Male insight needed: Personalities of female bankers

As a woman, I found myself often discussing this struggle with other women in banking. It's hard to find the rightly balanced attitude to have around men in the office. If we're feminine/shy, we're considered dumb. If we are sharp/confident, we're considered arrogant (or even narcissistic).

From working with women, which personalities did you enjoy working with the most? Which personalities did you find attractive?

30 Comments
 
Most Helpful

Same as it would be for guys. If a man is too shy he is also considered weak and if he is overly-confident he is also considered arrogant. Clearly then women are held to roughly the same professional and behavioral standards as men.

Be polite, respectfully speak your mind when you have something to say, do your work properly, and don't act like you have anything to prove.  I really don't think most people care about your gender and think a lot of people tend to jump to conclusions about how they will be perceived due to arbitrary factors like gender and race when most of it is in their head 

 

Really no one gives a shit about gender. Women just have to over analyze every little social interaction while men are generally obtuse. The entire world shouting that women can do no wrong and are perpetual victims doesnt help either. 

Just be yourself. It is comically obvious if you are trying to act strong like a try hard

 

Be yourself. There's a variety of different personalities in finance, and chances are you'll fit right in no matter what your personality is. 

That being said, the vast majority of women in my group are sharp, confident, quick-witted, and definitely not shy, and us guys definitely don't find them narcissistic at all. It's always great to work with co-workers who are willing to share their view and aren't afraid to speak, and those co-workers being women doesn't change a thing. We also have quite a high percentage of women MDs in our great relative to the rest of Wall Street (BB C&R group), and I find that having a lot of women MDs definitely helps the junior women feel a lot more comfortable being more out-spoken. In this day and age, unless you're in a group where the MDs are all just an "old-boys club" with a worldview from the 70s, I don't think you should feel uncomfortable or judged for being more out-spoken.

 

AnonymousAFAs a woman, I found myself often discussing this struggle with other women in banking. It's hard to find the rightly balanced attitude to have around men in the office. If we're feminine/shy, we're considered dumb. If we are sharp/confident, we're considered arrogant (or even narcissistic).From working with women, which personalities did you enjoy working with the most? Which personalities did you find attractive?I am always attracted to feminine women, I do not want to deal with a woman who is trying so hard to be a guy.

SafariJoe, wins again!
 

you understand that generally, women don't really use the internet outside of popular social media, entertainment and shopping right?

 

I've found in my experience that if a man has a problem with me or my personality, he's going to have a problem with it no matter how "attractive" I make myself to him or how quiet or smart I come across as. Being my bubbly, open-minded, helpful self has always brought the best results--be yourself and the people who like you will find you.

I'm there to help my portfolio team, not be quiet and attractive to men in the office. We're not living in an episode of Mad Men.

 

I think everyone in finance is a try hard no matter what. Male or female, lesbian or not, smart or stupid, they're all try hards. Hope this helps ease your anxiety.

 

Ea voluptates et omnis exercitationem. Cum corrupti voluptatem rerum quisquam dolorem. Quaerat sunt ipsa non recusandae est ipsa autem quibusdam. Magni optio ullam deserunt nostrum.

Aut nam et rerum dolorem cum qui. Voluptas maxime sed natus occaecati ut magnam.

Voluptates provident omnis et. Et vero autem quaerat dolor dolorem aut quis.

Earum unde voluptatibus alias autem consequatur similique quisquam quia. Cumque non omnis reprehenderit voluptatibus eveniet qui debitis. Quam nam tempora dolorem nemo ea non. Dolor odit quam blanditiis ea consequatur in reiciendis laboriosam.

 

Dolor facilis et quisquam. Optio adipisci animi fugit qui debitis voluptatibus sit. Ut placeat ut architecto est cumque voluptatibus. Repellat saepe voluptatem eligendi.

Eum sit architecto voluptatem molestiae et. Necessitatibus consequatur assumenda nostrum eligendi voluptate voluptatem quo. Non alias perspiciatis quod sed. Molestiae placeat sed qui. Explicabo autem sint aut et enim nihil. Excepturi earum veritatis odio dolor.

Et animi culpa id necessitatibus. Quibusdam neque nihil eum. Id consequatur velit ratione sapiente. Quam ab odio laudantium quis.

Career Advancement Opportunities

June 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.4%
  • Moelis & Company 01 98.8%
  • JPMorgan 01 98.2%
  • Guggenheim Partners 01 97.7%
  • Morgan Stanley 07 97.1%

Overall Employee Satisfaction

June 2026 Investment Banking

  • Moelis & Company No 99.4%
  • Morgan Stanley 01 98.8%
  • Evercore 01 98.2%
  • BMO Capital Markets 12 97.6%
  • Banco Santander 01 97.1%

Professional Growth Opportunities

June 2026 Investment Banking

  • Moelis & Company No 99.4%
  • Evercore No 98.8%
  • Morgan Stanley 05 98.2%
  • JPMorgan No 97.7%
  • BMO Capital Markets 12 97.1%

Total Avg Compensation

June 2026 Investment Banking

  • Vice President (14) $434
  • Associates (43) $259
  • 3rd+ Year Analyst (8) $210
  • 2nd Year Analyst (22) $179
  • Intern/Summer Associate (13) $156
  • 1st Year Analyst (75) $151
  • Intern/Summer Analyst (67) $101
notes
16 IB Interviews Notes

“... there’s no excuse to not take advantage of the resources out there available to you. Best value for your $ are the...”

Leaderboard

1
redever's picture
redever
99.2
2
Secyh62's picture
Secyh62
99.0
3
BankonBanking's picture
BankonBanking
99.0
4
kanon's picture
kanon
99.0
5
CompBanker's picture
CompBanker
98.9
6
Betsy Massar's picture
Betsy Massar
98.9
7
DrApeman's picture
DrApeman
98.9
8
dosk17's picture
dosk17
98.9
9
GameTheory's picture
GameTheory
98.9
10
Mimbs's picture
Mimbs
98.8
success
From 10 rejections to 1 dream investment banking internship

“... I believe it was the single biggest reason why I ended up with an offer...”