Most efficient job within finance

A few come to mind:

First, maybe why I slightly disagree with Isaiah. Corp dev is generally a lot less of a grind than IB or PE, but it’s still a lot, and I think there are other positions that hit the sweet spot better.

Institutional Equity Sales: similar pay to corp dev, but you’re never going to have live deal hours that get into the 60s or 70s. It’s hours of the market and going to dinner. They’re a lot less grindy as people too, which makes a difference.

Fund of Funds or other Secondaries jobs: I’ve often seen this go 50 hours a week, and they have a pretty good time too. Never have to get down into the weeds as much as a corp dev guy.

Certain other Asset Management jobs: I know some pension people who are some of the laziest people you’ll ever meet. They technically work a 9-5, but they’re watching ESPN for a lot of it. Make $200Kish, which is low for corp dev, but to the right person, they’ve got it made.

RE jobs once you’ve got enough of an asset base/people to run things: well oiled machine and you collect checks on triple nets or something.

All that to say that I think there’s a lot of jobs that are easier than corp dev that get similar or more money if you play your cards right. Very gig specific.