The Personal MBA^TM

Thanks so much to everyone who took the time to respond to my questions! In all, I received over 40 very detailed responses, so it’s taken me a bit to synthesize your input and put together some ideas based on your feedback.

Here’s the playback:

The biggest benefit of the current PMBA Manifesto is that it’s a starting point for your self-education. Many of you mentioned that you really appreciated having a concrete place to start instead of wallowing in a sea of business books, wondering which you should pick up first. (I’m glad, and the structure of the updated PMBA reading list should improve your experience in this regard.)

Most of you are entrepreneurial types or current business professionals deciding whether or not to get an MBA. This helps me limit the scope of what the PMBA should focus on, so thanks for letting me know your current situation.

The forums need fixed. Quite a few of you (more than expected) voiced the opinion that the current format of the PMBA forums is suboptimal and should be improved. I agree, and would personally like to see the forums evolve into a place where people openly share experiences, ask for advice, and assist others. The current forum isn’t very well suited to this.

Opportunities to connect with PMBA members (outside of the forums) would be useful. Making connections with other PMBA members around the world is seen as a big benefit, and your feedback is that it’s difficult to really make strong connections via internet forums alone. Some other way of meeting and collaborating with other PMBA members is needed.

Almost all of you mentioned some variation of “Keeping Motivated” / “Staying Focused” / “Committing the Time” / “Putting What I Learn into Practice” as the biggest barriers to meeting your PMBA-related goals. 95% of you mentioned that you’re having trouble staying motivated to read all of these books, and additional structure, accountability, and support would be valuable. This is the biggest opportunity for improvement the Personal MBA currently has.

My ideas for how to move forward based on this feedback will follow in my next few posts.

Thanks again for your input!

Related Posts on the PMBA Blog

Moving Forward: The PMBA Forums
Moving Forward: Personalized PMBA Coaching
PMBA Update Progress & Questions for You!