Suzy Welch, Business Writer, for BusinessWeek has popularized the 10-10-10 rule. According to the rule, before making any tough decisions, ask three questions: How would you feel after 10 minutes, How would you feel after 10 months, and How would you feel after 10 years. We would like to modify the rule, by a touch, and apply it while selecting MBA programs: MIT vs Stanford, Wharton vs Harvard, Kellogg vs Booth, LBS vs Insead, IE vs IESE, and other close ones.
The 10 Minute impact of the rule seems a little stretched unless they are decisions like proposing to your partner, saying yes to non-refundable products, and other decisions where backtracking is not encouraged, or consequences are catastrophic. Although selecting MBA programs is a 1 month to 3-month process, the decision should be reviewed and changed if necessary after taking the GMAT Exam. Therefore, the GMAT preparation time becomes the first review point for your decision.
12-10-10 Rule
Once you pick the MBA programs during the Business School research phase (1-3 months), you have to start a GMAT Prep plan that lasts ideally for 3 months or 12 weeks. Class Median or Average GMAT Score becomes the target score for most test takers.
Scenario 1: Selecting Stanford MBA Program (Commitment)
The average GMAT Score for Stanford MBA Program is 732. Before picking the MBA program, you have to ask these three questions:
1) How would you feel targeting 720-740 GMAT Score, with 12 weeks of preparation?
2) How would you feel after 10 months, taking the GMAT, completing the Essays, collecting recommendation letter, and finally awaiting the results.
3) How would you feel after 10 years, looking back at your 1-year admission process?
These questions are open ended and does not reflect results but questions your commitment for the MBA Admission process. The last question is irrelevant for most GMAT test takers, but 1 & 2, forces you to think whether the commitment is worth it. If you are not sure about Question 1, pump up with our GMAT Prep motivation tips. If you are unsure about Question 2, don’t venture out into the grueling MBA Admission process.
Scenario 2: Rejected from Stanford MBA Program
This is the most valuable scenario for your decision-making.
1) How would you feel getting below 700 GMAT Score after 12 weeks of preparation?
2) How would you feel after 10 months, taking the GMAT, completing the Essays, collecting recommendation letter, and finally getting rejected from Stanford MBA Program?
3) How would you feel after 10 years, looking back at the failed attempt to get into Stanford MBA Program?
Here again, question 3 is irrelevant, but Questions 1 & 2 will shift the focus on your perseverance, and priorities. If you feel discouraged by Question 1, then we would not recommend selecting Stanford MBA program. You need confidence and commitment to overcome your GMAT Score weakness, and put your best effort for essays and recommendation letter.
Scenario 3: Admitted to Stanford MBA Program
Once you imagine the best-case scenario, answering the questions would be easy.
1) How would you feel getting 735 GMAT Score after 12 weeks of preparation?
2) How would you feel after 10 months, taking the GMAT, completing the Essays, collecting recommendation letter, and finally getting into the prestigious MBA program?
3) How would you feel after 10 years, as a Stanford MBA Alumnus?
Questions 1 & 2 become easier, but for this scenario, question 3 is important. Connect with Stanford MBA Alumni who passed out of the program 10 years ago. Ask them how valuable the courses, activities, and network were. You will be surprised to find some honest answers. Some might say that they would have reached current position in their career even without the MBA program while some might attribute the network, and thought process cultivated in the Stanford MBA Class as crucial for their career growth.
Which Alumnus do you relate to, keeping in mind his background (Education, Pre-MBA Work Experiences & Post-MBA Goals)?
Apply the 12-10-10 Rule, and 3-Scenarios for your target MBA programs.
For more tips and techniques to choose the best MBA program, Download Comprehensive MBA Research Guide
About the Author
I am Atul Jose, Founding Consultant of F1GMAT, an MBA admissions consultancy that has worked with applicants since 2009.
For the past 15 years I have edited the application files of admits to the M7 programs: Harvard Business School, Stanford Graduate School of Business, the Wharton School, MIT Sloan, Chicago Booth, Kellogg School of Management, and Columbia Business School, together with admits to Berkeley Haas, Yale School of Management, NYU Stern, Michigan Ross, Duke Fuqua, Darden, Tuck, IMD, London Business School, INSEAD, SDA Bocconi, IESE Business School, HEC Paris, McCombs, and Tepper, plus other programs inside the global top 30.
My work covers the full MBA application deliverable: career planning and profile evaluation, application essay editing, recommendation letter editing, mock interviews and interview preparation, scholarship and fellowship essay editing, and cover letter editing for funding applications. Full bio with credentials and admit history is here.
I am the author of the Winning MBA Essay Guide, the best-selling essay guide covering M7 MBA programs. I have written and updated the guide annually since 2013, which makes the 2026 edition the thirteenth.
The reason I still write and edit essays every cycle: a good MBA essay carries a real applicant's voice. Writing essays for F1GMAT's Books and Editing essays weekly is how I stay calibrated to what current admissions committees respond to.
Contact me for school selection, career planning, essay strategy, narrative development, essay editing, interview preparation, scholarship essay editing, or guidance documents for recommendation letters.