First, let’s get into the “What” of your bullet points, as in what types of information, projects, etc you should include in your resume. Contrary to popular belief, when it comes to information in a resume, more is certainly not always better. A clean resume with a decent amount of white space doesn’t necessarily mean that you lack experience, but rather, that you have created a reader-friendly resume recruiters will want to scan. Whether you lack experience will be determined from the information in your bullet points, not how much space you can take up on the page. Now that we’ve got that out of the way, let’s focus on what should be included.

In short, you first want to do a bit of homework, if not on the company, then at least on the field/position in question. If, for example, you are pursuing an IB analyst position, check out some job descriptions and see what they’re customary responsibilities and projects will entail and the skill sets required. Next, take an honest look at each of your experiences and ask yourself what you’ve done there that would be relevant, applicable, helpful and/or useful to the position. From there, you will have the basis for what you should include in your bullet points, listing the most relevant and/or impressive first, since many recruiters will only look at a bullet point or two per experience, so you want to lead off with your best foot to inspire the person to read on.

So this highlights what should be included in your resume in general, but let’s take a few minutes to cover what should be included in your resume specifically for targeting IB (and similarly for consulting, S&T and buyside, though there may be some tweaking). First and foremost, any types of projects that involved valuation, financial modeling, or analyzing company financials should be included in your resume. While it is very easy to say that without IB-type of experience you won’t have any of this sort of experience, that isn’t the case. In fact, operations and control, middle office, all of the above positions and even things like PWM can involve projects that are comparable to these types of projects. For example, while in F500 operations you might not be valuing companies for acquisition opportunities, you can very well be using excel to forecast budgets, check internal financials, etc, which can all be included on your resume as relevant experience.

Next on your list you can look towards projects that involve research, particularly on specific industries and companies so that you can point to detailed evaluation and a strong knowledge base for the field – this will be particularly useful if, for example, you are researching technology and applying for a position in the technology space or technology IB or just interested in working in some capacity within the field going forward. Although not as important on the surface as the first and second points, this next point is still relevant and worthwhile to include: documentation work. Having a strong written proficiency is both a welcome and essential quality of a successful analyst, associate, and up the chain. Therefore, work that you have done involving drafting information books, presentations, distribution materials, primers, etc, are all welcome additions to your resume – provided of course, it doesn’t consume the entire resume at the expense of the other points listed here. Finally, and although listed last is definitely not least important, are projects for which you took on more of a leadership/managerial role or even a proactive role going beyond what was asked of you. This is a vague category and for good reason as it can be combined with any of the above points or, depending on the experience, can involve something else entirely demonstrating leadership.

So now that we’ve ran through what should be included in your bullet points, let’s go through the construction (or components) of a bullet point regardless of category. I like to break each bullet point into up to three components (I say up to three since you might not always have been responsible for or need to include all three): 1) what you did (which is explained above), 2) how and for what purpose you did what you did, and 3) the result or impact on the group as a result of the work you performed or project you worked on.

We’ve already covered the “what,” so now let’s jump into the “how” and “purpose.” It’s very easy to form a bullet point as follows:”Built a DCF model and performed comparable transaction analysis.” Unfortunately, this doesn’t do anything more than tell me at the very least you worked on a DCF model and spread some comps for fun or as part of a test assignment – maybe, if you’re lucky, it was for a deal that didn’t go anywhere. Now if that is the case, then it is fine to leave the bullet as is. However, if you performed this task for multiple projects (mandated or closed, for example) in a specific industry, that adds another level of importance to the bullet point and gives me a much better understanding of what you did, learned and can contribute to your next team. A new bullet point, yet still simple, can look more like this: “Built DCF and comparable company models for several pending transactions in the oil and gas space.” As another example, if you performed some research for an information memo you put together for a deal, instead of simple stating that you research the oil and gas industry for deal X, you can also include your utilization of Bloomberg, Cap IQ, etc to highlight how you fulfilled your project, while at the same time showcasing your proficiencies.

Finally, we come to what is possibly the most frequently forgotten aspect when constructing a bullet point – the result and/or impact. Now there is a good reason why this aspect is often not included: simply put, it is not available, meaning there is either no readily quantifiable result or the result doesn’t enhance the experience (for example, the result was just another data point used in a sample). Going back to the DCF bullet point of the previous paragraph – “Built DCF and comparable company models for several pending transactions in the oil and gas space” – we see a bullet point that is strong and perhaps strong enough (but this depends on the actual result). If, for example, the tasks you performed for one or more of these deals led to the decision to increase the purchase price range by 15%, that definitely adds a significant amount of credit to the point and, if included, to the bullet point. The new bullet point can look like this (on a simplistic level): “Built DCF and comparable company models for several pending transactions in the oil and gas space, which resulted in a 10-15% increase in purchase price range for two late-stage deals.” While this is a simple exam, it is merely meant to show the importance of including each of these three attributes (when applicable) in your bullet points. Before closing this article, I just want to touch on a few quick points that are often overlooked by people when constructing their resumes.

A few final points to keep in mind when constructing your bullets are: 1)contrary to popular believe, bullets do not need to be full sentences – as in they are quick points, not complete sentences and although they need to of course make sense, they do not need to start with a proper noun, include all necessary articles, etc, 2) along the same lines, each bullet points should lead off with a past tense verb, and 3) along the same lines again, bullet points do not end with a period, since that would imply a full sentence.

That’s it for now; keep an eye out for some fresh articles and a new product on its way that will certainly help you with your upcoming interview!

On a side note, it’s definitely been a busy several weeks for a variety of reasons ultimately leaving me without much free time to compose articles or properly field questions. Although my schedule will definitely be fairly packed over the next several weeks, it has lightened a bit and I will definitely be returning to a more consistent level of posting and answering questions. And I know I’ve been saying it for a while now, but my new product is absolutely coming very soon and will make the technical side of your upcoming interviews much easier! That said – let’s jump right in!

Although the immediate move from IB to PE/HF/buyside in general results in better compensation initially, is it worth it in the long run? In other words, should one transition to buyside, or stay the course with banking, if possible, and attempt to move into an MD role at a BB, for example? Also, does moving to an MD role at a BB require an MBA degree? In my mind, this seems to be a much safer path than moving to a Hedge Fund, for example, which can go bust, and since differences at the MD level for pay between BB Investment Banks and Buy Side PE firms are little, is the move really worth it?

Ok – that was definitely a mouth/eye/ear full, but I’m going to break out some of the key points and address them accordingly:

1. The move from analyst to MD does NOT require an MBA by any means. However, the path is definitely a one to take and one that often involves layoffs, bank changes, being passed up for opportunities, and so forth. Moving from analyst to associate is one thing; moving from analyst to some sort of VP is another thing, but to go from analyst up to MD is absolutely no small task given the rate of turnover, movement between banks, cyclicality of the business, need for additional resources (meaning MDs aren’t just given – they are doled out based on need of a team or group) and so forth. Don’t get me wrong, it can certainly happen (as needed) and the moves from analyst to VP and D definitely happen, but it often comes with a bumpy and lengthy road. Remember, just because an organization is large or established, it does not automatically follow that your career will be secure and that promotions are natural and easy steps. If there is a big turn in the market, as we’ve all just seen and are continuing to witness these past few years, hedge funds, PE shops, small banks, BB banks and the like were all taking butcher’s knives to their staffs.

2. Even though the progression can happen, it isn’t one of those things where everyone wants to do it and just doesn’t get picked. Most people use IB as not necessarily a stepping stone, but definitely a means of reaching an end, not an end in itself. Post analyst and associate roles are in PE, HF, VC, buyside, boutiques, F500 and so forth and are often far more lucrative for much bigger reasons than dollars. Many people just don’t want to deal with the hours, the stress, the credit committees and internal politics (jumping through hoops to get deals approved and so forth, especially in a still jittery market like this) the NEED for new business, etc – since remember, IB is a sales position at the end of the day, and working for a BB bank means you need to constantly be selling and showing the bank that you are worth the bonus and worth a cube or office on the floor. Even senior bankers work long hours and although they aren’t at their desks for 12, 15+ hours, they are often on the road visiting clients, pitching, negotiating terms and so forth several days per week.

3. At the end of the day, it is really a personal call. If you like the sell-side (IB-side) of the business and many people do, then you will want to stick it out, or possibly pursue an MBA and then get back in to move to a stronger/more prestigious bank, new group, fresh start, etc. If, however, you aren’t passionate or as passionate about IB necessarily and just want to put in the time to gain the contacts and the experience and skill set/transaction knowledge and move on, then becoming a senior banker will definitely not be for you. In that case, you are much better off moving to buyside, in some form, and enjoy.

Now that we’ve covered what exactly the application-less position is, let’s jump right into the best strategy for not only applying to the companies, but also how to find the shops and how to reach out to, ideally, the right bankers at the shop. This question comes up quite a lot from my readers, so I’m just going to jump in and tackle the issue at hand. No, it’s not just a matter of praying for the right opportunities, but if you follow these steps, you’ll be well on your way:

Where Are The Firms?

First, you need to actually find some boutiques/shops in your area, a big city you are close to, or where you are planning to be or can be over, for example, the summer (assuming you are looking for a summer internship). Once you know where you will be spending your summer (or other internship period), you need to perform a broad Google search to find boutiques and shops in the area that you’re interested in applying to and ideally interning with. To be blunt, this will be the vast majority of shops that you find through your search in your area since, at the end of the day, your best bet, as is often the case, is to cast a wide net. Beyond a Google search, you can search popular IB forums and ask friends, your school career center, etc.

Who Do I Reach Out To?

Now that you’ve built up a sizeable list of boutiques to contact, you need to spend some time on each of their websites and find out a few things. First, you need to know what the boutique focuses on – what industry, types of transactions, size and so forth – not necessarily to be used on this step, but during later steps you’ll definitely want to know about the company you are claiming to have an interest in. Beyond the basics, search through each of the websites for any career sections, employment sections, internship postings, etc. If you happen to find any positions, take the opportunity to submit an application that way – if not, it’s time to move on. Keep in mind that even if you find an opportunity this way, you can still pursue the following steps as a means of further getting your name in front of some of the bankers of the company – showing enthusiasm is a good thing as long as you don’t take it too far thus becoming a nuisance.

Since the article is about the application-less application, I’ll assume most of you have sailed right past the closing point from the previous paragraph and are ready to apply despite the lack of an online application or website career section. Assuming the opportunity is not posted online, you should look for the company directory or “team” profiles link on their website, which usually, at the least, shows names and often contact info for VP bankers and up – which is what you need when you are considering submitting a letter of inquiry to the firm.

Now that you’ve found the list of bankers at the firm, and, ideally, some contact info (or at least a contact standard for the firm so you can deduce the email address for a particular banker) for the bankers, you need to go through each of the bankers’ bios provided by the firm to learn of any common ground you might have with them. For example, did you attend or do you attend the same undergrad he/she attended, have you interned in a field they previously explored, have you interned or do you have an interest in the same industry they focus on, if there are any hobbies listed, do you have any common hobbies, are you both from the same hometown or have dwelled in a similar (and unique) place (meaning, if you both lived in NY, who cares, but if you both come from a small town in Tennessee, for example, that is a common point). Essentially, you should be looking for anything that is a mutual talking point to establish some sort of a connection in that initial email with the banker – something to hopefully get him at least marginally intrigued and interested in sending a reply to you.

Now that you’ve searched through the database, there are two scenarios: (1) you found at least 1 person that you have something in common with, or (2) no luck finding the “link” person. If you can find someone who has something in common with you, that person should be your first contact person. If there happens to be more than 1 person, then the most recent common point is the best to touch on – for example, if you both have the same alma mater and you are currently a junior, then that is a better common point than a common employer 2 years ago for you and 10 years ago for him/her. If, on the other hand, you find yourself a victim of scenario (2) and can’t find anyone with anything in common with you based on the bios (which is often the case), then, in a matter of speaking, you will have to pick out the friendliest looking face, haha (which I’ve also done) – essentially aim for someone in a junior-senior role, meaning a VP or early D, and, if possible, someone that has grown in banking (meaning rose from associate up the ranks), as they might be a bit more receptive as they too would have been in the recruiting scenario at that point. In either case, whether you have a person to reach out to with some common points or not, you will want to reach out to the person of your choosing through an inquiry email (a letter of inquiry in the body of an email) and attach your resume. Yes, in this case, you should attach your resume.

I Really Include My Resume? What About The Inquiry Letter?

Here’s the thing; although I don’t usually recommend attaching your resume to the first email for numerous reasons, in this case there is no disguising your intentions. Simply put, you want an internship with his/her firm and need to not only put your best foot forward through a strong letter of inquiry, but also deliver a complete representation of yourself through a neatly pressed resume. Without attaching your resume to the email, you are only sharing a small snippet of your candidacy with your potential employer and hoping he/she is interested enough to ask for more instead of including your resume and giving your potential employer a more thorough, if not complete, picture of your candidacy. In the case of cold-emailing and applying to these types of positions, you have less than a first impression, you have nothing more than a faceless first virtual-impression, which absolutely requires putting your best foot forward.

Moving into the core of the application-less application, the inquiry email, you will want to treat it just as you would a well-crafted cover letter for an advertised opportunity you are interested in, but instead of applying for a specific position, you are targeting the letter to the broader goal of working for the firm. Essentially, just as you would in a cover letter, you will highlight your interest in the firm and why you are interested in it (attributes based on your quick research on the website), your professional and/or academic highlights, any extras you’d like to include and, finally, a reaffirmation of your interest in working with the firm, a thanks and expressing an interest in speaking to discuss potential opportunities (internship, analyst, IB, etc).

What If The Banker Doesn’t Respond?

Now as fantastic as your letter of inquiry highlights your skills and sells your candidacy, you are obviously not always going to receive a response (positive or negative since whether good or bad, a response lets you know which direction to take next). If, or rather, when, you don’t get a response from the first person you reach out to at firm X, you shouldn’t give up just yet. After several days (preferably a week to 2 weeks), you can try reaching out to 1 more person at the firm. If the boutique is a bit larger, you should send the letter to someone in a different group; if it is a tiny shop, then just take a chance and email someone else on the team, but especially in the case of the small shop, you need to be sure to mention to the second person that you had already reached out to person X (the first person you reached out to) without success, but you understand how busy schedules can become.

The application-less application is absolutely the toughest application path to tackle with success, but it can absolutely be done. Send me an email if you have any other questions. If you need assistance on cold calls, networking calls, and so forth, be sure to consider an interview and networking prep session. As always, leave comments below.

How to Respond in an Interview

In an interview, I recommend sticking with what is normally expected of this question. You should highlight the skill set gained, the exposure to the markets, senior bankers and companies, and extensive deal/project experience both in terms of live deals and potential opportunities (since not every group will close 20 deals while you are serving your 2-3 years).

Depending on your background, you could touch on the fast-paced nature of banking (NOT compared to trading, but compared to, say, accounting or engineering – although banking often isn’t terribly “fast-paced”) or the ability to work on large transactions/advisory opportunities that impact companies and industries. Additionally, try to avoid answers that sound contrived or hokey such as “it has been my lifelong goal to break into banking,” or “I love working 90 hours per week” – even if you it is or if you do, don’t say it – keep that as your little secret.

One other issue I want to bring up is whether it is a good idea to answer this question by stating that it will allow you to break into private equity, your long-term goal. The answer is: usually not. I say this not because it is a bad goal, or an inaccurate statement, but rather, because you are telling the interviewer that as soon as possible, you will jump ship and pursue private equity – you see banking purely as a stepping stone, not an opportunity. Therefore, while I don’t recommend answering the question in this way, you can absolutely use a blend of the typical answers and a simpler version of this response. For example: instead of pointing purely to P/E, state how you will gain a wealth of opportunities and a tremendous skill set and valuable transaction experience, which will help you in the future whether you remain in banking, go back to school, pursue P/E or something else entirely. This point is mostly aimed at those people pursuing analyst-level opportunities. Those MBAs, for example, who are pursuing associate-level opportunities, should not be pointing to other avenues of interest – in short, associates should have a stated goal of moving up the ranks and making banking their career(whether they really do or not).

Why Bankers Really Become…Bankers – Some “Actual” Reasons

This really depends on who you are and your future interests. Right off the bat, people often pursue banking not necessarily for anything tangible, but rather because of what they hear about banking – not the horror stories, but, you know, the other stuff. While much of what people hear is true, let’s take a closer look at what is being said and its merit.

One of the first things that pops into people’s heads when they hear IB is money – good base salary and fantastic bonuses. While the base salary is certainly strong, the bonuses aren’t always fantastic as most people in the business a few years ago would tell you (and even now, although bonuses have started coming back – especially for stronger shops). Additionally, keep in mind that many smaller shops, especially boutiques, don’t have outstanding bonuses, or sometimes even the same starting salaries as BBs – that said, those boutiques often don’t work the same hours as bigger shops either, which brings me to my other point: hours. While analysts can certainly make big dollars, they can also end up working enough hours to cover 2 full-time jobs (and not just the 35-hour per week jobs, I mean a standard 55-hour or so work week job at times). No, you won’t always be working 100+ hours per week, but there will be some weeks like that and many for some groups.

Next on the list is prestige. If enough people in your class and friends tell you that banking is awesome – “models and bottles baby” – and that the money flows, doors open, etc, it starts to sound appealing and interesting. While I agree that banking is a good profession if the work is of interest to you, you are not going to suddenly be a high-roller or a big “playa” just because you are a 1st year analyst with BB X.

Beyond the money and presumed prestige, there are definitely other reasons to pursue IB – most important of all is the career opportunities. Banking definitely offers outstanding opportunities to those interested in finance whether in terms of breaking into P/E, VC or staying in banking and moving to a smaller shop to gain a better work/life balance. IB offers the skill set, transaction experience and, “prestige” to break into these competitive fields often without business school. If breaking into these fields is a next step or goal for you, then banking, especially if you are placed in one of the right groups, will definitely help you along your path.

Finally, at the end of the day, all else aside, there are many people who honestly enjoy investment banking – the transactions, stress, experience, modeling, client interaction, and corporate environment. Although many people ask whether anyone actually enjoys banking, surprising or not, many people do enjoy it and break into the business intending to move up the ranks. Banking can be a high-energy environment with deals moving and business happening – as an analyst, you might not be making the decisions, but you are certainly playing a valuable role in the process (whether exhausting or not) and, if you are a strong analyst, can begin picking up more responsibilities, then a promotion and so forth.

Stay tuned for a fresh product coming very soon and much more!

Parameters:

Let’s get right into the basics here. First and foremost, the cover letter should be, in total, 1 page. This means that from the address/heading down to the signature (and mention of attachments, if necessary), you should be no more than 1 page in length. I’ve seen cover letters that span over 2 pages, and let me be the first to tell you, straight up, this is way too long, and no one is going to read it, nor will anyone be excited by the amount of effort and/or information you’ve included in it. Simply put, this looks like you don’t know what to include and have therefore included way too much. So, we’ve got the 1 page down, but how should the 1 page look?

As you can imply from the name, the cover LETTER, is exactly that, a letter, and, as such, whether it is a separate attachment or the body of an email, it should resemble that of a letter. Start by including the basic information – essentially, your contact information and name at the top, then to whom you are addressing the letter – you don’t need a full address here, although if you’ve got the room, you are welcome to include it (this opening information can be left out if you are writing the letter in the body of the email, instead, just start with the next point, your greeting). Next, insert your greeting/opening – Dear Mr. XXX, or Good afternoon Ms. XXX (for non-email cover letters, you can also include the date just above this line if you want to and/or have room).

Moving past the opening and greeting, we get to the body of the letter. The body should be 3-4 paragraphs, although the last paragraph is a short paragraph, but we’ll get to that in a second. Paragraph 1 is the introductory paragraph, essentially, an introduction to you (school and major/current employer and role, etc – high level details only) and why you are interested in the specific opportunity with company X (the company and role to which you are applying).

Once you’ve got paragraph 1 done, you have paved the way for paragraph 2, which is essentially a continuation of the “introduction to you” in paragraph 1, but now with all details you want to highlight. Paragraph 2 should highlight your experiences with school and/or with your current/past internships/FT positions. Additionally, while you are discussing your experiences, you should briefly highlight their relevance to the position to which you are applying, especially if the relevant isn’t perfectly clear. For example, running the financial modeling of a closed deal as an IB analyst is obviously relevant to another IB position; however, being an engineering major, or even Finance major, or perhaps working in a corp fin role might not be and might warrant a quick few words on how the experiences are useful to IB.

Next, we come to our optional paragraph, paragraph 3, the extra stuff. Paragraph 3, just as the name implies, highlights other aspects of your candidacy that you feel are relevant and/or important to your candidacy, albeit not related to your professional or academic (major/coursework) experience. Paragraph 3 is where you will want to highlight your leadership, club involvement and non-profit experience. Paragraph 3 is a great opportunity to set yourself apart from other candidates and possibly even find some common ground with your prospective employer. Paragraph 3 can definitely be useful for those candidates applying to consulting positions, P/E and even smaller boutique IB shops in that these positions often look for what you’ve done besides grades and work, assuming, of course, grades and work are up to par. Additionally, paragraph 3 is often useful for those candidates that lack work experience, but have strong leadership experience, especially within relevant student organizations. Finally, while paragraph 3 can be helpful, it definitely isn’t necessary since: 1) you might not have enough room for it on your single page and you definitely don’t want to cut out important academic and/or professional experience to highlight something that is probably on your resume already anyway under a leadership or extracurricular section, 2) you might not have much leadership experience and you definitely don’t need a bunch of fluff in your resume and 3) many positions won’t really care that much about your EC experience and can find out what they need to know from your resume or from you in your interview – therefore, you can let your cover letter be a bit shorter and leave paragraph 3 out.

Finally, after all is said and done, we come to our last paragraph, paragraph 4. Paragraph 4 is a very quick paragraph in that paragraph 4 merely thanks the reviewer, mentions your attachments and contact information (phone and/or email) and closes out the letter.

With paragraph 4 done, you have your final lines starting with your closing remark (Sincerely, Best regards, etc) and then your name. If you want to, you can include an italicized line, 1 or 2 lines below your name (again, you want to keep it to 1 page) and call it “Attachments” or the like, and mention your resume – Ex. “Enclosure: Résumé”

Include it:

Now that we’ve covered the parameters and highlighted the major fields of your cover letter, let’s quickly run through what you should include in your cover as far as content is concerned. If you are a student, first and foremost you want to include some basics from your academia including your school, your grade, your major and any relevant coursework you have taken. When referring to relevant coursework (see Here for more), I am referring to the same coursework you would include in your resume – any finance and accounting coursework is at the top of the list, followed by math/statistics coursework, economics coursework, and, finally, any interesting strategy/leadership coursework. Moving beyond your undergrad basics, you want to include your club involvement, with a focus on those clubs that you have taken more of a leadership role in (especially those clubs relevant to IB – such as a Wall St. club, a Finance club, an IB or P/E club, etc). Finally, we come to your internship and non-profit experience. You definitely want to highlight any relevant work experience that you have as well as the interesting projects that you have worked on while there. If you have more than 1 quality internship on your resume, you can definitely highlight more than, but for each position/internship you list, you should include a little less experience/project responsibilities from each to keep the cover letter balance. For non-profit experience, I am referring to anything that is important to you or that you have taken a leadership in (for paragraph 3) and anything that is relevant to IB from a quant/analytical perspective (in paragraph 2 or 3 depending on how much additional work experience you have).

Now before anyone gets crazy, the previous paragraph is referring to undergraduate students or students in Master’s programs who don’t yet have FT work experience. Once you are a graduate, and have some FT experience under your belt, you want to change things up a bit. As a grad, you don’t need to include all of the information from your undergrad that you included as a current student unless you are applying for a position outside of your current FT role and your undergrad studies are relevant (meaning you work in IB and want to go into something completely different or the opposite). Assuming this exception isn’t the case, you don’t need to highlight all of your relevant coursework (although you can still keep it in your resume) and you only really need to mention your school, when you graduated, how you graduated (if it was with any honors) and what you majored in (although this last point isn’t necessary if it isn’t relevant to the position). From there, you want to delve fully into your current work experience first, and depending on how long you’ve been there and how many projects you’ve worked on, take the necessary space to highlight the position properly. After your current experience, you can briefly highlight one or 2 of your internships, again, if they are relevant, as well as a bit on what you worked on while there. The balance between FT and internships will, of course, vary, based on how long you’ve been at your FT role. Before I close out this article, let’s cover 1 last point – essentially, what not include in your cover letter.

Save it for the interview:

This section covers those points that, whether interesting or not, should not be included in your cover letter as they will be seen as more fluff, filler, or, at the very least, not relevant and when something is not relevant, it should not be included – remember, shorter is usually better (unless we were talking about a 3 sentence cover letter, in which case I would make an exception to the rule). First on the list is non-relevant coursework – essentially, if I haven’t listed it above, it is non-relevant. Yes, your history courses might be interesting, but they are probably not relevant. Therefore, if you want to discuss them, save it for the interview (see Here for help preparing for your next interview) and only if you are asked – don’t randomly go off on a 10-minute history course tangent. Next on the list would be non-relevant work experience. Included in this list is work experience that doesn’t involve leadership, analytical/quant skills or strong written skills. Essentially, you want to always be highlighting those experience that showcase the relevant skill sets sought after by bankers/potential employers. Finally, we come to the big no-no of cover letters and that is the dreaded overstatement (essentially, beefing yourself up too much). While you definitely want to be selling your candidacy, you also don’t want to pretend like you’ve done WAY more than you have, or taken on WAY more responsibility than you have (the same is ABSOLUTELY true for your resume). As a quick example, one of my friends from college was interning with a boutique IB shop the summer of his junior year and into his first semester. While he had an interesting experience and enjoyed his time with the firm, he really didn’t have much exposure to modeling – he spread some comps and such, but never really built any models. He had, however, seen some models and had taken some coursework in M&A and learned a bit about financial modeling and such. Well on his resume and in his cover letter, he figured that he knew enough to beef it up and decided to say that he built several DCF models and worked on several LBO models during his internship. While this seemed like a good idea at the time, he landed an interview with a BB and his first round interview was a technical interview and he got absolutely hammered on this experience and his financial modeling including his supposed DCF and LBO work. Suffice it to say that he did not do very well and did not get called for a second round.

That about does it for this article – as always, comment go below and emails can be sent Here!

Let’s quickly go through the basics and then hit what appears to be a nerve for many students. I know that there are many interesting courses in marketing, english and the sciences (biology, physics, etc) and while the skills learned in those courses might very well be applicable to banking, they are not relevant to banking as far as bankers are concerned. When I ask for relevant coursework, I am looking for accounting and finance courses first and foremost. Next on the totem pole, I am searching for math courses (including stats), since those will at least show me that you are quantitatively inclined and economics courses. Finally, I am looking for an occasional management course – something displaying some form of decision making, strategy or leadership as a means of potentially expressing your ability to see the big picture, analyze situations, etc. Outside of these types of courses, there is very little extra that I am terribly interested in seeing.

Moving past that, we get into the slightly more painful aspect of this section – the other side of what not to include. While, for example, many students like to include micro and macro economics courses on their resumes, you should not. Intro courses, excluding, perhaps an intro accounting or finance course (if you are not a finance or account major) should not be included on your resume. Showcase more advanced relevant coursework to separate yourself, rather than taking up space with courses every econ/business major has to take.

Moving past coursework, there are a few general resume faux pas that I recommend staying away from and/or correcting before considering adding them to your resume:

Mixing dates: Although there is nothing technically wrong with writing “Summer 2008” for one experience, “Jan. 2009 to May 2009” for another and “August 2009 to December 2009” for a third, simply put, it looks sloppy. Keep your dates consistent – if you want to use “Summer 2008,” then cite each experience as “Season Year.” If you want to write out the dates (which is my preference), then simply write them out – “August 2009 to December 2009” for example. At the risk of being a bit nit-picky, date abbreviations is my least favorite simply because months like May, June and July are rarely abbreviated, while December becomes Dec. – again, it’s just a matter of consistency.

GPAs: There are two quick issues that I have encountered with student GPAs (here’s a few more pointers on reporting your GPAs) that should be avoided. First, unless you are from another country where schools do not typically grade on a 4.0 scale, you do NOT need to include the “/4.0” after your GPA – it will be implied.

Second, and more importantly, there are two types of GPAs that are acceptable on a resume – the cumulative GPA (of course) and the major/concentration GPA. Breaking GPAs down to a more granular level than major GPA – whether that means citing specific courses, excluding certain courses (for whatever silly reason) and making up your own GPA – such as major GPA (plus courses X, Y and Z) – should not be done. The more specific you break down your GPA, the more red flags you will raise in terms of why you needed to break down your GPA in this manner and just how bad is your cumulative GPA. In short, if neither your major nor your cumulative GPAs (and you can list one or the other, not necessarily both) are at least above a 3.0, then don’t even bother listing your GPA at all – just leave it off.

Work Experience Positions: While there are certainly a number of position titles in the professional world, you don’t want to make up a title that is completely off the wall or deceiving. When it comes to listing your function/title for your position on your resume, it is usually best to go with the most basic, albeit descriptive title. For example, if you work in investment banking for a M&A boutique as an intern, then simply put “Investment Banking Intern” or “Investment Banking Intern – Mergers and Acquisitions” – you don’t need to call yourself an analyst (even if they refer to you in that manner), nor do you need to break it down further into industries you work on. Your title should briefly cite your position or your position and function; that’s it. Remember, even if your group refers to you as an analyst, you should still include the word intern in your position. Including the word intern will not hurt you and it will definitely clear up any small confusion that could occur.

Stay tuned for future posts on a Day in the Life, interviews with past bankers and much more! Comments go below and emails can be sent Here.

Although along the same line as many of the GPA questions, I encounter a large amount of questions related to, most commonly, these 3 standardized tests: the SAT, GMAT and LSAT. For those of you that don’t know, the GMAT is the test individuals take when preparing for business school, the LSAT for law school and the SAT, of course, is for undergrads (nothing terribly earth-shattering here, I know). Definitions aside, the most common questions regarding these exams involve their impact on bankers, which scores are high enough and not, and when you should list one, the other, both, all 3, etc.

Let me start off with the LSAT and let me be the first to shout that achieving a 170+ on the LSAT is impressive and well-done without question. Now, let me also be the first to tell you that bankers don’t give a damn. Yes a 170+ is great, but the LSAT, for those of you that forgot what you read a few sentences ago, is for law school, not business school and certainly not undergrad (the 2 places where IB recruits). While the score clearly shows that at the very least you are a good test taker, it also shows that you have an interest in law school, or at least are not certain if you want to go to law school (which also probably would lead them to believe that you don’t know if IB is for you). As a general rule of thumb, I would not include the LSAT in your resume, since it will open up way too many questions without any benefit.

Now let’s move on to the GMAT. With the GMAT, there are two sides to the coin or two situations to consider before we even consider schools. The first situation involves a current business school student (or alum). In this case, the GMAT is perfectly acceptable to put on your resume (provided you’ve got a score good enough to include) and I would definitely advise you to do so.

The second situation is a little stickier in that you have not yet attended business school. In this scenario, you might have taken the GMAT as a backup, with the intention of going next year, or with the intention of going in 3 years. In any case, if that GMAT is on your resume, you will often be asked “well are you planning to go to business school soon” during your interview. Remember, if you are applying for jobs after (or during) your initial post-U grad position, many employers will be looking to bring you on for longer than a year or 2 – therefore, you probably don’t want to outright say that you are gunning for business school, even if you are. You will need to develop an answer that puts their fears to rest (even if valid) if you want to have a good shot at landing the position (check this and this out for more help with nailing the interview. That said, if your SAT score is not that great, and/or if your GMAT score is really pretty strong (and you’ve crafted a good answer to the aforementioned question), then you should really consider including your GMAT on your resume in the education section as it will definitely help you to check off that ever-looming standardized test question (SAT or GMAT), especially if you are a few years out of U grad and with a less than top notch SAT score.

Now that you should be able to figure out when to include your GMAT, you need to know whether you should include it. Although you can get into business school with a wide range of scores, and a 650 is a very respectable score, generally speaking, I would recommend that you only include your score if it is a 700 or better (for investment banking – for other fields, I think a 660-670+ would definitely suffice). Don’t get me wrong, I’ve seen strong resumes with a 680 GMAT listed, but as a general rule of thumb, the 700 is that magic check-the-box number, where, if a recruiter sees that, they won’t question it – it’s a really good score, check, and move on. As a side note, if you’ve got a 690 GMAT and a weaker SAT, it might not be a bad idea to include the GMAT score since the 690 is more current and still a very good score.

Next, when listing your GMAT score, don’t break out any additional details outside of your AWA IF, and only if, it is a 5.5 or better (personally I don’t think anything lower than a 6 should be listed, but I’ve seen enough 5.5s to know that it isn’t a terribly big deal). By breaking out details I am referring to your individual verbal and math scores. Listing a 720 is good enough – you do not have to go into your 49 in math, since you will be only calling attention to your verbal score that is a bit weaker – instead, just give me the great combined score and if the interviewer has additional questions, let him/her ask them.

Finally, we come to the ever-popular SAT. Where including the GMAT can result in questions, NOT including the SAT can also bring up questions. For students in business school, outside of U grad for several years, or who have taken the GMAT (outside of U grad, that is) and have a strong GMAT score, not including the SAT is not a big deal – occasionally a recruiter will want to know, but it is so long ago that it isn’t going to be a big deal breaker either way, even if you don’t remember. For undergrads, however, the SAT is often a recruiter’s easiest way to weed out several candidates in one push. While many recruiters won’t care about your SAT, many will and not including will raise a flag of “well how bad did he/she do” even if you did not do badly at all and just forgot to include it. That said, including a score that isn’t great for a recruiter that isn’t really looking might provide him/her an easy way to drop a quick ding. Therefore, knowing whether to include your resume is important.

As a general of thumb, scores less than a combined 2100 (1400 or so for those that took the old exam) do not need to be highlighted/included in your resume. In general, these scores are considered the “start” of the highly competitive scores and at this point and above, it would be silly to not include your score, since it will be seen as a positive or at worst a neutral (rather than no score, which could, on occasion, be seen as an implication of a negative). Scores below this threshold do not need to be included in your resume, although borderline scores (mid 2000s or high 1300s) can be included provided that the weaker aspect is not in your math section. Once you dip into the low 2000s (1300s) and below, you are no longer really helping your candidacy much by including your score and could be hurting it. What I mean by hurting it is not that your score is necessarily bad, but it isn’t great either and by giving it up outside of the interview or when they specifically request it, you are giving away non-beneficial information without providing them with as much beneficial information (interview skills, etc) first. In short, a 2100+ can and should be kept on, and anything lower than the low 2000s can be cut from your resume to keep the focus on your, hopefully, strong GPA.

Stay tuned for my next post on what exactly constitutes relevant coursework and titling your summer analyst and FT banking positions, a fresh product on the way and much more! Comments go below and emails can be sent Here!

It’s Only A Summer, Right?

Starting with the second, better scenario first, if you get stuck in a bad group (whether for the future placement, deal flow, hours/balance, team, etc) as a SA you are definitely not screwed here. The big objective in this case is to do your job, do it well and essentially tough it out with a smile on your face for those 2-3 months. Remember the SA position is exactly that, a position for the summer and as long as you stay in everyone’s good graces, you should have a decent enough experience and be able to leverage that into an opportunity with a better group – whether with your SA employer or a different IB.

As a SA, especially if you want to stay at the firm you are currently at, you will need to work hard and land that FT offer. Landing the offer, however, does not usually mean that you HAVE TO stay with your current group – as with most BBs, landing the offer means that you have a FT offer with the bank, not definitely and specifically within your SA group. Yes, if your group likes you and you wanted to stay in your group, you’d definitely have a great shot at that, but for the sake of this article, we will assume that you prefer another group. In order to make this group switch into not just any group, but your group of choice, you should definitely use your time as a SA to not only build experience, but also to build a network or at least network with a few bankers in your top groups of choice. This will definitely help you to land in the group you prefer come the following summer, when you begin your FT analyst career.

It’s Not A Lifetime, But It Can Certainly Feel Like One

Moving past the SA scenario, the other case involves getting place in your less than ideal group as a FT analyst. While in this case you do not have the ability to work a summer and then move on as part of a structured SA program, you are definitely not screwed and doomed to this particular group or industry for all eternity (yes, the exaggeration is completely necessary). In this case you’ve got a few options as to re-branding yourself in a new group/industry, but before I go into those, we need to quickly discuss how to prepare yourself for those options.

Regardless of the group you are placed in, in order to highlight yourself in a proper fashion when preparing to make your move, you need to be a star in that group while you are there. Essentially, treat the group as if it were your top choice by pushing for the big projects, getting more work on your current projects, offering to help out on other assignments, doing additional research and generally showcasing yourself as a team player and strong analyst. Yes, it is often hard to motivate yourself for something your heart isn’t in, but remember, it’s still valuable experience and will you to build your candidacy when making a push, especially if pushing for another group within the bank (good news travels fast, but bad news, as in you’re lazy and useless, will travel faster). Additionally, make sure to meet your whole team – this again follows the being a good team member path – and you definitely want to meet analysts, associates and senior bankers of other groups – use deal team contacts and your analyst class as a means of networking both for immediate opportunities and opportunities going forward.

Once you’ve shown yourself as a strong analyst, you can definitely begin to think about your next move. One way you can always go about re-branding yourself is by pursuing an MBA. While this path will definitely require the most time in your current position (as you probably won’t get into a strong business school until you’ve completed the 2-3 year analyst program), it will also open many doors for you in terms of on-campus recruiting, alumni network, as well as provide you with a fresh start as an associate. Additionally, since you’ve demonstrated your ability as a strong analyst, you should be able to land some strong letters of recommendation and ideally have at least one or two interesting deals to discuss.

Since business school is obviously not everyone, or at least not for everyone at one specific time, you might want an additional option. Along the same lines, 2-3 years in your bottom group choice might very be a nightmare for you, regardless of how well you perform during that time. With that in mind, we move onto the most popular alternative –the opportunity to make the Group Switch. Essentially, making the group switch within your bank will require all of the above preparation and work, with an emphasis on, of course, networking. Remember, moving to a new group within your bank is always easier than getting into a new bank – so use that to your advantage. Once you’ve established some sort of a reputation within your bank, it will be easier and preferable for the new group to satisfy its hiring needs internally, rather than by looking outside to a completely new person. Also, generally speaking your current team won’t have much hard feelings, especially since you can talk to them about it when you know you have an opportunity to move into the new group rather than just springing this on them last minute – you can give them a heads up and put in the time to make a smooth transition for everyone involved, even if it requires a little extra work for a few weeks (it’s better than burning bridges).

Finally, you can make the push to move to a new bank through utilizing your network. Of course the key here will be in maintaining discretion in your networking efforts. You don’t want to shout from the roof tops that you are leaving bank X until you know you’ve got something definite (and even then, a little tact still goes a long way in terms of maintaining good relationships). This avenue is most appealing for someone who likes their group/industry, but doesn’t particularly care for their team’s deal flow, work/life balance or doesn’t really get along with a member(s) of their team. In this case, you would love to stay in your industry, just move elsewhere, where you find a better fit. The reason why I say this option is best is because 1) you want to stay in your industry/group, just move to another employer and 2) other banks will have a much easier time taking on an analyst from another bank if they want to stay in the same group, rather than start completely fresh. For example, I knew an analyst who wanted to make a move to another bank that had a stronger footprint in the M&A space after his first year. That analyst was highly ranked and working in leveraged finance space currently. When this person interviewed with 2 or 3 other potential employers (with a bit of network help), the other employers were interested in bringing him on, but not as an M&A analyst, but rather as a leveraged finance analyst. While it is definitely possible to make a fresh start, it is easier to move within your bank.

While two years can definitely feel like a lifetime in IB, remember that you are only starting your career. As an analyst, you definitely have avenues to make a fresh start in a different group or industry. However, just because you have opportunities to make a switch, it does not mean that you should spit all over your current opportunity and just expect something new to come along. Be smart, be tactful, work hard, and keep your eyes open – you’ll find a new opportunity or, at the end of the day, you might actually decide to stay in what was once your bottom group choice.

Comments go below and emails can, as always, be sent Here!

First thing is first; since you already landed the offer, the meeting will NOT be like your Superday Gauntlet and you will NOT be expected to rattle off Technical Question Answers like a finance textbook. This meeting, fortunately (I am assuming most of you find this to be a fortunate point), will be entirely about fit – in other words, whether you like the type of people in their team and whether they think you are a good fit for the group. Essentially, you can expect it to be pretty casual (in terms of conversation, not attire – unless you are specifically told NOT to wear a suit, definitely wear a suit), while touching on many of the common points such as background, what interests you about group X, your hobbies, school, clubs, sports and so forth – depending on the person with whom you meet. No, you probably won’t be grilled on failures, strengths, weaknesses, etc, but you will still want to be confident and vocal in your conversation without coming off as cocky – remember, you are not really trying to impress them as much as you are trying to show them that you are likeable and a good fit with the team.

Be prepared to sell yourself as hard working and both interesting (as a person) and interested (in the team), but don’t be a phony – be genuine and true to who you are – it’ll make a much better impression and give both of you the opportunity to know if there is a good match there. Remember, while the group is checking you out, in a sense, to learn whether you are a good fit for the team, you should be evaluating the group to find out if you feel you would fit in and, more importantly, enjoy your time there – remember, it is work, but it is also going to be a BIG part of your life for the next few years (or at least months for a SA – although, of course, this is a much bigger deal to FT than SA since SA can change groups, etc after their internship).

Regarding what types of questions to ask the bankers, I would go with questions pertaining to the person him/herself – such as his/her interests, what brought him/her to the field and group, his/her school, etc. From there, I’d move into the general group dynamic. In other words, ask about the groups common interests – are they social (in other words, do they do anything as a group – whether that be outings, evening drinks, etc), is the group more casual or professional on the floor (in terms of not only attire, but banter, different banker level interaction, etc). While this is definitely a field of interest to you, this is also the field in which you need to exercise the most tact when posing the questions. Specifically, you need to make sure not to ask questions with judgmental tones in your voice essentially leading the banker to believe you feeling one way or another as opposed to simply trying to learn about the team. From there, you can go into analyst responsibilities – will you get modeling exposure, construct pitch books, draft and revise offering materials, etc. Additionally, will you get exposure to senior bankers or is it pretty structured (a vertical structure) meaning analyst goes to associate, and associate goes to senior bankers or even VP and only the VP goes further up the chain. Lastly, you’ll want to touch on the group as a product of the bank. In other words, ask about deal flow, hot products or industries right now (depending on whether you are talking to an industry or product group), whether the group is keeping busy and looking to some live deals (essentially you are showing an interest in becoming a part of the team while in reality you are trying to gauge just what level of experience you can expect).

While there are definitely other questions to ask, this should provide a solid foundation and a more complete picture of the pre-sellday networking process as a whole. If used properly the pre-sellday networking channel can be extremely valuable in terms of landing in your target group. Just as with anything that can give you an advantage, however, it can also give you a disadvantage if used improperly. Remember about all else to put your best foot forward and be genuine in your conversations – this will not only impress the group, but also help you to learn whether you would honestly be happy in that particular group going forward.

Keep an eye out for a new product coming soon, the kickoff article of the Lighter Side…of banking…and Much More! As always, comments go below and emails can be sent Here.

Should I try to meet with bankers in each group before the sellday?

This is a question that I get pretty regularly, and let me provide a clear answer: definitely. Meeting with a banker or 2 in your group(s) of interest is a great way to get on their radar ahead of the sellday, when, essentially, everyone will be fighting to make an impression on their top choices. While you will definitely be meeting many new bankers during your sellday and, honestly, might not even see your contact within group A during the sellday (perhaps he/she is not a presenter), you should still try to meet with at least a banker or two in a group you are really interested in. In short, you’ve got 2 big reasons here even if you do not see your contact at the event: 1) it gives you a great opening topic to break into conversation with all of the bankers in the group and 2) shows the bankers or at least provides a great avenue for the group’s representative bankers to look into your fit and check with someone already on their team. Don’t underestimate the power of networking and for having an “in” within a group even if that person is not a sellday decision maker. Finally, if you have some sort of an alumni connection (or interview connection – they interviewed you during one of your previous rounds, for example), that is even more of a reason to jump on the opportunity and will provide for an even stronger contact (alumni has the common bond and the interviewer can definitely talk to your fit and intellectual aptitudes).

Should I try to meet with more than one senior banker or analyst? Which is preferable: senior bankers or analysts/associates?

Before we focus on who is the best person to meet with, focus on actually finding someone to network with. In other words, don’t overlook analysts because you only want to talk to senior bankers or vice versa – if you are pressed for contacts, take what you can get and utilize as best you can to both cultivate that relationship and leverage it into additional contacts. Again, generally speaking, alumni connections and past interviewers are best since you’ve already got the connection established and those contacts can often speak to your skill set, fit, etc best (or better than other contacts such as acquaintances of acquaintances, LinkedIn contacts, etc). Now, if you have access to senior bankers, especially VPs and Ds as they are often a little more accessible and open to junior bankers than MDs who often have more on their plates, you should absolutely seize that opportunity. If, however, you can’t get a hold of any senior bankers, make your way down to the associate and analyst level as they will still be able to help you more than you might think (if you make a good impression) and, at the end of the day, making a good impression on someone in the group is much better than not knowing anyone. Finally, if you have several senior and junior level contacts within the group of your choice: 1) consider yourself VERY lucky and in with the crowd as long as you play it cool and calm, and 2) when reaching out to your contacts, don’t flood everyone’s email – instead, reach out to your closest contact; a junior and a senior banker is acceptable in this case (but not multiple bankers of the same category) since they will provide you with different insight into the group, the work, the atmosphere, etc.

Should I try to meet with as many people as possible or will this annoy them?

As I started to go into in the previous response, do not try to meet with everyone in a group. Assuming you are trying to branch out and meet new people within the group, you should not try to meet and open contact with EVERYONE – frankly, you won’t gain more information and will become a bit of a nuisance since you will be asking each banker the same questions and getting, usually, similar answer most of those stock questions. Meeting with 1 or 2 people in the group (especially if they are in different categories – 1 senior and 1 junior banker) is a great way to make the connection and possibly meet other people – as one of these bankers might invite you to meet a few others knowing that you’ve got a sellday coming and already have an offer – without imposing on the team or becoming a nuisance.

Should I go through HR and ask for contact info or just contacts I’ve built over the last year or so?

Generally speaking (and generally is an understatement here), I would go with contacts – alumni, past interviewers, friends/acquaintances, and acquaintances of friends LONG before I try to go through HR. I would only use HR as a last resort as you will not find the reception, help and contacts in general nearly as pronounced or even available as when you have a connection established already. Go with your contacts – even if in another group, they might know bankers in a group you like and give you a name – the reception will be far more welcoming and engaging.

Should I call, email, call and email to get the bankers’ attention?

The easy response here is to say that you should go with the email. Email is more convenient for the banker and more understanding and courteous of their schedule. That said, let me take this a step further and give a full answer in that it really depends on the relationship that you have with the banker. If you talk on the phone regularly or occasionally to catch up and don’t find yourself exchanging emails with him/her nearly as often, then you should honestly just give him/her a call. If, however, email is your method of conversation, updates, inquiries, etc, then stick with what works. In either case, what you don’t want to do is start calling and emailing frantically (and it doesn’t take many messages to come off as frantic or at least obnoxious) as if it were a fire drill though – pick a method, go with it, and BE PATIENT. If you email and the banker expresses and interest in having a phone call or meeting in person, that’s great, but don’t email, wait an hour, then call, then wait 2 hours and email again, then 3 hours more and call again, etc – yes I’m exaggerating a bit, but stranger things have happened and similar things happen quite routinely – in short don’t be a pain in backside.

Should I ask them to meet for coffee, out to lunch, or go to their office so they can introduce me to other bankers? Also, should I set everything up or sit back?

This is another situation where it depends. If the banker asks you for your availability and what you prefer then be decisive (although still flexible) and make some suggestions. As a general starting position, I also suggest that you let them set it up. If they want to grab coffee, do that, meet in a conference room, do that, introduce you to their team, do that. Make it easy for them and be flexible – essentially putting the ball in their court makes it easy for them to fit it into their schedule (within reason of course). If you are out of town, be sure to give them some notice as to when you are coming in and let them run with the agenda/plan from there. As an additional note, don’t accept the first date and time they suggest even if it doesn’t work at all for you. If you’ve got your appointment with them in NYC at their office at 1:30pm, and already have an appointment that you cannot break or reschedule (such as a class final in a course you need an “A” in to pass and without passing will not graduate – an extreme example, I know) at 2:00pm 40 blocks away, don’t take that meeting time. In other words, give yourself time to meet and don’t be afraid to pass on one time if it REALLY doesn’t work for you so that you are more comfortable and not pressured to rush everything. The impression you leave will be much better if you are comfortable and relaxed – not stressing about a big final.

Should I outright say that their group is my absolute top choice – even if it isn’t?

Banking across the banks is a small world – banking within a bank is an even smaller one. While an incoming analyst or associate is not a HUGE topic of conversation among bankers, you never know what might come up ahead of, during or after the sellday and you don’t want their lasting impression of you to be a phony and a liar. In short, don’t lie, but at the same time, if you are meeting with someone in a particular group you definitely want to show strong interest and make them feel like they are at the top of your list – hell, no one likes to feel 2nd best, let alone 12th. Remember, the sellday will provide you more than enough opportunity to meet bankers in each group, get a feel for the team and the group as a product/industry – therefore, don’t meet just to meet – only meet bankers in a group ahead of the sellday if you have a real interest in the team.

That about covers it for this post – if there are any other sellday networking question questions or comments, feel free to post them below or send me an email HERE. The sellday is huge and your big chance to make the impression necessary to get into your group of choice – you definitely want to do what you can to enhance your chances and appeal.

Stay tuned for posts, a fresh product and an great NEW aspect of the site, specifically my products – I am really excited about the decision and I hope my readers and supporters will be as well.