Lenovo with Swarovski Crystals and a Waterproof Laptop?
by Bernard Ablola
Sep 23, 2008 Bernard, China Study Tour 2008
Lenovo with Swarovski Crystals
After our discussion with Cory we visited Lenovo’s research building, which houses over 500 of Lenovo’s research engineers. Our tour guide provided us with some background information about the history of the company and its product innovations. We were able to see some of the latest Lenovo innovations such as the new netbooks, a laptop blinging with Swarovski Crystals and water being poured onto a fully functioning laptop.
Please DO NOT Try This At Home
The attached video is from the company tour at Lenovo’s headquarters in China. Our guide showed us an impressive sound, heat and water test. The laptop had a continual stream of water being poured directly on the keyboard while still on. The laptop had a drain built in the bottom of the keyboard that allowed the water to drain and not destroy the memory board.
As an IT person and marketer, I thought this was fascinating and intuitive. Lenovo should leverage this type of product information directly in their ads. When I first heard that Lenovo purchased the IBM division, I immediately thought that the quality would decline. China companies are usually known for mass produced products that may lack quality. The “made in China” brands are now facing a negative stereotype as the mass manufacturer of the world products. The visit to the Lenovo headquarters demonstrated to me their strong emphasis on quality and innovation. If I were in Lenovo’s marketing department I would show someone spilling a cup of coffee on the keyboard, quickly rinsing it off and continuing to type.
Companies such as Lenovo will continue to succeed as they focus on quality and innovation. This is something that other Chinese manufacturers lack.
Tags: Bernard Ablola, China Study Tour, Lenovo
Zip Line Down the Great Wall of China
by Bernard Ablola
Sep 8, 2008 China Study Tour 2008
Great Wall of China
So this is my first blog post in a long time. The last time I posted something was in regards to finally making it into business school several months ago. As you can see it has been keeping me quite busy. But, today is a perfect day to start blogging again. My business school has extended my learning to a different country. I am in China this month for an International Study Abroad Tour. So I will utilize these next couple of weeks on the Ablola blog to keep journal of my trip to this wonderful country.
In the next couple of weeks we will visit four cities Beijing, Hangzhou, Suzhou, and Shanghai. The trip will have us on top of the Great Wall of China, touring the four cities and visiting some of the major corporations in China including Lenova, Boeing, Google, and Alibaba. We will also get a chance to study with the Shanghai Jiao Tong University MBA students.
The Great Wall of China – One Step at a Time
Today we experienced the climb to the summit of the Great Wall of China. This was truly a once in a lifetime experience for me. It took us several hours, plenty of balance and endurance to finally make it to the top. Because I am generally afraid of heights, each step had to be a carefully taken. There are around 12 towers at Si Ma Tai to climb, with each tower as challenging as the next. The steps were very uneven and small. And most areas on the wall bleed right over to the edge. Scary!! For the most part I only looked at the next step in front of me. Any miscalculation or fall could possibly have been fatal. Being able to focus on one step at a time had a Zen like feel about it. I did not think about anything else except the next step before me, very meditative. The hike itself was a bit challenging. The steps were higher at some points than others. Once you look up there seems to be an endless staircase of history. The Great Wall stretches over approximately 6,300 km (4,000 miles). The portion we climbed was at Si Ma Tai created by the early Ming Dynasty several centuries ago. Here is a video of me zip lining it back down.
Great Wall of China - Si Ma Tai
Best Regards,
Bernard
Is the MBA Worth It?
by Bernard Ablola
Jul 27, 2007 MBA
So I finally received my letter of acceptance from a top tier Business program. According to a Business Week article citing a research paper called the “Economics of Knowledge,” the United States is home to 17 out of the 20 top universities in world. Seattle is ranked 17th.
It took me a number of tries to get the GMAT, including hours of studying and enough caffiene to sterilize a championship horse, but I finally made it. I hadn’t studied that hard since I took the exams for my Microsoft Certified Systems Engineer (MCSE) certification, but after a few months and long weekends you start to develop a study habit. Now the fun begins in the Fall.
My GMAT Study Method
I have outlined my study method for the GMAT for those interested in taking it. This is my personal thoughts, rants and suggestions. It worked for me. However, the best way to overcome the gauntlet known as the GMAT is to find and create your own method that most suits you.
- Schedule the exam (Early! Sometimes they get overbooked and you might have to wait for the next month…or so)
- Do your research
- Take a couple of practice GMAT exams (Figure out early where you stand)
- Study
- Retake practice exams
- Focus on your weaknesses
- Time Yourself
- Take the real exam
- Rinse and Repeat…
Schedule the GMAT
Before studying for the GMAT, SCHEDULE YOUR EXAM. In fact hit control T on your keyboard, open a new tab and grab your wallet. (translation, put your money on the table) When you put a deadline and financial risk on the line it makes you step up to the challenge. I have been thinking about Business school for several years before committing to it. Once you pay there is a heavy reschedule fee. It costs the same as paying to retake it. What better motivation to take an exam after dropping close to three hundred dollars.
Research
Do your research. Some of the best research on the GMAT was through mba.com, blogs, forums, and other students who have taken it. If you are looking for a couple of good links to blogs and forums shoot me an email, I have them book marked.
Take a practice GMAT
The three practice GMAT test preps and books I used were Kaplan, the Official GMAT Review and mba.com. If you have time take two practice exams before you start studying. This will give you a bench mark of where you are compared to what you need to learn. If you were like me and haven’t studied seriously in awhile, it takes some getting used to in order to sit over 3 hours and take a test. But the important part of the GMAT is being mentally prepared and staying confident during the exam. The exam is a not only a test of your verbal and math skills, but your test taking skills. i.e. learning not to panic and day dream while taking your exam.
STUDY STUDY STUDY
Start studying now. Studying is an artform, not something you just do. I suggest picking up a book or doing a quick web search, using live.com of course. 
Some of the best tips that helped me were:
- Pick a comfortable place (not too comfortable) and time to study and make this a habit. I studied daily from 6 pm to 9 pm at the local library. Starbucks was too distracting and home was too comfortable. The kitchen, tv and even bathroom were too close for comfort. It gave me an all to easy excuse to get up. So I preferred the local library.
- Take a break each hour. Stretch, drink water…blah blah blah…you know what to do during breaks.
- Keep in good shape by doing cardio or weight training. You will be surprised how sharp your mind and your reflexes are after working out. For me, it was an absolute MUST.
- Have fun studying. Study without music and sometimes with music. You notice that your brain functions differently when applying this technique. I studied while listening to classical music…Liszt, Beethoven and Bach to hardcore hip hop like the Wu-Tang Clan….whatever you are interested in, try it.
Retake the Practice Exams
Every Saturday take a full practice exam. It takes a few weeks to see a score difference, however, stick with it long enough and you will improve. Taking a practice exam each week will also teach you the discipline to manage time and take a grueling test on a beautiful Saturday. As soon as you wake up, jump out of bed and take 3 to 4 hours in the morning to test. I spent the remainder of day watching seasons of Entourage, Rome and The Wire on DVD anything to not fry what was left of my brain that day.
Focus on Your Weaknesses
As the test date comes closer be sure to spend your energy on the items you missed during testing times. My strengths were in the verbal section, so I spent most of my time on the Quantitative portion. Understanding how you learn is very important. Since I am a visual learner I rented a SAT math DVD from the library, you probably can get it using Netflix or Blockbuster. This was a tremendous help. It was like having a world class teacher tutoring you in person. You can stop, start, pause and especially rewind them. The set I used was called Algebra Math Tutor. The video’s were dated but math was still the same. Email me to grab the list. Trust me I went through dozens of math videos to sharpen my long forgotten algebra skills.
Time Yourself
Buy yourself a digital egg timer for $2 bucks. When taking practice problems in the book time yourself on each section. Remember each question you should only be spending no more than a minute and a half on the quant side. This digital egg timer also comes handy at work. You can set it for an hour and make sure to get up and stretch after it beeps.
Take the Real Exam
Stay confident during test day. Even though you think you blew it, stick through it with confidence. You will be surprised how well you do when just staying composed and confident throughout the exam. It is truly a long grueling experience, but the best thing to do is to get it out of the way and move on with your life.
Rinse and Repeat
Some people are excellent at taking timed exams. For me, it took sheer perseverance. Think the tortoise and the hare approach.
Is the MBA Worth It?
So is an MBA worth it? Yes, depending on your goals. Do your due diligence and research it for yourself. If you are interested in networking with like minded peers, marketing yourself, becoming well read and prepared to take on challenges, go for it. Someone once explained it to me this way…How old will you be in two to three years with an MBA? How old will you be in two to three years without it?
Best regards,
Bernard R. Ablola
See you at the top!
Tags: Bernard Ablola, MBA