What was your first job and where are you now?

Including unpaid jobs and internships, where did you start out? For me, I worked as a youth soccer coach in high school and helped a lot of local teams with spare hands. Now I work for a private equity research firm in London. I was curious if anyone has an interesting starting point before moving toward a career in financial services.

 

Started writing entries one by one for a local one-man accounting shop. Damn it was boring, but at least I knew what I did not want to do later. Now an MBB consultant, looking at a partner position in the long run.

 

First real job or first job? Because I babysat for my younger brother's friend and his younger brother when I was in my low to mid teens and it was the coolest job. I'd invite my brother over and the four of us would play catch or play video games until the parents came home and then I'd get $40.

Commercial Real Estate Developer
 

Picking produce from the fields 15 hours a day with illegal immigrants and sleeping around parks because I didn't have a place to live during the job. Now I'm choosing the color of my new Tesla BRAT BRAT RATATAHHHHH

What concert costs 45 cents? 50 Cent feat. Nickelback.
 

Scooped ice cream at Baskin Robbins when I was 16 for $5.25/hr. That job was fucking incredible though... worked with two of my best friends and we took nonstop cappuccino concentrate shots, toked up in the walk-in freezer, and hooked up all the hotties with ridiculous amounts of free ice cream! Summer after that I worked in a mountain sports store with a sweet rock wall in the back...

Now i'm an equity research analyst at a big mutual fund. Some days I'd kill for those glory days again...

 

~5yo - 18yo farm kid 3 yrs in HS - bike shop mechanic College - mixed retail, Enterprise Rent-a-car (car washer, and I "picked you up") Corp Fin internship at a Fortune 500 Ops at a BB -> FO at BB IB at BB IB at Boutique Co-founder at a startup

 

Waiting tables for a hole in the wall restaurant with no tips/min wage. Was a direct W -> M (waiter to manager) promote, no signing bonus through.

F500 biotech finance internship Corp dev internship IB SA

Now an M&A banker at my SA firm.

 

I didn't work at a bulge-bracket bank, but I'll share anyways. Given I moved from MM IB to MM PE, I still have very regular interactions with my MM bank as we frequently bid on their companies. As silly as it may sound, I'm still quite proud to have "graduated" from the analyst program. This pride is similar to the pride people have in their undergrad institutions. Let's be honest -- getting through two years of IB can be challenging, and you make a lot of great friends along the way.

One thing that has been a disappointment for me is that over time, the high turnover in the industry means many of your former colleagues will change firms. Investment banking is a "people" business. As the names and faces at my former IB bank change, I definitely feel less attached. I suspect this feeling will only continue to grow as more and more people leave. On the flipside -- many of these people tend to stay within the "deal industry," so my network has grown itself through no effort of my own. It's always tremendous fun to run into your former colleagues at conferences or just doing deals in general.

CompBanker’s Career Guidance Services: https://www.rossettiadvisors.com/
 

Have you ever had any job, like a teenage job? If not, get a job so you'll learn what it means to make a buck. Busboy or dishwasher, landscaper, construction, retail, whatever. Something that will make you work hard and let you know how a lot of people earn a living. Personally I think everyone should be forced to be a waiter/bartender or another service job so that they're not asses to them when they're older.

 

Lifeguard. I honestly can't think of a better gig for a 17 year old headed off to college. It pays decently (at least for someone your age), the most flexible schedule imaginable i.e, you just need to find anyone with a pulse to cover your shift... which comes in handy your first (through third) year of college. Just make sure to get real internships to fill your college summers and you'll be ahead of the game.

 

Kids not getting summer jobs anymore is an ill of society. Get a job. Do something that will require you to actually break a sweat for your money like landscaping, working in a kitchen, even washing dishes or busing tables. You can get a finance internship when you have a little school under your belt.

I dropped out of college and managed a restaurant for a few years before I went back to finish my BA. One of the best things I ever did (despite the fact that I was a 23 y/o sophomore) because it showed people that I knew how to work my ass off and wouldn't have unreasonable expectations in the work place. Schools and employers like to hear that you have some actual life experience and maturity because when it comes down to it, any asshole can get good grades and make his resume look pretty.

Obviously I am NOT suggesting you postpone school to work for 3 years like I did- I was just using my experience as an example.

"Strength does not come from physical capacity. It comes from an indomitable will."
 

Yeah I worked in food service when I was sixteen, and all through college. Then I took a job in retail banking halfway though college. Therefore, I never did any internships. I felt that it would look great that I worked full time in banking through college. In retrospect, it would have been better to do an IB internship.

But, the experience was fine. And for what it's worth, those shit jobs are the most fun. It doesn't matter if you get fired, and nobody cares. When you get to a real job you have to worry about bring politically correct, etc

All in all though, everybody here is right. You really do learn a lot in the service industry, like how to treat others who are serving you.

 

I know nothing about being a trader, but one thing I'll tell you that I think applies to all people wanting to succeed in a new job or a new place:

Get yourself in shape and healthy to whatever degree you can. Make sure you've dropped any extra pounds and are feeling good about yourself and the way you look. If you're really skinny go to the gym and lift some weights so you don't look like a child when you show up to do a man's job. Make sure you're eating relatively healthy (not like a college kid), and that you're sleeping on somewhat of a normal schedule. These steps will make a huge difference in your energy levels which will have an impact on your performance. (You should also try to stop smoking if you smoke, though I can't really preach on that as I still smoke occasionally)

 

I'd say get a cheap place by yourself and go balls to the wall for the first 6 - 8 moths save some doe. Be the first guy in last out every single workday. Getting a random roommate won't = gateway to a social clique. Most people are well entrenched coming out of UG and all likelyhood your roommate will ditch you more often than not, no offense. Honestly, I'd say start making friends at work. I go out and drink more with my work friends then my "regular" college friends now anyways. Once you've got baller status around the office, and gotten close with a couple of guys, one of them might need a roommie or know someone who does. That way your intros into other groups of people will be a little more fluid.

Ace all your PE interview questions with the WSO Private Equity Prep Pack: http://www.wallstreetoasis.com/guide/private-equity-interview-prep-questions
 

Given your stats and background, you should've at least secured a BO job or something like PWM with your internship experience...I realize it's tough being from a non-target and due to the state of the labor market in general...but I can't help and think that you must be from a reallyyyyy big and flaming non-target. I assume that is your biggest bottleneck right now?

Under my tutelage, you will grow from boys to men. From men into gladiators. And from gladiators into SWANSONS.
 

Yes, I couldn't have chosen a worse school to go to. I stayed near home/friends due to lack of maturity at the time and now it has come back to bite me. I have received offers in Dallas (financial planning) and have several interviews lined up in Dallas, but my goal is to be in New York. Would it be easier to receive interviews/offers in NYC if I currently lived in NYC? (I currently live in the DFW) Thanks.

 

I'd say the best thing to do is to try breaking into a bank with IB in Dallas/Houston and also a division in NY and then lateral. Also, I wouldn't give up hope on direct NYC recruiting, keep networking on linkedin - people don't have to be alumni from your school to help you out. That's a lesson I learned when i was going through the process.

 

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