I began noticing a pattern in our conversation when the topic is outside kids. She goes into explaining the molecular level whenever the subject is about hardcore science or drug discovery. By the time she breaks down a reaction, I am thinking about the topic for my next email newsletter. Whenever I go into the intricacies of storytelling and planning transitions in an essay, I could see her eyes glaze over a pending task she has to do.
Even if it is the closest person in your life, knowing what to share, the pleasant clichés that don’t require straining the mind, and choosing to leave out unnecessary details, lead to interesting conversations.
Can you be completely original?
You can’t. In MBA application essays, just like in life, original narratives without pleasant clichés that the admission team expects could lead to suspicion about your character and whether the narrative is the work of fiction.
Authenticity is built on clichés of human values – integrity, hard work, and critical thinking.
Clichés that remain Clichés
Narratives that spend an excessive amount of words – over a third on hard work and the immediate effect – growth in career and academic achievements, the easiest to capture in an essay, fail to balance critical thinking and integrity essential to move the admission team.
Pleasant Clichés that are hard to skip
We have seen variations of these narratives in hundreds of forms. However, I find it hard to skip the details when:
1) Critical Thinking demonstrated through life experience
Any mundane experience with a unique life lesson would immediately hook the attention of the admission team. A client’s strategy to encourage the use of waste disposal bin by designing and coloring the mouth in the shape of a basketball hoop, immediately made me curious about how the client thinks. I couldn’t resist but sneak up on his resume to find other projects he has worked on.
2) Taking Risks, getting it wrong and finally realizing life’s purpose
It is a big relief to read a narrative about someone who failed and found that a career in law, non-profit, or technology is not for them. A tradeoff to leave offers from big brands to gain experience in a risky start-up finally makes them realize that the calling is in ‘consulting,’ ‘finance,’ or ‘operations.’ MBA becomes a validation for the next role.
3) Good Intention Discouraged by the slow pace of Govt and Non-Profit
Childhood experience is a trigger for a career in government or non-profit. Soon the red tape or the apathy towards efficiency leads to a moment of clarity that private enterprises are where the client could maximize her skills. The career in a Fortune 500 company demonstrates the structure that the non-profit lacked. The contrast in processes and the attitude towards the problem is a revealing read when balanced with the right details.
4) Accidental Career in Management
Another cliché but engaging read is when a functional superstar – be in Finance, Technology, or Consulting, volunteers in a conversation or project that soon becomes a catalyst for a career in General Management. The response from the client teams and the opinions they seek on strategy consumes the client and forces to expand her thinking beyond the narrow expertise of technology, finance, or process optimization. The broad thinking and nuances of understanding market dynamics, customer behavior, and the long-term strategy become the foundational narrative for a career in Management.
5) Exposure to the 'ills' of the world and career to fix it
An idealistic narrative on experiencing the ills of the world, directly or indirectly, be it hunger, corruption, war, and neglecting the vulnerable in the society, becomes a motivation for a career in a routine profession – Finance and Technology. The realization that a career in Marketing or Finance is a better tool to bring real change becomes a motivation for an MBA.
The 2nd half of the ‘Why MBA’ essay is always a quote of the MBA program’s unique combination of courses and experiential learning. With a narrative on the motivation in the first half, the second half requires the least mental strain to comprehend. It just completes the puzzle.
Don’t use cliched phrases, but cliched narratives with unique backstory always work. Download Winning MBA Essay Guide for tips, tricks, and Sample 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.