Business School: T-72 hours until year 1 is over

I feel like I have been talking about the end of this quarter and my first year of business school for almost a month now. That is mainly because I have been talking about it for almost a month :)

Only one assignment stands between me and 3 weeks of no school (or work given recent happenings). That assignment is my Marketing final.

The final is a case on Kingsford Charcoal. It is a total of 8 short answer questions and 1 essay question all having to do with the analysis, strategy, and implementation that we learned throughout the quarter.

I have to say, though, that I have been having a very hard time getting started on the exam. I have been able to get a lot of background reading done (reading I should have been doing throughout the quarter) with my new found spare time, but not actual work... in fact I should probably be working on it right now.

This is actually the first time since I've been in business school that I have really procrastinated and for some reason it makes me feel better to be typing this blog rather than sitting on facebook or watching TV. I really should stop typing and go down stairs to my office. I mean this is it... the final assignment of the quarter and the year.

I get to bring it all together. The problem identification, 5 c's analysis (context, company, customers, competition, and collaborators), STP (strategy, targeting, and positioning), and implementation (product, price, place, and promotion). I get to show what I know, conduct in depth analysis, and talk about on how I think the Clorox Company should handle the Kinsford brand going forward from 2000...

But this couch is so comfortable and the breeze from outside feels so nice. Maybe I will just go for a walk, or go buy the new nike+ sport pack I have been wanting to get...

...

...

OK... I'm going to get to work now.

I continue to ponder what to do with my career. I do know that I need to move my career forward somehow seeing as I want to eventually support a family, but right now I’m unsure as to ‘how’? Paying rent, bills and all other expenses at the same time as attending business school seems like so much to take on right now. I’ve had many people further in their careers warn me about the perils of taking on a huge student loan. The only solution I can really see is attending an online business school while working full-time, which seems like a lot, but could definitely be the best available option. Simultaneously I’ve been looking at learning day-trading which just from the outset, is a tidal wave of necessary knowledge and potential risk from my current perspective. Then again, I suppose going into the business world always presents significant risk as is the case in any open market. Right now I will continue to look at both options for the future, studying for the GMAT and reading up on technical analysis and hopefully come to some sort of decision.

Or who knows, maybe some day I can do both 