Originally posted by Jordan Fujiwara.
Today is a special day. We are featuring current student James Hannah and, if you recall from the last blog, we’ve prepared something a little different this time around. Here’s how today’s blog is going to be laid out:
1) Normal Blog – shortened: A regular (but shorter) piece like you are used to.
2) “How James discovered the Corporate Residency MBA”: A short story with cartoon illustrations rendered in the style of hilarious blogger Allie Brosh of Hyperbole and a Half.
3) What to possibly expect this weekend… If you make it past the short story, we have one extra goodie that is planned to come out on the weekend…
Are you ready? Let’s meet James. He’s originally from Oakville, Ontario, with a BA (Honours) in Economics from Carleton University. “I am very impressed with the program. Not only has it given me a solid academic experience, but it’s also really improved my soft skills and caused me to be even more future oriented. I mean, anyone going for an MBA has to be future oriented but this one really focuses on your career path. If I look back to where I was just over a year ago, my opportunities have increased substantially since starting this program.”
An outstanding public speaker, James was a fan of the prolific number of presentations we had to do in the first six months of school. “I was able to exercise my creativity and hone those public speaking skills; they were definitely one of my favourite parts! That, and the shared sense of community and companionship that everyone has in the program.”
Currently, James is wrapping up his Ottawa-based residency with American Express. He works in the Business Travel department on the Government of Canada account and has been doing some incredible stuff there as Business Analyst. “We were in charge of sending all the RCMP members to and from the G-8 and G-20 conferences and I was able to be on this project from start to finish,” says James. “At one point, I was the onsite Amex representative in Barrie, Ontario, to support the RCMP. I was the man on the frontlines. My knowledge of the project made my onsite presence valuable to both the RCMP and Amex. Working there was a huge test of personal and communication skills. I have gained some excellent experience in client management, something that I am very interested in.” James did not actually attend the highly publicized conferences, but was stationed at Pearson airport for a number of days for the arrivals and departures of the RCMP members as the official Amex rep. Intense. “The people that I worked with, both on the Amex side and the RCMP side, are amazing individuals and I have learned a lot from them all, in one form or another.”
He has this message for the current classes: “As Director of Communications for the MBA Society, my goal is to find a way to inform people in an inciting way, in an interesting way that gets them WANTING to hear from me.” I, for one, am looking forward to this.
An avid guitar player, James is currently in a band with two other musician friends and hinted that they will be recording soon and possibly revolutionizing the world of music as we know it. “I tend to stay pretty busy and enjoy always being on the move. With a little coffee, nothing can stand in my way *laughs*.”
Now, without further ado, I’d like to present our special creation for today, a short illustrated story. Please enjoy
The story of how James discovered the Corporate Residency MBA.
Like many young men who have just graduated from university with their first degree, James Hannah was determined to start forging a path and staking a REAL claim on life.
His imagination knew no bounds:
But then something happened…
The economy crashed.
James figured school was probably a safe bet. With an MBA always on his mind, he decided that now was the time to start looking. But where? He searched and searched, and the answer came to him in a rather strange and fascinating way… He wound up meeting a girl at a bar after a long hard day of searching with no amazing prospects. Unfortunately, all he could talk about were his woes.
Eventually and obviously, he worked up enough courage to ask for her number. Cynically, she gave him a phone number on a scrap of paper, while keeping a straight face but probably smirking internally.
The number was obviously fake, and the resulting phone call was not exactly pleasant for James.
However, all was not lost. Moments before he was about to tear the shred of paper bearing the cruel digits of trickery into rage-induced smithereens, James noticed something on the back of it.
It was part of a magazine ad for the Dalhousie Corporate Residency MBA Program! Not one to squander an opportunity, James investigated the Corporate Residency MBA and found it to be offering everything he ever dreamed of. The rest, as they say, is history.
The End.
Actually, the whole thing about the girl at the bar and the magazine ad fake-number bit was a tad exaggerated. Okay, we made it all up. It never happened. But that was to draw attention away from the relatively mundane truth of how James heard about the Corporate Residency MBA from his brother Ryan:
See? Boring.
CREDITS:
James Hannah – Story, and being cool with me drawing him getting crushed by the economy and for insinuating that his flirting skills are subpar.
Jordy Fujiwara – Story and Illustrations
Ryan Hannah – For being the (real) catalyst
Allie Brosh – Inspiration for the drawings, go check out Hyperbole and a Half if you haven’t already. If laughter is the best medicine, you’ll be ready to run a marathon and bench press two sperm whales after reading it.*
*This is a metaphor. Do not attempt to run a lot or lift any sea life after reading Hyperbole and a Half.
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We did have one last thing for you. You probably are not aware, but before I feature anyone on this blog I have to make sure they’re awesome. Usually I just base this on my prior experience with the person, but I decided to formalize the process with poor James and subject him to a round of crazy interview questions. This was all captured on video, and if you are interested in seeing it, you’ll have to check the main blog page on say… Saturday? Or keep tabs on our Facebook Page. I have a feeling it might end up there too…
Annnnd we’re done. Next week we’re back (probably) to a standard write-up, unless there’s an outpouring of support for this kind of stuff. Then we’ll see. I hope you liked it. Bye for now!