 2/21/2014)
• Harvard Business School (Telephone 2/7/2014; Offer accepted: 2/21/2014)
• Penn State (Email 2/13/2014; Offer declined: 2/19/2014)
• Michigan State (Email 2/14/2014; Offer declined: 2/21/2014)

Rejects

• Wharton (Email 1/29/2014)
• University of North Carolina (2/19/2014): wonderful call; indicated they would love to have me, but felt like I was leaning elsewhere (based on my conversation with them), and didn't want to run the risk.  Best breakup call ever!

Withdrawn

• NYU Stern 
• USC Marshall
• University of Michigan, Ross

Where I Applied

A list of the programs I applied to (not in order of significance or desirability--in fact, in no particular order at all):

• Harvard Business School (Management, DBA)
• University of North Carolina, Kenan-Flagler (OB)
• University of Michigan, Ross (Management)
• University of Southern California, Marshall (Management and Organizations)
• The Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania (Management)
• Michigan State University, Broad (OB/HR)
• Arizona State University, Carey (Management)
• Pennsylvania State University, Smeal (Management and Organizations)
• New York University, Stern (Management)

Long Overdue Update

Thought it'd be good to post an update (it's been quite awhile).

We decided, in 2011, to put our grad school plans on hold for a while.  There were a few reasons--I won't bore you with too many details--but all-in-all, I think the wait has been beneficial.  In the last two years, I've been able to expand my network of relationships quite a bit, and have forged a few really exciting research partnerships.

Last summer, I started work on a pretty exciting field experimental project, and I think we are going to end up with a pretty exciting paper (or two) out of it.  At the moment I'm first author (we'll see where that goes), and I have a feeling this work might lead to my dissertation topic.

More importantly, the last two years have allowed me to explore a bit, and have brought my research interests into focus.  In hindsight, I don't think I would have done well as an applicant two years ago, largely because my research interests weren't well-defined at all, and I think my SOP would have come across as a random list of academic "hot topics".

Which brings me to now:  as you have probably inferred, I've applied to grad-school this round (for admission in Fall, 2014).  I'll post a list of schools I applied to separately, but let me refresh my bio and details for you:

Age: 34
Discipline: Management/OB
GMAT: 44V/48Q/6.0 Written/750 Overall
Research Experience/Relevant CV Info: Three papers in progress.  I'm first-author on one.  One will be submitted to a prominent journal (hopefully) within the next 2-3 months.  Seven conference presentations (including two PDWs, one of which I was listed as co-organizer for).  15 years of work experience--5 as an entrepreneur, 10 in a mid-sized manufacturing company (most recently in senior management/executive level roles).  Numerous invited speaking engagements (including a few keynote addresses, and an MBA lecture at a European B-school).  Significant media coverage of my work in industry (relevant to my research interests).
Letters of Recommendation: Three incredible researchers who I count as my friends (all of whom I've worked with on research projects).  I'm very fortunate that these folks are my friends and colleagues--and believe in my enough to recommend me for acceptance to various programs.
Other: I have a family.  I've been married nearly 15 years (to a wonderful lady who loves me enough to sacrifice by giving up the income we've been lucky to have for the past few years--and moving to a place where it snows--so that I can pursue my dream).  And I have three children, all of whom are a little anxious--but also love Daddy enough to help him follow his dream.