Advice for aspiring executives

And snippets of wisdom from those who have taken the leap

What is the one thing you wish you had known before you decided to further your studies and pursue an executive education? What one lesson can you share with prospective students to help them on their

learning journey? This is what some industry experts and MBA graduates had to say:

Nashreen Arnachellam - MBA Graduate, Head of Business Development, Managing Director

I failed the first MBA exam I wrote; I retook the exam and got a distinction. Getting back on the horse takes time and resilience. If you’re doing this, you need to keep your head in the game and don’t doubt your own abilities. The credibility and knowledge hosted in this qualification has accelerated my career and has given me the confidence to strive towards a clear purpose and career path. My advice to achieve this success is to be humble, be grateful, be respectful to all, surround yourself with people who inspire you and always stay true to what you believe. Honesty, integrity and authenticity make up the backbone of a nation on a journey to recovery and transformation.

Michele Sohn - Founder of Confluence Digital Research, Strategic Advisor

My MBA experience changed me and the way I engage with the world. It consolidated my knowledge and reassured me that many of the decisions that I’d intuitively come to were right on track. Understanding why people make decisions (and how to nudge them to better outcomes) is fascinating. I’m now tired of helping companies sell things that people don’t really need — and more interested in helping companies and consumers align to create a kinder kind of capitalism — where profit and purpose meet around shared prosperity.

Yorika Kesari - MBA Student, Client Success Manager

At first, I tried to research and study by myself to enhance my lectures and specialised materials for recall later. I was drowning with the workload and felt overwhelmed. It wasn’t until I started networking with fellow colleagues that we began to close the knowledge gap and build on each other’s experiences. Fortunately, we are teamoriented, keeping each other organised, focused, and motivated. Above all, we keep each other sane.

Mariapaola Mcgurk - MBA Graduate, Entrepreneur

Going back to study anything is very challenging. It took me two-and-a-half years to complete my MBA, and it was only when I graduated that I realised how burnt out I was. It takes a toll being a wife, being a mother to three small children, being an entrepreneur and doing an MBA. But I don’t think that is something I would have wanted to know beforehand, because it might have stopped me from doing it! Sometimes you’ve just got to step into the dark and push through despite not knowing what is on the other side. Just follow your gut, do what you think is right and see what the outcome is.