There have been tons of threads recently on leaving banking, if banking is not what it used to be, are there better careers to go into, etc. I think there are several things people are not considering when looking at these posts, and its clear the average age of this website is showing when people are discussing on the posts.
- Its clear that the vast majority of people are only thinking about compensation and/or are concerned about making a "mistake". Life is never that black and white, and there is so much more to life itself than someone else's opinion. Know yourself and what you want in a job first before you make that decision. Do you enjoy spending time with people and meeting others? if so, SWE may not be for you as you will have significantly less meetings. But people dont consider these things, they only look at comp and hours, which doesn't encompass much. Look at what actually makes you feel fulfilled, and that will help you decide what job is best FOR YOU.
- Its also apparent that people are lumping every single company into a field as if they are the same, but there are tons of ways to mitigate some of the negatives given you give up something. Do you think banking could be fulfilling but dont want to feel like you are just a monkey? Pick a small local boutique where you actually can speak up and provide value. People dont think of this because its apparently a sin if you dont go to a BB/EB but what point is optionality if you are going to give it up later down the line. Either consider individual companies you can compare or recognize there are thousands of firms in every category (law, medicine, banking, SWE, etc) with unique cultures and situations you can find.
- Money isn't everything. Its a lot, but not everything. I think a big reason why WFH caused an exodus is that all the hedonism many bankers relied on to stay in the field shut down, and because there is no place to spend your money why even make it that way. If you have to spend money on tons of escapism to survive a job its not for you because you dont actually want to be there. You just want the lifestyle, which you can easily get by moving to Texas and being in corporate finance. Money is a factor, sure, but its not just income but also living expenses and your budgeting. While teams are much less fun now, thats just accross the board whatever industry so I think thats mute.
TLDR: Before you freak out if banking sucks now know what you actually want in a job to fulfill you and consider all the different firms that could solve your concerns before jumping ship.
IMO it's not just banking. In Pharma there is a pervasive sense that the 'good old days' of high comp, great perks, and a lax attitude toward how one unwinds are long past. I suspect middle monkeys in other industries (advertising anybody) feel similarly.
My 60-something VP, making half a mil a year with a 9,000sqft house, complained to me that VPs had it way better when he was coming up in the 90's.
Honestly man pulling in $200K+ as an Analyst with WLB being better than it ever has been seems like a pretty cush deal to me. I think WSO and the prevalence of finmemes caused a sort of rush into finance from people who were never well-disposed for the job to begin with, and I have no doubt that some of those kids burnt out at mach speed, but for those who actually enjoy the gig I think we're in a pretty good time TBH. Profits are record-level across the board and comp is up, up and away. It's like when TFM got really popular in high-schools and every pencil necked geek in the world wanted to be a top-tier frat start until they got bullied during pledging then quit and joined the climate change club.