Sunny and slightly chilly.
One good thing about being at MIT is that it is really an entrepreneurial place--there's an entrepreneurial "ecosystem" which includes the E-Center, as well as courses taught by current and former entrepreneurs with their battle scars and all, anecdotes and knowledge to share. How good is the ecosystem of entrepreneurs though, in a time when everyone seems to want to be or train entrepreneurs? Some exposure to other programs and events has shown me that this one is actually is pretty good. We get to ask and give advice, share our experiences, try our hands at new ventures through classes and with mentors, and live and breathe the experiences of entrepreneurs--as much as that's possible without actually living someone else's life (in reverse).
Several weeks ago I interviewed one of the co-founders of Z Corporation and last week I got to ask a few questions of one of the co-founders of Nantucket Nectars and of a co-founder of A123 Systems. There are some things you can only get first hand. Afterwards, my friend Melissa and I were deconstructing the various entrepreneurship narratives that we heard from these very different co-founders. She mentioned how in the book Good to Great, Jim Collins finally gives up his attempt to frame success, admitting that each person's story is uniquely his and her own. As I walked to the Marriott to meet another friend to go over our homework, looking at my feet, I wondered about my own story of success. What path am I marking now?
Before getting as overwhelmed as I was, here are some lucky things that MIT has to offer:
- Wonderful friends who have great breadth of experience as former entrepreneurs. The stories I've heard are shocking, compelling and frankly humbling.
- Alumni mentors and professors who take the time to listen to you and carefully give you advice based on what you ask for.
- An amazing network of creative and real people who have accomplished some noteworthy things.
These last few weeks were very busy. I participated in Energy Week and events leading up to the Energy Conference, Earth Day (Week), and the Sustainability C-Function. My brother graduated from his dual master's program at the University of Michigan, so I had the chance to see Ann Arbor and that school's campus and culture. Now, with one week left of classes, I find myself slowly saying goodbye to my Sloan friends in the class of 2008.
What can I say about them? At the Sloan Olympics this morning I saw people who I consider true friends, who've listened and counseled me. We played Tug 'O War, raced around the track, told "clean" jokes, cheered, ate and tossed water balloons at each other. Although I feel sadness knowing that the second years are going on into their new lives (armed with new knowledge and exposure), I've been thinking about what kind of school I want to help create for the class of 2010. To the incoming class, I can only say welcome. Like the great entrepreneurial ecosystem that it is, you can make MIT Sloan the school what you want it to be.
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