Lifestyle expectations in IB?

Hi everybody,

I was wondering if there are any expectations when it comes to lifestyle in banking.

Like, is it in any way expected that you throw around money in clubs, go out to lunch every day etc.?

 

It is expected that every analyst throws an exclusive party at one of the most exclusive clubs in New York or the residing city with bottle service, and an expensive dinner to introduce yourself to the partners...I'd say a minimum of 20-30k spent every year on this.

You also want to live in an area that expresses a certain level of prestige. Expect rent to be anywhere from 6-8k a month. Most sensible analysts take out private loans on top of your salary, and bonus (which needs to be spent the night of!!!) to support this lifestyle. Remember! The clients always need to see you on top, if they want you to be the one who bends over.

I think- therefore I fuck
 
Best Response

What is your educational background? -University of Phoenix What are your typical hours of work? -All day What do you normally do after work? -Sleep What do you normally do on weekends? -Work What kind of books/publications do you read? If and when you do. -No time to read for fun What websites do you regularly visit? For pleasure/work -I don't leave my bloomberg Where do you like to hang out for fun outside of work? -in bed Where do you like to go out for a meal? Casual and fancy. -McDonalds & TGI Fridays if I am feeling fancy Where do you normally like to shop? Fashion & Home/Lifestyle -Bass Pro Shop How do you relax? -Women What mode of transport do you use? (Any vehicular brands in particular?) -Blackhawk Helichopter What technology/media do you use on a daily basis? -Occulus rift Are you part of any private communities/clubs/member's only societies? -skull & bones What are your favourite brands? -Coors Light, casio calculators, walmart, & fancy feast

 

materially it sounds like you're doing fine. i'd love to go to japan for a week.

in seriousness, i live off my salary and save my bonus. i don't constrain myself but i'm not really into fancy watches or anything like that. my car is 8 years old. i have a 42" plasma and no roomates. I work about 55 hours a week.

i go out for dinner to pretty nice places essentially every night, either under my own steam or with brokers. in general, b/c going out to bars etc is expensive and i'm actually not that into it i generally go with work/brokers (as I did last night). 4 of us went out last night to a few bars and i'd be surprised if it cost less than a grand. the guys who sit across the row from me went for dinner once a few months ago and it came to $3500 for 4 people. now that is insanity.

 

Are clubs and bars in NYC that much more expensive than other cities? I don't see how you can spend more than a grand at a couple of bars.

I recall talking to a buddy of mine here in Chicago who said that he noticed a huge difference in culture and lifestyle when he visited NYC. He said that money plays a much larger role in determining one's social status in NYC, as compared to other cities.

 

lots of drinks, lots of drinks for girls, food, it adds up. we started at 6 and were out till 2. 10-12 drinks each at 12 bucks a pop is around 500 for the four of us, then there's the food, drinks for others, and you're there.

 
JeffAiello:
If you are an I-Banker but live very modestly, does it hurt your chances for promotion?

this is a deeper question than you may realize. it's dealt with in the millionaire next door...ultimately you need to project a certain baseline image. ie digital watches, shtty old shirts, scuffed shoes, probably wont cut it. but decent shirts, a nice enough watch, and you're fine. nobody needs to know if you stay in the city on the weekends or go to the hamptons. or if you go to the carribean for vacation instead of Antibes.

to sum it up, the level of 'success' that needs to be projected isn't going to break the bank, and the high end baller stuff is by no means required.

At the end of the day, Jimbo sez "save your money".

 
Ace Shot:
I'm currently serving in the US Army. I'm considering getting my MBA after my service and getting a job in the financial world, maybe i-banking. Can you guys educate me as to what kind of lifestyle you lead beyond the 100 hour workweek basics? I don't make nearly as much money as you guys do but here's a quick rundown of my lifestyle. Basically, I'm just curious as to how the upper crust lives.

Housing: 3 BR, 2 BTH apartment in South Korea, brand new. Car: 2007 Ford Mustang GT TV: 40" Sony LCD with 1000w Panasonic home theater system. Watch: Seiko Titanium ($400) and Casio G-Shock ($100) Work hours: Varies but about 50 hours a week, max 80 hours a week. Weekends: Binge drinking with friends when I meet up with them, about $400 a night when we party hard (dinner, bar 1, bar 2, club, casino). Usually, I can limit myself to spending about $100 a weekend if I lay low, just eat out, watch a movie and stuff. Clothes: Levis jeans, Abercrombie shirts, you get the idea. Luxury goods: None for myself but Korean girls drop panties for anything with a LV logo on it. But I do buy some Dom Perignon for special occasions. Vacations: Weeklong trips when I get time off to Japan, Singapore, Hong Kong, local places.

I'd like to know what kind of step up in terms of quality of life I can expect if I can land a sweet job in finance. Please feel free to share the realization of your materialistic dreams!

abercrombie? ford mustang? seiko? i think you are on the wrong forum bud - this is more zegna - aston martin - panerai. might try bluecollaroasis.com they are more into those types of things.

 
roth:
Ace Shot:
I'm currently serving in the US Army. I'm considering getting my MBA after my service and getting a job in the financial world, maybe i-banking. Can you guys educate me as to what kind of lifestyle you lead beyond the 100 hour workweek basics? I don't make nearly as much money as you guys do but here's a quick rundown of my lifestyle. Basically, I'm just curious as to how the upper crust lives.

Housing: 3 BR, 2 BTH apartment in South Korea, brand new. Car: 2007 Ford Mustang GT TV: 40" Sony LCD with 1000w Panasonic home theater system. Watch: Seiko Titanium ($400) and Casio G-Shock ($100) Work hours: Varies but about 50 hours a week, max 80 hours a week. Weekends: Binge drinking with friends when I meet up with them, about $400 a night when we party hard (dinner, bar 1, bar 2, club, casino). Usually, I can limit myself to spending about $100 a weekend if I lay low, just eat out, watch a movie and stuff. Clothes: Levis jeans, Abercrombie shirts, you get the idea. Luxury goods: None for myself but Korean girls drop panties for anything with a LV logo on it. But I do buy some Dom Perignon for special occasions. Vacations: Weeklong trips when I get time off to Japan, Singapore, Hong Kong, local places.

I'd like to know what kind of step up in terms of quality of life I can expect if I can land a sweet job in finance. Please feel free to share the realization of your materialistic dreams!

abercrombie? ford mustang? seiko? i think you are on the wrong forum bud - this is more zegna - aston martin - panerai. might try bluecollaroasis.com they are more into those types of things.

Hey Roth, I don't think we've met. My name's Ura, Ura Fag! This guy serves his country and you come on here talking like you're some millionaire. Get the fuck outta here, fuckin' dumb shit disrespectful dickhead.

 

Abercrombie. Ford Mustang. Seiko. Of course those aren't expensive brands. I was making a point. I'm not trying to have a pissing contest with people saying that I'm baller or anything. I'm making the point that given my Army salary, this is the range on the quality of life curve that I'm currently at right now. Furthermore, I'm curious as to how people in i-banking are living given that I may make the transition to the financial industry. I do this because I like to make informed decisions. Also, I highly doubt that you wear very much Ermg Zegna, drive an Aston Martin or have a Panerai diver's watch given that you have an annual income of 60K. But there's nothing wrong with that. You may turn out to be a billionaire at which point you can flush your toilets with Johnnie Walker blue and then you may be better positioned to look down on blue collar types. But my guess is that since you're on an online forum about i-banking that you're not too different from most people here, that is coming from aspirational backgrounds who don't have trust funds to fall back on and thus have to make their own fortune in the world. In other words, you're not rich and you're not old money. Nothing wrong with that, but you may want to be more mature and think before being condescending.

 
Ace Shot:
Abercrombie. Ford Mustang. Seiko. Of course those aren't expensive brands. I was making a point. I'm not trying to have a pissing contest with people saying that I'm baller or anything. I'm making the point that given my Army salary, this is the range on the quality of life curve that I'm currently at right now. Furthermore, I'm curious as to how people in i-banking are living given that I may make the transition to the financial industry. I do this because I like to make informed decisions. Also, I highly doubt that you wear very much Ermg Zegna, drive an Aston Martin or have a Panerai diver's watch given that you have an annual income of 60K. But there's nothing wrong with that. You may turn out to be a billionaire at which point you can flush your toilets with Johnnie Walker blue and then you may be better positioned to look down on blue collar types. But my guess is that since you're on an online forum about i-banking that you're not too different from most people here, that is coming from aspirational backgrounds who don't have trust funds to fall back on and thus have to make their own fortune in the world. In other words, you're not rich and you're not old money. Nothing wrong with that, but you may want to be more mature and think before being condescending.

Completely utterly destroyed.

Good job.

 
Ace Shot:
Abercrombie. Ford Mustang. Seiko. Of course those aren't expensive brands. I was making a point. I'm not trying to have a pissing contest with people saying that I'm baller or anything. I'm making the point that given my Army salary, this is the range on the quality of life curve that I'm currently at right now. Furthermore, I'm curious as to how people in i-banking are living given that I may make the transition to the financial industry. I do this because I like to make informed decisions. Also, I highly doubt that you wear very much Ermg Zegna, drive an Aston Martin or have a Panerai diver's watch given that you have an annual income of 60K. But there's nothing wrong with that. You may turn out to be a billionaire at which point you can flush your toilets with Johnnie Walker blue and then you may be better positioned to look down on blue collar types. But my guess is that since you're on an online forum about i-banking that you're not too different from most people here, that is coming from aspirational backgrounds who don't have trust funds to fall back on and thus have to make their own fortune in the world. In other words, you're not rich and you're not old money. Nothing wrong with that, but you may want to be more mature and think before being condescending.

Then what the fuck was with your condescending original post? I mean, why are you assuming all bankers are douchebags (I mean, only 98% of us are) and blow money.

I mean, what the fuck is your point? Seriously.

And yes, I know you're an army guy, but don't be a doucheface for the sake of the fact that you can be a doucheface.

 

Even though I'm Canadian, I have tremendous amounts of respect for anyone that serves either the USA or Canada. They put their lives on the line every single day to make your country safe and free, and if you want to come on here and put down heroes, well then I'll suggest you go fuck yourself you poor piece of shit.

 

still doesn't explain what you said about being blue collar and all.

and haven't you watched wall street? understand that without the guys in the army, factories, mines and so on.. there ain't any use for finance bigwigs like you badass.

who do you think handcrafts your aston anyway?

 

sometimes they're the only real freedom we have. I'm thinking about making the leap from the military to the financial industry and I think it'd be nice to have some of the experienced people give me their opinions and caveats about what the i-banking lifestyle is like.

By the way, the people who participate on this forum are pretty cool people. Thanks for supporting us, the troops. Every day we lay it on the line, we do it for you all, so that our fellow Americans can live free.

 

AceShot

I think you're going to experience upgrades on all the indicators you mentioned. A huge factor depends on the type of personality a person has. Some people just don't feel comfortable balling, regardless of their ability to ball or not ball. A few expensive suits, 8-10K total, expensive shirts, 2-3K, expensive shoes 500 a pop, expensive watch 10K. It seems like you will be able to upgrade most of the areas with ease, it's upgrading the car and house that takes the serious money.

Best of luck.

 

"You may turn out to be a billionaire at which point you can flush your toilets with Johnnie Walker blue "

love it.

it's a function of personality. could i afford a 10k watch? yes. could i afford a ferrari? yes. do i own either? no, b/c they both seem like wastes of money to me. my watch costs a few hundred bucks. my car is 8 years old and probably worth 10k or so. I'd get almost no utility out of a fancier watch or car. But there are things I really get a lot out of and I am more than happy to spend on (like travel).

to each his own...ultimately, once you earn it, do with it as you like.

 

not sure what you are referring to, but if you want to blow coke up some hookers ass, I am sure that you can still find willing participants.

I'm talking about liquid. Rich enough to have your own jet. Rich enough not to waste time. Fifty, a hundred million dollars, buddy. A player. Or nothing. See my Blog & AMA
 

You can most definitely live the life, but it'll be harder as there are more people watching out for people that are trying to cheat. Also, with that money, you can always get all the drugs and hookers you want. Just don't expect to be out doing seminars after you get caught.

make it hard to spot the general by working like a soldier
 

Two options

Work 80-100 hour weeks by staring at a computer and competing with other analysts to see who can stay longer. Jump on every project you can and hope to god you don't make a mistake or you are tight enough with the Associates to now get thrown under the bus

Work 80-100 hour weeks at a place where "there is no facetime." This usually means that you will be working your ass off on half a dozen deals and switching gears between all of them every other 30 minutes. This equates to a ton of deal experience but the possibility your brain explodes

 

Are you really asking people to classify themselves as either a "frat-boy" or a "nerd"? Good luck.

"The trouble with our liberal friends is not that they're ignorant, it's just that they know so much that isn't so." - Ronald Reagan
 

Very different across the board. There are groups that are very flashy and like to live large, while there are quite modest ones as well. A few that I interviewed with were just plain weird. There are some that have a high concentration of former frat guys or athletes and are thus influenced by those cultures. Groups with a DLJ heritage tend to be very aggressive and hardworking.

It's hard to get a straight answer out of anyone, so you have to get a feel for yourself and ask around.

 

let me clue you in on something. investment bankers dont have power. it is a sales/network job. you are connecting buyers/sellers. whether that is a PE fund or a corporate client, it is predominatnly a sales game. investment bankers are pretty much one step above nyc apartment brokers in this regard. we just skim a lot more money off of the top and wear nicer suits. and this "client servicing" is what leads to the long-ass hours and hours and hours of annoying benchmarking/formatting/dataroom uploading/spreading/etc.

senior bankers are dependent on their clients for fees. sure after they build up their network and get a fatter rolodex they have more of a "power" to get the client what/who they want, but ultimately theyre dependent on other people that are actually the ones creating "value".

if you are after power and set on banking, i would do banking for awhile, actually save your money (most bankers dont) and get into politics. thats where youll find power. and when you finally get ousted from office for being incompetent, then you can just be a chairman or figurehead of a PE or hedge fund and make your money then.

 

High-up politicians have a lot more power than bankers. :) Bankers exist because the markets are not 100% efficient - if they were, sellers would know all the appropriate buyers and could always get the highest price possible.

PEs/HFs pay politicians a lot because of their connections (as you mention) and also because policy such as the capital gains tax rate and the tax treatment of carried interest has a huge impact on them... politicians have the power and financiers have the money.

That's an over-simplification of things and this is not exactly how they always work, but if you're looking for power I would not do banking - you'll always be the middleman, no matter how high you rise.

 

To be honest it's a question that interests me. At the end of the day you do not have any power, you are a salesman (talking MD's here). In the long term I would rather be up on the top floor in a nice plush office of a large corporation and have responsibility for a few thousand people and get paid less than an MD who still sits 2m away from a 21 yr old analyst and is constantly trying to seek out deals. At a certain level money stops being massively important anyhow. I'm sure you'll all say I have some sort of complex but that's the way I am. A VP in our team recently left for a pretty high up job in a blue chip and that is probably the route I'm currently looking at taking too.

 

Oconner--you raise some good points. But you have to keep in mind exactly how low the pay is in the corporate world. The VP you mentioned--how much, ballpark, is he getting to switch over to industry? The MD in a bank might still be sitting 2 metres away from a 21-year old, but the mid- to senior-level guy in industry is getting paid the same as, say, someone in their mid to upper 20s in banking, S&T, etc.

I'm not trying to give you a hard time, as I agree very much with your points, but I never cease to be surprised by exactly how low the pay is for a lot of senior people in industry.

I think location also tends to sway our views. I'm based in New York, and between student loans and the price of housing here it seems like making it to the point where you're financially comfortable requires finance-like pay. All that said, once loans are paid off and you've been able to afford the 20-40% downpayment on a nice $2mm place in the city, then if you transfer to industry and live somewhere cheaper then you really can make 1/4 of the pay and still be very comfortable....

 

Most banks are on/near Park Ave, so that makes Midtown East and Murray Hill popular.

Up there you have JPM, Citi, Moelis, Evercore, Sandler O'Neill, Rothschild, Greenhill, Centerview, Perella Weinberg, Lazard, Deutsche Bank, BAML, Houlihan Lokey, Barclays, UBS, Sagent Advisors, Morgan Stanley, Cantor Fitzgerald, Blackstone, Jefferies, Piper Jaffray, BMO, BNP Paribas, and dozens more...

GS, ML, and Oppenheimer are the only ones left close to FiDi.

 

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