Was going to write this last week asking the community for advice cause was getting desperate and jobs were getting filled.
So I was going through the usual senior year FT recruiting process and something got me very tight. Anybody else feel kinda jealous when they see their classmates post those stupid LinkedIn posts about accepting a new job and being immensely grateful to everyone and their mother? Yeah, jealously is bad cause there's lots of jobs and we're not necessarily directly competing for the same role but can't help wonder how they got in and I was left in the gutter. Let's be clear, we go to the same school with the same grades but I'd be totally fine if they had relevant internships or something special about their application and they got the job over me. Now I don't have the most amazing internships but I still have two solid finance internships, the first one my sophomore year in S&T at one of the largest asset managers in the world and the second one my junior year, still in a front-office S&T role this time at a top BB (GS/MS). Got return offer but HR didn't approve (No visa sponsorship cause of Covid). Now I'm seeing people with "Insight Day" and "Bright Network events" as their only work experience getting FT offers in IB and S&T at BBs. Good for them but F this to be fair. Also worth mentioning that my FT recruiting is in a country where I don't need a visa.
So this was my last week rant that I didn't post until now. Since then I accepted a S&T job at a large firm that I got by networking my arse off over the past few months. I don't care anymore about my classmates and wish them the best lol.
However, would still like to know if any of you feel kinda off when you see people posting LinkedIn self-congratulatory posts about roles you applied for?
Cheers!
iKL12
I highly doubt there are people getting FT IB and S&T with just a Bright Network Internship or just a spring week/insight day.
Get off LinkedIn, it's as bad as any other social media for your mental health.
Congrats on the new position though!
Same here, trust me i’ve done my fair share of LinkedIn stalking (lol) but I don’t think i’ve ever seen anybody with just a ‘bright network internship’ get a FT IBD offer. Just isn’t gunna happen diversity or not. But I’d echo what previous said, stay off LinkedIn, your time will come, just keep networking and applying yourself and you’ll get there. It’s all a rat race at the end of the day!
When did these "I've accepted..." LinkedIn posts become a thing? Maybe I'm just too old, maybe I'm not active enough on LinkedIn, maybe I just hadn't been paying attention to those posts because I'm way past caring about that stage of a career... but I swear over the last month I couldn't help but notice that every other post on my LinkedIn feed seems to be one of those types of posts. We never did this when I was coming up. I hate these posts lol. How did this become the big trend suddenly???
I don’t really understand the dislike of these posts. Sure they’re cheesy and cringe but why not be okay with people publicly celebrating their professional accomplishments? Do we really want to live in a world were this is a taboo? I think that perpetuates this toxic industrial culture in which people are supposed to “keep their heads down and work.” Am I missing something here? Serious question and not trying to shit on your opinion.
Wanted to congratulate you for that S&T role you accepted. Glad everything worked out. However as a prospective investment banker still heavily involved in recruiting I do have a couple of insights.
Preface: I personally hate all of the posts people make about hating their job and hating the work environment and hating banking and hating finance yada yada yada. And I hate it because it seems utterly ridiculous to have these revelations after 6 months on the job. Did you not do any due diligence regarding the career choice you made? There is a literal plethora of information regarding the work environment at investment banks - the hours, the expectations, etc. And I mention this because I think there is a similarity to be drawn between this and recruiting.
As it relates to recruiting, there is also an abundance of information to be found out within 2-3 google searches. And I think one of the first things that will jump out at someone conducting this research is that IB and general finance is not a career path for the faint of heart. IB, specifically, is something that I believe has stunning similarities to professional sports. The environment is ultra-competitive, expectations are extremely high, and the work is rather grueling. It does NOT take a genius to figure these things out (or to fuckin' read them verbatim off of any of the first 10 websites that appear after the most basic google inquiry about IB).
And so, I think it's almost comical that people get jealous over the success of others. This is a chess game and only the savviest will win. It makes no sense to me that people would get jealous/succumb to their egos when they see someone else making a great move. It's an industry where things are in constant motion and for someone that is looking to get into that industry I think it is paramount that they follow suit... they keep things moving. When I see someone land a sick SA gig or a FT position I don't give it more than a minute's thought: "Good for them. How can I make myself better and get to where they are?" The phrase "on to the next" is one that I think every active prospect should embrace. For me it's done a lot of good. It keeps the ball rolling and it keeps my eye on the prize. I don't give a fuck if an app gets rejected, if I get ghosted, if someone less qualified gets a gig, if I blow up an interview. Jealousy and regret are fairly common pitfalls of the prospective banker and as I see it, all would be better off without.
This is a competitive pursuit and if you want to succeed leave the bullshit at the door. Making yourself a more valuable candidate, in a basic sense, is all that you can ever do throughout recruiting and there is no time to waste doing anything otherwise.
In summation... Fuck jealousy. What a waste of time.
This is not to be directed at OP, but take it as you will. Again, congratulations on the S&T gig. Wishing you the best. Don't succumb to useless emotions (maybe read up on Stoicism... have found that train of thought to be wildly useful throughout recruiting).
Apologies if this was an aggressive post lol - have to say I enjoyed writing it. First espresso of the day kicked in at about the second sentence and I now find myself floating between moods of belligerence/intolerance (quite a recipe for MS). Gonna be an interesting day.
Completely agree with the self praise posts being wack. I just update my job heading when I take a new job/internship and turn off the notification that notifiy my network.
It should actually be like this. Just activating the notification option already looks lame, so imagine how lame those self-praise posts look. No one even likes them except few HR people, to me it looks like shooting your own foot by making you look like a narcissistic person in front of everybody.
exactly, I am still only a senior in college, but I doubt I will ever actually post on Linkedin. Tell all the younger kids in the clubs/frat etc. not to post as well.
Wanted to thank y'all for the feedback!
Was a frustrating process and LinkedIn can really get on your nerve when it feels that jobs are slipping away. Best thing is to probably not pay attention and focus on your own network and resources. Guess now I know and will make sure to not fall into my peers' path of LinkedIn posts consisting of fake modesty and praises to the mostly- absent university career services office.
I never met you but if I did I would say; Please focus on your kingdom and not anyone else's. It is a waste of time that you do not have, the clock is ticking and you should not waste it from building your own kingdom.
Congrats on the FT offer!
I suggest you stop caring about your classmates, focus on crushing it and let your former classmates obsess about your success.
Best of luck!
Cheers!
Life’s too short to give a shit that some other LinkedIn hardo kiss ass got a job that he may or may not quit after 3 months. Nothing against OP, but this is what’s wrong with today’s society and WSO culture in general. Do what makes you happy. At the end of the day even a bottom bucket shit IB puts a roof over your head and pays you a wage higher than the national average. There’s more to life than excel and modeling my friend.
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