Since I'm interested in business, I thought Ahead of the Curve would be a good read, and I was not disappointed. This is the tale of one man's experience earning an MBA from Harvard Business School. The author comes from a background that's different than most of the other students in his class (i.e., he's a family man and former bureau chief of the London Daily Telegraph). This is a book filled with insightful reflections, great writing (it helps to come from a journalist background), and lots of candor about all aspects of his Harvard MBA experience.

I was struck by his reflections on why HBS likes to keep quiet about George W. Bush being one of its alumni. I think he's right “on the money” with his analysis of HBS and W.

Also, I was struck again and again by how the various HBS speakers (famous folks in the business world) would come to HBS and give talks saying that their biggest regret was that they didn't spend more time with their families. But then at the end of the MBA program, most of the author's classmates went on to pursue jobs that they knew would take them away from their families requiring long hours in the office.

This scenario raised the larger question in my mind: Why do we pursue what we know is not going to bring us real joy? One reason is that we're poor judges of making choices that will bring us happiness. We pursue a bigger paycheck when studies show that having more free time to enjoy a walk with the family regularly would bring us greater happiness. Allied to this reasoning is that while we know at some level that being wealthy won't bring us happiness, we all want to find out for ourselves. And the author beings out another reason: for all the talk from the HBS speakers, the students are more willing to follow a tried-and-true career path (consulting, investment banking) even if it involves all the regrets and laments of the HBS speakers. It's less risky to follow the trails laid down by others than to take the road less chosen as an entrepreneur.