Seth Godin’s altMBA Program: The Most Intense 30 Days of My Life
Considering participating in Seth Godin’s altMBA program? I will say it was the most transformative [and intensive] project I’ve done in the past decade. Before I started the program, I was very curious about the program and what exactly to expect.
Here are my weekly reflections while preparing for and going through the program.
altMBA Day 1: I’m on a mission. A mission to prove that it IS possible to hack life.
As I am writing this, I am sipping a cup of Yerba Mate tea for enhancing my focus and fat-burning while nursing my four-month-old baby boy to sleep. It is not easy being a WAHM with ambition. When I experience frustration, it’s because I’ve failed to achieve goals I’ve set for myself. I get to the end of the day and find myself more focused on what I did not get done rather than the successes I had that day. Have you ever felt the same way? If you’re a Type A, like me, it’s inevitable.
Beginning today, I will be engaged in the altMBA6 program with about 100 other rockstars. During this 30-day sprint, I have also chosen to embrace these other challenges:
I’ve opted to take on an A-list client.
I am starting to learn Olympic weightlifting.
I am dieting down and training to compete in a Figure Competition.
I am meticulously prepping all my meals to meet my macros.
I am focused on exclusively breastfeeding till the 6-months-old mark.
I am writing one blog per week.
I am guest blogging once per month.
I am publishing on the LinkedIn platform once per month.
I am launching an Influencer Program.
I am launching a Media Outreach Program.
I like to push my limits to find out what is possible and which things actually push me over the brink. In this exploration, I can discover ways to embrace and accept constraints. I will become a stronger person as a result. There IS a way to do it all without going crazy.
It’s about scheduling and asking for help.
I have asked my 13-year-old daughter and my husband for extra help this month. It is impossible to continue doing everything I’ve always done AND to add these challenges to the mix. Something’s got to give time-wise. I’m grateful to have a family who supports me during times of intense pressure.
For the next four weeks, I’ll be checking in to let you know how it’s going, what I’m learning and strategies I’m using to manage multiple priorities.
altMBA Day 8: Embracing the Process
Yes, I’ve been a bit a bit quieter here on my site than normal. I’ve been immersed in the altMBA program, and I’m learning a great deal about collaboration, teamwork, feedback, reflection and making a ruckus! I’ve been writing more during this program than I ever have!
After having done SO much writing, I barely had time to check in. I’m developing an even stronger work ethic, and I THOUGHT I was productive before altMBA.
altMBA Day 15: Leveling Up
It’s hard to believe that we’re already through Week 2 of altMBA6! Time sometimes stood still when trying to crank out a project to meet a deadline. And, on the other hand, I can’t believe that I am already halfway through the course.
Here are my nine takeaways from this week:
Making Decisions. The last week has been transformative for me. After learning how to make good decisions, I applied that framework to making a decision about my next step in my career. Instead of relying on my gut to make the decision, I used a decision tree to work through all of the options (even some of the crazy ones). At the end of that process, I made a decision and actually felt confident that it was the RIGHT decision, not one based upon emotions or a gut feeling. It was not an easy decision, but the solution is the one that will help me best achieve my objective. Framing and reframing the decision in different ways gave me alternative perspectives.
Leading. I have also discovered ways to lead, push back and speak out. Those have always been challenging things for me to do in a group setting. But, I have changed. I am now eager to seek out ways to lead in my learning group, my cohort and with all of the students in altMBA.
Giving back. When I signed up for the altMBA program, I assumed it would be all about doing the work and not about interacting with the community. Little did I know that learning how to give generously and freely to my peers would be a crucial part of the program. Encouraging them to push through those late nights and publish projects. I almost feel a sense of responsibility to the community — like I would in a community management role — to ensure everyone feels heard, understood and supported.
Teamwork. I like to get things done on my own, since I have always identified with the self-starter mentality. Collaborating with a team has been one area where I have learned to level up. I also discovered that I LOVE facilitating discussions and asking the questions to get my group members talking.
Doing the hard part first. I never realized how much and how often I procrastinated on projects. I always assumed there was never enough time to get everything done. Till altMBA. I found out that I had an extra 3–4 hours of productive time within my day.
Outsourcing tasks. Prior to altMBA, I felt a responsibility to my family to prep luscious meals, take care of all the laundry and keep the house spotless. When altMBA started, I relinquished my inner perfectionist housekeeper and focused solely on what absolutely had to get done (brushing my teeth, taking the periodic shower, getting my Zzz’s). I realized that delegating these tasks actually improved my productivity and allowed my teenage daughter and husband to feel they were better supporting me in my work.
Showing up. Not everyone keeps their commitments. That was one of the most disappointing (and somewhat surprising) things for me. One of my team members was a no-show to our learning group meeting and completely missed out on the project. Always show up. Never flake out.
Can do attitude. Instead of coming up with reasons why I don’t have the time or brain energy to work on a project, I look for clever ways to come up with that time or improve my brain energy. (Thank you, ZipFizz & OptiMind!) After altMBA, I know that I will be able to create time and space to work on my next big thing.
Leveling up. Not everyone is ready to level up. When we all first started the altMBA journey, our Slack community was buzzing ALL DAY LONG with inspiration, comments, positive mojo and virtual high fives. As we begin Week 3, I have noticed that the energy has died down. Some have dropped out. Some have fallen behind on projects. Others seem exhausted. And, I don’t feel that way at all. I’ve had to restrain myself from posting too often in the Slack community because I don’t want to overwhelm the group members. I feel that I can do so much more.
My investment in the altMBA program has already paid off. If all I had learned was the “how to make good decisions” exercise, it would have been worth it. That one exercise alone has given me the confidence I need to move forward with my next career move, knowing that it’s not just a gut decision but the RIGHT decision. You can check out my portfolio of work here.
And, we’re on to Week 3….
altMBA Day 22: Aha! Moments
When you enter a life-changing program, you wonder how it will affect what you believe and what you prioritize in your life. altMBA6 is no exception. After my third week in the program, I feel that everything I believed about where I was headed has been turned on its head. I entered the program with one main goal in mind: to leave the program with the tools needed to build a mind-blowing online product. I have found myself questioning everything about that goal.
What I’ve discovered is that my goal has shifted dramatically, and I’ll be sharing more about where I’m headed on the blog after altMBA6. (No spoilers, unless you want to check out my altMBA6 portfolio.)
I’m heads down this week, while I sprint my way through the last seven days of the program…
altMBA Day 30: Making a Ruckus
Have you ever wondered what you could learn in 30 days’ time if you decided to go all-in, exert every ounce of strength towards examining your worldview, understanding constraints and leaning in? That’s exactly what you’ll get in the altMBA program!
I spent the last four weeks immersed in the most amazing community of 100 people hell-bent on making a ruckus during Seth Godin’s altMBA6 program. Here are a smattering of lessons and themes I discovered throughout the course.
- Embrace the tension. The altMBA course is not for those who already have prior commitments and are unwilling to feel the pressure of churning out work. There’s tension in keeping up with shipping projects. There’s tension in working with complete strangers in learning groups. There’s tension in trying to juggle your day job, family life and get all of your altMBA projects completed on-time. When I finally learned to embrace the tension, I began to relax into the process and let it work on me, rather than trying to forecast how altMBA would help me reach my goals.
- Trust the process. I experienced more breakthroughs and epiphanies than I was expecting. I thought I would be going into a program with a clear goal, knowing what I wanted to learn during the program. That was turned on its head after Project 1. It was challenging to trust the process of altMBA, realizing that I would find my way through the murky waters of doubt, fear and uncertainty.
- Lean in when you want to lean out. One of my learning groups was extremely challenging, and I wanted to “lean out” to do the projects on my own. Instead, I chose to facilitate conversations, step up to lead the group and be more proactive than usual. This helped me to grow as a leader and gain more confidence.
- Teamwork improves projects. As a marketing freelancer, I was a lone wolf. I liked working in my own bubble, doing solo projects and never working with a team. This meant my ideas were never challenged to be better. I was never pushed to level up. I churned out work, but it could have been better. My learning groups taught me how to collaborate and work WITH a team, instead of doing it on my own and TELLING my team what I had already done.
- Empathy. This was a theme woven throughout the entire altMBA journey. I still don’t think I’ve mastered empathy, but I am on my way to becoming more empathetic. Before altMBA, I was all too quick to judge people. Now, I am learning how to identify other worldviews and learn how to empathize with them. It’s incredible how a focus on empathy can change you from the inside out.
- Showing up. Not everyone makes it through the altMBA program. I heard a host of excuses from teammates who did not keep their commitments from “I got married last weekend” to “I overslept” to “I have a client emergency.” The toughest part about altMBA is showing up to the learning groups on-time, every time. I revamped my entire work/play/family schedule to accommodate the program. And, it was more than worth it.
- Pushing through fatigue. I relied much more on caffeine and Zipfizz than is normal for me because I felt so mentally taxed. In pushing myself to the brink of exhaustion (almost every night of the program), I found out where my limitations were. I realized where/when I could push myself and where/when I needed to take a break. I found out that I have more “prime work hours” in me than I realized.
- Leveraging constraints. I am still trying to wrap my mind around this concept. A Beautiful Constraint is on my reading list for this next month. There are self-imposed constraints and external constraints. But, instead of looking at them as barriers, I am learning how to view them as opportunities, as leverage to reach objectives.
- Being generous. altMBA is about showing generosity to all other altMBA students, cohort team members and those in each Learning Group. Participating in the Slack community was also another way to extend generosity, by looking for those who needed a word of encouragement, deserved a shout out or just wanted to be noticed.
- Learning how to give/receive feedback. This was (and still is) one of the more challenging parts of altMBA for me. I was in awe over the insights/comments that I received on my projects from other students and from my learning group. I never felt that I could not reciprocate in the quality of the feedback I gave to others. It’s one area I am still working hard to improve.
- Dance with fear. It’s okay to be afraid. What’s not okay is allowing fear to paralyze me. As soon as I give fear that power over me, I will cease moving forward and sink into mediocrity. Dancing with the fear means there IS movement, though it might not be in the direction I originally intended.
- Do the hard part first. I thought I was good at prioritizing until I joined the altMBA program. I discovered there was “fluff” in my daily regimen. By stripping away everything else that did not need to get done THAT day, I discovered how to better manage my time and responsibilities. It’s amazing how much time we waste doing things that don’t need to be done… right now.
- How to make decisions. I entered the altMBA program with one big goal, and I took away a completely different goal because I learned how to make good decisions, instead of simply asking for guidance from a friend or going by my gut. This one lesson was worth the entire course.
Have you considered doing Seth Godin’s altMBA course? If you’re interested, leave a comment below or shoot an email to mindi@mindirosser.com and put “altMBA” in the subject line.
