I survived boot camp: 26 August

I had been warned that Analytics - HBS' pre-MBA statistics/finance/accounting boot camp - would be "pretty intense" and it was. The two weeks passed in a blur of meetings, classes, review sessions, study groups, and prep time. I ran from one location to the next, clutching wodges of paper and juggling case studies in my head. We prepared 2-3 cases a day, typically spending about an hour or two preparing for each one. Sometimes it was straight forwards, other times I stumbled around in the dark trying to get my free cash flow model to spit out the right numbers. More often than not, I gave up.

Luckily, I quickly learned that solo-work is only half the prep. Real progress is often made in your learning team. I was assigned to Team 40 who turned out to be a godsend. They shared nuances and insights that I'd completely missed, helped me find the right answer, and laughed with me when I wanted banged my head against the wall. Together we made sure we knew enough survive "cold calls" - or at least not to break out in a cold sweat in the anticipation of one - and hopefully even contribute something intelligent and useful in class. The classes themselves are 80 minutes of debate, reflection, and learning. The professor is part teacher, part facilitator: she/he guides the conversation, inspires students to teach each other from their own experience, helps summarise and then directs us towards the right answer.

But it wasn't only the academics of Analytics which was intense. If anything the social induction was more hectic. I must have introduced myself a hundred times a day (and repeatedly to people who I'd already met a few hours before!). I worked hard to perfect my "resume chat" and can now tell "my story" in about 30 seconds flat and elicit theirs with equal efficiency. Everyone has turned this micro-exchange of personal life, job history, and HBS aspirations into a fine art, not for the networking effects, but so that we have enough context to allow us to get stuck into the substance.

Somedays I felt like a lobster in a pressure cooker. I went running to zone out. I listened to music before falling asleep. And enjoyed the feel of icy lager hitting my parched throat late in the evening after a few hours debating cases. By the end my brain hurt (how much can you stuff into it?) and my body craved sleep (5 hours is not enough). But I thrived on the constant stimulation and the challenge of the new. If Analytics was an indicator of the next two years, it's going to be an interesting trip.