社交网络。商学院绝不仅仅是上课学习（甚至有同学说，主要不是学习……）。与同学们多交往，建立起一个社交网络是重要组成部分，而且是将来能为每个人带来益处的好事。在我们这个紧密的团体里，有未来的CEO, CFO，公司主席，政府领袖等等，我们应该努力认识每个人，与大家成为好朋友。我正是本着这个态度来到管院，也正是这个原因使我一直很积极去了解更多国际同学。

I love to travel; business school seemed great because it brought all of those cultures to a single place. However after the first few weeks of school, people started to break down into groups, often by nationality. I too am to blame; most of the friends I spend time with outside of class are Americans. However as president of the student body, I plan many events that aim to bring everyone together.

我本人很爱旅游，原因就是可以见识到不同的文化，商学院对我就是一个很好的地方，因为他把当今世界上最重要的一些文化元素通过吸收国际学生而汇集到了一个地方。但是我没有想到的是，开学不多久，同学们便不自觉地组成了按地域分的小团体。我自己也难辞其咎，因为我自己的好朋友也大部分是美国人。但是作为新一任的主席，我计划安排更多跨文化的主题活动，来让他们走得更近。

Still, these events are not often attended by all groups. Speaking to some of my Chinese friends, I know that they can find the socializing more of a chore than pure fun. Perhaps because of language or cultural reference barriers, not everyone mingles as much as would be ideal. I think socializing is another piece of the business school experience that mirrors American business culture. In the U.S., many business deals and arrangements are forged in social settings, and high value is put on relationship-building.

但是，另一个问题便是很多国际学生对参加学生会的活动并不热衷，我的中国同学道出了心声。很多时候，他们觉得这些活动对于他们更像是例行公事，因为“应该去而去”，而非是“纯粹为了开心而参加”。的确，可能是介于语言和文化的隔阂，让国际学生完全与美国人打成一片并不现实。但是我个人认为这种社交场合确实是美国核心商业文化的最重要组成部分，因为很多协议与合作均是在社交场合达成的，而商业圈内也普遍注重关系网络的搭建与培养（后来我得知，这一点与中国商业文化很接近，但是我们并不提倡用喝酒来解决）。

It's not always about being the best or brightest, but often comes down to who you know and how well you know them. Social networking sites like LinkedIn have become hugely popular ways for businesspeople to stay connected. In some ways business school is a real-life version of LinkedIn. Lucky for us at Yale, people are truly interested in each other's lives and ambitions, so the networking is not fake. Yet it is important and everyone would do well to take part. Sticking to our comfort zones and our areas of familiarity cheats ourselves and our peers out of the opportunity to break down barriers and get to know new people in new ways.