Balance Sheet July 16/17

Just realized I missed out on 2 days by travelling from US to Japan.
I started from Dallas on July 16, at 8:30 a.m. and reached Tokyo on July 17, at 7 p.m. Reached home finally around 10 p.m.

Had taken the route from Dallas --> Minneapolis --> Tokyo. In the process, was awake for more than 30 hours and ended up dead tired to do anything yesterday (July 17). Thus, two valuable days of GMAT Prep were lost! Those of you who are balancing their GMAT prep with a job that involves lot of international travel, make sure that you are aware of this phenomenon. "When traveling East to west (e.g. Japan to USA), you gain a day, but when traveling west to east (USA to Japan), you lose out on a day.

That means the sirens are blowing now, and I need to get my act together. This time, it is really really serious and I don't want to miss out on anything. There has been a change in my attitude towards the exam ever since I scheduled the appointment. Each moment has become priceless and has started forcing me to regret that I did not use it for GMAT Prep. In my case, a lot depends on this exam and I hope the stress and crazy feelings don't lead to a nervous breakdown!

Was a great start to the day today. Will just brief you on what I did in the flight and my plans for today.

1. Quant: Did not do anything. I was sure I would be short on sleep and did not venture out in the territory of complex problems. Was rather content reading the book "Ahead of the Curve" by Philip Delves Broughton. It's a great insider's view in HBS Full-time MBA program and is really inspiring.

2. Verbal: I take reading the book as RC practice. Also read through another couple of chapters in MGMAT SC, but may have to review them as the study conditions were not the best.

Plan for today (July 18):

1. Quant: Revisit OG PS and DS. Will now focus on the weak areas only.

2. Verbal: Will start with GMAT Club CR. I believe my CR may be rusty by now.

Plan for the week ahead:
1. Work: Get back to the work habits of Japan. Long commute to and from the office, hell long working hours, drinking 3 nights a week (have vowed I will not drink till I crack the GMAT) and lots of stress. However, after the 2 month break, I should say I will be much more refreshed to rejoin work in Japan. Looking forward to good things at the workplace :)

2. GMAT Study: Plan to leave office at 6:30. Get back home by 8, have dinner by 9:30 and study 2 hours every day, from 9:30 to 11:30. Main focus will be studying for Quant and taking GMAT Mock tests once August starts.

3. Applications: Have already chalked out the Applications strategy. Chicago-Booth will be my first try. Once things warm up, will take on the Penn-Wharton App, which is actually top in my wish-list. Harvard will be last, partly because it's deadlines fall one week after Booth and Wharton deadlines. Have dedicated 2-4 hours every weekend for brainstorming, structuring and writing Applications. Will keep you posted about this too.

That's all for now. Will post a balance sheet in the evening on the progress today.

Time to start work!

63 days to go...