Got laid off 
(Neanderthal, 2,621
Points)
on 2/8/12 at 6:14am
Still reeling from it. It happened on Monday morning when my boss asked to speak with me for a minute and then led me to a room with the HR lady. He then told me that I was being let go because "this is not the right role for you." It literally came out of nowhere since i've been at the fund since 2006 and my last review on november went great, coupled with a 10% raise. So yeah, I was absolutely stunned, as were my co-workers. On a positive note, i got a decent bonus+severance, so i won't be out on the streets anytime soon. I guess this will give me the chance to decompress for a bit before figuring out my next move.
Jesus... Patriots lost and
Jesus... Patriots lost and you got laid off. Life's a Bitch and Then You Die.
Good luck, bud. Wish you every success in your future career.
Just regard it as a time off
Just regard it as a time off to cool your brains, while being paid. Can't get any better than that!
Big loss on them. Nice on the
Big loss on them. Nice on the bonus+severance, take some time off focus on HBS and enjoy it. I am sure you will be scooped quick time.
sorry to hear brady - same
sorry to hear brady - same thing happened to me and it was a great learning experience...send me an email or PM and I will see what I can do.
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jk Sorry to hear it dude.
jk Sorry to hear it dude. But you're in a better position than most, so things will turn around...
Really sorry to hear that,
Really sorry to hear that, man.
Brady, send me a pm with an email address I can contact you at. Let me know what you would like your next step to be...another job? downtime? business school?
Thanks for the kind words,
Thanks for the kind words, guys. I really appreciate it. To be honest, I see this as a blessing in disguise, and it will be a good opportunity for me to make lemonade out of lemons (yeah it's cliche and corny, i know). For those who know me, I was terribly unhappy at my previous position, and the management at my fund was beyond atrocious. So in a way I feel liberated.
Sorry to hear that... On the
Sorry to hear that...
On the brighter side, didn't you intend to go to business school (HBS) anyway? Doesn't this give you an opportunity to prepare for the GMAT and so forth?
Brady4MVP wrote: Thanks for
Thanks for the kind words, guys. I really appreciate it. To be honest, I see this as a blessing in disguise, and it will be a good opportunity for me to make lemonade out of lemons (yeah it's cliche and corny, i know). For those who know me, I was terribly unhappy at my previous position, and the management at my fund was beyond atrocious. So in a way I feel liberated.
Sorry to hear the news man, rough sledding right now and if people like you are getting dropped it is obvious that the financial industry as a whole is in rough shape right now (writing has on the wall for awhile now but now becoming more tangible).
I know you have mentioned business school as some people have alluded to, what about back in the Fall when you mentioned the option of going to work at firm A or B in more of a start-up capacity? You might have discussed why or what the reasoning was on why you didn't hop on those opportunities initially but I am blanking and too lazy to go dig around. Could that be something (or another firm of that nature) that you are looking at?
Regardless, best of luck. I think you will land on your feet in great shape in no time.
Stay strong and positive!!
Stay strong and positive!!
|| Everything to Gain - Nothing to Lose ||
But feeling good and enjoying life are prerequisites to success, not by products of it - Midas Mulligan Magoo
when one door closes, another
when one door closes, another opens. You'll be fine.
Tough luck, shit happens.
Tough luck, shit happens. Best of luck!
Tough luck, sorry that
Tough luck, sorry that happened to you. Sit on the severance, get your b-school app(s) in shape, and decompress.
A lot of people do certain things to add days to their life. I do things to add life to my days.
jd23 wrote: Brady4MVP
Thanks for the kind words, guys. I really appreciate it. To be honest, I see this as a blessing in disguise, and it will be a good opportunity for me to make lemonade out of lemons (yeah it's cliche and corny, i know). For those who know me, I was terribly unhappy at my previous position, and the management at my fund was beyond atrocious. So in a way I feel liberated.
Sorry to hear the news man, rough sledding right now and if people like you are getting dropped it is obvious that the financial industry as a whole is in rough shape right now (writing has on the wall for awhile now but now becoming more tangible).
I know you have mentioned business school as some people have alluded to, what about back in the Fall when you mentioned the option of going to work at firm A or B in more of a start-up capacity? You might have discussed why or what the reasoning was on why you didn't hop on those opportunities initially but I am blanking and too lazy to go dig around. Could that be something (or another firm of that nature) that you are looking at?
Regardless, best of luck. I think you will land on your feet in great shape in no time.
Great memory. Yeah that was an option i considered last summer. But I had a falling apart with friend A, and friend B delayed the start of his fund due to his fiancee having a baby. He's actually helping me out right now, getting me in touch with some high-up finance people.
For all the shit that you get
For all the shit that you get on this thread, this situation truly sucks. Hopefully you get something way better, go unto Harvard and help some other brothers out in the process. Good luck!
damn, brady. as much as i
damn, brady. as much as i make fun of you, i'm sorry to hear that man. it's good that you're looking at this in a positive light and hopefully everything will work out for the best for you.
good luck in your search
good luck in your search bud...
Good luck dude, your positive
Good luck dude, your positive attitude to this will most definitely lead you to better opportunities!
Sorry to hear that. I suppose
Sorry to hear that. I suppose on the bright side it perhaps pushes into the direction that you've wanted to go into for a while. Positive attitude will definitely get you through this. Good luck.
Fall seven times, get up
Fall seven times, get up eight.
sorry to hear brady, best of
sorry to hear brady, best of luck with your next move, enjoy the "decompression" stage. Didn't you ask before about cool places to travel to? now's the time...
WSO's COO (Chief Operating Orangutan) PM me w/ ideas/complaints/q's-or lets meet up if you're in Buenos Aires. My story
That's rough, sorry to hear
That's rough, sorry to hear that Brady. Best of luck with your next moves.
This is pretty shitty news,
This is pretty shitty news, but to be honest, it might just be the catalyst you needed to make a big change in your life. You just didn't seem happy doing what you were doing. Best of luck with the job search/b school apps.
"Social cohesion and puritanical morality place roughly on my list of concerns between whether I'll pick up jock itch at the gym this week (not likely, since I don't go the gym) and whether it'll rain in Christchurch, New Zealand next Tuesday."
-Eddie
Sorry, Brady, that really
Sorry, Brady, that really blows even if you hated the gig. At least you had income coming in and were able to bide your time until you could get into an M7.
I'm sure you'll be okay in the long run, especially if you're able to keep your head up. Wonder if it had anything to do with that coworker you were talking about before that had previously tried to get you fired? Maybe he had more sway now that he had created that money making algo?
I got some connections on the west coast I can make an effort for you with if you're interested in being out here. Can't make promises but might be able to get your resume in front of a few AM firms. All the best brotha, and above all else, things happen for a reason.
"It is hard to fail, but it is worse never to have tried to succeed."
Theodore Roosevelt
If I was you, I'd go kill
If I was you, I'd go kill myself.
Chin up Brady. You are the
Chin up Brady. You are the same person you were on over the past five years when you've been making them money.
My quant and S&T connections are always open to you. But things aren't going so well in the broker dealerage business right now.
Take some time to figure out who you are and what you want to do. Get yourself grounded. THANK GOD you're in a sane city like Chicago rather than New York or Boston.
Work hard, play hard.
That sucks man, I'm sorry to
That sucks man, I'm sorry to hear that. I have nothing to add here other than I wish you the best and I sincerely hope you'll get into HBS. I'm sure you'll bounce back in no time.
People like Coldplay and voted for the Nazis, you can't trust people Jeremy
Sorry to hear that Brady, but
Sorry to hear that Brady, but now you can prepare to crush the GMAT and knock on the door of HBS
Quote: hmmn. Did this have
hmmn. Did this have anything to do with your attitude? all the envy stuff about your co-worker and constant rage about blacks. maybe people were getting tired of it? or maybe some black person took your job?
Brady has the money to discriminate all he wants now. So no, it's not about that.
Work hard, play hard.
illini, i respect you. that
illini, i respect you. that fool doesn't deserve your defence
Let's engage in positive
Let's engage in positive mental attitude.
1.) There's a pending DOJ investigation against Harvard, Yale, and Princeton discriminating against Asians. This is all going to get sorted out eventually.
2.) It doesn't really matter that much when Brady has a great trading record. Heck, he has the money to trade on his own account.
3.) Yes, Asians and Whites have no idea what people from different racial backgrounds face. Everyone has it tough, and some people probably have it tougher than others. Let's focus on positive mental attitude.
Work hard, play hard.
illini, i agree with
illini, i agree with everything you say. i regret to even drag you into this.
i just wish all the angry brad4mvps were fair like you. the fact is that elite institutions(universities, financial inst.,corporate law firms) want to be predominantly white because they need their white clients to interface with whites. fact is white women are the biggest beneficiaries of affirmative action. brady4mvp and other racists like him train all their anger at blacks because they can't take on whites and win. so they beat and beat and beat on the few blacks who have been successful. that i find very troubling.
well, now it doesn't matter. i'm sure he wasn't fired because he was asian. but who knows.
Brady: you're going to be a
Brady: you're going to be a success in life no matter what, THIS TOO SHALL PASS, you're the man.
i just wish all the angry brad4mvps were fair like you. the fact is that elite institutions(universities, financial inst.,corporate law firms) want to be predominantly white because they need their white clients to interface with whites. fact is white women are the biggest beneficiaries of affirmative action. brady4mvp and other racists like him train all their anger at blacks because they can't take on whites and win. so they beat and beat and beat on the few blacks who have been successful. that i find very troubling.
well, now it doesn't matter. i'm sure he wasn't fired because he was asian. but who knows.
I just learned so much from this, on so many levels. Thank you for your insight.
COME TO THE WSO CONFERENCE!!!!!
Brady I have no doubt you
Brady I have no doubt you will come out of this better than before. Focus those cross-hairs on H/W. Maybe volunteer a bit and kill those interviews. Good luck.
Sorry to hear that. Welcome
Sorry to hear that. Welcome to the 99%
Im sorry to hear that man but
Im sorry to hear that man but if it makes you feel better bonuses are out so "March Madness" is soon to come out so you can easily get a role somewhere.
Brady: you're going to be a success in life no matter what, THIS TOO SHALL PASS, you're the man.
i just wish all the angry brad4mvps were fair like you. the fact is that elite institutions(universities, financial inst.,corporate law firms) want to be predominantly white because they need their white clients to interface with whites. fact is white women are the biggest beneficiaries of affirmative action. brady4mvp and other racists like him train all their anger at blacks because they can't take on whites and win. so they beat and beat and beat on the few blacks who have been successful. that i find very troubling.
well, now it doesn't matter. i'm sure he wasn't fired because he was asian. but who knows.
I just learned so much from this, on so many levels. Thank you for your insight.
I feel the same ufo...
Beast
Sorry to hear Brady - I can't
Sorry to hear Brady - I can't help but wonder if your boss or colleagues read WSO and put 2 and 2 together to result in this outcome. Or maybe it's that guy who you mentioned was trying to get you fired that pulled something.
But given you were really unhappy, now you get to take some time off to focus on yourself and to pursue your MBA goals. And you should also consider taking some time off and travel with your friends in b-school like you always wanted!
Good luck, keep us posted.
I give you shit from time to
I give you shit from time to time but you're a smart guy and this blows. Best of luck, man.
If I had asked people what they wanted, they would have said faster horses - Henry Ford
Scumbag English language.
Scumbag English language. This could have been such a happy thread if we just removed the word "off" from the title.
Anyway, I really am sorry to hear this Brady. Not entirely familiar with your background, but from other peoples' comments here, it sounds like you were a more than solid employee - talent always rises to the top of the pile man, you'll be okay, just keep your head up.
AwkwardStudentsMeetWarrenBuffett
"Concentrate your energies, your thoughts, and your capital. The wise man puts all his eggs in one basket and watches the basket." -Carnegie
A few practical tips (from
A few practical tips (from someone who has been there in the past)
1) Keep a normal schedule. Don't sleep til noon.
2) Get into the best shape of your life. This will truly give you confidence and as you progress on your fitness you will feel empowered to get a new job.
3) Reduce expenditures. Create a realistic budget and stop hemmorhaging cash. Now that you are not working you should be eating meals at home instead of eating every meal out. That kind of thing.
4) Create a super thorough LinkedIn profile - including searchable keywords that will allow recruiters to view your profile.
5) Reach out to headhunters, friends, colleagues, and literally anybody else you can think of - let them know your goals and look for connections.
6) Don't rely on business school to save you. Get a job because if b-school does not pan out you will be double-screwed.
7) Do something interesting with your time. Like, start a non-profit immediately or start volunteering. If you are applying to b-schools like HBS this setback is a -ve, so you should think about how to best position it on your apps.
Bottom line, plan for the worst and hope for the best, and you'll be just fine.
Also understand that nearly everybody goes through stuff like this. Nobody plans this to happen, but it can give you that fire in the belly that drives you to achieve things you once didn't think were possible.
Good luck dude. I know this economy sucks right now. My firm laid off a bunch of guys yesterday as well.
^ Great post gamenumbers.
^ Great post gamenumbers. SB'd. All those points are really spot on.
The only thing I would add is, given Brady likely has some decent $ saved up, is to give yourself a bit of a break before you go back to looking for a new job or starting up non-profits gun's a-blazing. Take a short trip with friends, have fun, go somewhere you've always wanted to go (but couldn't because of work) or knock off a few fun to-do's in your bucket list. Then come back to reality refreshed and re-energized.
At the height of the crisis, I was taking on interviews right after I lost my job. But even though it felt like I had a lot of momentum (interviews here and there, warm leads to firms looking to hire...) the results were not immediate. A lot of firms would just stringing you along (because they could) or were on hiring freezes. Looking back, there was a lot of time in between where I could have gone on a trip, or gotten in better shape, etc. And while a lot of little efforts (talking to people, getting info, etc) was important to me eventually making a career switch into a job that's closer to what I wanted to do, I realized I could have done more - maybe if I had taken some time to enjoy myself and pursue other interests along the way.
My initial reaction was
My initial reaction was "nooooo"
Like you said, decompress with the suggestions above. Once that's over, you can start formulating a list of back up plans.
See my WSO blogs here.
Keep your head up, and get
Keep your head up, and get working on those ideas, keep up w/ markets, etc. Remember the ugly side to b-school is that you essentially become a professional job interviewer--easily the biggest "skill" I learned/developed. Good luck.
fukn rat bastards!
fukn rat bastards!
Sorry to hear that. To me the
Sorry to hear that. To me the "not the right role" sounds like a pretty shady excuse if you were just given a raise and a great performance review. Plus you would think they would offer to transfer you to some other role if your current one isn't "right". Are they laying other people off? Financial problems?
If you're on this forum you're probably pretty intelligent and ambitious so like everyone else has said, I'm sure you'll do fine.
Why don't you take a seat.
excite2012 wrote: illini, i
illini, i agree with everything you say. i regret to even drag you into this.
i just wish all the angry brad4mvps were fair like you. the fact is that elite institutions(universities, financial inst.,corporate law firms) want to be predominantly white because they need their white clients to interface with whites. fact is white women are the biggest beneficiaries of affirmative action. brady4mvp and other racists like him train all their anger at blacks because they can't take on whites and win. so they beat and beat and beat on the few blacks who have been successful. that i find very troubling.
well, now it doesn't matter. i'm sure he wasn't fired because he was asian. but who knows.
Since when is Brady a racist?
The answer to your question is 1) network 2) get involved 3) beef up your resume 4) repeat -happypantsmcgee
WSO is not your personal search function.
keep your head up brady. wish
keep your head up brady. wish there was something i could do to help you out. just focus on bschool/the next stage in your life....youll make it out better than before
i'm sorry to hear this. a
i'm sorry to hear this. a couple of quick suggestions:
1) egg the house/apt of the guy who created that algorithm at your firm last year - you'll instantly feel better
2) polish the resume and start networking
as much as this blows, you'll probably find a better opportunity that suits your style more - i'm positive.
"It behooves every man to remember that the work of a critic is of altogether secondary importance, and that, in the end, progress is accomplished by the man who does things." - Uncle Teddy.
FusRoDah wrote: Sorry to hear
Sorry to hear that. To me the "not the right role" sounds like a pretty shady excuse if you were just given a raise and a great performance review. Plus you would think they would offer to transfer you to some other role if your current one isn't "right". Are they laying other people off? Financial problems?
If you're on this forum you're probably pretty intelligent and ambitious so like everyone else has said, I'm sure you'll do fine.
The whole thing was bizarre. As I said before, it came out of nowhere, and people at the fund were pretty stunned. I've gotten texts from former co-workers asking me what the fuck happened. My boss looked like he did not want to do it, and after telling me my severance+bonus package, he told me that i can use him as a reference for my next job.
You should go travel for a
You should go travel for a bit. In threads about business school it seems like that's what you really want to do.