Moved from NYC to Charlotte for a better IB role - but Charlotte is too redneck for me
Don’t get me wrong. I think the move has been a net positive for me big time (opportunity-wise and compensation-wise), but coming from NYC, where I lived for the past several years, Charlotte not only completely lacks sophistication in many different aspects, it also feels very redneck. For example, you can’t go two blocks without seeing at least a couple pickup trucks (some of which are in really bad shape) and a lot of the people here are terrible people who treat you badly or get offended if you’re different from them. There are also not a lot of people here who are “easy on the eyes” as they are fat, ugly, or even mostly covered in tattoos. And obviously, it’s hard to find interesting people here - let alone people who could match the sophistication, wit, or worldview of those in NYC. And the abundance of high-income earners in NYC who would match or surpass your pay is obviously not present in Charlotte, which essentially makes you feel like you are living in a place where you’re surrounded by losers rather than people who could inspire you to achieve more (which is obviously not a good feeling). Is it right to consider Charlotte “redneck?” Or is it somewhere in between being redneck and being more evolved/sophisticated?
However, one of the plus sides to Charlotte is that you have fewer of those “NYC lowlife” types around Charlotte
Dude I hate to tell you this…but most people in the South make fun of Charlotte for being “fake Southern” or claiming Southern when it’s really not. Can tell you wholeheartedly that if you think trucks are bad in Charlotte, just wait until you go to rural NC, cross into my home state SC, or better yet, go to Myrtle Beach. In summary, Charlotte is often looked down upon by Southerners for inauthenticity and too many Northern transplants. I personally like Charlotte a lot because of its diversity and classier nature, but if you think Charlotte is redneck then I don’t know how you would react by going 10 miles down the road and walking into your local meat and three.
LOL you moved from NYC to Wells Fargo in Charlotte for a "better IB role" and have the audacity to look down on other people
perhaps it is YOU who is the loser
Lol… what other bank is there in Charlotte? I am pretty sure BofA has their IB in NYC, not Charlotte. There really isn’t any other prominent investment bank here other than WF. And in terms of buyside opportunities, there are none here. Plus, I doubt the firm is my “landing spot.” So why shouldn’t I judge others again?
My previous IB role was at a top European investment bank in the Middle East. Where would that rank? Lol…I guess this one might take you a bit longer to wrap your small head around.
shut up and take the L dork
If you're at a top European investment bank like Rothschild or Barclays then move to WF then I guess your career is obviously going in the wrong direction. WF is not the most prominent bank in WF, it's just the largest headcount in CLT...
Also, shouldn’t the sequence be:
1. Lol. You live in Charlotte rather than NYC
2. Lol. Where I currently work
You work at Wells Fargo LMAO, you have no right to look down on other people
Lol… what other bank is there in Charlotte? I am pretty sure BofA has their IB in NYC, not Charlotte. There really isn't any other prominent investment bank here other than WF. And in terms of buyside opportunities, there are none here. Plus, I doubt the firm is my "landing spot." So why shouldn't I judge others again?
My previous IB role was at a top European investment bank in the Middle East. Where would that rank? Lol…I guess this one might take you a bit longer to wrap your small head around.
Also, shouldn’t the sequence be:
1. Lol. You live in Charlotte rather than NYC
2. Lol. Where I currently work
I mean if you judge people by their truck, their tattoos, their perceived "sophistication," or their income, you sound like an NYC lifer and maybe should've known that before moving to Charlotte. If you couldn't see any of that coming, maybe it's your "worldview" that's lacking.
Different regions of the country have different pros and cons and you can't move from New York to Charlotte expecting it to be the same. I'm on the other end of the spectrum - I would like to move to a smaller Southern city even though the career prospects are better for me in NYC.
Lifestyle and culture are as much a part of the ultimate decision for your happiness as compensation or career advancement. There's no objective right or wrong on a city for you to find on an online forum. It's a very personal decision and you can't expect the city around you to mold to your liking.
I have lived in the backwoods of north Georgia my entire life.
You do not know redneck
Grew up in rural NC and now living in NYC. CLT is not redneck, maybe some of the surrounding suburbs (like Gastonia, Concord). It has a normal country, southern population. With a mix of old southern money. Honestly enjoyed growing up with rednecks, a lot more fun and gives a simpler perspective on life. In the city, everyone is so business minded and they don't take the time to enjoy life. Charlotte is one of the best mixes of rural and city life you can get from a location/people perspective. Easier to be at the top of the food chain and take advantage of the high comp.
Yeah, you sound like a great guy to have a drink with. Rich in the wallet, poor in the spirit. Good luck
If you lived in NYC for as long as I did, I doubt you wouldn’t have the same concerns I do. Your lack of perspective makes you no more than a “casual drinking partner.”
I grew up in New York and work / live in city. I understand quite well. Your post just sounded pretty close minded and ignorant. It sounds like you may have difficulty connecting with others? Or perhaps you have a disdain for others that aren’t of your culture? And what’s wrong with pickup trucks? I’m sure there’s plenty of good spirited, intelligent, fun, people in Charlotte to connect with. Open your mind a bit man, sheesh
Not implying that. However, what I can’t stand is losers who can’t tolerate people who aren’t losers like them. LOL
Yet that's exactly what you're doing on this thread. Whining about your own choice to go to WF in Charlotte - loser behavior - and showing absolutely zero tolerance for any people/culture that doesn't fit your idealistic view of NY.
Judging people by their income or the car they drive is fucking pathetic. You sound like a loser.
Honestly the responses on this post gave me hope in not only the IB but even the WSO community. Thank you
Haha. They’re just being hypocritical in this post. Go check out all the other posts where they wrote responses.
You’re a hypocrite. Isn’t the entirety of WSO pretty much blabbing about incomes, net worth, cars, etc at least half the time?
Especially in NC, where I’ve met old country guys that ride in beat up pick up trucks with a higher net worth than most MD’s
I find that hard to believe unless they derived their wealth from being massive landowners (which, if inherited, did not require any talent or intellect)
Lol at people on this thread trying to pretend to be Southern or non-judgemental about rednecks because they live in Charlotte. Living in Charlotte and saying you’re a redneck is like living in Austin and saying you’re a Texas cowboy. You’re not,,, both of these cities have a mixture of transplants (CLT has a lot of transplants from the north sent there to build out banking/accounting/consulting presence in the south) and state school kids from affluent suburbs. CLT is a solidly liberal corporatist city. Just because you’re in “the South” doesn’t mean you’re actually among what you’d think of as Southern rednecks. Political divides are among rural/urban rather than geographical boundaries.
TLDR: Charlotte is fake Southern (and certainly not redneck).
This can't be serious. Are you scared of trucks?
I find them emblematic of all the negative parts of American culture
Sounds like you just don't like rednecks and you're too afraid to actually interact with them.
Truck Lives Matter
1. Charlotte is on the edge of the South - definitely not redneck.
2. I have a feeling the real reason you moved is because you found it hard to make friends in NYC, blamed the city and left. Now you are in the same position and are once again blaming others for your lack of kindness.
3. Pickup trucks are objectively useful and subjectively cool. I drive a TRX and think that nothing is more enjoyable than hitting 12 second 1/4 miles in a 6 ton brick.
4. Generally speaking, people in the South don't care about being worldly or sophisticated (save some oligarchs and political players). They focus on being good company and kind (thus the term Southern gentleman). They like to make money and enjoy life.
5. Most southern cities are similar. Sure there are cultural differences, but the majority of people there have no interest in ever moving to a place like NYC, so they have similar lifestyles.
6. You are a douche
7. I promise, there are an abundance of high-income earners in Charlotte that piss away your salary on pj's to St. Barths. They may not be in PE or HFs like NYC, but they certainly exist.
8. You are a douche
I had no problem making friends in NYC. In fact, the wealthiest, most powerful, most worldly and sophisticated people in NYC not only befriended me but truly admired me. They said I am truly amazing through and through. I got complimented left and right. Just telling you the reality of what I encountered.
I honestly thought this reply was satire until I went through your comments. Idk if you have a Napoleon complex or are just a raging narcissist, but please go see a therapist to talk about your deep-rooted mommy and daddy issues.
People in Charlotte also marry their sisters.
So yeah, they really don't care about being worldly or sophisticated.
They don't care about their kid being born with one ear either!
You subhuman. Rednecks are the scum of this country.
I was going to respond with a logical point (the fact that you made that up and no data supports that), but then I looked through your comment history and realized that you are a piece of shit - plain and simple.
I hope you find whatever it is you are looking for and can one day be a happy person.
Nice to see someone else post the truth, but do it in a brusque and condescending way and then get a bunch of hate from 21 year olds. Feels good brother. Come back to nyc, much less trumpers here.
Good Lord you sound like a loser. Get another job and move back to NYC if you’re so bent out of shape.
Also, the nice and finance-y places in Charlotte are mainly white dudes from Wake Forest in Peter Millar shirts. You must live in a shitty neighborhood if you’re seeing a bunch of tatted bumpkins in trucks.
Nah man…I am just someone who can’t tolerate losers who don’t tolerate non-losers or try to pull other people down.
And I live in Uptown, which still has its fair share of beaten-up pickup trucks. Have you even been to Charlotte? Lol
Maybe you should reconsider why these people don’t treat you well or get offended. Chances are, you’re the only one who views yourself as “different” because you’re *so* special for being in IB and from NYC. Meanwhile, they don’t even think you’re different, they just see that disdain and superiority complex you clearly have towards them, and maybe *that* is why they treat you like crap. You’re receiving back the energy you put out.
In all seriousness, I hope you find it in your yourself to open your mind and heart to some great people out there. You’d be surprised to find out how successful some of these people are in their “blue collar” jobs, and you might even come to envy their lifestyle or their happiness. Some of the best conversations I’ve had in life have been with truck drivers, restaurant owners, hair stylists. It’s refreshing to see life outside the narrow bubble I operate in, and it’s inspiring to see people who work so hard at things I can’t do. The more you learn about others, the more you realize that we’re really not the only ones who work long hours, or have big dreams, or make great money. Or that there’s people who can be happy without that money. There’s life outside the cubicle, and sometimes humility feels as fulfilling as pride.
And frankly, you’re in a new city in your 20s. You shouldn’t be prioritizing interesting or sophisticated or successful. You should be looking for people who are genuine, caring, trustworthy, and make good friends, especially if your career choices will keep you there. It’s not a fashion show or a lab experiment, it’s real life connections. Ambition should come from within, regardless of how you choose to define success, even if that’s by money or status. If you have that drive internally, honestly that’s much healthier than constantly measuring up to people “above” you in New York. There’s a level of truth to “never be complacent,” but that’s never worth the risk of “never be happy.”
Look — I’m a female in banking too, I live and work in New York, I get told I’m special and that people are jealous. I know that this is the summit of what we have been aspiring towards, and that we’ve made it and want to be proud. Maybe you’re nostalgic about home and familiarity and routine as well. You miss your friends and family, and are comparing new people to those you know. But realistically, if your attitude is that everyone around you just sucks, maybe you have to look internally rather than online for validation.
We all have to be so much more than our net worth, our city, our profession, our “crowd,” and where we go on a Saturday night. Those are the easy parts, but not the important parts in defining a person. When you come to figure out the other aspects of your identity and your happiness, you might find you have more in common with others than you think.
I’d have to disagree with some of your assumptions. While it’s true that ambition has to come from within, your environment also plays a significant role. I don’t feel jealous of people who are more successful. In fact, I feel inspired by them. It’s more important for me to be surrounded by interesting, sophisticated, and successful people than it is for me to be surrounded by people who are just kind. And that’s especially true when I am in my 20s. What you’re surrounded by can very well shape your evolution and development. And being in NYC enriches you and develops you. While I am not discounting any good qualities that may be embodied by some blue collar people, and how some of them may indeed be successful, it is not my personal goal to draw lessons from them while I am charting my own path. I would personally much rather draw lessons from world leaders, industry titans, etc…or simply sophisticated people who know more than I do. And while it is an achievement to be holding certain titles within this industry, I disagree with this being defined as “the summit.” I would much rather regard this as the beginning of what one could accomplish. Being in IB is certainly not my “end all be all.” It certainly is not my summit. I have much greater things to accomplish in life. And being in NYC is more conducive for my bigger goals.
I mean if that’s the only lens through which you value your life, then I have literally no idea how you ever thought leaving New York was good for your career. You’re so ambitious and high-achieving but in this market couldn’t at least pull Wells NY if that’s where you wanted to be instead of the Euro bank? You need NY, LA, or a Gary V seminar, not Charlotte.
Though if I were you, I’d still try to find a way to be more open and less miserable in the meantime instead of wasting away in negativity. But that’s the last well wish I have for you. Ulterior motively, I don’t want someone like you within 25 miles of me so I’m still hoping you change your mind!
Just wanted to say, I really love your well-thought out response. You sound like someone that would make an amazing friend.
So while I agree that OP is an absolute dickhead for how he phrased things, I think that someone needed to come out and shit on Charlotte. I always hear people in this site and in my life talk about how amazing and beautiful Charlotte is. I did my SA at WF in Charlotte pre-Covid. I'm from the midwest and have had no problem meeting new people and making friends my entire life, but that city honestly broke me
I found that most kids in my intern class, and that I subsequently had to go out with on the weekends because I had no time to meet anyone else, were either (a) half-retarded SEC kids, (b) women/diversity, or (c) gay dudes (usually not mutually exclusive), none of whom I found to have any business being in a front office role and were mainly there because nobody who isn't from the south or went to a southern school wants to live in Charlotte.
I generally try to give the advice to never try to reinvent the wheel and move somewhere where you have absolutely no business being. Live where you know people and can have a social life that suits you. I found myself at bars with a bunch of kids that already had friends from school there, and I would end up just leaving after an hour because I was bored. I pretty much stopped socializing like halfway through the summer because I didn't see a point in it and just focused on FT recruiting in my free time (was a lot of work but landed in a great group at a BB in NYC). The city is literally just a group of buildings and then just a massive suburban sprawl - there's nothing special about it. I'm sure it's great for people in in their late 30s/early 40s with kids to move to because of how LCOL it is and is a breath of fresh air, but fuck being there otherwise.
I'm sure the city is great for people from the south or who went to southern schools, but I wouldn't recommend living there otherwise - you'll be miserable
To be fair, I don’t see many people really defending Charlotte as much as just calling out OP for being — as you accurately put it — an absolute dickhead.
Yeah my bad I should've specified that - I wasn't specifically speaking about this thread. I've seen people speak on it a bit in the Off Topic forum, and when I accepted my Wells offer way back then all I heard from people was "oh you'll love Charlotte it's an amazing city", and then after that summer people were always confused to hear that I didn't like it and was going to NYC. Might just be my experience, but that's where I was coming from
OP massive fail for not turning down Charlotte and should’ve stayed in NYC
You’re right. But I guess I shouldn’t discount this opportunity to save significantly more money while getting the same base salary and bonus as NYC counterparts. Just seems like my stay in Charlotte can’t end soon enough. Looking forward to heading to Florida next year.
Ah yes. NYC is king of “easy on the eye.” Maybe quit being a little bitch
Come on. You know what I’m saying when you see a spectacularly looking woman in NYC who just blows you out of the water. Mamma Mia!
Do not understand OP. For someone who moved from NYC to Charlotte to work at Wells, it doesn't make sense for her to look down on the people in the city since that's where she signed up to work.If the city doesn't meet her standards, she can transfer to a different city like NY or SF. Why bash on people for the way they dress or look or for the cars they drive? Why generalize an entire city based on a few people? Additionally, it is very likely there are tons of very successful and sophisticated people there, as there are in every city.
Don’t just read Bone’s comments here. Take a look at her previous posts. You can really get the timeline and the thought process 😂
Yeah you’d really think she’s trolling until you get her full view on life…
Holy shit you’re not kidding… took a peak at her profile and girl sounds absolutely insane
What did I just read.
OP sounds like she is some typical upper east sider who would be super difficult to please and nothing will be good enough for her regardless of how good she actually has it. Was probably sick of NYC at one point too
So spot on. Should've just moved to Williamsburg for a change in scenery.
Holy shallow. Safe to say someone has never gotten out of their bubble. I’m spending the week up at Pocono Raceway, nothing but pickups and good ol’ country boys. And let me tell you. Some of the nicest, hardworking people I have ever met. I’d rather spend the week with them than an hour with you based on your response. OP clearly grew up in a wealthy white suburb and their idea of diversity/ adventuring out is going to Greenwich Village. As someone who grew up in multiple areas (lower class Colorado Springs, rural Virginia, and a college town), you learn not to judge people by their looks but rather their experiences.
Not done bitching yet. Everyone who is shitting on Wells Fargo is clearly an silver-spoon Ivy kid. At the end of a day, working on a pitch deck for GS is no different than working on one for WF. To anyone outside this forum, you still just have a high-paying finance job. Prestige is such a joke… it’s not the name that will take you places, it’s you being competent at your job and outperforming other analysts. Def the type of people who cried because they only got accepted to UPenn and Yale and not Harvard.
Don’t get me wrong, I’m 100% with you on everything you said about OP and generically about prestige. I’ve commented a handful of times saying pretty much the exact same as the first half of your post.
That said, I’m from a middle class family, went to a state school, and work at a WF-tier bank right now. And I think flaming WF is honestly a perfectly fair response to someone with a wildly unchecked ego and narcissistic issues because she’s the exact kind of person who would care about that kind of shit. I’m absolutely for sinking the ship to kill the captain.
Listen.
The Mid West and South are low class, and incestuous.
The West Coast and East Coast are civilized and cultured.
That has been true since the end of WWII. Stop trying to put a positive spin on the most backwards regions of America.
WF moved me to Charlotte for a few months for a development program. Coming from LA where I was born and raised it was a big change. Personally didn’t like it and felt bored, but the people were very nice and welcoming. Not sure who you met
I hate rednecks so much. They make me ashamed to be white.
They hold America back, they marry their family members, and are generally disgusting.
Would never move to a DUMP like Charlotte.
The people who tie their entire identity to being in finance in nyc is hilarious. Some of these comments show you who these people think they are. You’re not Steve Cohen bro check yourself.
I’m gonna go eat bbq and blast hank williams jr in honor of the pure stupidity of this post. Also, Charlotte isn’t country or even redneck. Neither is Atlanta
Well, I certainly don’t base my identity on working in finance. I am destined to do greater things, and my identity stretches far beyond my career.
Rednecks are subhuman savages.
Got a problem with that punk?
I’m stronger than you, better looking, and probably have more money than you
OP thinks she is better than everyone in Charlotte and probably NYC as well based on her responses. Why move out there to begin with.
I don’t necessarily feel I am better than everyone in nyc. But I do feel that generally, the people in Charlotte just aren’t up to par with people I should be associating with in my life. This is the truth. There are certain people you shouldn’t necessarily associate with because they don’t pull you in the right direction. What’s wrong with staying away from people who won’t be pulling you in the right direction? I am sure everyone does this.
That would make sense for individuals, but for everyone in an entire city? You can't find a few people in Charlotte that you deem worthy of your sophistication? Give the city a chance.
Coming from NYC it’s not surprising that it would be harder to connect with the average person you come across in CLT. It will take more of an investment to make friends, I experienced this moving to another southern city. But you need to drop the holier than though attitude or move back to NYC, otherwise you’ll be miserable
Most definitely will be moving out of the country before I start adopting some negative qualities from Americans around me. LOLOLOLOL
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