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Marshmallow Challenge Essay

640 Words3 Pages

The premise is simple: a team of four builds the tallest tower out of marshmallows, spaghetti, and tape in eighteen minutes. The results, however, are surprising. On average, kindergarteners build towers more than two times as tall as those made by business school students. It turns out that the rigid thinking taught in business school discourages the creativity required in building a marshmallow tower. While the kindergarteners on average made five prototypes, the business students only made one. In that way, the marshmallow challenge is an allegory of sorts for entrepreneurship: those best at taking creative, novel risks where those who succeeded. However, it’s important to realize that life isn’t a single marshmallow challenge, rather it’s a balancing act: every piece, every method of thought matters. This especially holds true in entrepreneurship, where every part of the venture must be in perfect attunement. During sophomore year, I cofounded a startup, CTG, that hosted video game tournaments for high schoolers. Very quickly, as the venture carried over into junior year, I realized that my small team of four needed to diversity. I helped set each member on separate paths, learning …show more content…

Despite being the oldest collegiate business school, Wharton strives to keep up with modern entrepreneurial thinking. The ability to concentrate in Entrepreneurial Management at Wharton speaks volumes to Penn’s dedication to inspiring creativity. However, the beauty in entrepreneurship isn’t just the development of novel ideas, it's the integration all ideas, new and old. Wharton’s reputation as both the top ranked and oldest business school assures that despite the new wave of entrepreneurial thinking, Penn will still teach the core principles of traditional business

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