How I Learned to Think Differently at Ivey
Through Ivey, I learned to shift away from chasing the “right” answer and towards asking, “How would you decide?”
It trained me to make decisions based on context and the information at hand — understanding constraints, and focusing more on why we choose a path rather than whether it’s perfectly right.
Coming from an Engineering background, I remember feeling frustrated by how open-ended Ivey’s case method could be. No matter how much time I invested in preparing, my approach would often differ completely from that of my classmates. At the time, I mistook that lack of clarity for confusion. Looking back, I see it for what it was — the lesson the program was designed to teach us all along: that leadership looks different for everyone, and that nothing in life, especially leadership, is ever as clear-cut as a math equation.
That way of thinking has shaped how I view both the world and the workplace. In every environment I enter, I instinctively look for the pieces that make up the larger system — the people, processes, and incentives that drive outcomes. It’s much like studying a chessboard: every piece has a purpose; every move has a consequence.
That level of analysis and curiosity was strengthened during my time at Ivey. It’s what makes me inquisitive in professional settings — always connecting dots, questioning assumptions, and trying to understand how one decision shapes the next. Even early in my career, I’ve noticed this perspective sets me apart: the ability to see through a leadership lens — to project myself into decision-making roles even when I might not yet have the title or authority to act.
Lessons from the Workforce
In my first few years working in the corporate world, I started catching myself asking the same kinds of questions that used to come up in those case discussions.
Why is training implemented like this? Could it be more impactful for the team? Are there better alternatives? What limits one department’s budget compared to another? What is stopping teams from addressing certain gaps — and how could they fill them?
At first, I wondered if this constant curiosity made me overly critical. But I soon realized it wasn’t criticism — it was pattern recognition. The same instinct Ivey called innovation: spotting areas for improvement and imagining what could be done differently.
I’ve been fortunate to have a manager who not only listens to my curiosity but challenges it in the best ways. He’s shown me what empathetic leadership looks like — leading with patience, openness, and a genuine commitment to developing others, while still pushing back when he sees things differently. It’s a balance I’ve come to really value: conversations that are sometimes candid, always constructive, and rooted in mutual respect.
Through him, I’ve come to understand what it truly means to embody the principles of the Character Leadership framework — balancing competence with care, and accountability with compassion. He’s helped me see decisions from the management side — the constraints, trade-offs, and organizational realities that shape every choice. Sometimes that means hearing a perspective that grounds my ideas; other times, it means being invited to see the same problem from a completely different lens.
It’s the kind of exchange that reminds me of those earlier case discussions, where the intent was never to be right but to learn by challenging each other’s thinking. Those moments where empathy meets honesty have given me a deeper perspective on what leadership really requires: patience, humility, and the ability to communicate through tension without losing trust.
I’m shielded from making difficult decisions for now — the ones that carry real consequences for people and strategy — but I learn by observing them closely and mentally stepping into those decisions myself. I often find myself asking what I would do differently, or why I might make the same choice. That awareness has become both grounding and motivating. It’s a tension between curiosity and impact, between vision and restraint — one of the biggest drivers behind my decision to return to Ivey.
Rediscovering Purpose
After a few years in the workforce, it became clear that my curiosity about systems and improvement wasn’t a distraction from my work — it was my work. It was the signal pointing towards where I wanted to go: leadership.
In every project, meeting, and decision, I can still feel echoes of the same principles I first practiced at Ivey — that leadership begins where certainty ends.
I realized I didn’t just want to understand decisions; I wanted to make them. And I knew that returning to Ivey was the right environment to refine that next stage of growth.
Why I Chose the Study-While-You-Work Route
As an HBA graduate, I considered both the full-time MBA and the Accelerated MBA.
Ultimately, I chose the study-while-you-work route because I’ve learned that the lessons that stay with me most are the ones I’ve been able to apply in real time.
I wanted to experience the case method again — but this time through the lens of professional experience. To attend class one weekend and recognize a concept that mirrors something happening at work the next week. That active integration of theory and reality feels like the most powerful way to learn.
I also wanted to keep growing in my career without taking time off or losing momentum. The Accelerated MBA has become the way for me to do both — to keep progressing professionally while deepening my education in real time.
On a more personal level, I was looking for structure and human connection again. Working fully remote has its advantages, but there’s something grounding about being in a classroom — discussing, debating, and learning side by side. The monthly in-person weekends give me that sense of rhythm and community I’ve been missing. It’s not just academic — it’s rejuvenating.
I know it will be intense, but I’ve come to believe that taking on more isn’t always a burden; sometimes it’s an act of passion. And this decision, for me, is driven entirely by passion.
What I Plan to Do Differently This Time
During my HBA years, one thing I took for granted was the Ivey community — the closeness, the energy, and the shared drive.
After working full-time, I’ve learned how difficult it is to build that kind of connection once you’re out in the world. This time, I plan to be intentional about it: hosting study sessions with my cohort, joining socials, engaging more actively in our group chats — whatever it takes to recreate that sense of collective learning and support.
As someone who experienced HBA1 during the height of the pandemic and has since worked in hybrid and remote settings, I’ve developed new ways to connect digitally. I plan to bring that same energy to this program, blending online collaboration with genuine in-person relationships.
I also want to make a point of reaching out to professors — not just for coursework but for conversations. Over the years, I’ve often caught myself reflecting on lessons from my professors and how they apply to real situations. This time, I want to close that loop: to ask them how they would think about the same questions I now face in the field, and to learn not just from their expertise but from their way of reasoning.
Closing Thoughts
Over time, I’ve realized that growth doesn’t always mean moving forward — sometimes it means returning to what first challenged you to evolve.
For me, the Accelerated MBA isn’t about reliving my HBA experience. It’s about deepening it — testing those same principles of decision-making, collaboration, and reflection against the realities of the world I work in today.
Coming back to Ivey doesn’t feel like going backwards. It feels like coming full circle — carrying forward the lessons that once challenged me, ready to apply them again, this time with experience behind me and purpose ahead.