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My love for business is not something I was born with. It took over a decade of experience and exploration to realize my passion
for entrepreneurialship. This discovery began ten years ago when I accepted a position at The Pitney Bowes Corporation. My job was to make unsolicited phone calls to prospective businesses in order to sell our base
model postage meter. All that was required was reading a script, word for word, to potential buyers. Yet, after a week of working at Pitney Bowes, I still didn't know important details about the meter, like what it
looked like, and how it actually operated. My manager acted a bit surprised when I asked to see the meter, but she agreed, and I took a walk to an adjacent building where I saw first hand what I was selling. It looked
completely different from what I had expected, but by viewing and touching it first hand, my ability to convey to people what I was offering improved dramatically. Once I viewed the device, I felt more confident to
adlib on the sales pitch. In a couple of weeks reading my hybrid pitch led to a higher rate of sales. People were more apt to buy from someone who sounded like a person and less like a robot. My sales steadily improved
and in my third month I was the number one sales person out of over 200 employees. Management implemented some of my changes in the selling process and as a result, overall sales of the entry model postage meter
increased significantly. After my days of selling postage meters were long over, and I was in my senior year of college, I decided to start my own company. I wrote two books on college admission and
college life and marketed them through the internet. After three month of diligent work, I sold over 500 books and expanded the company to five employees. Since selling only two books was proving so successful, I
decided to branch out and try my hands at an affiliate driven superstore. I partnered with web sites like Amazon.com and Reel.com and became officially licensed to sell their merchandise. My time and effort resulted in
many visitors to my on-line superstore, but sales were few and far between. The business needed a change of direction. Noticing that other web sites were starving for more visitors I decided to sell a portion of my own
traffic. As the world-wide-web continued to get more competitive the amount an individual was willing to pay per visitor also increased. I dedicated all my effort to perfecting my system of trafficking visitors.
Although seven cents per visitor sounds insignificant on paper, my web sites were receiving tens-of-thousands of web-surfers a day. The beauty of my web trafficking system was that once I spent the time setting up a web
page, it would receive a steady amount of visitors without any additional work. I calculated that over the course of a year, an hour of my work translated into approximately $5,000 in profit. With my internet
trafficking system running itself, I set my sites on a different challenge. I never thought I'd be immersed in the plumbing world, but that changed when I accepted a position at Worldhomecenter.com. The
Worldhomecenter.com office was like a barren warehouse infested with fruit flies and gnats. The web site resembled a rocket ship taking off from Cape Canaveral and the database of products was incomplete at best.
Despite the companies' dire state, I knew an opportunity existed for anyone who could create the premier on-line home improvement store. My job description was business development/marketing and promotions, but because
I was one of only four employees, my position entailed much more. I understood that working at Worldhomecenter.com would mean all-nighters at the office and heavy personal sacrifice. That's exactly what I was looking
for, so I accepted the position. My time at Worldhomecenter.com exceeded my expectations. I've been head of customer service, web design, and even attempted to install a toilet in a customer's apartment (operative word
being attempted). During a time when most business-to-consumer web sites have experienced a downturn, we've made strides every month and have recently realized a profit for the month of October.
Working on the internet has been an incredible experience, but my long-term career goal is to broaden my exposure to the world of business. An MBA from Columbia will help me achieve this goal, and now is the
perfect time to pursue the degree. First and foremost, I view an MBA from Columbia as a launching pad for my career. The first year at Columbia stresses fundamentals in accounting, marketing, and finance. Having a solid
grasp of the basic language of business will give me the best chance for success as an entrepreneur. Secondly, since my own internet ventures have either been sold or are capable of running themselves, I am now able to
commit wholeheartedly to the pursuit of an MBA at Columbia. Lastly, I believe in challenging myself. I feel that creating a successful internet company from the ground up has prepared me to take on the intense and
engaging study at Columbia. Entrepreneurial work is what I intend to specialize in upon graduation. My experiences thus far have given me broad exposure to the business world, but there are still
innumerable areas that I wish to explore and conquer. An MBA from Columbia will maximize my chances for success in any and all fields of business. I view my accomplishments and experiences thus far as the tip of the
iceberg to what I can achieve, and I feel an MBA from Columbia will get me one step closer to realizing my full potential. |
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