CFA Level 1: Feeling Insecure/Burnout

Might just be a human thing feeling comfort in knowing someone else went through the same shit as you are.

I just feel that every time I add knwoledge whilst studying for the CFA I push something else out. Did anybody else have this feeling?

Plus, I feel kind of a burnout about finance. I usually like to read finance books/browse through finance pages/read the news or journals but after working plus studying I just feel like I want to focus on anything non-finance related. Once again, anybody felt this way?

Before you say it: yes I'm a bit bitchy today but well, we all have those days.

 
Most Helpful

I completely prepped for taking the CFA for this June (lvl 1), then it got delayed. I feel what you are going through. It's tough. But I think you just need to keep in your mind why you are going through this rigorous process to begin with.

Everyone even close to finance/accounting knows how insane going through all 3 levels of the CFA is- it blows the CPA, CFP, and pretty much everything else out of the water in terms of difficulty/amount of study hours required. The designation makes you a beast, and highly respected in the finance/accounting/business world.

Does it lead to a handout in the job market? No- obviously not, but that stands for the CPA, a MsF, an MBA from Stanford- you name it- if you don't have the guts to get the job yourself you won't cut it.

In the end, having a CFA will make you stand-out in essentially every corner of the finance world (of course it's more useful in some than others- like AM and HFs as opposed to IB). There are a lot of naysayers (much more than for other professional certifications), but I know this has to do with the ridiculous difficulty of completing these exams while working a full-time job,

Work hard man, you will get through it, and I bet you and I will be very happy when we reach the end of this long journey we are attempting to embark on. Haha I know this all may sound funny, but I know we all need a little optimism every once and a while- keep grinding man :)

 

Dude, there are only two possible feelings when you walk out of the exam room (other than exhausted) : Either knowing you failed, or having no clue if you passed or not.

I got 70%+ in every category on Level 1, and I had no clue if I even passed when I walked out. The exams are known as a beast for a reason.

The only difference between Asset Management and Investment Research is assets. I generally see somebody I know on TV on Bloomberg/CNBC etc. once or twice a week. This sounds cool, until I remind myself that I see somebody I know on ESPN five days a week.
 

Studying for L1 myself. I would say remember that too much of anything is no good for you, and December is a long time from now. Slow it down a bit and take some time to enjoy yourself.

I’m sure working in PE has given you a solid foundation and exposure to topics covered in L1. Nobody says you need to go get a perfect score. You will be fine!

 

i know exactly what you mean. I felt the same way. I just pushed through because it makes my profile much stronger and I didnt want to study another 300 hours to pass in June lol.

for what its worth, think about Mark Meldrum and whether you can learn from videos (havent used it but maybe its mentally easier to watch it and have a better structure).

also, the most important part of the prep is t-4 weeks. You need to practice AS MUCH MULTIPLE CHOICE QUESTIONS AS POSSIBLE before the real deal. I wish I had more time to prepare with the online portal and to go over my mistakes. Reading once is just the introduction in my opinion, the real “studying” is practicing MCQs. hope this helps and good luck!

PS i was scoring like 58-62% on mock exams and even though the odds were against me, I somehow passed. Try to aim for 70% on mock exams though. the MPS is probably around 65% imo (lots of info on the CFA subreddit).

made new unrelated account - dont reply or message as i never use it. 
 

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