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Love Working in Finance?

Mar 11 2009

We've all heard plenty about greedy financiers who brought the world to its knees. Well, it's time the peddlers of that cartoon-like stereotype heard from the rest of us.

You're in finance. Are you there mostly because you expect to make more money than you could earn in a different profession? Or, are (or were) you doing work that you love? Or is it a combination of both?

If you don't love the kind of work you do, then do you know someone in finance who does? Tell us about him or her: role, years in the business, personality. You needn't even mention their name. (But I for one, hope you will mention the employer. We'd all like to hear about an employer it's possible to love working for.)

Caricatures are funny when they're about somebody else. In this case, though, the ugly images prevalent in the news media are about you and me. And unlike the caricaturist's booth at the county fair, we didn't voluntarily sit down to be sketched. So let's band together and do our part to overwrite the media's funhouse-mirror portrayal of our profession, with a picture that's both more nuanced and more real.

Comments (13)

"I find the work challenging and engaged; nevertheless, this field is in such a bad shape now, it is almost embarassing for me to say I made a career in finance. In addition, I have been laid off for 12 months now.... Maybe I should consider a more stable profession."

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Comments (13)

  • I love working in finance not because it pays more, but because I find the work challenging and engaged; nevertheless, this field is in such a bad shape now, it is almost embarassing for me to say I made a career in finance.  In addition, I have been laid off for 12 months now and have applied to over 150 jobs and noone seems to take a look at my resume.  May be I should consider a more stable profession

    Bois 11 Mar 2009

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  • i do it for the money - that's it.

    Greg 12 Mar 2009

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  • i percieved it as a glamorous profession where you are payed for your smartness...but i regret my decision, 10 months hav passd.. i have done my MBA..& no financial instituion is interested in hiring me...WTF! i feel like i am no-where now...my class mates who graduated in marketing are far good then me...these days i am back to my college preaching the young ones to stay away from this disastrous profession!!!

    Saif Khan 12 Mar 2009

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  • "So let's band together and do our part to overwrite the media's funhouse-mirror portrayal of our profession"

    Since, in your own survey, 54% of respondents don't even know what Glass Steagall IS (somewhat shocking as this is basic stuff), I think you have quite the uphill battle in changing public and media perceptions.

    fasb133rules 12 Mar 2009

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  • I became a financial advisor mainly for the money.  I didn't realize how much of working in finance is sales and salary earned on commission.  If you are not money hungry and incredibly motivated then many of the jobs in finance are not for you, not to mention that investors are hard to come by being that this is scariest stock market to invest in that our generation has seen.  In finance either you make it or you don't.  It takes a certain person for sure.

    Gavin 12 Mar 2009

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  • if anybody said... you work on finance for LOVE only.  please inform me.. i will recruit him for myself immediately  ...  of course, I pay him with LOVE and no food ONLY as well.. dear

    Please be more realistic dearling!

    B shapmarkmee 13 Mar 2009

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  • I got into Finance as a more stable alternative to retail management (no really).  For many years I worked for one company and our group did term financing for mfgs.  We did a great job with steady increases year after  year while building a very loyal customer bases and a staff that had high employee engagement.  Then Sr. Mgt wanted to diversify and bring "a name" for better press releases. 

    Well Mr. "Name" had no desire to learn our business, stayed behind closed doors and was not interested in interacting with customers.  Pretty soon more "names" followed.  Now our customer base is all but gone due to the changes that were implemented, the staff is in disarray and the business in on the verge of liquidation. 

    I would do it all again though because of the customers and the employees below "Mr. Name".  Those are the folks that made it fun and challenging.  As they say a few bad apples really can spoil the bunch, but maybe this crisis will allow us to get back to basics and the slow and steady growth will once again be in favor.

    Georgia Peach 13 Mar 2009

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  • I do it for the money and that's it.  Pushing paper around all day is not a very fulfilling career.

    Work to live, but will live to work soon 15 Mar 2009

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  • U guys, this is really bad. Its true that you have just joined finance for money, but there is a lot more to Finance than money, the power of knowledge it involves is worth anything that you can think of, the game of stock market and its sheer volatility is what makes it very interesting... now u ppl have made a bad decision and had a short term vision so u ppl are squabbling... no use... check ur own premises u r certainly wrong.
    Ravi
    ravimanoram.blogspot.com

    Ravi 16 Mar 2009

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  • Yes I did join finance for the glamor I thought it had,
    but once I joined it, I actually love what I do, making real-time smart decisions, being paid when I'm right,  that's what is fun about it.

    I am an analyst at a fundamental hedge fund, and the best part about it is to look at finance from business point of view, and solving business puzzles and figuring out who's the best

    ghimawan 18 Mar 2009

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