How happy are you 1-10?
I'm currently interning this summer and i cant help but to feel like I took my time at university for granted and how much freedom and fun stuff i could do all day.
It just got me thinking of how is life post grad in this career field? How would you guys compare your life now to your college days when you had lots of freedom? 1-10?
you'll always have that feeling. freedom comes in different forms at different points in your life. college you have the freedom to be a little disheveled, often hungover, and maybe promiscuous. yet in your 30s you have more financial freedom, the ability to say (if not literally) fuck you to people and opportunities that aren't good for you. and when you get to retirement/fuck you money, you can say fuck you to anyone. I'll take that freedom over the freedom to get wasted on a tuesday night with the boys, even though I do miss those days
then what about from post grad - around 28ish age, (aka the part where most ppl dont have enough money yet and developing career still)
you have the freedom to have experiences that are best for a bachelor or married no kids like adventure travel, going to south beach for the weekend on a whim, guys trips bc most of your contemporaries also won't yet be fully into dad mode, etc.
you also have biology on your side, so get into ridiculously good shape. this escaped me, while I worked out, I'm in better shape approaching 40 than I was 10y ago, and while I don't lament that, I point it out because you have the gift of a young man's endocrine system, take advantage of it
you have the freedom to look for mrs. right from a larger pool of people rather than fighting over scraps or dumb 20 somethings when you're my age
you have the freedom to think about a career change before you have a mortgage, roots, and are north of 30
you have the freedom to get compound interest on your side and save/invest aggressively. those who begin in their early/mid 20s are orders of magnitude away from those who don't start until their 30s
in brief, your time from 22-30 should be setting the foundation for the rest of your life. I don't mean career wise bc I'm weird in that I've been at my company since I graduated and will likely retire or die doing what I do today. I mean things like fitness, finances, marriage, experiences, goals. see some of my old posts on personal development for how I view goal setting, your 20s are the perfect time to do this because no one expects you to have it figured out, you have the time to figure it out, and you don't yet have other responsibilities that prevent you from figuring it out.
feel free to follow up with more Q's, and Godspeed
You’ll be more free and happy when you learn that there isn’t something to chase tomorrow, but instead there is something to enjoy today.
But what if you want the best future possible?
Why dont people in IB just enjoy life everyday and not grind that hard and like work a more "enjoyable" and laid back job
"Working hard" is like "being a good person". It's something you should try to do every day. I'm not trying to bestow some kind of cringe hippie wisdom, but happiness and freedom are things that are attained outside of your career.
You can find miserable people grinding on Wall Street or at the cash register at McDonald's or teaching surf lessons at the Santa Monica pier.
The prior poster gave good advice. It’s not to say working hard isn’t valuable but it’s very hard to enjoy the present when you’re always thinking about what’s next. Working too hard for too long, fighting for a promotion, constantly looking at jobs for “exit ops” it takes you out of the moment and makes you disassociate. The happiest you’ll be is when you find something you enjoy outside of work, stop comparing to others and striving for what’s next. Enjoy the moment and set small goals to get you to your ideal end state.
That’s not to say I didn’t grind, I worked hard and long hours but after that I’ve reached a point where I’ve taken my foot off the gas. I have everything I need to be happy and can actually enjoy money and my present without constant day dreaming, going into debt to keep up with others…etc. live modestly, limit your consumption and find things you actually enjoy to do.
I’d say an 8 right now. As others have pointed out what makes you happy changes over time. In college what made me happy was skipping class, getting a lift in, pregames, bars and 5’0”-5’8” blondes from Alpha Phi or Tri Delta
Nowadays what makes me happy is the fact I can buy anything I want (within reason of course) and go anywhere I want, grilling with some coronas and friends, and being able to treat my parents / family to things like a trip or dinner without having to think twice about it (oh, and the blondes still, just ones that I can actually hold an intelligent conversation with…).
I think everyone gets that fear of will I be happy as they cross some large milestone event, but rest assured you will :)
Wow this is a great response, thanks
8
I mean... i'm not unhappy. I guess if you had to quantify it probably like 6.9? Could be better but can't complain (compared to people my age bracket) too much.
I’m a 7 or 8. I have a great career. Even if I’m not super into what I do, I get paid a ton of money and like the prestige/being able to do anything that I want in my free time. My team is great too. I’m happy with the friends I have. Reasons im not at a 10 is because I’m working on finding more things outside of work that I enjoy doing (besides working out and going out) and also love life.
Also I look at people from college/high school who are stuck in random jobs in random cities and I’m grateful that I am where I am, even if it’s not perfect at all times.
I'm a calm 6-7. Could be worse, I could be dead.
Objectively I live a great life and on my best days I’m probably a 6/10
sometimes 3, sometimes 7.
Unironically 6.9. Pretty happy overall of trajectory but just short of 'content'.
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