Did I Cook Myself Leaving my Cushy Job for IB?

Was in a random project finance job making $110k base + 35-40% bonus, working 3 days a week, maybe ~4-5 hours a day. The job was so easy a 5th grader could’ve done it. I wasn’t learning anything, and I genuinely felt like my brain was shrinking.

So I made the jump to a no-name boutique investment bank in the middle of nowhere: $95k base, no clue what the bonus will be. I’m now clocking 12-hour days, and while the learning curve is steep, I finally feel like I’m being challenged again.

Did I cook myself? Or would you guys have done the same?

Am I cooked?

Yes – you fumbled the bag. Easy money > long hours
62% (86 votes)
No – short-term pain, long-term gain. Solid move.
38% (52 votes)
Total votes: 138
11 Comments
 
Funniest

With those circumstances why didn’t you just take up a hobby, go travel, or create a start up or something. Plenty of ways you could’ve challenged yourself without selling your soul. Such lack of creativity. Guess you’ll fit in.

 

Anonymous Monkey:

homie wants to make more money you nerd it's not that serious.


By taking a base pay cut and working 3 times the hours?

 
Most Helpful

i mean it was clearly a move made with long-term aspirations in mind geared towards making more money in the future. If that was his goal then your recommendation of playing pickleball on Tuesday nights and traveling to Italy to see some cool architecture was not going to get him there. No hate against pickleball or italy.

 

Aspernatur quidem nostrum provident voluptas rerum est. Quia in nesciunt quas quis iste. Rerum earum facilis enim nemo ab dolorem. Id provident et et quis voluptas voluptas.

Repudiandae nihil et autem eveniet repellendus qui aperiam ex. Omnis modi at blanditiis ipsum. Vel dolorum nemo dolorem. Sed a tempore aut explicabo.

Aut unde pariatur esse laudantium reprehenderit sapiente dolor nulla. Qui sint iusto quas est eos quo quas. Quia veniam tempore aut velit molestiae qui. Quidem cum iusto enim est quis rerum est. Id quasi laboriosam suscipit tempore voluptatem quis. Minima nam odit sapiente repellendus voluptas.

Career Advancement Opportunities

October 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.5%
  • Moelis & Company 01 99.0%
  • JPMorgan 01 98.4%
  • Guggenheim Partners 02 97.9%
  • Morgan Stanley 06 97.4%

Overall Employee Satisfaction

October 2026 Investment Banking

  • Moelis & Company No 99.5%
  • Morgan Stanley 02 99.0%
  • Evercore 01 98.4%
  • Banco Santander 02 97.9%
  • BMO Capital Markets 13 97.4%

Professional Growth Opportunities

October 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.5%
  • Moelis & Company 01 99.0%
  • Morgan Stanley 05 98.4%
  • Goldman Sachs 01 97.9%
  • JPMorgan No 97.4%

Total Avg Compensation

October 2026 Investment Banking

  • Vice President (16) $429
  • Associates (57) $264
  • 3rd+ Year Analyst (8) $210
  • 2nd Year Analyst (28) $184
  • Intern/Summer Associate (16) $161
  • 1st Year Analyst (84) $151
  • Intern/Summer Analyst (76) $101
notes
16 IB Interviews Notes

“... there’s no excuse to not take advantage of the resources out there available to you. Best value for your $ are the...”

Leaderboard

1
redever's picture
redever
99.2
2
Secyh62's picture
Secyh62
99.0
3
kanon's picture
kanon
99.0
4
BankonBanking's picture
BankonBanking
99.0
5
DrApeman's picture
DrApeman
98.9
6
dosk17's picture
dosk17
98.9
7
GameTheory's picture
GameTheory
98.9
8
Betsy Massar's picture
Betsy Massar
98.9
9
CompBanker's picture
CompBanker
98.9
10
bolo up's picture
bolo up
98.8
success
From 10 rejections to 1 dream investment banking internship

“... I believe it was the single biggest reason why I ended up with an offer...”