Here are some tips to help you get the most out of your MBA experience:

Know the basics. Before you start business school, the following books should give you a basic overview of some major business school subjects:

• Operations - The Goal by Eliyahu M. Goldratt. A good overview of The Theory of Constraints.

• Accounting - The Accounting Game : Basic Accounting Fresh from the Lemonade Stand by Darrell Mullis, Judith Handler Orloff. Basic accounting principles taught through the example of a lemomade stand.

• Management - What Management Is: How It Works and Why It's Everyone's Business by Joan Magretta and Nan Stone. An overview of many of the major management concepts.

Get a system to manage your many priorities. The best system that we have found for managing the many different demands of business school is described in the book Getting Things Done: The Art of Stress-Free Productivity by David Allen. If you find the system useful, David Allen has a document on his website that describes in detail how to integrate the system into your PDA.

Choose the right study group. Study groups are an important part of most business school programs. You want to make sure you choose a group that can effectively work together. An effective study group can pay major dividends. An ineffective study group can be an incredible waste of time. Make sure you get the most out of your study group. Here is an article with more study group tips.

Network. Business school will present many different opportunities for networking:

• Student Clubs

• Guest Speakers

• Professors

• Other Students

Take care of yourself. Let’s say that again. Take care of yourself! Business school is mentally and physically exhausting. However, you must make taking care of yourself a priority. If you don’t, it will eventually catch up with you. We know. We’ve been there. You might be able to get by with it for a month or two, but eventually neglecting your physical and mental health will catch up with you. Eat well. Get some sleep (if at all possible). Make time for exercise.

Have fun! Your time in business school will be over before you know it. Make the most of it while you can.