If only this thing existed 13 years ago…
“Tell me more about this Spanish online MBA school” – asked my colleague Pedro earlier today.
So I began telling him my ThePowerMBA journey, which inevitably led us to something really profound – the underlying growth mindset, and the constant willingness to learn. We ended up talking about learning habits that best support our lifestyles and personalities.
Sometimes, we need just a trigger, or a reminder – I had such a moment after watching the Business Model Canvas class, when I applied the learnings straight away. The next day, to be precise. I used it for modelling an in-house shared services team within our organisation.
Thinking about this broadly, I realised that if people are given the opportunity, they will learn from it, one way or another. The key is to extract the right type and amount of knowledge at the right time. Knowledge compounds over time, but with the right guidance it can accelerate to new heights, amplified by environment, people or other factors; often those socio-economic ones.
Okay, so what exactly happened over a decade ago?
In 2008 I embarked on my solo-preneurship journey. Equipped with my attitude, a business concept and zero formal training in the business field. All I knew was that there were opportunities around me, and if I didn’t take them – someone else would. That thought was unbearable to me for some reason, so I had to take action. Lots of it. Moreover, I had to be quick.
One thing that happens when you over-commit blindly to your business is that you lose capacity to grow beyond your original idea. At least that happened to me, and I’m seeing the same among many other first-time business owners. I was attending some entry-level courses, and I used some coaching. But that didn’t move the needle, at least not much. I also didn’t have much time for books back then. Here’s the truth: the best piece of advice I got from that time, I extracted it from a regular conversation. I didn’t apply it right away, though. I was too busy doing stuff.
“I believe to this day that profound lifestyle changes mark the personal growth milestones.”
Few years into the grind, I knew I had to change something. I needed to grow outside my constraints. Badly. Call it a comfort zone, call it a box, whatever. I had to grow out of it. First thought: “Where do I start? Oh, yes, books! Wait, but what books?”. Luckily, YouTube really picked up and I started immersing myself in the content from various growth leaders and conferences. That way, on top of recommendations from friends, family and mentors I was reading the best titles from top thinkers. I owe who I am to all those people. I really do.
From “Start with Why” through “Making Ideas Happen” to “UnMarketing”, I started questioning the status quo and gradually growing out of where I was. Until I reached the point when I literally had to change my environment – physically. I believe to this day that profound lifestyle changes mark the personal growth milestones. Such changes create mental space for new habits and ideas. In my case, I decided to pivot and shut down the business.
Remember the thought about compounding the knowledge? It wasn’t until 2016 that I really got into multi-channel, daily learning. I prioritized small learning habits: audiobooks, short reads, numerous subscriptions, books. Even a daily round of well-curated LinkedIn content counts. At the same time, I started developing concerns about the relevance of the traditional education model – basically seeing what benefits a lifelong learning approach can bring, and how it rewires the brain. It does wonders.
Finally, 5 years later… micro-learning got me at its best
Early 2021. End of February, end of week. I was in the market for some training. Something a bit more structured, so that I could use it as a framework for further learning to advance my career. Over the years, this ad-hoc, on-the-job learning can get patchy. You learn things as you need them, but there might be gaps – after all, it’s your life that creates your very own curriculum.
I was pondering over several online university offerings. Still, to my previous point, I wasn’t convinced with the value I would get from a formal education programme. Plus, a candidate often had to meet numerous criteria. Luckily, I was well aware of this emerging trend of MBA alternatives for some time already; with some of them being just overvalued, simply re-packaged masterclasses…
BANG! ThePowerMBA hit me with its claim to be the first real alternative to the accredited programmes
Hey, I thought. That’s a thing. This meant I could get all the knowledge I craved, and no hassle with admin, formal requirements and so on. All delivered via short, snackable sessions I could easily squeeze in my agenda, spread over one year or so. It didn’t matter where I lived and what my background was. As they claim: they democratize business education, and I must say they do it well. The moment I reached out to them I was in the take-my-money mode. Literally, I insisted on paying on the spot and starting ASAP.
After a few classes, delving into the Business Model Canvas, I thought excitedly: “Yes, that’s exactly what I was trying to figure out years ago in my business!!”. Then the facepalm moment followed. Did I just lose these 13 years? No, not at all. Many of the concepts covered in the course are too new anyway – developed in the past couple of years, or case studies with AirBnB’s, YouTube’s and Netflix’es of the world.
One thing for sure – if I was to start any business venture or a serious business career today – I would begin with ThePowerMBA to know the playbook first. It just helps to at least know about those frameworks one can use. I knew that the Blue Ocean strategy existed, but only after going through it in the class was I able to apply it in my daily work. So I did – when we were working on brand development of our corporate product spin-off earlier this year. Lesson learned: micro-learning works.
So how did my conversation with Pedro go today? It was clear that the future of learning is about flexibility, matching our digital, ever-changing lifestyles and habits. There’s no one-size-fits-all here, but there are choices that stand the trial of our times – the ones that offer a platform for personalised growth, tailored to one’s own pace and context. Just like ThePowerMBA did in my 2 examples.
“It’s your life that creates your very own curriculum.”
/K.