Success!

I've been on WSO for almost a year, and I just want to say a big THANK YOU to everyone who has made this site what it is.

In 2009, I decided to make a big career change decision, which really started this whole process. Coming from a non-target school, non-business major, I really started from scratch in restarting my career, but I was just offered position as an analyst for a defense-industry specific consulting group.

Originally I had been going for ER to follow defense companies, but since I do live in Washington, DC, there are limited opportunities to work on the sell side here. My plan was to get into a part-time MSF program in the area (which I managed to do earlier this year, and that in itself was a HUGE accomplishment for me), and then use that as a springboard to get some ER experience.

However, I applied for an analyst position with a consulting company here in the area about 2 weeks ago, and was called in for the interview. I've been focusing on the defense industry extremely hard for the past 2.5 years through reading a LOT, taking econ/accounting/math courses, taking a few internships in the area, and doing a part-time research job for this same company on the side. I think that being accepted into a MS program didn't hurt, either.

I had not envisioned myself doing consulting, but the econ/finance/industry expertise is highly valued, and I'm going to use this as a springboard to perform as well as possible with the company, continue to develop my finance skills, provide as much value as I possibly can, and gain more industry experience.

It's funny how you can have one thing in mind, but then when a good opportunity comes along, it may not be exactly what you thought... however, you can't let these opportunities pass when they happen.

Moral of the story:

Use every opportunity you have to go go the extra mile or put in the "extra" effort - if you do this over a year or two, it really adds up, and you will stand out.

Keep educating yourself - whether you are taking classes or learning things on your own, again, it adds up after a year or two and distinguishes you.

Know your industry inside and out - 2.5 years of hard work on my part came down to 1 hour of interviewing, but it's like taking batting practice for years in order to have 4-5 at bats in a world series game.

Send great follow-up "thank you" emails - this is part of the interview

Sometimes you have to take a job which may seem insignificant, but if you prove yourself and exceed expectations, your supervisor will pull for you if you want to move around inside the company. This happened to me, and i think it was a huge factor... in fact, I didn't realize how close my supervisor was with the group of people that interviewed me.

NEVER, EVER, EVER GIVE UP!!!

This is really just a start for me... now the work REALLY begins, but I'm going to put in the same level of effort that I have all along, and give my best. Thanks for all the guidance.

Now that I have this position, I'm going to plan on organizing the Aerospace & Defense group I started on here, and start having some regular meetups and get it more active.

And, I'm happy to help anyone that needs advice... its all about passing it on!

Soccerguy