Career Advice - Bridging the Gap of Good to Great
Hey all,
So I started at a large RE firm in an analyst class of 4. For some context, I started 3 weeks after graduating and quite honestly was a little burnt out from school, moving to a new city where I knew no one, etc. Now almost 6 months in, I definitely am in the bottom 2 of the pack. I am definitely not bad at my job but, at least relative to some of my other analysts, a bit outshined.
I have started taking it upon myself to be more proactive in my learning but I was hoping to get some advice on how to bridge this gap and work towards becoming a more notable member of my team and make up for not coming out of the gate as strong as I would have liked.
I really do want to be in this for the long-term so any advice, anecdotes, or constructive criticism would be greatly appreciated. Thank you.
That is a great question to be asking. I'm being serious, the level on introspection you are showing will pay dividends in your career.
So this is a great question, and I will drop some solid suggestions below, but first..... just RELAX, not everyone is a "superstar analyst", and first 6 months being the "best" or "worst" isn't that much of a distinction either way tbh. MOST people generally suck their first year or so, and I doubt the leader of the 4 person class you are in is that much better than you. Sure, others may have gotten an earlier moment to shine or have a win on something, but all that comes with more luck of the draw earlier on. And yes, some have more natural skill/ability/background knowledge on day one, and perhaps you had less (who cares, will be irrelevant). I can't really remember how I was in my first six months, but I was wayy better by year 6, etc. that's all that counts. Like others have said, this self awareness is awesome and means you are more than half way there!
So some ideas....
- Attack head on where you are "weak" - Meaning if you are slow on modeling, or lacking some market/asset knowledge that is holding you back.. work all weekend or so until you fix it. Don't need to go crazy, but just do it, probably a lot less "mystery" in whatever it is you fear here.
- Focus on where you are "strong" (kinda the opposite of above) - reality is we all do different things better, at least at any point in time. So, if you are really good at some specific aspect of the job focus on doing that really fucking well (and making sure others see it lol). If you are a "rockstar" at one part of the job (and need not be excel modeling, which gets more useless the longer you are in a career), you could literally be viewed as an all round rockstar regardless of other short comings (assuming you are still baseline competent). Frankly, if you are above average in one domain by year 1 end, that's a legit win. This stuff takes time to master!
- Do both of the above constantly... avoid weak areas, over do the strong ones - seriously I think all the really really successful people in this world get there by playing the game they are "best" at while simultaneously avoiding/delegating/refusing to do the stuff they suck at (easier the more senior you get clearly). Should you ignore weaknesses, of course not, but you can waste a ton of time focusing on "fixing" stuff when you be strengthening your strong suits. Some people are more "analytical" and some more "personal" (or whatever you want to define), if you know where you "fit" trend towards this as best you can (again, at year one, you have little freedom, so do your best)
- If you are more "personal" (like ability to sell, negotiate, persuade, etc.) and not that "analytical" (like not great at models or writing memos or doing data type grunt work, or grunting through OMs, etc.), then.... you may just be a shitty analyst!! BUT, you could be fucking awesome VP/producer/acq. officer/etc. Just do your time if this is you, and focus on showing that this is you. Conversely, if you really good at the analytical stuff but can't give a presentation without sounding like a 5 year old that just peed himself, it's okay, you can get by and gain what you need. Just factor all that into how you want to progress along your career. The point is, shine where you can, and for some, it won't be at the analyst level, it will be later.
- Be "worldly" - This is my fancy way of saying to read lots of news (not just GlobeSt/RE stuff, but WSJ/FT/NYT type stuff). This helps you have intelligent conversations with the bosses (maybe not needed for the associates, but the MDs/SVPs who you really need to impress will care). Again, will this really help you be the best "analyst"... no, but it is more needed to get promoted and on to the cool jobs.
- Practice your "soft skills" - I did Toastmasters right after I came out of UG, did it for several years, this probably propelled my career in all kinds of insane ways. Being able to present, sell, and just talk confidently is so fucking important and frankly..... most right of out UG suck horribly at this. You can look like an idiot even if really smart. Along the same line, go to legit industry/professional networking events (like NAIOP/ULI events, etc.) and even go for committees and leadership roles NOW, this stuff helps you gain "leadership" skills and is more needed than you may realize.
That's what I got! keep it up, you will do just fine!