Title says it all. As I get older I find it funny to look back and realize how little I knew about life/work. Hell, I'm still in my early 20s so I imagine I'll have another good laugh at my current self in about 3 years.
Trending Content - Investment Banking Forum
| +394 | Female bankers doing brand deals on TikTok (@emlywang) | 119 | 2h |
| +136 | UBS rolling out Enhanced Clean Desk Policy, bans deal toys | 16 | 1d |
| +76 | Starting FT in a city 3 hours away, dad has progressing Parkinson's. Looking for advice. | 6 | 1d |
| +67 | JULY 2026 CHICAGO BANK RANKINGS | 26 | 10h |
| +64 | Restructuring is paradise (a completely unbiased account) | 6 | 2d |
| +35 | Handling frustration | 5 | 2d |
| +35 | Not Treated Well by Other Interns | 20 | 15m |
| +29 | Taking days off as an intern | 13 | 27m |
| +28 | Thoughts on Intrepid - Houlihan Merger | 10 | 1d |
| +27 | Best books to read as a student/intern | 12 | 3d |
Career Resources
You can't buy back time. Decide what you want to do and pursue it like you mean it. Understand life is unfair and difficult - but no one cares about your problems more than you do. Not just in work, but in all things. The rough patches are what you endure for the bright spots. YOLO.
Buy that freaking bitcoin, throw all of your money into it, I don't care that your bank account is in the triple digits and you make $15/hour until graduation, buy all of the bitcoin you can. Then, in a few years, buy GME anywhere below $100 and AMC anywhere below $10. If you do this, you will never have to work again.
Dont do this fucking job bruh
Ok thanks Intern
do not text her back bro
Fuck bitches, get money
Take it easy. Like literally, take it easy. Don't sweat, when seniors scream at you, never put work over family, friends and personal health. Stand up, communicate clearly, don't be afraid to set boundaries. Don't miss big events, parties, enjoy life as much as you can. Banking is tough, but manageable if you're not a pushover.
No one is going to fire you because you have a wedding coming up. Act adult and never, ever let someone walk over you just because tHiS iS InVeStMeNt BaNkInG. Nope. You can actually have a great career in banking AND lead a happy life, even as a junior. It's not easy, but it's up to you, so don't listen to toxic strangers on the Internet and own your life.
All the best man.
could you tell more about when / how to set boundaries
Bump this. When is it appropriate to push back? Examples would be helpful
Pls also forward this to my deal team
Overcommunicate and use your judgement. Be smart. If you see that a horrible live deal all-nighter is coming up, then probably suck it up and work through. But if you KNOW that you have a big party coming up in two weeks, just communicate this. Inform your folks, make yourself equal to them, don't beg, don't be a pushover. Communicate in advance and expect being treated like an adult. Manage expectations, manage upwards, don't hide anything and don't be the guy who always takes one for the team, because bAnKiNg iS BruTaL. Own your time as much as possible.
Agreed. Banking is demanding but you don't have to sacrifice your self respect. I've had a few situations where I've had to just give a hard no to something requested of me.
Also, most of yall are going to end up VPs or Finance or Directors of CD at F500 companies, so take it easy in that sense too. Dip out the office on Friday's occasionally, go to sleep and don't wake up to that 6am wakeup call, etc. Be adequate at your job and aim to be Cal Ripken not Barry Bonds, just stay in the game and you'll be fine.
Preach. No one ever got fired over pushing back on some non-live deal work
Love and agree with this but should clarify for the younger folks. This doesn't mean blow off work to hang out with friends whenever you feel like it or going to santacon by ignoring an email for a live deal.
But it is important to manage upwards and set expectations in advance when possible, especially as it relates to your time and plans. Be overcommunicative with your associates/VPs/Directors with regards to status on work assignments and especially with regards to timing. What I mean by this is that you don't want to just become the guy who gets assigned work and sets a precedent of turning it in the blink of an eye without saying anything given when it comes time to you needing to push back on timing etc, it will be perceived in a much more negative light as your perception will be broken in a sense.
Also exercise judgement. It is probably not a good idea to push back on live situations as, after all, that is what you came to banking for with regards to experience. But as it relates to the internal deadlines set by mid-level folks and the non-live related timelines, definitely push back where you feel is appropriate and make sure you are able to do so by communicating any conflicts with your junior colleagues so you don't fuck them over, and your seniors so they are aware and better informed when you have plans to attend to personal things. Nothing is worse than informing people of a wedding you have to go to for the first time while you're en route to said wedding and just got asked to work on something.
Sometimes nothing you try will work and it sucks, but often times that is more a result of the asshole who is pushing work on you and not because of something you did. There are several more situations/nuances I could address but I felt that managing expectations and managing upwards was the most important. Happy to expand
How can you tell when setting boundaries sets a bad impression on others / negatively affected reputation and recs for PE
Yep ... when ASO asks where is the FKN deck?? TELL him to FCK off because YOU R in CNTRL, and you're headed HME early to EAT DNR, and nobody WLKS over you!
you cannot discreetly go and fart on your neighbor's chair and then try to hide it or make it look like nothing happened. You will get caught, and it will be a smelly mess. Both literally and figuratively.
Don't go into IB/quit ASAP.
Did you quit
Not yet- waiting for bonus
Treat the job as a means to an end, not an end of itself.
Technically this could be said of any job. Jobs in themselves are a means to an end. Nobody actually cares about the job. They care about the money they get from it and the goods and services that can be bought. If we could all stay at home and sleep while still somehow covering all our basic survival needs, everyone would.
Read more and a wider range of books, work out consistently, move to where you think you want to be as early as possible.
Look at comp from a post-tax, month-to-month perspective
When buyside recruiting rolls around, try to be rational about the hype and think clearly (as best you can) about what you actually want to do after banking and what types of companies excite you. Obviously leverage your second-years, but even more importantly talk to people who've been in PE/GE/VC for a few years and can give you a more balanced view.
Please stop fucking up.
Take the REPE offer, you dumb fuck.
Optio ea quidem sed libero. Vel voluptatibus quidem aliquid est aut. Enim occaecati laborum consequatur est dolores. Corrupti est velit qui consectetur.
Autem nam officiis maiores quia commodi saepe. Fugiat illum nam aut non recusandae et repellendus. Quasi unde ullam voluptatum inventore. Quo accusamus architecto explicabo voluptatem. Voluptatibus minima mollitia nostrum suscipit animi eligendi dolores. Eum debitis laborum id tempore qui.
Aut asperiores minima et facilis esse. Impedit magnam eligendi nostrum commodi quam.
Sed placeat beatae blanditiis asperiores est et earum. Eaque nulla in quibusdam quia totam quisquam sed. Doloremque excepturi nihil ab officia quas.
See All Comments - 100% Free
WSO depends on everyone being able to pitch in when they know something. Unlock with your email and get bonus: 6 financial modeling lessons free ($199 value)
or Unlock with your social account...
Id vero debitis et qui voluptates quisquam quae. Aliquam libero impedit enim quo. Dolor ipsam ex voluptate quod. Officiis accusantium nemo delectus sed officiis.