EPTFor the past 4 years+ I have been working for a forex company in NY. I started at the age of 18 in the wall st office doing sales in a boiler room-like environment(seriously). Months prior to this I worked for an insurance company that sold medicare supplements & life insurance. I managed to earn 3 awards in the 8 months there which was what landed me an interview with the sales dept of this company. I managed to impress the 3 separate managers and they offered me the job on the spot to start right away. I accepted the offer of course and began my journey as one of the youngest, if not the youngest kid to step foot on wall st.
In the following 16 months spent doing 70+ hour weeks, sleeping on a couple of chairs lined up, and making over 500 daily contacts, I pushed myself up to the top 10% in sales pulling in a total of 760 clients and $3.7 million in retail funding. On top of that, I was watching the market during every fundamental announcement, and scalping the market as well on my own trading account. I was burnt out. Dead. Could not pick up a phone to dial another number. Luckily for me, one of the guys who I smoke with downstairs, and had regular conversations with about the market, asked me if I was interested in a spot on his team to work as a market strategist. Perfect timing.
The new position was a breath of fresh air- speaking to a portfolio of high net worth clients about their trading strategy and its integration based on recent market trends. For once the clients came to you rather than you having to chase them down. You were seen as a professional. A couple of months later however, new requirements and certain quotas were implemented and it started to cause a lot of frustration on the team. The effects of the short vacation I took started to wear off and I started to get burnt out again. My parents pushed the idea of going back to school (I did one semester before dropping out originally) and after much consideration, I decided to go with it. I did not want to give up my job at this time, and after speaking with my boss, he offered me an overnight shift at the trade support department and I accepted.
School didn't go to well this time around(as I expected). My father taught at SHU for 30+ years and my mother was a doctor so you would think that I am the type who would go through a bachelors and onto a masters program but I suppose I was always the black sheep in the family. I couldn't stand it. I suppose it was the experience on wall street and what it taught me about the world that made me lose interest in these BS 'business' classes teaching you things that do not apply in the real world. I dropped out after half a semester.
Here I was stuck working overnight at a job that I hate. The best way to picture it is this - you are a floor mat for these angry clients to step on, over and over. For several months the time just passed...same routine everyday. I was at breaking point and ready to quit the job when my boss e-mailed me asking if I was interested in working at the trade desk while doing some support work at the same time. I jumped at the offer, thrilled because this has always been my end-goal at this company. I often dreamed about what its like to work at a trade desk, and its exposure to the heart beat of the market. The next 8 months were spent managing the company's positions, keeping tradeable products live, and a variety of reports.
This brings us to the present day. The one thing I did not include was that 3 months back, I was playing poker at the Sands casino in PA and hit a bad beat jackpot. You can read more about this in my previous post. I debated for the past few weeks whether or not I should quit my job and take some time off for myself - to reflect and to really heal my body(i've gained a substantial amount of weight working overnight shifts). It has been so many years of endless hours of work -- it's not that I enjoy it so much, but more that I have an addictive personality and a workaholic mentality. It's a sickness to an extent because you get so consumed by the job that you get addicted to it and feel like you can't live without it. Things have lined up for me recently in a way that is so apparently clear with today being the turning point. Yesterday, I was written up by the head of the support department(remember I am doing both trade desk and support) for not having enough numbers. This to me was an absolute slap to the face after all I have contributed to this company. There could have been a simple warning and things would have been fine but for whatever reason the decision was to write me up. Part of this write up is for the employee to sign at the end of the statement issued on the disclosure. In short, I threw the disclosure to the floor saying I refuse to sign, told the director to fuck himself, and walked out.
It's time for the next chapter of my life to begin. I'm not sure what is going to happen, but what I do is that I stepped outside today and smelled fresh air for the first time in a long time. I lit one up, sat in a park , stared at the skies, and enjoyed every moment of it.
Here was my good-bye e-mail to those who worked around me:
--Last day here for me guys, I just sent out my letter of resignation. It has been a pleasure working with all of you. I wish all of you much success in the future. My best advice to you guys, having worked in every department within CS over the last 4-5 yrs, is to never underestimate your value and worth although others may at times. You are all talented enough to achieve whatever you want, whether in this company or outside of it. Remember to get with those who are on the way and rid of those who are in way . Take care and good luck. --
/rant
