Sunday, August 24, 2008

Coach K at Olympics !!!!

Wow...this is awesome, I have seen Coach K in action at the NCAA games but never knew that he also coached the US "Dream team" and got it the gold medal at the Beijing Olympics. Iam amazed at the big brain in his little head, that goes on forming strategies after strategies. When I started watching the NCAA games(out of boredom), especially the rivalry between UNC Chapel Hill and Duke University(which seems as intense as a cricket match between India and Pakistan), it was Coach K who drew my attention. Undisturbed by all the brouhaha in the court, he stands there calm and attentive watching the players and suddenly calls for a timeout and changes strategies. He might as well become a management guru, teaching how to tackle pressure and formulate strategies :)

For people who dont know Coach K , a little bit of a background here. Coach K aka Mike Krzyzewski is the head coach of the Duke University men's basketball team - aka the Blue Devils. He became the coach of the Blue Devils back in the 80's and has been there ever since. He transformed the team from a moderate college team to one that has won championships and that is considered a strong contender in the NCAA.
The best thing about him,that I like, is his humility and loyalty. He was pursued and offered millions by top NBA teams like the LA Lakers and Boston Celtics, yet he chose to stay with Duke coaching it's college team for the NCAA.

As far as I know(which is of course very little, with just 8 months of watching basketball),I guess no living basketball coach has been honored the way Coach K has been. Duke has named it's basketball stadium as Coach K Court and it's new training facility , Michael Krzyzewski Center.
Simply put, Coach K has gained eternal fame and is living through it.

Friday, August 22, 2008

Final List

Now I think I have an apt title for my blog - the one that exactly suits me, for I've been delaying things on and on and on... But Soni has sent a shiver down my spine. He has submitted the Kellogg application !!!!!!!! Good god, I just started writing the first draft of my K-essays and he's already done with it.
Now I think I need to buckle up and start seriously. For an international aspirant like me, I guess UK too gives the same opportunities as the US does and what more, the worker-visa laws are quite simple for an MBA grad while in the US...well , who hasnt heard the visa troubles last year. My final list goes something like this, divided equally(well not mathematically) between US and UK. I believe Iam not app-ing too high given my profile with K and L being the "top-tier" and F,R and O being the "middle-tier"

Kellogg
Fuqua
Ross
LBS
Oxford

Wish me luck