This is the second post in a series about how to win and be awesome at Excelerate Labs.  If you missed the first post you can find it on the GiveForward.com Blog.

You’ve survived the insanely frenetic pace of mentor month where you’ve been averaging about 5 hours of sleep per night for the past month and it’s starting to catch up with you.  Fortunately, now is the time to catch your breath, kick back and enjoy your MBA month.  You’ll listen to some interesting lectures, hang out with your classmates, and take a break from all the mischigas that was mentor month. Most importantly, during this month you’ll have time to develop real relationships with a handful of mentors and start thinking more deeply about your business.

Here are three things you should do during your MBA month:

(1) Organize a social event with your fellow Excelerate classmates

The Excelerate 2010 class is probably ten times closer now than when we were in the program.  It wasn’t until the third month of Excelerate that we really started to bond.  And that’s because Excelerate was such as whirlwind experience and we were so focused on our businesses and mentor meetings, that we didn’t realize we were surrounded by great mentors everyday. Excelerate is a mentorship driven program, and the experienced mentors that participate are truly phenomenal.  But don’t overlook the value of peer-mentorship. There is a ton you can learn from other companies who are in the thick of it just like you.  If nothing else, going through the highs and lows with friends is great group therapy.  Getting to know your fellow classmates sooner rather than later will serve you well.

(2)  Find Your Tim

You’ve met with a million people during the first month, but the second month is really about developing deeper relationships with a small handful of mentors who will help you during Excelerate and beyond.  We were very fortunate in that we found one mentor, Tim Krauskopf, who really took us under his wing.  He helped us strategize about the business, hone our pitch and pitch deck when it came time to raise our round, and even helped us secure the first half of our seed round through investors that he knew.   Tim has been an invaluable asset to us.  He has since joined our board and we email or speak with him weekly.  If you do one thing during July it should be figuring out who is going to be your Tim.

Super Awesome Pro Tip: Be proactive about pursuing the mentors you want on your team.  Sam Yagan will tell you a thousand times over that finding mentors is like dating.   I liken it more to middle school dating: awkward.   You don’t know if the mentor likes you and you’re kind of scared to ask her out.  Here’s the reality – the mentors are just as unsure about the process as you are.  Don’t wait for a mentor to make the first move.  If you mesh with someone, let them know that you’d love for them to continue helping you.  They will be flattered and impressed that you asked.  And if they have been casually talking with two companies but only have time to get deeply involved with one of them, asking them directly will make the decision easier for them.

Super Awesome Pro Tip: Find mentors without day jobs.   They are awesome.   Mentors that have had successful exits, are retired, or are between jobs have the time and energy to focus on your company, so seek them out.

(3)  Listen to your heart

During your June mentor meetings you are going to get a million and one disparate ideas on how you should be running your company.  Something we realized after hearing Michael Krasney speak is that you need to follow your heart.  At the end of the day, you need to do what feels right for your company.  If it doesn’t feel authentic, chances are it’s going to fail.

Super-Awesome Pro Tip: Write down your company’s core values and put them on your website.  Start living them.  This is something we did after Excelerate ended but I wish we had done it sooner.  Creating values, a mission and a vision for your business makes it easier to filter out the noise and focus on what’s important.

Okay.  That is all.  Relax. Have fun.  Make friends. Get to know your mentors and  enjoy your MBA month.