Welcome to F1GMAT #askAtulJose series. I am Atul Jose. Today I don’t have a question, but I began to wonder what makes an applicant a winning applicant. I found that they all had a story. A story that helped them stand out from a similar-looking profile. This is one of the common reasons why a GMAT 750 or someone with an excellent GPA gets dinged. They don’t ask themselves, “What is my Story .”They are somehow in a rush to submit applications. It becomes just a task. And they are hoping that by applying to the top 5 or 7, or 10 schools, one of the applications will work. And it did. 

Many times with my support and editing. I also had clients who understood that working on the core story is the most important part of the application. They were not in a rush. Most importantly, they started the application process even before the essays were announced. They were curious to find out what they lacked in their volunteering, extra-curricular or professional trajectory.

There are two ways to find your core story. I will help you figure it out in this episode of the #askAtulJose series.

Before we start, check out my Essay Guide –  Winning MBA Essay Guide. If you purchase anytime between May and July, you will get two versions of the Winning MBA Essay Guide. That is the previous year’s version and the versions that I update for the year, which means more sample essays. More strategies and a wider option to create your story.

Now back to the podcast.

The first question you must ask to find your core story is:

What are the cool projects that I did?

I remember a conversation with someone working in Robotics where he went on and on about the technical specifications and the way in which the machine moved sacks of grains from the storage to the trucks. And the prioritization of the batch of grain was determined by the destination of the export. It sounded amazing for someone like me who has an Engineering background. But then I noticed that he stopped the conversation. But what is the purpose of this solution?

That is when it occurred to him to mention the mission of the company. The founders were from an underprivileged background and noticed weaknesses in the supply chain that had a horrible impact on their society. So this was not a non-profit but a proper silicon valley Venture capital supported company. There was a larger story that the applicant could have easily associated with. But the instinct to focus on the solution instead of the purpose can make any story into a technical narrative.   
Why your company exists should be the first question you need to address before associating your personality traits with the success of a project.

The second question you have to ask is

What were my aha moments?

I had two aha moments.

One was when I was sitting in a Computer Networking lecture in Engineering. And the professor was a child actor in South India. And this guy was a really good actor. It was a cult classic in early 90s. And like a monologue, he was using storytelling to explain subnets and a few other concepts in Computer Networking that he really knew. The person still got it.

He is a great storyteller. He should not be teaching Computer networks. He should be in some stage acting and moving the audience just as he did when he was a child actor. And that lecture made me wonder whether I am in the right career. That was my first aha moment.

The second aha moment. I will not mention the names of the schools. But before pivoting to Consulting and Editing Services, we used to generate leads for schools. And these numbers were pretty impressive. And for them, we were just another platform. I had already become disenchanted with lead generation for schools. So I began editing application essays, and then the first client got into an M7 school. And the person wrote a heartfelt thank you letter that got me through so many tough moments in my life. And that matters. Because when you think about what is easy vs. what feels right, this moment was one of them. And I felt that I have a purpose now. 

So for you, you have to find that aha moment where your contribution was acknowledged in such a way that you felt that you found your life’s purpose. It need not be a problem that could easily be solved. It could be a hugely ambitious problem statement. But you felt good chasing this goal. That moment is what is lacking in most application essays. It is a cookie cutter; I did this. I was good at that. Now I feel I want to do an MBA. By the way, this works for schools outside the top 7 list. That is all they are expecting.

Even MIT is not expecting a lot of storytelling. But almost all top schools want to see you – the person.  

Why you are chasing such an ambitious goal. What is driving you?

List at least one moment in your life where you felt:

1) Self-doubt (when you questioned your ability)
2) Anger (when you couldn’t achieve the expected results)
3) Loyalty (when you believed in your team despite their weaknesses)
4) Inspired (to continue despite imminent setback)
5) Joy (when you accomplished a goal)

These should not be empty emotions.

You should have taken some action from these emotions or felt the emotion after accomplishing a goal, something related to a project, a career decision, a founding story, volunteering, or a family event.

I hope you understood the importance of having a core story.

To start a conversation on our consulting, profile evaluation, school selection, essay review, recommendation letter editing, interview preparation, and scholarship/fellowship application editing services, you can reach out to me through F1GMAT's Contact form. Or you can message me through Skype at F1GMAT. 

I am Atul Jose. See you in the next #askAtulJose series.