I have a dilemma - investment banking has been bad for my physical and mental health. I went through a period where I was still turning up to work but where my health was making it really hard for me to do much, and my performance reviews went from fantastic to unsatisfactory.
Since then, the work I've been assigned is much less interesting than my peers, and I am developing no skills. I've also noticed that I have been treated differently by my manager in the aftermath of this period.
I'm trying to figure out my next steps. At present, I am considering resigning without another job lined up, because at least then I'll actually get to look for another position (outside of banking), and my health can improve.
So, would you quit now, stay a little longer, or stay throughout the analyst stint?
I'm worried that if I quit now, I'll be less employable because I haven't finished enough time. I'm worried that if I stay longer, my health will get even worse like it did before. I can't imagine finishing my analyst period, but I'm wondering if recruiters won't consider my applications seriously without more experience.
Has anyone seen colleagues who have left before the end of the analyst contract? How have they fared?
dude, get real here, a company cannot fire you for submitting a medical certificate. Do it through HR and you will be fine. Obviously, it will likely damage your long-term prospect with your firm, but it's not like you want to stay anyway so take the reduced hours until you can find something else. Having a job makes you a much more attractive candidate.
I went through something similar when I was an analyst and ended up getting a medical certificate for reduced hours and was pretty amazed by the support I got (it helped that my group head's wife had a similar issue and it was a big driving force in leaving her partner position at a top law) and ended up getting my PE job through a recommendation from my MD.
Dude, it it's deteriorating your health, there's really no debate here. You have to leave. Think about it, at some point you'll be put on leave for poor performance anyway. You can't work with poor health, because it's physically impossible.
Also, don't be so picky. Health should be your number one priority. Make sure the job comes with a solid health insurance package, something with regular 40 hour per week expectations, and with a good number of travel and sick days. You might want to even get a job in a low stress city. Those should literally be your only concerns. Health requires time in the gym, lots of rest, low stress, and healthy home life. Why would you think about anything else in terms of looking for your new role?
Dude, usually I tell people to suck it up and work hard as it will all be worth it. And SOME level of health deterioration is to be expected in banking (I put on 25 lbs, lost considerable amount of hair, developed a sleeping disorder, had heart palpitations, tendinitis, blood pressure issues, etc). If you are close to the edge, take drastic steps to take care of yourself now:
Now as someone else mentioned you should keep collecting your paychecks at your bank, for several reasons:
That said, start leaning on your support network for advice and start planning your exit from the bank immediately. It sounds like this job just isn't for you, and there's nothing wrong with that. It's a fucked up existence, and it's only worth it if you can make it to the other side without too much damage to yourself. I've been out of banking for a few years now and I still feel the damage of working in finance (it's probably gotten worse since my current job is by no means easy on the hours / stress). I've started to realize that money stops mattering after a certain point, and that point is reached very quickly. It's very hard to get your health back, so take care of yourself.
Good luck, bud.
My good friend had a similar experience in banking. She was a really smart girl with a 3.9 GPA and was at a top bank. She got to a point where she attempted to commit suicide a few times. She had to go on medical leave and then quit her job anyways. She went through serious and intense shock therapy in a rehab facility. Bottom line - your health is so important - and you should definitely 100% resign if you feel its important. She has permanent mental damage now and it will take her years and years to fully recover. It is 100% not worth it.
Also - don't beat yourself up about it - its okay if banking is not for you, it is okay if you are feeling this way, it is okay if your performance is not amazing. You are still a smart, brave, worthy and unique individual with incredible potential to do good in the world. There are so many roles out there and so many ways to live life.
That being said - it takes a while to find another job at a junior level if you leave without another job. It took my friend an entire year and she ended up in Risk Management. Unforgiving brutal market. So try to get good references and leave on good terms - references will be critical.
I will pray for you. I am sure you will be fine, hang in there. You are not alone.
For some reason this updated on my feed, so to loop back - I ended up sticking out my job until I got a new one shortly after I posted this. I accepted a position at a boutique (though not in IBD) doing work that was a much better fit with my what my interests were going into the whole internship process a few years ago. Things have gone really well - I feel more engaged with my work, I feel a stronger social connection to my team, and my performance has been excellent (the boss of my boss sent the CEO my first major piece of work because she was so happy with it). It's also nice to have a life.
Banking was not good for me on many fronts, but I wish I had listened to myself earlier and appreciated that nothing is worth your health. Thankfully I had over a month between jobs to recover. There were quite a few health things going on during banking, including one chronic, pre-existing condition with a pretty significant lifetime fatality rate. I was fortunate that before starting banking, my health had stabilized with years of treatment, but the extreme sleep deprivation made me relapse. I was also being bullied by a more senior analyst who was delegating my work which I'm guessing did not help my stress levels either.
In case anyone stumbles across this thread in months or years to come, searching for their own answers - banking is not everything. It can seem that way when you're in the middle of it, especially if you had a high GPA at a target and everyone you know is doing IBD, working at MBB, at Yale Law or Harvard Med. If you're even a moderately intellectually curious person, you will find other things that pique your interest and drive you forward.
Something I've noticed moving out of college, is that people start doing totally different things to what they did when they graduated. One of my close friends just moved to Africa. Another lost a job in an industry she thought she would like (she did not) and is now doing education work and killing it. Another close friend is trying to apply for PhD programs in a few years wherever his fiancee gets into med school. Someone I lived with in college is working in (non-financial) sales after deciding that mainstream consulting or banking isn't her thing.
Anyway, I couldn't be happier with my life now.