Biggest Challenges Faced By Investment Bankers And Entrepreneurs
Jerry's biggest challenges as a Private Equity Associate involve maintaining "perfection" in work product to avoid errors and navigating a demanding work-life balance requiring six-day workweeks; the high-stakes nature of the role also means taking "direct responsibility for...success and mistakes," a key difference from previous roles.
Workplace Challenges, Overcoming Challenges, Work-Life Balance, Responsibility, Perfectionism
Advizer Information
Name
Job Title
Company
Undergrad
Grad Programs
Majors
Industries
Job Functions
Traits
Jerry Zhou
Private Equity Associate
Apex Capital Growth Partners
UCLA, 2012
UCLA Anderson School of Management, MBA Candidate
Economics
Finance (Banking, Fintech, Investing)
Finance
None Applicable
Video Highlights
1. High-pressure work environment demanding perfection and attention to detail.
2. Work-life balance challenges with long hours and on-call responsibilities.
3. Direct responsibility for decisions and their impact on the company's financial success or failure
Transcript
What is your biggest challenge in your current role?
For investment banking, the biggest challenge is always doing the work perfectly. It's a very perfectionist field.
There cannot be any typos or formatting issues; everything must be flawless. Catching these errors is one of the most challenging and important aspects of the role.
Secondly, the work-life balance is not great at times. We work six days a week, on call on Sundays.
This can mean not having enough time to hang out with family or friends.
As an entrepreneur, one of the most challenging aspects is being responsible for all your mistakes. This directly relates to the success of the company.
For example, if I buy machinery that's intended to increase production significantly but ends up sitting in a warehouse because it doesn't work, that's tens of thousands of dollars tied up. This directly affects the company's cash flows, and I am directly responsible for it.
There's always the need to take responsibility for your own success and mistakes. It's about constantly pushing through.
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