An MBA degree can really push your career forward. The degree teaches advanced skills that would have taken you double or triple the time to learn if you would have tried on your own. You are more productive and more valuable to your employer. As a result, your earning potential is greater and your career outlook is brighter.
But that coin has another side…
An MBA degree can also “spoon feed” you information that is best appreciated through hard work. Sometimes, MBAs enter new work environments with a clear under appreciation for the hard work that goes on around them. Some MBAs assume deep understanding in a certain topic when they may have only done a project, written a case, or completed a summer internship. This attitude is not only improper, but also challenges the relationships you need to be most successful in the workplace.
Here are three things you can do to be sure that you enter the workplace in the right spirit:
- Touch the product – You need an intimate understanding of the product, not just a high-level understanding of it. Get a product sample, break it, and put it back together. Then go talk to an engineer and see if you got it right. Let them teach you the ins and outs of what you sell everyday.
- Talk to the customer – Does your customer use the product for the same reasons for which you sell it? Are you sure? Call a customer up and ask them. Ask if they like it the product. Ask if a competitor offers a better version. See what they say.
- Take a walk – Get from behind your desk and interact with people in other parts of the business. Get out in the field and talk to your sales reps. Ask your call center what the most common questions are. Ask the old-timer about the “good times” the company used to have. Interact with the people and processes that surround your product. See what you learn.
There is nothing wrong with having an MBA degree, but there is always a little more to learn. Feel confident that everyone around you has something to offer that makes the business better. Find out what it is and make the most of your work environment.