What not to do..lessons from a re-applicant!

You have read about what to do. You might not know how important it is to do what other tell you to do. I know. Because I got burnt. So here goes a laundry list of what I did wrong last time.

1. Did not do Career planning
I knew I was interested in Consulting. I also knew that only an MBA could get me there. So much I stated. What i did not do is state WHY I am interested in Consulting? What I did till date to explore that interest? And tie my goals to the offerings of the B School.

2. Did not research the school I typically went by the reputation of the school. All I had to say in my essays was - want to go here because it is a great school, great faculty, great infrastructure, great people....Yikes!

3. Did not talk to Students
I did not talk to anybody. Was so afraid of failure that I did not let my friends in other B schools know that I am applying. I did not reach out to current students for information. Now I know how important it is to talk to students.

4. Did not position myself
I attacked each essay question as a single entity instead of look at it as part of a whole. This was a major mistake. I was honest in my essays. But I showed little thought or positioning. Now they look so corny, I have laughed at myself several times. One tip I would give to prospective students is to create a document that lists all essay questions of some major schools and brainstorm for ideas to answer for each. It is surprising how you get ideas for an essay for your preferred school when you are thinking about the essay of a school you might not apply to.

5. Did not get my essays reviewed
Again, I wanted to do it alone! I did not have a single soul read my essays. My take was that - they are my own personal expressions. B schools want honest personal straight from the heart essays. Let them be the way I wrote them. This attitude made me miss the most important point - to convey the info that B schools are looking at. Getting essays reviewed is of utmost importance. To find out who a good reviewer would be, refer to Juggler's post here http://thembasaga.blogspot.com/search/label/Essays

My approach to essay-writing this year is -
1. Create a file containing essay questions of all major schools and the schools I plan to apply to.
2. Brainstorm! Fill this file with points.
3. Research each school and fill the Why XYZ school section in this file?

The above process should give enough material to pick and chose from.
Then, pick your first choice school, create an outline for all the essays.Start working on the first draft of these essays. Look at how each essays interacts with the other to present a holistic picture. Do NOT repeat material across essays. If possible, each essau . Repeat process for School 2 and 3. Then go back to School 1 and revise. Then get them reviewed and so on....

I now have my stories ready for most questions except the Failure question of Wharton and the Culture Shock and Ethical dilemma questions. These have always given my nightmares. But I am sure if I dig deep, I will find answers. What I am worried about most though is about what my Unique qualities are? Now I am a technically strong, academically brilliant, hard-working, ethical, integral, sincere, expert communicator , empathetic, diligent,visionary, brave, risk-taking, determined, innovative leader and all that. But then a normal top B school soup would have oodles of each of these ingredients. So what distinct flavor do I add? I have been talking to a lot of people and found some posts by Marquis especially useful. But then, I still am at a loss!