Term 1: On The Edge

6 weeks are gone. I feel like it was only yesterday when I arrived at RSM. Honeymoon is over, I no longer care about under-eye concealer and coffee is my best friend now. The stronger, the better. Seems like I inhale every morning with the everlasting alarm melody, which wakes me up exactly at 8am, and exhale only when I hold the pillow late at night. A few seconds trying to remember what was going on during the day, then everything starts to fade: the brain just switches off.

I never expected this much of a teamwork. Diversity, which we strived for before coming here opened his arms and embraced us. I could hardly imagine anything more diverse and hard at the same time. Six people in a team, six different opinions and perspectives on the same subject. Everybody is trying to be a team player and a leader, to be uniform and unique at the same time. Coming from a monoethnic society, it is really hard for me to overcome the difference, because every word or move or even a glance is a challenge, as I never know what the cultural difference prepared for me as a surprise. I am learning from people around me.

In spite of this, the biggest challenge for me so far was the ability to listen to people. I did not even suspect, that I need to develop patience. If I fight this out, the first winning point is there. 

RSM became home.

Pre-Departure Thoughts

New Year's Day passed like another desktop wallpaper, changed by an unknown user.
Two years ago this holiday was just disgusting to survive, last year it was a pure expectation and now it is nothing more, but a background. All my inner resources, rational and empiric, are extremely sharpened as a predator's ones and directed to my next step: arrival to Rotterdam, where my MBA at RSM starts on the 9th January. As a common human being I need to admit: I am anxious. Not scared, but anxious. The change I was striving for is materializing in front of my eyes: I've already said goodbye to my beloved one for a few months at least and I'm going to miss him like hell. My mom never gives me even a hint, but I can sense her restless thoughts about my departure: actually, I am leaving her alone in this city for the whole year. My best friend was trying to hide her look, but I had noticed her eyes getting watery a few seconds before that. This list is long, but...
There is always a balance between what you gain and what you leave. That is some sort of an investment, which, if calculated correctly, definitely gives the expected feedback, sometimes doubled. I am sure I did all right. But no one escapes this part.

Once more, I found out how important is being active and involved once you are admitted. Thanks to our Facebook group (Varun and Markus, waving to you!) I more or less interacted with the majority of my MBA batch fellows, found a lot of bright wits (selection is really tough in RSM) and online friends there, who soon will become real ones. All the essential information is always circulating more in the social network groups rather than in official pages: the discussions are sometimes off topic, but really helpful to get to know people one is going to spend the whole year with. Plus, later, when we need to form teams for assignments and competitions, interactions go easier.