FirstYearBKR

Recent Comments

  1. 1
    Posted 2008-05-22 13:01:23 on The Citi Never Sleeps: Sleep Deprivation Makes You Stupid

    "Imagine you are sitting in a room watching a movie with the lights on. In a stable brain, the lights stay on all the time. In a sleepy brain, the lights suddenly go off." I don't know about you guys but I usually prefer to have the lights off when watching a movie. B-school students learn both the positive and negative sides to staying awake for extended periods of time very early on. After getting it down to a science with four years of practice I find certain tasks easier when you are, as they say, 'both asleep and awake at the same time.' You're completely focused, the learning curve shortens further since there are no extended breaks between work, and the finished product shows consistency since the train of thought is never interrupted.

  2. 2
    Posted 2008-05-21 16:08:38 on Would We Have Avoided The Mortgage Mess With More Financial Education?

    It's not about women in the workplace, lack of education, or any complex 'what if' reasoning...the people who thought it would be a good idea to give legit deadbeats massive mortgages/loans should have seen this coming. We have companies monitoring credit history reports for a reason. In high school I thought that this was the dumbest investment idea when I first heard about it. Yeah, the risk/return ratio was enticing and your bets would surely pay off since SOME of those deadbeats would attempt to make payments on their debt. I find it hard to believe that NOBODY anticipated a situation where enough loans would default to make the entire system crash and burn. This seems more likely than the current ARS market. Although the 'auction rate' process possessed risks loosely associated with investor/market psychology, the catalysts for a sub-prime meltdown were a little more than a possibility. We all have at least one friend who constantly says he'll 'get you back' for dinner/cabs/etc. Does he ever get you back? No. If he asks you to spot him again, would you? Probably not. The solution is more basic than a push for financial education; it's about simple logic and willpower. People should quit thinking, 'I'm worth more than this' and begin to live WITHIN their means (i.e. if you can't pay your credit card bills in full, struggle during tax season, and have negative equity on your '89 Tercel maybe you should think twice about that 30 year mortgage). Why do Americans need to 'hire people to take care of the details' when it all boils down to diciplined spending/saving habits? People can't be that oblivious, can they? Don't get me wrong: I'm not making enough money to live off of interest and as far as most people are concerned I'm a recent grad starting at the bottom of the ladder. Still, without the use of rocket science, I manage to cover all expenses, pay rent in Manhattan, and save a minimum percentage of my salary each month. All it takes is 4th grade-level math skills and the ability to not splurge on $500 loafers when you know that the purchase will make you unable to pay off your credit card at month-end. If you're unhappy with your financial situation in life go out and further your career instead of superficially enhancing your lifestyle with stuff you really can't afford.

  3. 3
    Posted 2008-05-21 11:20:03 on Area Man Threatens To Out-Toilet Stevie Cohen

    @ anal_yst - True. Nothing in Greenwich can rival Rennert's 100,000sq ft house in SagaponAck...that square footage doesn't include the massive 'security' house (which is all you can see from the road) or any of the other buildings on the compound. That thing pissed off a lot of summer people who didn't want their cookie-cutter McMansions overshadowed but it was spectacular to watch construction. Connecticut should not be a place for primary residences. Word up to the reverse commuters holding it down in NYC.

  4. 4
    Posted 2008-05-21 10:41:24 on Is Progress For Women On Wall Street Hopeless?

    Women on Wall St have the upper hand; most seem to not realize it or know how to use it. What guy wouldn't want to take orders from a put-together intelligent woman with a bangin' bod in heels and a skirt? Learn to harness your power ladies...you'll definitely stand out in the pack of male 20 and 30 somethings who, for the most part, look act and dress exactly the same.

  5. 5
    Posted 2008-05-19 15:44:22 on Blocking DealBreaker As A Leading Indicator

    DB keeps me smiling @ my desk over at UBS...ironic considering the hundreds of back-handed (but frighteningly true) stuff that's written about them...and because they have blocked any and every website known to man. Even competitors' websites are blocked. With every entertaining site gone, it's down to DB and eBay. Keep it up guys - you're like the orchestra on the Titanic: Lifting spirits on a slowly-sinking ship.