Thanks WSO - Recently received an offer for an SA position at a BB

Given the trend of Thank You posts from upcoming SA's, I figured I would contribute as well. I recently received an offer for an SA IBD position at a BB in NYC. I am extremely excited, and it feels great to finally have an offer in hand. Of course, none of this would have been possible without the help from this community. A special thanks goes out to the many people on this board who have PM'd me their personal tips and advice over the past year. Most importantly, a big thank you goes out to everyone putting up with my shit and constant posts ever since I joined. The insight I have gained from everyone's contributions have made this possible.

Just as a brief reminder and a confidence booster to those with similar backgrounds going through recruiting, I came from an absolute non-target in the Southeast without any knowledge of Finance going into my sophomore year. I ended up transferring to a "better" non-target which helped increase my chances of getting interviews by a few bps, but by nothing substantial and it was a huge risk. I partied way too much in high school (and my first year or so of College) which put me very behind once I found the interest in banking. So I cranked out a few 4.0's, read like a maniac, and worked as an unpaid intern for over 12 months at different companies, including a small NYC boutique my sophomore summer which proved very valuable going into interviews. But most importantly, none of this would have been possible if it wasnt for aggressive and persistent networking.

In the meantime, I was slowly prepping for interviews since the second half of my sophomore year. I was refining my story and teaching myself things to stand out in these informational interviews, let alone the real interviews. Through my networking at this particular BB, I was able to go through the early rounds and then to the superday last week in NYC. This was my first Superday ever, and I was naturally very nervous. Instead of running through tech questions the night before, I took my mind off of this Superday and didnt think about it until the moment I walked in that morning. This kept me confident with a clear mind and a smile on my face. I walked in the interviews very confidently, almost casually, but yet very grateful and excited. I displayed my personality and did not try to impress, rather I found myself having a normal conversation with each interviewer. We talked about the new Volcker rule, College football highlights, Golf, music, and more. It felt so natural, and I was not nervous at all. This alone is the reason why I got the offer (HR told me), so I cannot stress how important it is to be yourself, be confident, and be natural.

I owe it all to WSO for making my one-for-one Superday to Offer ratio what it is right now. I have several weeks to decide so I am shopping this BB offer with other BB's in the meantime, but it feels great to have something already and that I can spend my Winter break with my family instead of buried in the WSO interview guides. Thanks again WSO for dealing with my crap over the years, and I appreciate everything each of you have drilled into my brain! Even if it took more than once!

I wish you all a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year, and lets hope 2014 has a lot of good news to bring to this site. And to all of those non-targets going through recruiting out there: Don't let anyone convince you that your goal is not possible. Just take a deep breath, keep moving forward, and you will get there.

Thank you fellow Monkeys!!!