Tag: spring break

While the students are away on spring break, Olin staff stay behind and keep the business school, well, open for business. The new Staff Committee decided it was time to bring a little R&R to their hard-working colleagues with a Potluck and Relaxation Event. It was the first-ever of its kind and featured therapy dogs, massages, relaxing music, coloring books, and time to share a meal with fellow staffers who gathered in the McGinnis classroom.

Not that anyone needed prodding, but the Committee did send out some convincing (and amusing) propaganda to encourage attendance:

Did you know?

Studies show people who spend time with pets “had greater self-esteem, tended to be less preoccupied, and were more physically fit”

The benefits of coloring for adults include:  Your brain experiences relief by entering a meditative state. Stress and anxiety levels have the potential to be lowered.

People who get massages report lower anxiety, headaches, and body pain

People who eat live longer than people who don’t eat?

1. Continue your research and zero in on companies or firms where you might like to work this summer.

2. Build an Excel target list of these companies that you can show to your network for contacts.

3. Identify people who are active and knowledgeable in the career field you are researching and the companies of interest. ProNet and LinkedIn are good sources for finding alumni and others.

4. Contact the people you find and arrange to meet them for an informational interview in person, if possible, or via phone or Skype.

5. Conduct the interview using an outline and prepared questions.

Find more information on these 5 steps in OlinCareers.wustl.edu

We are one month away from our departure date.

The trip is starting to become more of a reality with every passing class as itineraries and visits are becoming more concrete. We students are becoming more excited.

This week we finished reading Start-Up Nation, written by Dan Senor and Saul Singer, and Thursday’s class was taken up mostly in discussion about major themes in the book. The main aspect of our conversation that I found most intriguing was our examination of why entrepreneurs in Israel are able to create and innovate in so many disciplines to the extreme degree that they do.

In the book, Singer and Senor highlight the uniqueness of the Israeli army. Some of this distinctiveness can be characterized by the fact that service is mandatory for all citizens (with some exceptions for the Hasidic communities), and also the hyper-competitiveness and prestige that some of the elite units truly hold.  But also, the Israeli army fuels the fire for creativity and innovation. It allows for a certain lifelong connectedness between talented groups. The army instigates an intense unifying community among Israelis that helps foster creativity and innovation.

Israel is truly a country made up of innovators. With areas similar to Silicon Valley, California in Hertzilya and Tel Aviv, tight-knit communities of creativity help to fuel perfection and advancement. I know I’m particularly excited to check out Israeli start-up industries when in Israel to get a feel for this culture that we read about in Start-Up Nation.

Adam
Arts & Sciences, Class of 2014
hometown: Sharon, MA

The Business, Innovation & Entrepreneurship in Israel course at Olin Business School provides WUSTL undergraduates an opportunity to understand the interconnectedness between culture, politics and business, and how all three produce a unique and successful business environment in Israel. Students travel to Israel during spring break to learn first-hand about the Israeli business culture. Students in this course are asked to reflect about their in-class takeaways, as well as throughout their immersion trip to Israel.