How did you decide IB was right for you?

This is most likely not the average thread you are accustomed to seeing on this forum and are generally likely to participate in. Having said that, I would really appreciate your input and would love to hear your thoughts. If you don’t want to read through the entire post (which is basically about my life/jobs etc.) skip to the separated portion of this post at the bottom:

A bit about me - For quite some time now, I’ve been thinking about what I want to do with my life. I moved to the US, went to a top 50 university and graduated with a bachelor’s in Economics. I got good grades in all classes minus the classes of my major. I chose Economics because I had in the back of my mind that should I ever have to move back to Europe (due to visa issues etc.), what good will a degree in literature, film or culinary arts do me? None – I don’t want to teach and money in all 3 areas is horrendous. I wanted to do something ‘promising’ and ‘useful’ and ended up realizing that that ‘something useful’ (i.e. Economics) was of no use, if not useless, for me. I didn’t want to do an MSc in Economics – I chose it as a major only because the best school I got into didn’t have a business degree. I spent my days focusing on classes outside my major, completely neglecting classes I was uninterested in such as Calculus. Needless to say, I didn’t get any interviews for finance positions given that my worst classes were in quantitative coursework, i.e. math and micro/macroeconomics. So, upon graduation, I proceeded to do a 180, decided to try something else entirely and started working in high-profile entertainment PR in LA. I also did a marketing internship before working as a client consultant for my family’s business back in Europe.

However, none of the job roles I’ve ever had fulfilled me. I never woke up and told myself, “Wow.. I’m doing exactly what I’m supposed to be doing.” I've always had in the back of my mind - "What about finance?" Since moving back, I’ve taken about 7 finance classes as part of a certificate program at a US university, gotten As in all of them and have enjoyed them. I guess what I liked best was the fact that finance isn't theoretical (like Economics), it's practical. It also isn't scientific like Multivariable Calc etc... I really wish I would have had the option to major in finance, I feel like things would have gone very differently.

Anyway, I am approaching that age where I feel like my next job move will be crucial. If I want to transition in finance, I need to make it happen now and get some experience under my belt before going for my MBA. I just don’t know if investment banking, or finance in general, is really for me.

**So, my main question is – How did you realize that finance was for you? How did you realize you wanted to do investment banking? Have you always had an actual, burning passion for it? Or were you more along the lines of, “I don’t want to be broke for the rest of my life, want to set up a good future for myself, ergo I’ll go into IB.” I guess I just want to figure out how you realized that this was right for you without actually doing the job first. Or did you just try it out and then realize it was the right job for you?

In the end, I don’t want to waste $200k on another degree (MBA) without having any finance experience first only to then realize that once again I chose the wrong path. I feel like hearing everyone else’s thoughts on how they came to find their right career will help me make the right decision for myself.

I’d love for you to basically give me your answer to “Why finance? Why IB?” – but you know, not the version you prepared for job interviews but the unfiltered, no-BS answer ;)

Looking forward to hearing your responses and thanks for reading through this.**