Leland+ Content Library

Cool, Calm, and Laser-Focused: Tame GMAT Test Anxiety

Join Leland coach Jennifer P. D. for a session packed with actionable tips and strategies for developing the calm, confident, laser-focused mindset that powers your best performance. ​If you've ever been frustrated at the way you lose your cool when the clock starts ticking, you're not alone! In Jennifer's 12 years of GMAT, GRE, and SAT coaching experience, she's encountered dozens of smart, utterly competent individuals who struggled to demonstrate their capabilities during these high-stakes exams. This fueled her drive to read research in neuroscience and performance psychology, to train in mindfulness meditation techniques, and to speak with candidates directly about what's playing out in their minds. Now she incorporates these concepts into all of her group classes and coaching - and it makes a difference! ​What's going on in your mind? Why is that normal? How can you shape it to work for you? Let's discuss. ​One of Jennifer's recent students wrote, "Working with Jennifer has been nothing but amazing and did wonders not only for my GMAT Focus score but also my general 'mindset' when it comes to high-pressure situations (as you experience during the exam). My GMAT Focus score jumped 110 points."

Build a Job Search Operating System (JSOS) [5/13/2026] (Recording)

Build Anything Series · Event 01 · Free · Live The job search is the most expensive workflow most people will ever run — and the one they're least equipped for. Spreadsheets, sticky notes, half-tracked outreach, lost interview notes. By the end of this hour, you'll learn how to create a complete Job Search Operating System to help you land your next offer. What we'll walk through live: - A real applicant tracker | every role, company, and contact in one view. Status, last action, next step, follow-up date. - Automated outreach + research | pull company context, drafts personalized outreach, surfaces the right people to message. - Synced notes, prep, offer comparison | interview notes that auto-link to the role, prep doc generation per company, structured offer comparison when it's time to choose. Who it's for: - People actively job searching or about to start - Career switchers, returning-to-work folks, recent grads - Anyone who's run a search before and remembers losing track of half of it Not a fit if: - You enjoy manual data entry and Excel-tab chaos - You'd rather pay $300 for a static prompt template that fails instead of learning the principles yourself - You want a one-click magic button I'll be honest about where AI helps and where it doesn't, and how to keep the system running without me. Bring your laptop and follow along, or lean in, watch, and replicate after.

Big 10 to MBB + Big Tech: Positioning Yourself to Get Offers

This guide was written by a former Bain & Company Associate Consultant, now in a Strategy and Operations role at LinkedIn, who went through the full MBB recruiting process out of Indiana University's Kelley School of Business. It covers everything that actually matters when you are trying to break into a top consulting firm or land a Big Tech strategy role from a non-target school. Inside you will find a no-nonsense breakdown of how MBB firms actually differ, what a competitive application looks like, how to build a resume that passes the ten-second scan, and the networking approach that moves the needle versus the one that wastes your time. The guide goes deep on case interview preparation, including the pyramid framework approach and what interviewers are genuinely evaluating in the room, and covers the behavioral and fit interview with the same level of honesty. The final chapter covers what transfers from consulting to Big Tech, how that recruiting process works, and how to negotiate an offer once you have one. This is not generic advice. It is based on having gone through the process recently, having sat on the other side of the table at Bain, and having made the transition to Big Tech firsthand.

The Reapplicant's Advantage: Turning Setback into Strategy. [7/22/2026] (Recording)

For many successful MBA graduates, rejection was not the end of the journey—it was the turning point. When approached with strategy, reflection, and renewed purpose, reapplying can transform a setback into a compelling statement of resilience, growth, and focus. Admissions committees respect candidates who demonstrate perseverance, self-awareness, and the ability to learn from experience—but only when that growth is clear, specific, and credible. This workshop will help you turn a “ding” into a competitive edge. You’ll learn how to conduct a clear-eyed assessment of your previous application, identify what may have held you back, highlight meaningful progress since your last submission, and approach the reapplicant essay with authenticity and impact. More than damage control, the reapplication process is an opportunity to show the admissions committee that you are stronger, more prepared, and more intentional than before. Done well, your reapplication can tell a sharper, more mature, and more persuasive story. By the end of this session, you will be able to: * Conduct a candid self-assessment to identify weaknesses in your previous application and opportunities for improvement. * Demonstrate tangible growth through professional achievements, academic progress, leadership development, and deeper extracurricular or community impact. * Refine your school strategy by aligning more precisely with programs where your fit, goals, and competitiveness are strongest. * Craft a powerful reapplicant essay that emphasizes resilience, growth, and renewed commitment—without sounding defensive or making excuses. * Strengthen recommendations and school engagement by securing enthusiastic advocates and building more authentic connections with your target programs.

Blank Page to Clear Outline: Get Unstuck on Your Personal Essay

​Feeling stuck on your personal essay? You're not alone. Trust, you are not the only senior who keeps putting off writing their application essay. You're sure you'll be able to finish once you start. You just need to put something - anything - on the page, but going from 0 to 1 feels harder than going from 1 to 100. And advice like "just start!", "show who you are," "brainstorm some ideas," isn't working, right? ​Join Isamar V., a former Stanford admissions officer and college application coach, in this workshop where she will guide you as you complete 3 exercises to go from a blank page to a clear essay outline in 1 hour. Get your pen and paper (or laptop) ready because this isn't just a lecture. You are going to put in the work in this workshop. ​If you have no idea what you want to write about --> You'll leave with several ideas, topics, and stories to choose from If you have an idea or story but don't know if it's good --> You'll leave with personal reflections to make it good If you have a story that you're excited about, but just haven't sat down to write --> You'll leave with an outline If you already have an outline, but just no written draft --> You'll have a dedicated hour to write ​You'll also get some tips for how to go from outline to a first written draft. Whether you're just starting or need a fresh perspective, the goal for you is to feel unstuck and excited to write your story.

MBA Self-Discovery Workbook: Unlock Your Narrative & Write Freely

This is a reflection-focused, 13-section workbook for MBA applicants to uncover and build your story before embarking on the complex, layered process of writing your essays. This resource is informed from my time in Stanford GSB's Interpersonal Dynamics (Touchy Feely), my time helping dozens of other GSB classmates find their voice as the Managing Editor for Stanford GSB's Paper (Nondisclosure), and in helping over 500 MBA applicants self-reflect in a way that feels genuine, personal and clarifying. I wrote this resource with just enough structure (but not too much), and with a practical eye towards covering the ground you'll need for your MBA apps. You'll go deep, but every question has a purpose. I also use this with everyone I work with, and it's something we'll cover at the very beginning of our process. My hope is that this resource, in addition to being a big help, feels like we're in conversation. The goal is just to get to know you a little better, one step at a time, in a way that feels natural, even enjoyable. Even if you're the only one who ever sees it, I've tried to write this in a way that I'd speak about this kind of thing with you. Because I think humans are the best way to help other humans see themselves a little deeper. And trust me, plenty of "coaches" could use more of that too ;) This workbook will cover your background, motivations, short and long-term goals, values, behavioral stories, and more. A PDF is attached here, but there's also a downloadable Word file I recommend using to make things much easier for you to fill out as you go. This took me about 20-30 hours of time to put together, and I suggest putting at least 5-10 into filling this out. Some go at it all at once, but most do it in a few sittings. Long walks are good to interperse between writing sessions, and I actually recommend you reflect and go back to this to update your answers several times throughout your MBA process. Save new versions as you go and you'll be able to see your application pixellate over this monthslong process. If you're reapplying, I'd push you to compare what you end up with here with what you submitted last time. The differences may be revealing. I hope ends up a real tool for you, and that it helps you find answers you might not have found otherwise. It also will give you a glimpse into what coaching together feels like. Don't hesitate to reach out if you feel like sharing this. Working on your writing and applications together is a natural byproduct of the kind of reflection you'll be doing here, and it's my favorite thing to help someone with. Happy writing :) -Ben