In today’s MBA application strategy tips, I will talk about the difference between vulnerability, sympathy, and empathy and why a vulnerability narrative is essential for your goals and personal MBA application essays.
For Wharton’s professional goals essay, or Why Stanford MBA essay, or any Why MBA essay, there should be some line mentioning the gap in skills or exposure that you plan to mitigate with an MBA program.
So what is the difference between capturing lines that show vulnerability vs. empathy vs. sympathy?
Empathy is when you narrate your feelings when your dog dies.
A Vulnerability narrative is when you show powerlessness on realizing that you couldn’t do anything for your pet dog.
And sympathy narrative is when you are met with an accident while taking the dog to the Vet, and the dog eventually dies.
Sympathy evokes Pity.
Empathy evokes a connection with you as a person.
Vulnerability paints a clear picture of what you went through, what you couldn’t do, and what you wished you had done. And such narrative forces the reader to understand you at a personal level.
Creating a vulnerability narrative is the biggest challenge for anyone trained to leave out phrases or words that convey emotions in analysis and use jargon like those in Finance or Technology.
Another reason why MBA applicants find it challenging to capture vulnerable moments from their life is because they are in a hyper-competitive environment where they must perform at the highest level every day.
Any vulnerability shared with their peers or supervisors is often considered a sign of weakness. It is not an easy transition to take off this shield while writing essays for MBA applications. But you need them when you cite the motivation for the goals essay.
Without some form of vulnerability in recognizing the limitations of your skill acquisition, the career trajectory the employer is offering, the best roles the industry could offer, and even the exposure in your current role, a goals essay quoting the curriculum would not work.
Without a vulnerability narrative:
The What Matters Essay for Stanford would be a bland corporate vision statement with no personal connection.
The Yale Commitment essay would be some bragging about your achievements.
The Wharton professional goals essay would be a reverse advertisement of the curriculum.
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