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Treasures Beyond Business: What I Learned from Clayton Christensen

Clayton Christensen at Harvard Business School
  • 26 Feb 2020
Geneva Fonda Author Student Bloggers
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  • Disruptive Strategy
  • News & Events

I'd just returned home from church, excited to share the pastor's message with my loved ones as I often do. While sharing with them, I was reminded of a similar sentiment I'd seen on social media days prior. Though I don't typically visit social platforms on Sundays, I went to retrieve the post to illustrate the similarities.

The first thing in my newsfeed was an update from one of my Disruptive Strategy cohort members acknowledging Professor Clayton Christensen's passing, with an attachment of a news article. I fell to my knees upon reading the headline.

The news hadn't simply knocked me to the floor; it devastated me to tears. The message at church was about having a vision for one's life—and in all areas of it—and being who we were created to be. I'd just reiterated this about myself to my family while providing specific examples of how these applied to me personally and professionally and included my education.

Between the message's similarity to the social media post and learning of Professor Christensen's passing, I was immediately ushered to the evening I learned of Harvard Business School Online's Disruptive Strategy course, the day I applied to it, the afternoon I was accepted, and the enthusiastic, spiritual promise I made to God.

You see, as a spiritual person who happens to love learning, books, and business, I'd known about Professor Christensen's impressive business knowledge from his books and interviews with business leaders, some of whom I'd written about in my MBA papers. What also impressed me was his obvious commitment not only to his vocations as a speaker, author, educator, and business executive but to his family and faith.

In my experience within the business arena, it was rare to see a person with exceptional business savvy exhibit a clear awareness of, and appreciation for, his faith without alienating his audience—or at least me—as well.

The evening I learned about the Disruptive Strategy course, I wasn't even looking for it. Rather, I'd conducted an online search for a source to cite for my MBA assignment. The top search result was from the Harvard Business Review, and I clicked on an ad for the course at the top of the page. After making a spiritual declaration that if applying were meant for me, it would become obvious, I continued with my studies.

Days later, I returned to the Harvard Business Review to locate the ad. After finding it again, I reviewed all of Harvard Business School's online courses. Because I already had a finance degree and was about to finish my MBA in marketing, the Disruptive Strategy course stood out as the logical course.

As a New York City native from a humble childhood, pursuing education at this "Harvard Business School" level could have been unfathomable. Armed with professional and academic achievements, however, and entrepreneurial fire to provide different offerings, I knew that "something" led me to find Disruptive Strategy. And the fact that Clayton Christensen was the professor made applying obvious.

He and the program would not only equip me to break from traditional—and sometimes stale—business methodologies but sharpen my approaches to life in general.

Professor Christensen's teaching style and Disruptive Strategy's high-caliber, contemporary case studies, course content and format, and real-time applicability electrified my learning, curiosity, and overall business outlook. The course stretched my business vocabulary. ("New market entrant," "causal mechanism," "interdependent architecture," anyone?). It enlarged my lenses so that my thinking became wide enough to see a situation and focus on extracting the valuable parts.

Taking the course proved invaluable to my personal life, as well in terms of my relationships, the approach to my doctoral studies, and the inclusion of aspects into assignments and conversations. It's also present in my boutique multimedia firm and allows me to better serve aspiring entrepreneurs and established organizations.

At our core, whether we seek a milkshake or a handshake, we're always hiring, firing, and adjusting the "Jobs to be Done." We're all customers and assets of something or to someone, requiring tools that help us navigate the complexities of the environments—markets, if you will—we operate in (sustaining), consider adding to it (low-end), or establishing a new one (new market ) with the understanding that complacency kills revenues, growth, relationships, and dreams.

As a person of faith, possessed of extraordinary business expertise, Professor Christensen and Disruptive Strategy's presence in my life underscore the vision I have for it while being who I was created to be, and having faith to do it.

Like many of the educators whose resonant personality and teaching generosity positively influenced me, Professor Christensen is another whom I do my best to honor. I'm grateful to have been his student, witnessing both his business excellence and excellent faith-walking. For these, I have learned from the best.

About the Author

Geneva Fonda is a multimedia storyteller, speaker, educator, award-winning entrepreneur, and doctor-in-progress. As the owner of a boutique multimedia firm, she drains black ink pens, battery-powered devices, microphones, and whiteboards to share compelling stories and insights on wellness, women's interests, finance, and entrepreneurship. Her diverse background includes investment banking, corporate finance, project management, workforce training, marketing and photography. She’s also a rock and tree climber, archer, fire walker, (indoor) skydiver, laser tag champ, and literacy advocate.
 
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In all cases, net Program Fees must be paid in full (in US Dollars) to complete registration.

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