5 THINGS I WOULD NEVER DO IF I WAS STARTING MY FINANCE CAREER OVER

@emmawilloughbyg

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Why it worked

The creator shares relatable career advice based on her personal experience, using a conversational and direct tone. The listicle format makes the information easy to digest, and the personal anecdotes add authenticity and engagement.

Summary

The creator shares five things she would not do if she were starting her finance career over. She emphasizes the importance of being available, not expecting praise for doing your job, being present in the office, not dismissing tasks as beneath you, and not spending too much time being annoyed by rules. She concludes by stating that finance is the world you want and that these tips might help.

Structure

1Introduction and background in finance
2Thing 1: Being available
3Thing 2: Not expecting praise
4Thing 3: Not avoiding the office
5Thing 4: Not dismissing tasks
6Thing 5: Not being annoyed by rules
7Conclusion

On-screen text

5 THINGS I WOULD NEVER DO IF I WAS STARTING MY FINANCE CAREER OVER I spent six years of my career working in finance. I worked at Blackrock, I worked at Morgan Stanley and Investment Banking, and then I worked at a P.E. Fund. And these are the five things that I would not do if I was doing my career all over again. And in case there's any confusion, I did, in fact, do all of these things, and doing them did, in fact, make me worse at my job. One, I would literally never be difficult to reach. No, you are not doing brain surgery, but literally everyone will act like it anyway, okay? And you gotta just lean in, because otherwise it's gonna be a long, long road. Those two phones need to be on your person at all times. Being available 24/7 is, unfortunately, the bare minimum in finance. Being the person that they know they can reach immediately matters way more than you think and way more than I wanted it to. 2. I would not expect praise for literally doing my job. I spent many nights in finance being so pissed off and angry because I finished the deck, and maybe it was at 2:00 AM and I got all the numbers right and no one said anything. That's literally the job. Okay, maybe not the 2:00 AM part, but like, I did sign up for that. You know what you're getting into when you're going into banking. And then one day I was in an AA Meeting and someone said to me when I said, oh, aren't you proud of me that I did this? He was like, never expect praise for the job that you should be doing. And honestly, I very rarely did. Three, I would not avoid the office like the plague. I wanted to work from home literally whenever and all the time. Because like, obviously, but so much of the opportunity comes from being seen. I know this might come as a shocking revelation to you, but office politics actually happen in the office. Going back to my other video, unfortunately, office politics matters. Four, I would not treat things that I thought were beneath me like they didn't matter. And I also wouldn't whine when I had to do them because honestly, no one wants to listen to me or anyone else complain. Scheduling, formatting. These things actually do add up and people notice when you do them. Happily. Being the smartest person in the room actually doesn't matter as much as the person who's making everyone else's lives easier. And 5. I would not spend so much time being annoyed that the game had rules that I didn't agree with. Politics matter. Being likeable matters. I spent so much of my career just being angry that these rules existed and a lot less time actually doing my job. And it's why I was literally never the best at it. So finance is the world that you want. These tips might help. Love you.

Original caption

5 things I got completely wrong at the beginning of my finance career so you don’t have to!

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Transcript

I spent six years of my career working in finance. I worked at Blackrock, I worked at Morgan Stanley and Investment Banking, and then I worked at a P.E. Fund. And these are the five things that I would not do if I was doing my career all over again. And in case there's any confusion, I did, in fact, do all of these things, and doing them did, in fact, make me worse at my job. One, I would literally never be difficult to reach. No, you are not doing brain surgery, but literally everyone will act like it anyway, okay? And you gotta just lean in, because otherwise it's gonna be a long, long road. Those two phones need to be on your person at all times. Being available 24/7 is, unfortunately, the bare minimum in finance. Being the person that they know they can reach immediately matters way more than you think and way more than I wanted it to. 2. I would not expect praise for literally doing my job. I spent many nights in finance being so pissed off and angry because I finished the deck, and maybe it was at 2:00 AM and I got all the numbers right and no one said anything. That's literally the job. Okay, maybe not the 2:00 AM part, but like, I did sign up for that. You know what you're getting into when you're going into banking. And then one day I was in an AA Meeting and someone said to me when I said, oh, aren't you proud of me that I did this? He was like, never expect praise for the job that you should be doing. And honestly, I very rarely did. Three, I would not avoid the office like the plague. I wanted to work from home literally whenever and all the time. Because like, obviously, but so much of the opportunity comes from being seen. I know this might come as a shocking revelation to you, but office politics actually happen in the office. Going back to my other video, unfortunately, office politics matters. Four, I would not treat things that I thought were beneath me like they didn't matter. And I also wouldn't whine when I had to do them because honestly, no one wants to listen to me or anyone else complain. Scheduling, formatting. These things actually do add up and people notice when you do them. Happily. Being the smartest person in the room actually doesn't matter as much as the person who's making everyone else's lives easier. And 5. I would not spend so much time being annoyed that the game had rules that I didn't agree with. Politics matter. Being likeable matters. I spent so much of my career just being angry that these rules existed and a lot less time actually doing my job. And it's why I was literally never the best at it. So finance is the world that you want. These tips might help. Love you.