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4. Theme: Who You Most Admire
If you were able to choose one persona from the business world,
past or present, to be your personal professor throughout the MBA
program, who would this person be and why?
Describe the characteristics of an exceptional manager, using an
example of someone whom you have observed or with whom you have
worked. Illustrate how his or her management style has influenced
you.
Translation:
What are your values? What character traits do you admire?
This is the curve-ball question. The committee isn’t looking to
evaluate your judgment in selecting some famous, powerful personal
in your firm or in the world. What they’re really after, which you
reveal in your selection of their person, is the qualities,
attributes, and strengths you value in others, as well as in
yourself. Some important qualities to address: Drive, discipline,
vision, ethics, and leadership. As always, provide specific
examples, and avoid choosing anyone too obvious.
Since the person you select is not as important as what you say
about him or her, your choices can be more humble. You might write
about a current boss, business associate, or friend. Bad choices are
your mother or father.
If you like, it’s perfectly fine to go for a famous figure.
Indeed, there may be someone whose career and style you’re
passionate about. Make sure your essay explains why you find this
persona son compelling.
Sample Essay Topic: If you could step into any celebrities
shoes for a day, who would it be and why? (500 words maximum)
It will be Yao Ming, an All-Star centre of NBA Houston Rockets
with impressive flexibility, cultural awareness and leadership
skill.
All Chinese are pride of Yao Ming not only because he has 2.26
meters of height, but also because he relies on one's own efforts to
achieve success in a totally new country within a short period of
time. He is a hard working man and excels at adopting a new
environment. Every year, thousands of foreigners enter into U.S.A.
as students, workers, or vendors, hoping to realize their own
American dream. I have the same dream to succeed in Chicago through
my own efforts like Yao Ming. At Chicago GSB, I look forward to
engaging in group activities where my fellows come from all around
the world and I can take the advantage to sharpen my ability to work
and lead in multi-culture environment. This is the first reason that
I hope to become Yao Ming.
Secondly, Yao Ming, as a Chinese, also belongs to the world. He
has perfectly merged Chinese and United States cultures. The
football fans come from all parts of the world. Sportsmen of NBA
should be open to the world. They help the community to participate
in all kinds of activities actively and communicate with different
people from every corner of the world. Chicago GSB has students of
various nationalities from all parts of the world too. I hope I can
be the same as Yao Ming, merging various nationalities, culture, and
being able to keep up with the trend of globalization.
I really value the diversity since I believe it can bring with
the creativity and group contribution. I ever encountered a cultural
challenge. In such a heterogeneous environment, it seemed I could
never reach a consensus with my foreign colleagues. Why? It turned
out that, because of the cultural diversity, everybody took a
different approach to the same problem. Realizing the impasse, we
agreed that whenever there was an argument, all of us must change
roles - when the challenger is standing in the shoes of the
challenged, the paradigm shift would bring something totally
different. We argued and changed, argued and changed again, and soon
we gained a truly valuable paradigm harmony. Flexibility was added
to systematic approach, and western methodology was merged with
eastern ways of thinking. Amazingly, we found diversity was not an
impediment any longer, but it nurtured creativity and efficiency.
Thirdly, Yao Ming successfully influence, lead others. Yao Ming
makes more Chinese like basketball - the audience rating in CCTV of
NBA match with Yao Ming always ranks the first. This kind of
influence power and ability to lead are final goals that I hope to
achieve. How great it is to influence people of an era, interests of
several hundred million people through a person! Through the study
at Chicago GSB, I hope to become Yao Ming in another field – a
business leader that can have impact on the world.
Next: Sample MBA Essays #5: Teamwork – How
Do You Work with Others in a Group Setting? |
