The summer of ‘07

It has certainly been a while since I posted on my blog…reason being- I had nothing of significance to share.

I spent this summer working at an investment bank in New York (stereotypical…I know).  The 100-120 Hour weeks and constant anebriation…were almost addictive.  But looking back at things, it was again… an experience that made me get to know me. 

The work was never very hard and the environment is unique… it takes a certain breed of people to be able to do the job.  I did it for 10 weeks, can I do it for a longer period of time…I am yet to decide.  Despite the amount I hear people bashing on bankers and the work and the amount they make etc.  I think we should take a moment to pause and recognize that it takes an immense amount of determination and will power to do that job.  To sleep 3 hours on average and 5 on your best day is not something you can just get use to.  You have to have the mind set to do it, so as far as I am concerned, I tip my hat of to their work ethic. 

I was fortunate enough to work in a group that quite honestly, treated me really well.  They didnt make me shovel manure, and despite most of the analysts being my age… there were no false pretenses…it was by far one of the most professional environments I have been in.  People collaborated in a very professional manner.

What was most unique about the summer however, was being in the heart of things when the market crashed.  I distinctly remember that thursday when things came tumbling down…I was in the midst of a live deal, had not been home in 4 days, literally living out of my cubicle, and all of a sudden everything came to a standstill.  Within hours optimism turned into anxiety, we had just witnessed the market get, what I term, a muscle pull; things just cramped up.  Yea in hindsight there were many reasons which added up, but why that day? nothing seemed to have happened to really trigger it.  Even amongst our Associate class people were preturbed as to how many offers would actually be handed out.  As was the case, many were left empty handed.  The Street is a rough place… and my mom has never failed to remind me that there is always room at the top but never any room to sit. 

I have never had such an eventful summer, professionally and otherwise, in my life; in so many ways that I feel I could write a book on it…but alas I know I am too lasy for it

Let me move onto a moment of realization.  While I worked at a bank for the better part of the summer, I decided to try finding a Private Equity internship in India.  Trust me telling someone you want to work for a month and a half or so for them doesnt exactly fly.  Somehow I was able to find something…  I think this time when I returned to India, was quite possibly the first time I felt a sense of insecurity.  It could quite possibly just be because I was based in Mumbai and am originally from Delhi and knew nothing about the place…  Whatever the reason, I spent the first day in awe wondering how I would cope and whether I would be able to handle things…I tried my hardest to cloak my accent to try and fit in, but it was in vain. 

Strangely enough, my aprehensions were unwaranted.  India is a world of its own, while may lack the exhuberant approachability of the western world, we make up for it in sincerity.  Mumbai is a city that struggles!  In New York if i told someone I had to take the train to New Jersey and it would take 45 minutes, people would have a heart attack.  Here people travel 2- 3 hours each way every day.  Whether it is flooded outside or just the regular rush hour(although here it is not an hour…it is all the time) traffic the city keeps ticking, nothing stops it.  Driving by in a cab looking at the Central Railway Terminal, which use to be Victoria Terminal; sitting on the wall barricading the sea from the Queen’s necklace (officially known as Marine Drive) is a moment which puts life in perspective.  In the past 3 months I have swung from the heights of watching the 4th of July fireworks from a rooftop bar in the meat packing district of NY, a world dominated by an urgency to rule…to sitting on the sea side drinking a cup of tea, in a world alive with an urgency to survive.  It has been an amazing contrast to experience…