🌪️Rejection, Peer Pressure, and Why the Best Networking Happens In The Club Toilet.

Things I believed in Uni. The Realest Business School Curriculum No One Talks About.

Down the Memory Lane

Yesterday I was back at my very first university, ESB Business School, in good old Reutlingen. Just stepping onto campus brought up a tidal wave of feelings - and a lot of flashbacks. It was such a defining time in my life, filled with so many "firsts“.

This week I returned not as a student, but to interview new applicants - alongside my former professor Stephan Höfer, which felt wonderfully full circle. And while I was asking the students (my meanest 😉) questions, I couldn’t help but think of the small, insecure Constanze I was back then (not that I’m exactly cool now, but still).

So I thought I’d write down a few things I strongly believed back then, and what I think about them now.

Maybe some of these will sound familiar to you, too:

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Then: “If I don’t get one of the top internships, I’m not good enough.”

Now: Sometimes it’s just not the right fit. And often, it’s not about you - it’s about timing, connections, or just dumb luck. My worth doesn’t hinge on a rejection. I never had Vitamin B contacts, and I’m proud of the fact that I carved out my path myself. Not getting that one internship? Probably the best thing that could’ve happened. I got 20+ rejections when I first applied - and I honestly thought I’d never land one. (If you’re an ESB student reading this and need help: DM me. I’m happy to connect you with genuinely good people.)

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Then: “If I’m not in the academic top 1%, I won’t have a real career.”

Now: You kind of need to be both: top 1% academically and top 1% party & fun. Performance still matters - but being real, engaged and resilient is what gets you remembered. Also: if you skip the extracurricular for the academic part you’ll miss out on the best part of being a student.

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Then: “I have to do everything on my own, or it doesn’t count.”

Now: I still remember when someone proactively offered to help (shoutout Luis for mansplaining me into consulting case studies 😄) - and it actually felt good?! Accepting help isn’t weakness, it’s a shortcut. There are people around who know more than you - use that. Learn from them, let them support you.

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Then: “Everyone else has it more together than I do.”

Now: Nope, most people are just better at pretending. I used to avoid the library because it stressed me out too much when people asked, “Wait, haven’t you finished that chapter yet?” My dad always told me to “run my own race.” Took me 27 years to understand what he meant.

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Then: “Say yes to everything.”

Now: The power of a well-placed no is real. I was such a people-pleaser in uni - scared of letting anyone down. I even wrote more scholarship applications for others than I did for myself. Spoiler: not everyone says thank you, and that’s fine.

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Then: “My ultimate career goal is to work in HR at Daimler.”

Now: lol, I’ve since discovered: I like chaos, creativity, and calling the shots. So… maybe not. Building my own company earlier or later sounds more realistic to me now :))

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Then: “Networking happens at official events.”

Now: Wrong, it happens in the club toilet, Bierkasten-Race, over döner at 2 AM, late night brainstorming for student consulting and in other shared group projects that turn into lifelong WhatsApp groups.

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Then: “I’m immune to peer pressure isn’t real.”

Now: There’s an invisible curriculum. There’s always that pressure to have the most impressive CV, land the top internships, have the best grades. It took me a while to realise: I wasn’t naturally competitive - and that’s okay. Being underestimated just makes winning more fun though.

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Then: “I’ll have it all figured out by 30.”

Now: Don’t see that one coming opssss

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That first university experience changes you. More than any syllabus, any exam, or any degree. It’s where you stumble into your first real failures, challenges, successes, heartbreaks, party nights - and the friendships that carry you through them.

Also: Apparently I’m now on the ESB Alumni Wall. 2017 me would have never believed it.

Big hugs, happy weekend, and here’s to whatever comes next.
—Constanze