Catching a break…
Scott Hannah, TMMBA Student (class 2010)
In an earlier post, a fellow TMMBA classmate discussed how to manage your health while juggling work and school. But what if something more severe than a cold or flu happens to you?
Class 9 has the unique distinction in having not one, but two students suffer broken bones during the school year (there may be more, but these two were fairly obvious to all around) – and in the odd coincidence, they both involved shoulder injuries. At first glance you may attribute those injuries to the laptops and large amount of reading material we’re carrying around in shoulder bags, but surprisingly enough that wasn’t the case. In both instances the injuries occurred in the course of outside activities. One involved snowboarding and the other involved bicycling. The snowboarding accident resulted in a fractured scapula, and the other injury – in this case my own – resulted in a fractured clavicle. In both cases we found ourselves down one hand, and for me it was my mouse hand. The first thought that went through my mind after I hit the ground was, it’s not broken (I was wrong); the second thought (once I conceded the extent of my injuries) was, how am I going to get my class work done. I can always put off work, but class work, there’s no stopping that train! At the time of my injury it was mid-quarter and I had a timed marketing mid-term to complete in a couple of days. How was I going to manage typing up my answers with only one hand, and on painkillers to boot!
It turns out that our TMMBA professors are fairly understanding and accommodating to situations outside our control. In my case I was able to reach a compromise with my professor; I would compose my answers within the time allotted for the exam, and then I would use whatever amount of time was needed to transcribe my answers for submission. If necessary, I could enlist the aid of my wife to help in transcribing. As it turned out I was able to manage typing and mousing (albeit slowly) with one arm in a sling, and in the time allowed.
So the lesson here is that life happens, and the professors in our TMMBA program understand that, and are willing to work with you to help you succeed. You just need to ask. And maybe wince a time or too while you’re doing it.
