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What an extremely low quality question. The answer can only come from YOU since it's YOUR life you fucking cuck.
So asking people for there perspective on life and trying to gain knowledge and insight is low quality? I disagree
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As someone who grew up quite poor, there is no nobility in poverty nor is there any greed in wanting to be better financially and do things you could not do before.
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Interested in this as well
I can become an MD where I am obligated to keep my job and remain stressed to pay off bills for a wife who uses me for my money and children who will only think about their inheritance once I leave them millions after my death, or I can retire in Thailand/Korea/Hong Kong in my late 30's and spend the rest of my days having orgies.
The choice is clear for me, personally.
I'm not saying finance isn't stressful for people at the VP level and above, but once you're 30 you're mostly past the 70-100 hour weeks and complete dispensability that make being an analyst so shitty. Honestly even now I find myself wondering, what exactly would I be doing from 5:00-11:00PM on most week nights that would be cooler than closing deals and getting paid for it at year end? People act like you're missing out on "life" but really you're mostly just missing out on Netflix and aimlessly drinking at dive bars.
You must be single, and certainly don’t have kids. It’s still worth it IMO, but completely different ballgame with a family.
Hahaha guilty as charged
To offer a different view perhaps driven by age (I'm on the cusp of 30), I had this view when I was an analyst in my mid 20s. Now, I'd much prefer to be out the door at 5-6pm, chill for an hour having dinner, hit the driving range / gym / something outdoors for an hour or two after that, and then read for 1-2 hours before I go to sleep and get 8 good hours in.
My hours are pretty good thankfully and I can fit a lot of this in but there are busy weeks where free time is gone, sleep is limited and plans are ruined. If my hours were like that of some I know who went down the MF route / stayed in busy groups in banking I'd probably have left by now despite a significant paycut.
Makes sense, that's why he didn't ask for the advice of single 20 year olds like me haha.
Yes
Wouldn't chase prestige/money in finance at 30+ by pursuing top banks/PE firms. Look for a strong culture and a manageable WLB (~60-65 hrs, with minimal weekend work). I don't think ~45-55 hrs are possible given that I would like to earn 300-400K+ by my mid-late 30s. Would be very happy to create a specific industry niche in the MM/LMM whether it be IB/PE. That would be my goal rather than 8 figure paydays at an EB/MF PE because I know that's not probably not realistic.
I think it’s pretty worth it when you’re younger (pre-30) and don’t have a family. You make great money and it provides a good skill base and opportunities for solid career paths that are more relaxed (if you choose to leave). Additionally, you aren’t missing out on a ton at that age if you manage things appropriately. That’s not to say that there aren’t sacrifices, but on most weeks I just went to the bars less, watched tv less, etc. vs my friends.
Once you are 30, there is certainly more to think about but you are ideally beyond the worst years in this industry from a time requirement perspective.
However, I want to caveat that this is all a pretty personal thing. I was completely fine with working a ton throughout my 20s, I still stayed in shape and saw friends / family (the balance of these certainly shifted week to week) but I’m sure I missed out on things. Others we’re not comfortable with that or had much worse experiences and, in those situations, it’s likely not worth doing it for very long or at all.
I ultimately leaned toward IB not being worth it. The quality time with my wife, friends, and taking care of my health were too valuable to me to tolerate the IB grind. Happiness changes for many of us as we get older, and I didn’t fight it. Couldn’t be happier.
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