Feeling like wasting time working in IB

I know I sound like a fucking pussy, but I feel like I'm wasting my life away working this "prestigious" corporate job. 

Long thought IBD is the ultimate dream, only to find out that I don't really learn the ins and outs of companies, don't put that much time "understanding strategic rationale" or "developing high-level strategies" for clients. I'm doing a lot of bitch PPT work, crunch some super random numbers in Excel, and managing processes that often seem to be rather tedious.

The word I'm looking for is soul-sucking. I now know why fellow monkeys refer to this job as soul sucking. 

Why do I bear with all that corporate bullshit, let incapable brainless shitheads give me instructions on what I need to do with my life? 

Why do you? 

33 Comments
 

I mean it really comes down to what you value at the end of the day. Do you enjoy making more money than your peers but don't mind giving up your personal freedom and at any moment an email could ruin your weekend? Or do you enjoy having visibility and the ability to make plans on weeknights, weekends, and not get disturbed when you take a vacation? Nothing is black and white but honestly the trade-off comes down to a little extra $ that you probably won't spend anyway vs. autonomy. Have seen both sides being in corp dev now and there are definitely positives and negatives to both.

 
Most Helpful

OP, I hear your concern and it's not uncommon. Personally, I remember coming out of undergrad and going to IB with tons of excitement only to learn that I was basically admin on deals and started getting jaded to the whole process. Also--and you probably gathered this--most jobs are like this. There's never a greener side just different shades of brown.

A couple of personal 'whys' 

- Knowing my first job was a potential means to my desired ends

- Finding opportunities to learn valuable things

- Network

- Treating 'corporate speak' and 'corporate BS' as a game where I was just a professional player and not a personal one

- Sifting out the bad employees from the good ones and aligning with them

- Getting surgical on my exit ops

Some people may say 'just keep your head down' and/or 'do it for the money' and--frankly--those are pretty valid pieces of advice for someone early in his or her career. Just don't let it overtake--or worse become--your personality. 

Not sure if that helps you at all, but my 2 cents.  

 

Nisi repellat assumenda sit sint qui odio alias dignissimos. Et sit quasi reiciendis delectus possimus cum. Sed ut dolores quas quisquam.

Consequatur hic alias similique eos laudantium voluptatibus eos ratione. Excepturi doloribus eius doloremque odio ipsam. Aut asperiores est asperiores et. In repellat nisi et voluptatem. Omnis aspernatur magnam cupiditate sint minus. Atque adipisci ipsum et qui.

Omnis incidunt tempore nobis. Soluta velit laborum esse sapiente optio ducimus voluptatum. Adipisci sunt beatae sed voluptas aliquam rerum.

Career Advancement Opportunities

June 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.4%
  • Moelis & Company 01 98.9%
  • JPMorgan 01 98.3%
  • Guggenheim Partners 01 97.7%
  • Morgan Stanley 07 97.1%

Overall Employee Satisfaction

June 2026 Investment Banking

  • Moelis & Company No 99.4%
  • Morgan Stanley 02 98.8%
  • Evercore 01 98.3%
  • BMO Capital Markets 12 97.7%
  • Banco Santander 01 97.1%

Professional Growth Opportunities

June 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.4%
  • Moelis & Company 01 98.9%
  • Morgan Stanley 06 98.3%
  • JPMorgan 01 97.7%
  • Goldman Sachs 02 97.1%

Total Avg Compensation

June 2026 Investment Banking

  • Vice President (14) $434
  • Associates (44) $258
  • 3rd+ Year Analyst (8) $210
  • 2nd Year Analyst (22) $179
  • Intern/Summer Associate (13) $156
  • 1st Year Analyst (79) $150
  • Intern/Summer Analyst (73) $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
BankonBanking's picture
BankonBanking
99.0
3
kanon's picture
kanon
99.0
4
Secyh62's picture
Secyh62
99.0
5
CompBanker's picture
CompBanker
98.9
6
GameTheory's picture
GameTheory
98.9
7
Betsy Massar's picture
Betsy Massar
98.9
8
dosk17's picture
dosk17
98.9
9
DrApeman's picture
DrApeman
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...”