Lying is paradise

7:00am: Chad rolls out of bed, groggy from another late night churning through applications and watching financial news recaps. He tells himself that his early spring week at an econ consulting firm means he’s got this. If he pulled that off as a first-year, surely he’s on track for an investment banking role. Confidence, he tells himself—that’s what recruiters want.

8:30am: Chad opens his laptop and sips his instant coffee while he resumes his job hunt. LinkedIn is dressed up with his “analytical skills” and “market passion,” and he quickly scans group chats to see what other hopefuls are up to. “Got a call from GS today,” he types nonchalantly, mentally crossing his fingers no one asks follow-ups. He’s waiting for any of the IB majors to bite, but in the meantime, he’s “projecting confidence” to everyone else.

11:00am: At his campus café job, Chad’s spreading butter onto fresh potatoes and trying not to let his frustration show as his phone buzzes with notifications from the group chat. It seems like everyone has something lined up, and he’s still waiting on responses. He tells a coworker he’s “just lining up interviews” with big names. It’s technically true—he’s got applications out everywhere. Just no responses yet. He imagines himself in an office one day, maybe even at GS or JP, and smiles while flipping the butter knife in his hand. Just gotta keep faking it till he makes it, he thinks.

2:00pm: During a break, Chad scrolls through LinkedIn and sees his friend Aaron’s post about securing an internship at an energy major for trading. Deflated, Chad puts his phone down and mentally drafts a LinkedIn post about “staying resilient” during the job search. “Got an interview lined up with another energy major,” he tells his friends in a text. Maybe confidence is his missing ingredient, he thinks, even if he has to fake it for now.

7:00pm: Back in his dorm, Chad sits at his laptop, rewording his “passion for commodities” a dozen ways for yet another cover letter. His phone buzzes with invites from his friends for a night out, but he decides to stay in and “prep for an interview.” He starts another application, cutting and pasting phrases like “client-first mentality” and “global energy vision.” One more email, he thinks, one more shot.

10:30pm: In bed, Chad scrolls through online forums, reading posts from students who finally broke into trading after countless applications. He wonders if he’s in too deep with the embellishments, hoping his friends won’t see through him. As he drifts off, he imagines tomorrow’s email will bring good news, making his stories one step closer to reality.