Reflecting on his MBA experience thus far, Aaron says that his “learning journey at RMIT has been quite profound and has taught me a lot of about personal branding. For example, my LinkedIn account was registered 10 years ago, but it was only in 2022 that I started to pay more attention on my posts and how I presented myself. Initially the object of my posts was just about finding new customers. After taking the Personal Branding and Authentic Leadership course, I began to review my personal life stories. By sticking to my authentic self, this course helped me to build who I want to be as a leader. Since then, my LinkedIn posts are much more in-line with my personal brand”
Other courses that influenced Aaron include Finance, Design Thinking for Business and, importantly, Leadership and Management.
He notes that all three courses broadened his view on how to run a company. For Finance, although he had to learn ‘hardcore’ techniques, Aaron found a newfound interest and says he continues his self-learning on finance still today. Design Thinking for Business helped Aaron “reframe my mindset about how we analyse a situation, come up with different solutions and test them.”
Aaron confides he was most influenced by Leadership and Management. “You really need to understand your personal characteristics – how to manage others, manage internal conflicts and how to observe others. It already affected how I manage my team now and will continue to guide me in the future.”
Aaron reveals that although he singles out some specific courses, his entire MBA journey has created a sense of life-long learning. “Learning one course in the MBA,” he states, “is not the ending – it’s just the beginning of your self-learning journey. With Finance I read more about the subject and listen to podcasts as well. This approach to continued learning applies across many courses.”
Although he talks a lot about changes in his mindset, Aaron is quick to point out the deeper meaning behind it all, stating that “the MBA hasn't transformed me from someone who I was not into someone new – in fact, RMIT has brought out something that I had deep within me and made me realise it in a fuller, more holistic way. The MBA has made me a better person, a better leader and a better self. The more I learn the more I want to learn.”
Aaron continues, expanding upon this thought, noting “at work, they call me Teacher-Ma, not Boss-Ma. Leadership means helping your team to be better financially, skilfully and spiritually. You need to make sure those who followed you are getting paid fairly based on what they have contributed. You should also always be passionate about teaching and coaching your team members both “hard” skills such as professional industry knowledge and “soft” skills such as interpersonal communications. Lastly, you should influence their spirit by showing your own energies such as persistence and optimism. Combining the above three to influence your staff positively means they will be happy and willing to follow you.”
