Authority sparks images of God like figures dictating commands, and the obedient followers taking every word as the truth. For MBA Admissions team, this is not the definition of respecting authority. They are looking for your response to truth.
Chain of Commands
It does not matter if you have worked in a hierarchical or a flat organization, most authority figures issue chain of commands that require you to process them, and respond according to the expectations that they have set. Not all chain of commands leads to the truth of the situation and it is common for supervisors to misread the situation.
Root of Conflict
Most conflicts in a team environment arise from ego and lack of obedience of the “Chain of Commands.” Recommendation letter acts as proof on two things. Your ability to interpret and implement the nitty gritties, and your courage to communicate what is lacking in the commands.
Selecting Recommender
The ego-filled supervisor might not cite an instance where you have pointed out a flaw in the command, and recommend a course correction for the benefit of the project. That is why it is important to select recommenders with a balanced ego and a genuine interest in seeing you succeed.
Improvement
AdCom closely monitors the word “improvement.” No one expects you to be a superstar Ninja in the very first week but if the improvement in an applicant is not quantifiable, the AdCom will not buy the recommender’s argument that the applicant has contributed $x in revenue through project X.
Numbers alone will not impress the admission committee. They want to know about the learning trajectory. Was the applicant attentive to the chain of commands? Did the applicant make a course correction after his reasoning flaws were pointed out? Admissions team abhors applicants with poor listening skills and huge egos.
Results
The interpretation of commands from authority, the course correction, and the conflict resulting from the correction are all hindsight account based on the result.
If your misinterpretation was the reason for one of your failures, show humility and accept it. Essays about failure have disappeared from MBA Application. The new prompt is all about selling yourself to the AdCom either by explaining the fit or your unique profile.
Failure is still relevant in the newly designed MBA Application. It is an indicator that you are not a superhuman devoid of any failure, but a constant learner who monitors results closely, reinforces decision-making process with each result and scrutinizes the faulty reasoning with failures. The knowledge acquired and the humility to accept that you have failed makes you far more attractive applicant than the self-obsessed type ‘A’ type.
Classroom Environment
Lack of respect for authority can make you a great Entrepreneur, but Business Schools are conventional educational institutions with clearly defined authorities – professors, faculty members and school representatives. If a candidate has trouble following the chain of commands, the time in the school will be spent on resolving conflicts. Although conflict management is an essential skill in the real world, schools prefer that the candidate focus on other aspects of Management.
Learn how to approach MBA Essays
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.