Great Things Start from Small Beginnings
By: Alejandra Castañeda
It’s hard to believe that almost two years have passed since we first entered the Global Hub for CIM, standing in Gies Plaza full of nerves, excitement, and hope. At least for me, everyone had always described the MBA as “the best two years of their lives.” And honestly, I could not fully understand why until now.
Now, as graduation approaches, I am amazed to think about the 524 completely different journeys that each of us chose to take during these two years. The electives we picked, the trips we joined, the internships we pursued, the parties we attended, the friendships we built, the risks we took, the small group dinners we hosted, the versions of ourselves we left behind, and the ones we slowly grew into. Each of us carries a unique Kellogg journey. And honestly, I think we should all feel deeply grateful, and incredibly proud, to have had this opportunity. Because when you really think about it, very few people in the world get the chance to pause, step away from the rhythm of their lives, and become a student again for one or two years. To ask big questions, to start over, and to be surrounded by people who are also trying to figure out who they are becoming.
I came to Kellogg thinking these two years would be about finding answers. Instead, they became about finding friends, adventures, and opportunities. The friends who became family, the adventures that became stories we will tell our grandchildren, and the opportunities that quietly changed who we are.
Somewhere between classes, late nights, recruiting, celebrations, travels, and group projects, we changed. We became braver, softer, more curious, and more human. We learned that some of the most important lessons are not written in a syllabus. They happen in the conversations that stay with us, the friendships that shape us, the risks that scare us, and the moments when someone shows up exactly when we n
eed them.
The MBA stretches you, not just in your career, but in who you are. You question your path, your pace, your priorities, and your tolerance for uncertainty. You learn how much you can hold, how much you can give, and how much you still have to learn. Some days, you feel invincible. Other days, invisible. And somehow, the contrast is exactly where the growth happens.
Because Kellogg is not only a place that celebrates ambition. It is a place that reminds us that ambition is more meaningful when it is shared with others, when it is softened by kindness, when it is grounded in purpose, and when it leaves room for joy.
Maybe time does not heal everything, but perspective does. And as this chapter comes to an end, I hope we all take a moment to look back with perspective. To notice the small wins we almost forgot to celebrate, the friendships that made Evanston feel like home, and the courage it took to show up in a new country, a new classroom, a new team, a new industry, or simply a new version of ourselves.
I hope we remember the people who helped us through hard moments. The people who made us laugh until we cried. The people who challenged us, inspired us, and reminded us that we were never really doing this alone.
Confidence, I learned, does not come from always being right. It comes from no longer being afraid to be wrong. It comes from asking for help, smiling first, raising your hand even when your voice shakes, and finding your tribe and loving them hard.
And maybe that is the biggest gift Kellogg gave us: not just the knowledge, the network, or the opportunities, but the permission to become. To try, to fail, to begin again, and to dream bigger, not because we had all the answers, but because we had people around us who made us believe we could figure it out.
To Kellogg: thank you. Thank you for being the place where I learned that reinvention does not mean becoming someone else. It means becoming more of who you already were. Thank you for the people who became family, the questions that stretched me, the moments that surprised me, and the memories that will stay with me long after I leave the Global Hub.
Thank you for giving me a home away from home, and for reminding me that the most meaningful part of any journey is rarely the destination. It is who we become, and who we become it with.
To my Class of 2026 amigos, congratulations on this huge milestone! May our time at Kellogg always remind us that becoming is not something that happens all at once, but slowly, through the people we love, the risks we take, and the moments we are brave enough to trust.
And may we never forget that great things often start from small beginnings, including a nervous first day in Gies Plaza that somehow became the start of one of the most meaningful chapters of our lives.
Read Parting Notes from the Class of 2026:
