IB is competitive and prestigious, but is it rewarding?
Recently read through the two threads about first-year analysts leaving and then the MD's post who asked what can be done better. Going through all the comments really reminded me of something that Peter Thiel (PayPal and Palantir co-founder) often mentions.
Humans have a bias in thinking that anything that is competitive and prestigious must be rewarding. That is why a lot of really smart students are often pushed into careers such as IB. They see all of their talented and hard working peers gunning for this job, and they think that they should as well. However, Peter Thiel offers a counter-narrative that anything that is too competitive is actually the least rewarding. He uses a parallel in the business world to show that in any industry where there is too much competition (restaurants/airlines), all the profits are competed away and it actually isn't very profitable to be within that business. On the other hand, a company like Google has the least amount of competition, but it is very rewarding and profitable to be in that business.
Thought I would mention this here for all the students who are currently grinding their ass off just to chase the prestige of IB. Maybe try to look at all your options again and consider the fact that a competitive and prestigious field such as IB might actually not be very rewarding in the end. This is not to discourage students but you have to understand that IB isn't all that you think it is going to be - and those two threads are just proof of that.
People spend too much time on WSO. Most high paying jobs are competitive and pretty prestigious, not just IB. I dont think landing a SWE/PM role at Google is any easier than landing an EB/top BB banking role, and it’s just as prestigious. Same goes for other top tech firms, MBB, REPE, VC, etc. People have different interests and go into all of these industries, and although a large amount are, most undergrads arent even trying to go into IB. I find it odd that you think those going into these industries are only doing it because of competitiveness/prestige, although that is an important factor, especially at the beginning of one’s career. Sure, many people realize IB isnt for them once they start, but young people make career changes all the time in any industry, and there’s nothing wrong with that
This. Get off WSO for a while. It’s a bubble, and internet forums arent reflections of reality.
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