For context, I was laid off about a month ago along with a decent number of people in my group. I was working at a large MM IB shop for almost two years (I had lateraled into the role as an Associate). I've been doing recruiting, but finding it very hard to maintain a positive outlook given my situation. I wasn't exposed to a ton of M&A deals given the bank I was working at / the overall economic environment, particularly ones that actually closed. Most firms I talk to currently aren't hiring as they navigate these challenging times / try to get a clearer picture on headcount. The interview processes I have been involved with seem to lose steam when they delve into my actual M&A experience. I guess I'm just looking for a few words of wisdom as I approach the second month of being laid off. Any similar experiences, advice on how I can convey my background better or transactional experience better, etc would be greatly appreciated.
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Don’t have any wisdom to contribute but really hope this works out for you
PM me.
You just need to be willing to start as a more junior associate again, other than that, it's heavy networking and patience. this does give you the opportunity to be broadly informed about the markets / sectors / deals since you have a lot of free time on your hands. depending on your liquidity, I would also travel. it's a nice thing to refer to during interviews - 'Inbetween the last job and this, I thought it made sense to take the opportunity to travel as I also wanted to be very targeted in my approach to finding a new role - which is why I'm front of you today'. The last bit about your approach being 'targeted' might not be true at all but hey.
Am on month 3 here.
Here are some thoughts as I navigate this pain myself.
It’s ok to crib about things for a while but don’t let it cloud your outlook. Nobody likes to hire a dejected ibanker - this is not an industry know for its empathy - and clients don’t pay good money for desperate bankers
Get your friends together this Friday, drink your heart out, crib all you want and exhaust it. (May be have some fun if you have a girl). One of my friend, who also got laid off, is travelling in South America (dirty and dirt cheap!) in Aug
Come Monday, get up early, go for a swim on the Chelsea piers, go for a run, start checking financial news.
For ex, I saw that SentinelOne is on the block, do a lbo analysis and think about it (now you have something to talk about for sure), all the while reaching out and searching for opportunities (mind you Aug is a slow month). Keep yourself busy and active, have a cheerful outlook!
Friends tell me a few bake-offs are set for Sept, so hopefully things will start to pick up in terms of hirings
Also keep your search broad incl corp dev, tier 2 cities, LMM..anything and everything.
Hope this helps!! Let’s give strength to each other….
I must be old but.. crib?
Not old enough
https://www.oxfordlearnersdictionaries.com/definition/english/crib_2
that's how resiliency is built. Why would we get inspired by those athletes/entrepreneurs, etc. that grind and see a reflection of us in them to when we're in a though situation (maybe a layoff as in your case) we lose positivity/motivation/faith/confidence? You have a situation to prove yourself, and the fact that you're still without a job, besides the job market, is your fault. Others that were laid off managed to get out through it by putting more effort, being more strategic, being more opportunistic, etc. So you're not doing your best, you're just doing your minimum if you're still jobless.
everyone can get their shit together in good times, but in bad times you really manage to see who is competent/smart, etc. and who is just mediocre. So sadly I have bad news for you.
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