Alive

Hello everyone. I just wanted to let you know that we are alive and things are going well. I know I should keep posting. Actually I should have kept posting. But I'm just too busy and lost the habit.

In any case, if you are thinking about taking and MBA, here is my advice almost three years after graduation from JBS and after giving advice and getting feedback from dozens of MBA from most of the world best business schools:

• Make sure you choose the right school for you: your profile, your personality, your career goals.
• Go to a top school. Top 10 better than top 20. Top 20 better than top 50.
• Take GMAT seriously.
• Take English seriously.
• Don't bullshit in your essays. Be really really yourself. If you are perfect you don't need an MBA. 
• Start your job search day 1 and narrow down your target companies soon.
• Be confident, not arrogant, but confident. If you are in you are good. 
• Work hard. Make the most of every minute. And make friends. 
• Read books. Leave your laptop and cellphone away a few hours a day. 
• Don't take a job if you want to start a company. 

 Let's see if after this I feel like telling you more about us.

Back to the future

I'm back in Seville and hopefully back to the future. I finally took the new job in Seville, my fourth job since last september when I finished the Cambridge MBA. It might sound a bit weird all that changes, but when you know the details I think it all makes sense and in fact I'm very happy with my career progression since then.

The last move was not easy. I was very happy in Madrid in a new and very interesting position and in a great work athmosphere. But at the same time the new offer I received back in Sevilla was a challenging managerial position with lots of international exposure.

So I did what I normally do when I go running at a new place, I took the tougher route. I took the new job, left the flat I recently rented in Madrid, rented a house in Sevilla, and moved, again. That was the 1st of July. I've been quite busy since then. In fact I'm still at the office now, something quite unusual for a friday afternoon in Seville, in summer. But overall I'm very happy with the new job.

Miriam and the kids are also happy with the change. Now we live in a bigger house and near family and friends.

I will tell you more another day.

And from Madrid to?

When I wrote my previous post on my way to Madrid about a month ago I coudn't imagine I would have to take another big decision a few weeks later. On May 16 I was graduating in Cambridge and I was happy to tell all my friends about my new job in Madrid. But a few days later back in Madrid I received a call from Sevilla in what turned to be another job offer, a very interesting job offer 15 minutes walking from my flat.

My head started spinning and in fact is still spinning since then. Both jobs are cool, both jobs are well paid, both jobs involve a challenge and an opportunity, both would allow me to learn and grow my network of contacts, and of course both involve risks and have their downsides.

And the result is a tide. One is near home, but the fact is that I have already rented out my flat in Sevilla and a flat in Madrid, so now I have a home in Madrid but not in Sevilla. One is in a new city and a new administration, but with some old colleagues and bosses. The other one is in my home city, almost same administration but with new bosses and colleagues. One involves working in a team that has been working well and smoothly for years, the other means facing a group that has seen three managers in the last couple of years.

I have to take many things into account: a school for Diego, a nursery for Leo, a University and/or a job for Miriam, my parents and sister, my in laws, expenses, weather, friends, running, entrepreneurship opportunities, mid and long term plans, stability, loyalty, work-life balance, fun, stress, etcetera.

I hope to make the final decision this weekend... and never ever feel I took the wrong path.

Sevilla-Cambridge-Sevilla-Madrid

If you expect an MBA to make your life easier you are mistaken. It will certainly make your life more exciting, dynamic, full of opportunities, but full of challenges too, and challenges have to be difficult to be real challenges. Anyway, we like challeges, don't we? That's why we are MBAs.

Well. All this argument is just to say I've got a new job and and I'm on a train right now moving to Madrid. As you may know or suspect I work in the public sector. I prefer not to give too much details. But basically I'm switching from the regional to the central government. And I'm really happy with the offer (offers) I've got in the last few months, probably none of them possible without the MBA.

Maybe from some of you moving city for the third time in less than two years is not that a big thing, but for me, married with you little kids, it's quite a feat. Moreover because two of these moves have been out of Sevilla, the best place in the world to live.

But I know I can always come back to Sevilla. Actually my plan is going to my parent's place one weekend a month.

What keeps me busy now is finding a flat in Madrid and renting mine in Sevilla. A handicap is that prices are much higher in Madrid and this is not a good season for renting my flat. The advantages are that it's a good moment to rent in Madrid, and I hope to find a nice place in a cool area. Renting gives you the opportunity of living where you can't buy.

We also have to find a school for Diego and a nursery for Leo, and Miriam will apply to Universidad Autónoma de Madrid to be trained to be an English teacher.

So I will have lots of stories to tell to my colleagues in two weeks when we meet for Graduation. I'm really exited about that.

See you next month

I just noticed I'll be in Cambridge for Graduation in just one month. Time flies!

I was in Cambridge in May two years ago for the interview day, was there last year too, of course, enjoying the last month of the MBA and some running success, and will return this year for Graduation. Great.

I bought the plane tickets months ago and have already booked a room with views to Jesus Green in the Arundel House Hotel, just a few meters from my old flat in Chesterton Road.

Jesus Green and the riverside are great places for running and that's one of the the first things I'll do on friday when I get there, going running with my friends Giulio, Giacomo, Alessandro and Ben. I also hope to be able to find a race to do on the weekend, so I have an excuse not to get too drunk during the celebrations.

This is going to be a very special weekend for Miriam and me because we'll leave the kids at home with my parents. It will be the first time we go out by ourselves for such a long time since Diego was born three years ago.

I know some of my friends will miss Diego and Leo, but we are waiting for them in Sevilla whenever they want to come. We still haven't received any visit from MBA friends in Sevilla. Looks like Victor and Daniela from Chile are going to be the first ones.

Anyway, I just wanted to say I'm looking forward to go and see everyone in JBS.