What's WRONG with me? - Took the first offer

Hi All

I am writing because I so appreciate the honesty of your posts....

I left school two years ago with a Master's degree from a target school.... When I was in School I did everything I should have done to maybe stand a chance in the financial services industry: the target school, the internships at top tier banks, the perfect gpa etc.

Upon graduation, in the middle of a recession I interned for a bit at a French bank and it became clear that they would renew my internship but not hire me.... So I panicked and started looking for jobs....took the first I was offered.

It wasn't at a top bank and it was not exactly what I wanted to do but it was a front office position and it would give me good exposure, right? So I joined.... Turns out the desk did not want a junior ...they just wanted an assistant and because it's not a top tier bank they dont have analyst programmes that make you evolve...so ive been doing the same shit for a year and a half now, my team is quite horrible (think boiler-room personnalities, loud, ignorant etc) and worst of all, I have no way of progressing here

Im only young so I dont mind, I keep faith and I do my best so they're pleased with me and in the meantime I look for jobs elsewhere...but nothing works.... I dont get many interviews because there arent many jobs...and when I do its always the same speech: I get amazing feedback but im too junior / too senior / headcount has not been approved

My last hopes were crashed last week and i feel so ...fucked...i dont know what to do because the longer I stay in this role the harder it will be for me to get out but on the other hand i cant resign without anything planned next.

So i dont know what to do, I really try so hard...I wonder whether I should give up on Finance or keep trying whilst knowing it'll only get harder?

 

I don't get the people on here who post stuff like "hey I work at a bank and life isn't good please tell me it gets better!"

BE SPECIFIC

What do you want us to say? You've literally only provided 10% of the relevant information for us to help you come to an informed decision

 

If you post your resume and add onto it a bit (specifically what you're worried about on your resume, what you think is strong, etc), there are a bunch of guys on here that will rip it apart in the interest of helping you find a new job.

"You stop being an asshole when it sucks to be you." -IlliniProgrammer "Your grammar made me wish I'd been aborted." -happypantsmcgee
 
Best Response

Fix your finances. Save like a mofo. If you are in the US, max out your 401k so that you can convert it to Roth once you leave. Build at least a 6 month emergency fund, if you haven't already, then start asking for raises/promotions/to be included on a project etc. They will either say yes (not likely), or decide to "let you go", at which point you can draw unemployment for a couple of months while you destress, plan your next steps and assert yourself with the companies you do want to work for. Getting fired because you have been asking for more work and more responsibility is probably the best possible reason to get fired for and will help you sell your story to a faster-paced place.

If you got to the point that you realized you are being held back, the longer you stay there, the further back you will be.Moreover, the mental/emotional tension from that is going to slowly wear you out and make you desperate and unpleasant to be around, pretty much eliminating your chance to move forward.

More is good, all is better
 

Hi All, thanks for the input and yes, I probably should have been more specific.

I was hired as a trading desk's assistant with the view of assuming a junior trading role within 6 months... I know I should probably never have accepted the job because if they had wanted a junior they would have made me join as one anyway but as I said that was in early '09 and I was panicking.

Now I just do some trading for quite a few clients so I am the team's junior in all but name...but without the consideration and the intent to make me grow and contribute more which means that people don't have any issues with interrupting me when I am trading for example so I can do their bookings for instance... It's really bad...I dont mind dont the booking every junior does but I am being treated like a second-class citizen for sure.... It's bad for me and it's certainly bad for clients....

My problem is not so much getting interviews...I am in Europe and yes there are few...but the thing is that I am "too experienced" (ha ha) to apply for graduate programmes so everything I interview for is "off" the graduates programmes which means that headcount comes and goes with the bank's mood.

I have had to fight like mad to get the firm to pay for my CFA so Im doing that in december but in the meantime, I dont know what to do...With regards to my job search I feel I have exhausted all the leads I have and i'm really starting to think I should give up because as someone said the longer I stay, the further back I will be + having to bear constant lack of consideration is killing what's left of my confidence...

Thanks

 

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