George Tan

Excuse my charisma

...so begins the opening stanza to one of my current songs on repeat: Lil Wayne’s 6 Foot 7 Foot.  Hearing that rhyme kick in as I cruised down State Street yesterday on a beautiful day, I started thinking about charisma. It’s such an intangible thing but you somehow know when it’s there.

Dictionary.com defines charisma as “a quality inherent in a thing which inspires great enthusiasm and devotion.” In this way, Ross has serious charisma. After seeing the energy and devotion to this school from the Ross community during Go Blue Rendezvous, it’s no wonder why I heard admits happily say “I just decided. I’m definitely coming to Ross.” so many times in the last few days. Some highlights:

• 2011 Map Video - when I first saw this, I got kinda emotional. First of all, who decided on this music? It's not even fair. It's like designed to pull on your heartstrings. Just seeing all my friends smiling and enjoying themselves all over the world makes me tear up. Okay, not that far, but seriously... the music combined with this video of all of us having the time of our lives... someone in the GBR office needs to go into marketing for Hallmark.
•  

 

• Soojin singing "Livin on a Prayer" and "Sweet Child of Mine." Our fearless, pint-sized admissions director is the best. Where else do you see someone who holds the fate of so many prospectives' MBA dreams rockin' out like that?? Sorry guys, no video sadly. Even if I had it, she would probably tase me if she knew I put it up on my blog. You'll just have to take my word for it. She was awesome and a great representation of this school's charisma.

 

• Flash Mob! Decided to take part in this flash mob just to give the admits yet another reason to choose Ross. Look at us getting our groove on in the middle of the Winter Garden to impress the admits. There's nothing better than a bunch of future business leaders making fools of themselves to showcase how proud they are to represent their school.  

 

All in all, GBR 2011 was awesome. I met a lot of great new admits who embody the Ross spirit and share that same charisma that is prevalent among everyone in this community. When I go out into the real world, I know that I'll be able to work with, lead, manage, and leave a good impression on others mainly because of my interactions within this school. That's charisma, folks.

To continue the lyrical theme, my good friend Jeff Ignacio, who rapped during the B-School Band’s performance summed up all of our sentiments when he re-worked Jay-Z’s rhymes, saying “if you're choosing another school I feel bad for you son. I got 99 problems but a good school ain't one.” Damn right.

Whirlwind Week

First of all, I'd like to extend my deepest apologies to all 3 of my loyal readers for not staying up to date with my blog. Between class, more class, recruiting, more recruiting, themed parties, and more themed parties, I completely lost track of this poor, neglected blog. How are we already halfway through our MAPs?? 

This entry will be a brief one, but I promise to whet your appetites with a more robust post very soon. I'm reminiscing and looking ahead to this whirlwind week. Let me recap for you.

• Monday 3/21: Met with MAP faculty advisor and sponsor to prepare powerpoint presentation for our upcoming trip to Bejing! With both the faculty advisor's support and the MAP sponsor's direction, our presentation is bound to wow the various representatives from publishers, advertisers, ad agencies.

Speaking of MAP, I think now would be a great time to talk a bit more about my project. I am working with a start-up digital advertising firm that wants to become the go-to ad network in China and establih digital advertising standards in that market. The purpose of our trip is to meet with various players in the Chinese digital advertising space and get an understanding of how that market currently operates and how ad standards would increase revenue for all parties.

Did I mention that we're staying at the Peninsula? Yes, they send Rolls Royce Phantoms to the airport to pick you up. That's winning... Back to the timeline!

• Tuesday 3/22: Travel day. Flew out to San Jose today for an interview on Wednesday. Although on-campus recruiting has already ended, OCD is so sweet that they continue to send out emails about companies looking to hire, which is how I got this interview. Thanks OCD! You all are pretty awesome.

• Wednesday 3/23: Actual interview day. I'm not going to lie. I'm a nervous mess before interviews. Remember Donovan McNabb dry-heaving in the Super Bowl? That's me. However, as soon as I shake my interviewer's hand, I feel this calm and confidence wash over me. I guess that's all that really matters, isn't it? Quick interview tip for all you future MBA1's. Do your research. I truly think that showing how much you know about the company and your ability to ask pertinent questions helps you the most in interviews.

• Thursday 3/24: Well, I got back to Ann Arbor at 6:30am today. I went home and took a 2 hour nap and now I'm back at Ross, manning the Habitat for Humanity charity auction booth. It's our annual silent/live/date auction to raise money for our house next year and as President of H4H, I am both excited and nervous about the event tonight. The auction is an example of the Ross community coming together and supporting each other. So many professors and students have donated to the auction and I know the Board is so thankful for the generosity of this community. Future MBA1's, you won't want to miss this next year. Dean Dolan is donating dinner in his private boardroom. Professor DeRue (you'll meet him soon enough) is donating a limo trip to MGM Detroit for a "night of fun and debauchery." Students are donating themselves as dates. It's going to be really fun. 
• Also have to give a huge shout out to my MAP team for picking up the slack while I was out in Cali. You'll find that everyone in the Ross community is so helpful and accomodating. We all want each other to succeed and if that means putting in a little extra work for the benefit of a colleague, we're all willing to do so. I'm thankful for being a part of such a great MAP group and I owe them many drinks in Beijing.

• Friday 3/25: Finalize slide deck! It's going to be crunch time so we need to make sure our presentation is on point and makes sense. Go out with some friends since I'll be gone next week. Leaving Ann Arbor is a little sad. You really grow to love this place.

• Saturday 3/26: Parents are coming into town to visit a family friend in EL and are stopping by Ann Arbor to say hello. This means I have to do a serious amount of house cleaning and laundry. Not looking forward to being domestic today. Oh yeah, I'm also leaving on a jet plane...

• Sunday 3/27: Arrive in Beijing at 11:30pm. Amazing MAP travel experience officially begins.

Winning!

Welcome to Ann Arbor

So let’s see… Ajay talked about best practices when reaching out to the Ross community, Sheryl just updated about how Section 6 is the best (those 6ers need to get over themselves), Katie wrote about the job search process, Kendra just updated about finals week, and Boris… well, at least I'm not the last one to write my 2nd post ;-)

With this flurry of blogging activity, I’m sitting in the winter garden, ignoring my marketing final and pondering, “what should I blog about?” Well, how about something that all you prospectives will have to think about when mulling over your acceptance letters.

What’s it like living in Ann Arbor… aka A-2, Tree Town, A-Squared, Ace Deuce

If you’re short on time, here’s the gist: Ann Arbor is awesome. Watch this video.

 

If you have a few minutes to spare… well, carry on.

Let me caveat this by saying I was raised in Ann Arbor until I was eight so I have scattered memories of this place. Also, as the son of a college professor, I’ve only lived in college towns and have traveled to many different ones around the country. Without a doubt, Ann Arbor is the greatest college town I’ve set foot in. The blend of Midwestern small town charm, educated sophistication, vibrant atmosphere, and social awareness is what every city strives for. With all the townies, students, faculty, yuppies and retired folks, the city offers so much for such a diverse group of people.

For the health conscious, there are plenty of organic/local food options. The Kerrytown farmers market is a great place to get good ol’ local fruits and vegetables. Tons of veggie co-ops and organic restaurants in the area as well.

For those of you that want to relive your undergrad days, let me introduce you to South University. Charley’s, Blue Lep, Brown Jug, and of course, Rick’s, would all be happy to send you back in time for nights you’ll never forget…. and probably won’t remember.

Want to go window shopping at boutique mom-and-pop shops? Main Street/Downtown has exactly what you need. Have some brunch then stroll your way through a variety of specialty shops with an ice cream cone in one hand and shopping bags in the other.

Need to get away and recharge? Head to Gallup Park, only 4 miles from Ross, and go canoeing in the Huron River. Rest, Relax, Recharge. Repeat as necessary.

For the jet-setters who really need to get away, Detroit Metropolitan Airport is a short 30 minute drive from Ann Arbor. You can jump on a plane to Tokyo on Thursday afternoon, be back Sunday night just in time to finish your HW before class. I sense your incredulity, but a section-mate did this. He is the man.

Don’t worry, I didn’t forget you sports fans. The Detroit pro teams are close by, but you can just stay in Ann Arbor and experience football Saturdays the Big House (my personal favorite) and do things like be a part of the largest crowd to ever watch a hockey game. Ever. In the history of mankind ever. 

I would be remiss if I didn’t mention the rich musical and artistic history of the city for all you cultured folks. As a University Musical Society board fellow, it is my duty to shamelessly plug the great arts and music scene that is at the heart of Ann Arbor’s culture. Wynton Marsalis will be here in February. Yo-Yo Ma comes often. The annual Ann Arbor Folk Festival is coming up and the Avett Brothers are headlining this year. You will see great shows in intimate settings here. Trust me.

Now you’re probably thinking… ‘that sounds great and all but I want to keep my fingers and toes in the winter, thank you very much.’ Well ladies and gentlemen, does it get cold here? Of course it does. It’s freezing today. Literally. It’s 9 degrees outside. But that’s why gloves, beanies, scarves, boots, thermals, earmuffs and of course, hot chocolate were invented. I trudged 10 minutes through the snow to get to class today and by the time I felt that warm gust of air hit me when I entered Ross, I was already sweating from all my layers. Dress warm in the winter and the cold won’t hurt you.

There’s something for everyone in this near-perfect little town. It’s even been proven.

2nd Smartest college town in the country (Daily Beast)

3rd Best city for college graduates (Daily Beast)

Main Street named one of the top 10 streets in the country

Best college sports town in the country (Forbes)

4th best city for families (Parenting.com)

One of America's top 25 greenest cities (Popsci.com)

As I mentioned earlier, Ann Arbor truly is an awesome place. Classmates from all over the world have raved to me about this little slice of earth. If you still aren’t convinced, to quote DMB, “turns out not where, but who you’re with that really matters.” Your classmates at Ross will make sure you have the time of your life here, no matter the location.

Obligatory pics time? Yes, I believe so.

Me standing in front of the Shapiro library. Wow, I used to be cute

The Big Chill.

Mmmm... Zingerman's

Kerrytown Farmer's Market

Beautiful Huron River and Gallup Park

Quintessential Ann Arbor

 

Until next time… Go Blue (and Ann Arbor!)

-George

Hello World

Welcome to my Ross blog. I’m here to take you on my MBA journey and invite you to live as a Ross MBA1 vicariously through my posts. Hopefully, you get a good understanding of what Ross is like and what makes this school so unique. If you have any questions, please do contact me at getan@umich.edu. Likewise, if you’d like me to discuss a specific aspect of the Ross experience, email me and I will make sure to write about it!

Okay, on to the fun stuff… so I’ve been in Ann Arbor for 2.5 months now. Whoever came up with the idiom “time flies when you’re having fun” should win understatement-of-the-year award. On one hand, it already feels like home (a reflection of how comfortable I am here and how busy we are each day) but on the other hand, I can’t believe we’ve already gone through an entire term and are halfway through another.

Bullet points of some of the highlights since I started:

•    Discovered that there is, in fact, Outback Steakhouse in Australia (courtesy of my Australia M-Trek).

•    Went to San Fran with 200 other Ross MBAs as part of the West Coast Forum networking trip and won a PG&E SmartMeter case competition.

•    Decided that I want to apply to the Erb MBA/MS daul degree program with a concentration in Sustainable Systems to pursue a career in the growing alternative energy industry.

•    Listened to Charlie Munger, Warren Buffett’s right hand man, reference groupies while talking about the future of the global economy.

•    Became the mayor of a local Ann Arbor bar on Foursquare, successfully ousting a prominent MBA2.

•    Discovered that my body is still allowing me to play ultimate frisbee, flag football, kickball, and soccer back to back to back to back during MBA Games.

•    Gotten to know the rest of my Section, which won the RLI challenge by the way, through a variety of social activities (Corn Maze, International Potluck, happy hour).

•    Worked with classmates to develop a business plan for homemade mosquito traps in my “Strategies for Solving Social Problems” course that could eradicate malaria in Tanzania.

•    Experienced the full gamut of recruiting activities ie: corporate presentations, happy hour networking, case competitions, office hours, mock interviews. Just reading that makes me tired.

•    Watched Michigan beat Illinois 67-65 in the highest scoring game in Michigan football history!

•    Attended the 2010 Net Impact Conference: Vision for a Sustainable Decade. Left feeling inspired and ready to tackle the challenges facing the world in my lifetime.

•    Celebrated the end of Fall A exams with a night that may or may not have involved section-mates skipping down the street singing The Sound of Music together. I won’t name names.

•    Took Director roles in Ross Energy Club’s 2nd Annual Renewable Energy Case Competition and the Entrepreneur and Venture Club’s VC trip. Last year we had lunch with Warren Buffett. This year? Targeting Larry Page (please email me if you have his ear).

•    Became a Board Fellow for the University Musical Society through the Non-Profit Management Center. As a board fellow, I sit in on UMS board meetings and am working with the marketing team to devise a marketing strategy targeting UM grad students.

•    Most importantly, I've befriended the most amazing, accomplished, diverse and down to earth people here. The people really make a school and that’s what accounts for The Michigan Difference.

Just to name a few… Martin Nance, former NFL player and Super Bowl winner, Andrew Bishay aka Swole Beatz, music producer, Debra Lin, food blogger extraordinaire, Dave Swenton, returned Peace Corps volunteer, and Jenna Kirkpatrick, county fair queen and John Deere lover.The best thing is that they are all Ross Student Ambassadors too and you can find them here!

You may be thinking to yourself “No way George did all that. Pics or it didn’t happen.” Well, I aim to please. Here you go, friends.

 

M-Trek team

Best Section ever

International Pot Luck

Michigan Football

 

Drinking for Charity

 

Until next time... Go Blue.

-George

You may be thinking to yourself “No way George did all that. Pics or it didn’t happen.” Well, I aim to please. Here you go, friends.