Hitting a really rough patch
Monkeys, I'd love some advice. I just completed my second year as an analyst (I was hired off-cycle). I got top bucket for my first year and have been unofficially told I was top bucket this prior year as well. I feel like I've been a solid performer for the team and have received positive feedback. Nothing crazy I'm no exceptional wizard as some people on this site boast, I just take the extra time to check my work, spend the extra 15 - 20 minutes compiling source documents for review and always have a list of handy questions which I think helped.
The problem is, for the past 2-3 weeks, I've really hit a rough patch which I hadn't before. I know people on this site are much more tenured than I and everyone has phases of feeling good and bad about their job which is why I seek their advice. To be specific, I just seem to be making much more errors, am being way too careless and coming across sloppy. To clarify, nothing has changed - I'm not tired or overstaffed or unhappy. Literally my process for creating content, reviewing, doing analyses etc is all the same but I seem to be making the odd blunder here or there and it is adding up. It's really frustrating & now I'm just not even trusting the things I send out and that's causing a cycle of even more errors as I go back and scrap the data I had and look for alternative sources creating this big muddle.
Seniors, really looking for you guys to chime in on how to get out of a rut and also how to cover your bases enough so that the senior members of my team don't take active notice.
Thanks,
Some suggestions below. Will rely on more experienced monkeys to give mechanical/job-specific suggestions - mine are more general performance-oriented tips / levers you can pull.
1.) 3 Day Reset: work out aggressively 3 days in a row, dial back social media use over the the same period, and sleep 7-8 hours each of these three nights (know this is hard in IB, but do your best to make it happen). Additionally, lose your typical seamless order and go healthy. Mix in lots of water as well. Sunlight in the morning. The results will be mindboggling.
2.) Intellectual Stimulation: Go read a book or listen to a podcast about whatever makes you tick intellectually (if you're a capital markets & global affairs guy like me - I'd suggest capital allocators podcast, all-in podcast, or interviews on Youtube w/ any of the CEOs you admire). You can do this quietly at your desk w/ airpods. Knowledge building can stimulate cognitive activity which can lead to heightened confidence + help alleviate the indecisiveness you are currently experiencing.
3.) Doing for others: Next time you have down time, call or text a friend or family member. Check in, ask how they're doing, and ask if you can help them with anything. Buy your girlfriend or special someone a gift for no reason. Teach something new to a colleague who doesn't have the skill-set you have. Service/giving to others in one of the most energizing and mentally uplifting things that any of us can do
You're in a great position, and you'll be fine. This job is hard, and if you ask any of the best bankers or business leaders or artists or athletes, they'll all tell u that rough patches are part of the process. Resilience is the key