Do strong winds take precious time along?

Sat in my apartment, I look outside only to see the clouds pass very swiftly. Thanks to the ongoing severe winds that seem to even obstruct the birds from flying. Then I wonder, may be time gets fleeted in the same manner. Still can't get the scene out of my head, but its 7 months already! 5 months since I left home. A few more months before I am done with the course. A thing that will continue to amuse me for life. Well, I can go on!

Last week was pretty intense with CAP case studies and practice sessions on full swing. Storm Doris added to the intensity. 3 full tiring days, can imagine how it would have been for Cana! Thursday was quickly followed by Macro-Economics exam. That afternoon we also met with Jane again as a team to discuss the entrepreneurial challenge and take our project forward. Some exciting work awaiting there.

That evening, Sunny and Clara played hosts and invited us over for dinner. A few nice hours spent chatting, relaxing and eating. Thanks to Sunny and Clara for being great hosts! Then began the sleeping season for me. I think it is still continuing, but hopefully it will be done right in time for tomorrow. It was also good to have Ploy come over for dinner on Friday!

The exciting bit of the weekend while most of the cohort is in Dublin, was my visit to Leeds with Nobu. A 2 hour road drive to the York Shire county. A brilliant big city with a nice blend of history, art and culture in a modern-day setting. We spent 4-5 hours touring around Leeds visiting The Town Hall, The Civic Hall, Granary Wharf, Leeds Minster, Leeds Cathedral, City Sqaure, Trinity Leeds mall, Victoria Leeds mall, Kirkgate Market, University of Leeds and many other small places. Thanks to the tour-friendly weather. Had a nice lunch at Wagamama before we headed back to Lancaster. Thanks Nobu for the company!

Seated now, sipping tea after a long nap catching up on stuff and preparing for tomorrow. Another month begins shortly and I am still thinking if these strong winds have a potential to push time along as well.

On a windy afternoon welcoming Storm Doris

Granary Wharf, Leeds	Leeds	With Nobu
Leeds Shopping	With Cana!	Dinner at Sunny & Maria's
Team in Dublin	Leeds Town Hall	Peter-Alex!
Trinity Leeds

Entrepreneurial Encounter!

Week 15 just wafted past! Entrepreneurial challenge all through and all of us turned entrepreneurs for a week or at least tried to develop that mindset. A new experience personally for me. Memories date back to early 2000, when I had set up a small library at home with my own collection of books and rented it to others. This time things were much more complex. As a very creative team we decided to sell calendars, greeting cards, post cards and bookmarks. 

We spent time going around the campus, clicking pictures for the calendar, sitting for long hours applying glitter, colours and borders and shaping our final products. A small mini-creative supply chain kept us moving and soon we had a mini-warehouse filled with stuff ready for sale. The following day, during the trading period, we went around the campus selling the stuff and made a profit of 101 pounds in 2 hours. Not a bad deal. The money was eventually donated to BBC Child Aid. A unique encounter that made me realize how difficult it is to sell and how tough it is to measure and price creativity. It also brought the kind and obliging nature of the cohort since we all had to support each other in our own mini-ventures. Interesting exercise filled with fun, but the actual challenge just begins. What's the next best idea that can make an impact? We ourselves will get to know hopefully by the 14th of March! :)

Besides that, the week in itself was filled with some busy activity as usual. Weekend went in managing daily chores and sleeping to get my tummy and head set for the upcoming CAP week.

Ruskin Library - Photography tour	Learning Zone - Photography tour	Selfie tour! :)
Marshmallow Challenge	My EC Team	Standing tall!
Missing Marcos!	There he is! Laughing Buddha? :)	After a busy enterprising week!

Catch-up week!

After the exam on Friday, the Strategy book was back in my book rack. A much awaited and indeed a deeply skill-enhancing module came to a close. That evening, I decided to play 'catch-up' with my hobby of playing badminton :) But I must say, it was such a refreshing evening playing with Tim, Pom, Johnny & Patrick. My first encounter with our massive sports center. Brilliant time except for the post-game effects on the body! Worth it though. Let's see how often I can play 'catch-up' with play.

The weekend that followed was a once-in-a-while opportunity with no assignments and tasks. Again I decided to 'catch-up' with pending sleep. 12 hours or more, sorry, I couldn't keep track. But I felt I was just sleeping the whole time and it felt good. I also decided to 'catch-up' with cooking and ended up having a great evening with friends on Saturday and Sunday. Totally caught-up with just everything! :)

Monday was off to an entrepreneurial start! The second of the four challenges - The Entrepreneurial Challenge began with a thorough bang. After Magnus' know-how session in the morning and Nigel's practical session in the afternoon, we are busy storming about the next best idea that can help gather some pounds for us! Looking forward to the fun-filled week with my new team - Shiksha, Marcos, Joanna, Azree & Ploy! Let's see what results from this enterprising team.

Badminton time!	Entrepreneurial challenge begins!
	At the Farmer's Market	Entrepreneurial thinking with Nigel!

Was assured, now reassured!

Post the London trip, began the much awaited and talked about, Strategic Management module. Each team was assigned a company and the idea was to develop a story line of the issues the company faces and what each could do to ensure sustainability. Well to me, so far as I always say, the best part about Lancaster MBA is the seamless integration of subjects and concepts and this was very very loud enough in the Strategy module. The way each session was conducted, how that learning applied to our companies, what we presented the following day and what we took back as feedback to incorporate in our subsequent task - just seamless and brilliant. The work was demanding but at the same time was very satisfying and thought provoking. Working with my new team also seemed to work quite well. A nice combination of skills and expertise resulted in us winning the best strategy award! How cool is that! I chose Lancaster MBA in the first place for its world renowned strategy module and this week actually reassured my decision to have chosen Lancaster. It was a perfect mix of teaching, research, group work, presentations and knowledge sharing in my view and Martin & David drove us through this ride methodically and meticulously. The icing on the cake was Gerry Johnson's session on 'Reviewing Strategy' that summed up every bit and brought out the practical perspective of Exploring Strategy. A week that will remain in my memories for life and an experience that I will cherish.

Besides the busy schedule were also other interesting things. The FT MBA 2017 rankings were out. Lancaster moved from 35 to 42. The fall did upset a bit, but not beyond 'a bit'. I am experiencing the program myself here in Lancaster and for me it is satisfying and fulfilling and I think that is what matters to me right now. In the midst of presentations and group work came Marcos's birthday celebration that brought in some respite. Got my hands on karaoke singing and fell prey for a bit of magic that turned me spell-bound. 

Going to catch up with sleep today since we are free for the next 2 days, but busy preparing for an Exam Friday! 

Say Strategy!	Gerry reviewing strategy	Team Air Berlin
What the fog is going on?	Team Spire Health	Team NetFlix