As I clicked the ‘submit’ button a few months ago I felt a sense of satisfaction. It was out of my control.

I would hear back sometime late September. If I got in, I would make the decision about attending then. It was a future Kathryn problem, not one to ruminate on now as I headed off to work.

Now it is a mere 10 days until I start the month long sprint Seth Godin has made infamous, known as the AltMBA.

Am I nervous? A bit I guess. But I’m going to “trust the process” as they like to say.

I understand that the goal is to change the way I work. To learn to ship projects in a way that is efficient and creatively challenging.

This course is about breaking patterns and changing behaviors. It is not a typical class.

In this way I am excited and ready to embrace the challenge.

However, I do expect to be challenged in a number of ways:

Perfectionism. As an A student throughout most of my educational career, I expect to bump against my internal need for perfection. However, I know this desire to do things “the right way” often just leads to procrastination and overthinking without action.

Group work. I also expect to be stretched by working with teams of people of all ages and experience levels. I have always preferred solo work over group work (most likely due to my need to do things “the right way”). So I know navigating these group dynamics and personalities will likely present a different kind of challenge.

Late nights. Finally, the long hours will prove a challenge as I haven’t stayed up late working on projects since college (I’m more of a morning person too). So I know there will come a point where I will feel like I’ve hit a wall - which I will need to push through.

With just 10 days left until the 26th cohort of students starts the AltMBA, I can say I am excited to embrace the process and can’t wait to see what the end results will be.