OwenBloggers: Sharran Srivatsaa

3 questions from the truth

The summer is almost done.... I am headed back to the NYC to hang out on the street for the week. I have learned a lot this summer... I also learned how much the first year of business school has taught me. What I have learned is that its not about whether I know how to price an option, understand the downside protection of a structured note, or find a creative way to explain the sharpe ratio to the uber successful multi-millionaire who has just sold his cement business... its about people... and its not about showing them what you know but about quickly finding out what exactly they need to know, and explaining it to them without actually explaining it to them. Ha, take that.

I learned something this week that changed the way I look at interpersonal interactions. One of my colleagues told me, "Sharran, you are about three questions away from the truth" - whatever the truth might be. I think it was a piece of insight that came to me at a time when I was being bombarded with a lot of tough questions... and instead of trying to comprehensively answer the question, it has given me a way to find out more about the root reason as to why the question was asked of me in the first place. Cryptic? sorry.

On an unrelated note... you have to watch this video... I can guarantee some laughs!

The Aussie's always seem to have the rhythm of the samba...

Don't judge too quickly!

 

What's in your wallet... er, locker?

Adapting the good things from high school… and the gym, every Owen student gets a locker in the building. It is super convenient and I would recommend using it wisely. I have seen people put shelves etc. in it - which I think is a great idea but turns out to be too much effort for me.

Things that I keep in my locker:

1. Tie and Blazer: I always have a blazer and a tie in my locker. You never know when you will need one… and it has come in handy many times.

2. Fleece: The library and the classrooms can get very cold sometimes… and not only has the fleece helped me but I have even lent it out numerous times. So you are welcome to borrow my fleece if I am not using it ;-)

3. Pillow: Yes I have a mini pillow in my locker. Its great when I can take a power nap in a library room from time to time.

4. Earphones: I like working on the main floor of the library and it is a good idea to have your earphones to drown out the noises so that you can be uber productive.

Some of the other things that I have seen an a locker: shoes, gum, glue, shoes, more shoes, mini ironing board, iron, chopsticks, granola bars, soup cans, umbrellas, beer, tequila (Jose...busted!), textbooks, binders, 3 hole punch, laffy taffy, brawny, wig (yes a wig), socks, a case of red bull, and of course a pink shirt.

If you have the extra czash, I would recommend getting a second AC adapter/charger cable for your laptop. That way you can leave one in school and have one at home. I would highly recommend this if your laptop is not a widely used model… i.e. if it is not the school's standard issue or a mac… because you can always borrow those.

Samba is back in two wzeeks!

Checkers and DNA re-sequencing

I used to be a pretty slick code monkey. I wrote some pretty awesome code while I was in the silicon valley... at least that's what my co-workers said to me. I always thought that it could be done better... and so there were times I would take pieces of code that worked just fine, and work on making them work better. It taught me a lot about myself... I learned that I could not deal with mediocrity. Some of the best advice that have ever gotten was to autograph my work with excellence. Excellence is subjective, of course, but I cringe to put my name on something that is half-baked.

During my freshman year of college I was so excited that one of the computer science professors let me into this 500 level class titled 'artificial intelligence'. I was such an uber nerd at that time that I was so excited to go buy a text book titled 'artificial intelligence' or android epistemology'. The material came easy to me... and looking back I am (1) glad that I had/have the aptitude to bring the nerd (2) glad that I had the opportunity to bring the nerd (3) glad that I don't ever have to bring the nerd anymore

That's why I got a mac.

But you have to respect what this guy has done... they have built a computer program that can beat you every time in checkers. You might think, "duh, what a waste of time" - I agree, partially... but the brain power can be harvested to do some pretty cool things like re-sequencing DNA to make Indians have blonde hair, etc.

What do you think about blabbing on the bathroom anyway?

Technorati tags: sharran, srivatsaa, owenbloggers

Never Smash A WD40 Can

Definitely not the rhythm of the samba...

Summer? What summer?

Its amazing how I only have a week left in Atlanta and then I head up to New York for my last week. This past weekend was the first time I was home all weekend… and it was sooo weird.

I have had such a good summer since school got done in May. I got to spend tons of time with N, my parents came to visit and we took a couple of road trips, I went to a bunch of weddings with N, started off working in New York, then came down to Atlanta, a bunch of weekend trips to see N… and boy has it flown by. After working in the technology and resort worlds, I had gotten used to dressing down… but this summer I have had to suit it up everyday. The “I am going to smile because I think I look important” feeling faded away after three days… now I am actually comfortable choked up in a tie. I don’t think I have worn dress shoes for this many days ever.

The view from the office building is nice. I can see the skyline through my left window and a huge green expanse through my right… kinda cool. The one thing that I am totally impressed with is the temperature control in the office… this is the first time I have not had to wear multiple layers, ha! Oh wait… maybe because I am already wearing multiple layers.

I have had a crazy summer… being home this past weekend actually frustrated me, I felt like I should be going someplace, doing something. But it was alright… I stayed home, cleaned, did laundry, watched a couple of movies, and worked out.

I need to reclaim the rhythm of the samba this weekend...

OwenBloggers Summer Advice: 5 Orientation Fortune Cookies

Hope y'all got to read Tony's post on Orientation Do's and Dont's. I read his post and 20 minutes later I bumped into him at lunch... haven't seen the kid all summer and he works a block away from me. Swayzee.

Orientation is going to have a little different feel that what our class experienced last year. Its going to be a lot more hectic for two simple reasons:

1. Its been cut down from 2 weeks to 1 week (you are welcome)
2. The incoming class is going to have about 50+ more students this year, so get ready!

In light of those two reasons, here are a few Orientation tips:

1. Go to all the sessions: A lot of the students, staff, and faculty have been working on the structure and content of orientation since the beginning of the year. We were ruthless in how we cut out things from the schedule that we thought were not completely useful. I am sure you are going to dislike some sessions…but treat it as your time to get acclimatized… its only a week, we had two.
2. I hate to do this in a public forum but I think this needs to be said… make an effort to interact with your classmates from different cultures. So if you are an international student, make an extra effort to connect with the domestic students… and vice versa. The reason I say this is because most international students arrive 2 weeks early for USBCC/International Student Orientation. Its very easy for everyone to stay in comfortable groups formed from this time…
3. Orientation is the only time when you can randomly walk up to people and say Hi… without feeling awkward. You might be introducing yourself to the same people more than once…especially when you under the enchantment of certain beverages… trust me, it happened to us all.
4. Ask better questions… seriously, I was sick and tired of telling people where I was from and what I used to do before Owen. But please don’t bore your classmates with the same questions… be creative. Stand out. You might not be able to keep everyone’s hometown and prior career straight – but I am sure you will find it easier to remember the more unique traits of your classmates.
5. If you have not quit your job yet – please put in your two weeks now. You are going to be so slammed and it takes a while to get into the rhythm of school. I would try to get settled at least a week before orientation and get into a sleep cycle that you are going to follow when start school. (wake up before 7 and sleep after midnight).

Leave me a comment if you have questions and I will be happy to write about them. I will be around during Orientation, so I look forward to sharing some buckets of samba with you across the street.

Pursuit of Happiness

I just finished watching The Pursuit of Happiness with Will Smith and I am a ball of mixed emotions. With its close tie into my current career path of choice, the message hit pretty close to home. Set in 1981, the movie talks about how Will Smith is one of twenty hot shots who get into a high flying, non-paying internship program at Dean Witter... and only one of the interns gets a full-time offer. One!

We MBA interns have it easy. When I finished watching the movie, I could not stop to think about whether my summer would be different if that was the kind of program I was in... and I don't know why, but many parts of me wished it was like that.

We are all different and it has taken me all these years to realize that I work best when I am overloaded with work. The more work I have to do, the better I do... I eat better, I am healthier, I am less stressed, and I sleep more... weird. Somehow seeing my Outlook calendar jam-packed gives me a sense of calm... one of my classmates at Owen made fun of me because I had quick meetings scheduled for the 10 minute break between classes. If it works for you, and works for the person you are meeting with, I think anytime is a good time.

Advice for incoming students: Spend the extra time early on building your schedule and putting the effort into being organized and managing your time. Take the time to put things into you outlook calendars. Take the time to file the handouts and the articles in the right binders. Take the time to print off the slides and make notes. The few times during which my organization fell apart, it had a ripple effect into the rest of my life. It was no fun.

Last week at lunch I got some of the best advice that I have ever received. The funny thing is that all of us have gotten this advice at some point in time in our lives, and sometimes the advice is not anything tremendously insightful... it just comes from a person who you trust at a time when you are receptive to it. One of my colleague/mentors told me that the best thing that I can do for myself in this business is to take care of myself physically and emotionally. Physically for the obvious reasons... but emotionally because this business has the highest of highs and the lowest of lows... and if you can go home and walk into a warm and loving family, it would work magic for the mind, body and spirit. It might sound like common sense, but it was something that I needed to hear at this point in my life.

I am feeling the rhythm of the samba....

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Project Pyramid: She is gonna squirm...

Some background… Project Pyramid is student-led organization born at Owen that explores the alleviation of poverty through sustainable business development. We believe that the poor are extremely capable of lifting themselves out of poverty if they can be given the initial access to certain valuable resources such as capital, education, etc.

 

Project Pyramid drives the concept of interdisciplinary thought and humbly understands that the solutions for the alleviation of poverty will come from all over, not just through business. We believe that it is important for everyone involved in these efforts to have a handle on the underlying economics so that they might be able to blend their knowledge and specialization along with their understanding of the economics at work. For example, a doctor might be interested in building a clinic in a Kenyan village but understanding how to make that clinic an economically viable option for the people and also to make sure the clinic continues to be around for years to come requires some business acumen.

 

Great Sharran, so what?

 

Through Project Pyramid I have had a chance to meet some wonderful people across the Vanderbilt campus. One of the students at the Vanderbilt Divinity School is going to be taking a 1^st year MBA Economics course in the fall… and I am so proud of her. This is a core course for business students taught by one of my favorite professors Luke Froeb. Luke is everything that you will not find at the Divinity School… he is extremely passionate about the world and does not hold back his joy or frustration in the classroom. My friend is going to enjoy learning new material but I an guarantee that Luke will make her physically, mentally, morally and emotionally uncomfortable during every single class.

Bottom line: Project Pyramid has given friend the opportunity to expand her horizons…and the MBA students (in the classroom) will get a chance to see the world in a different way through her thoughts and experiences.

 

This is Project Pyramid at its very best… making small yet significant differences in the students of today… and the leaders of tomorrow.

 

Getting back into the rhythm of the samba for sure....

My tennis terminology rant...

This is probably not the ideal forum for this rant, but in the spirit of Wimbledon I think I can squeeze it  through... and it is fun to see Roger Federer get bored and shank.

It is amazing how everyone from young players to pro TV commentators use incorrect terminology while describing strokes/shots in tennis. So what?  I have a (big) problem with incorrect terminology because:

1. Teaching pros often teach strokes/shots based on terminology. Its natural to teach a boxer type of motion on the volleys if you constantly say “punch.” Using the right terminology will automatically “re-wire” the brain into a more conceptually and bio-mechanically sound way of thinking and teaching.

2. Spectators using the wrong terminology  perceive the game differently. For example, if Tiger Woods “hooks” a shot and everyone says it was a “chip” then there is a disconnect - and the true athleticism and execution of the sport is incorrectly recognized. Are you going to go to your next golf lesson and ask your pro to teach you a “chip” when what you actually want to learn is a better hook?

Here are some very brief (general) descriptions of spins in tennis. These are general and apply to more than the majority of the situations. I am particularly frustrated by the generic use of "slice" while referring to a non-topspin shots.

Topspin: Ball has an accelerated “forward” spin (spinning on its horizontal axis), making it “kick up” or bounce higher than normal once it hits the ground

Underspin: Ball has an accelerated “backward” spin (spinning on its horizontal axis), making it “slide” or bounce lower than normal once it hits the ground. Because of the backward rotation of the ball it is also called “Backspin.”

Sidespin: This is when the ball is spinning from left to right/right to left on its vertical axis, making it “spin off” to the side after it bounces. To use a golf analogy, this is a slice or a hook. This kind of spin happens often in “slice” serves. So, the only time you can refer to a shot as a “slice” is when it has sidespin!

You rarely hit a backhand “slice,” unless you are creating sidespin on the ball. And if you do hit a slice, it is often unintentional. Your normal backhand which you have been referring to as a slice is actually a  backhand backspin or a backhand underspin.

If you are a teaching professional, check your usage and educate your students. If you are a player, check your usage and educate your team mates… as well as challenge your teaching professional. Have him/her think through the idea… then go home and email him/her a copy of my blog article and encourage them to contact me.

And if your professional seems to “not care” about furthering themselves and becoming a better authority on the game, then I would recommend you to consider re-investing your lesson dollars elsewhere.

There. I am done. Ha!