What I wish I had also learned in my MBA (That I only discovered much later)

Back in 2008, I decided to pursue an MBA — to give my career a boost, and above all, to better understand the challenges my clients were facing at the time.

A Master in Business Administration is often seen as the holy grail when it comes to building solid business skills: finance, strategy, marketing, HR… learning how to run a company from A to Z.

And it’s true—I learned a lot. I gained deep knowledge, met unforgettable people, and opened up new professional opportunities.
I learned a great deal — sharp knowledge, meaningful encounters, and without a doubt, valuable professional opportunities.

But after several years of entrepreneurship and exploration, I’ve come to realize that other skills would also have been useful for building and growing a business.

I’ve discovered essential practices — human, structural, and deeply transformative.
So if I were to rewrite my MBA today, here are the 10 areas I would include.
Lively, meaningful, and lasting learnings.

1. Exploring New Ways of Organizing Work

There are so many ways to structure and bring life to an organization.
Learning about evolutionary, participatory, and distributed models has helped me better support change dynamics.
One source that’s been key for me: the stages of organizational development described by Frédéric Laloux in Reinventing Organizations. He invites us to see companies as living ecosystems, always evolving.
This lens helped me better accept the type of structure I was working in—and to understand that every organization moves at its own pace. You can’t rush the process.

2. Collective Intelligence: The Real Leadership Superpower

We train leaders to be quick decision-makers, to influence and manage.
But we rarely teach co-creation.
In today’s complex world, no one holds all the answers alone.
Learning how to bring out the best ideas from a group, how to truly listen, how to facilitate a meeting—these are skills I use daily. And I see just how powerful they are.
Collective intelligence is both a mindset and a toolkit. And it starts the moment two people sit down at a table.

3. Creating Like a Startup

Early in my entrepreneurial journey, I was drawn to the startup world.
Its energy, international outlook, and drive to build something radically new were incredibly inspiring.
That’s where I learned about tools like the Business Model Canvas, MVPs, Lean Startup, Growth Hacking…
They taught me how to structure an idea, test it quickly, and evolve it in real-time.
These tools aren’t just for startups—they change how we approach any project.

4. Seeing Business as a Living Organism

Today, I see companies as living beings.
They’re born, they grow, they transform, and one day, they end.
They have their own pace, needs, and energy.
It’s a more sensitive way of looking at business—something I learned through collective intelligence practices, but also through more intuitive ways of connecting with organizations.
I highly recommend the book Vers des organisations vivantes by Lu Buhan and Santini. I also offer a 5-session group journey to help people deepen their relationship with their company: Practeez – Se relier à l’âme de son entreprise

5. Learning from Ancient Wisdom

Taking a step back. Thinking in long cycles.
Drawing inspiration from the natural world. Exploring the unseen.
Today, I regularly turn to Taoist philosophy and indigenous wisdom traditions to see work and life from a different angle.
For instance, looking at a business through the lens of the 5 Chinese elements (fire, earth, metal, water, wood) to create balance.
Or exploring the 4 inner archetypes—Visionary, Sage, Warrior, and Healer—to cultivate a deeper, wiser kind of leadership.

6. Innovating Through Nature

Permaculture and biomimicry completely changed how I see systems.
By observing nature, we can rethink how we design organizations, products, and processes.
It’s not just poetic—it’s a real innovation strategy.
Even if you don’t master these approaches, being aware of them helps you bring in the right people at the right time.

Permaculture draws on long-term, sustainable farming principles to create systems that care for both people and the planet.
Biomimicry looks to nature for smart, efficient solutions.
Both approaches lead to systems that are fairer, more sustainable, and aligned with life.

7. A More Conscious Approach to Marketing

In business, we’re taught to sell—and to sell more.
The focus is often on results, with little thought to the means, the deeper intention, or the impact.
But in a world that needs less waste, does that still make sense?
Is it respectful to our clients? Does it feel satisfying in the long run?

I’m now exploring a different kind of marketing—more beautiful, ethical, and organic.
Taoist principles like simplicity, interdependence, harmony, and spontaneity inspire me.
This is about daring to step off the beaten path and create marketing that’s aligned with our values—not just a conversion machine.

8. Making Decisions with Discernment

How many decisions do we make each day—often without even realizing it?
But were we ever taught how to decide well?

Over time, I’ve learned to combine rational thinking with intuitive intelligence.
Intuition is something you can develop, listen to, and fine-tune.
I now use tools like systemic facilitation, intuitive cards, body awareness, and visualizations.
I give a practical 4-session process to help leaders move forward with clarity.
For inspiration, I recommend Wakan – Spirit in Business ane Life and Iris Intuition.

9. Navigating Emotions—Mine and Others’

In my work life, emotions are always present.
Joy, of course—but also frustration, anger, and doubt.
I’ve learned to recognize them, move through them, and not let them take over.
It’s an ongoing practice, but it’s transformed the way I work.

It also helps me hold space for other people’s emotions—whether they’re colleagues, clients, or partners.
To me, this skill is just as vital as strategy or operations.

10. Getting to Know Myself Through Work

They say our outer world reflects our inner world.
And that’s been true for me.
My professional environment has become a mirror—a place to better understand myself.
Self-awareness has become a cornerstone of my work life, and a rich field of exploration.

To find some sense of harmony or success (whatever that means for each of us), I believe we need to move between discipline and surrender.
To follow our deeper impulses.
To hear our inner voice.
And to be willing to regularly question ourselves.
These are skills that definitely belong in an MBA.

Toward a New Learning Model

What I see now is this: knowing how to run a business is no longer enough.
We also need to understand how to be part of a living, human, sustainable system.
Being a good manager is no longer the goal.
We need to become facilitators of collaboration, guardians of purpose, and lifelong learners in the face of complexity.

What if MBAs started including these practices—the ones our world truly needs?

Feel free to reach out with me if you’d like to brainstorm or discuss this further or contact us hello@practeez.com