How do you Save all your history?!?

Question

As application time and all the essay questions gets closer and closer, I look back and ask myself

"What have I accomplished and how can I get all that on paper?"

What have you all been doing to accurately capture what you've done in the past? Are you saving files on your computer, have a folder at home, etc...

Thanks

cheetarah1980 · Answer

If you have past years' performance appraisals you should keep them on file. A lot of the stories you use in your essays will come back to you through introspection, not because you kept documentation on them.

GMATLA · Answer

I would start a word document and just start listing out ALL your accomplishments, notable stories, interesting things, awards, achievements, etc. This stuff doesn't come together over night, but sometimes just getting it ALL out on paper will help you formulate essay ideas and help with the application/resume.

Once you have a comprehensive list, you can start narrowing down topics that you'd like to hit on. If you need help, you can always contact one of the GMAT Club partners for essay review, or brainstorming. It always good to have an idea or a start before doing that though.

Good luck

Nchoward · Answer

Thanks for both the replies.

I find that "introspection" on past experiences will not help create a resume. I have found over the years that annual reports do little to actually capture what I have done and have not done. They are too often rushed and then completed just before the deadline. But that's with only 10 years of experience ....

I agree more with being proactive on tracking your progress. Thanks again

cheetarah1980 · Answer

Definitely track your current progress going forward. I know when I started this process I had to go back and find documentation of accomplishments. This was helpful. However, when it came time to write essays I really did need to take the time to just remember life experiences that I had long since forgotten. Journaling helped me a lot. B-school essays aren't just about WHAT you did. They are also about how and why. You look at those essay questions and often think to yourself, "I haven't done anything that remotely relates to this." You probably have you just don't remember it that way. The introspection is what helps you remember those experiences in a new light.

I too have nearly 10 years of experience and several stories that I used in my essays were drawn from experiences that I have not thought about in years. As for creating your resume, do you already have a resume that you can update? I would assume you're not starting from scratch. Because you have so much experience the bulk of your resume is going to be focused on your more recent jobs and accomplishments. Your first and second job out of school usually only warrant about 2 bullet points each (1 point for job duties, 1 point for a major accomplishment in that role). Take some time and think about what you've done in the last few years to round out the more recent descriptions. It won't come back overnight, but it will come back to you.

Nchoward · Answer

Thanks. I have the resume, but you're right, the situational questions are making me think back to things not normally captured on a review. Start saving those things early. I like your blog idea

How do you Save all your history?!?

Prep Toolkit

Top 5 GMAT Debrief Videos

615 to 715 in 15 Days (Ria's Strategies)

More than Quant/Verbal Abilities: Speed vs. Accuracy

745 with Only Self-Prep and GMAT Club

From 555 to 765: 210-point Improvement

Perfect 805 Score Debrief by Julia

My Rewards