If you are in an MBA, CFA (or CFP Program for that matter) and are headed to Wall St. with your credentials thinking you’re going to be bullet-proof, quit while you can and save a lot of money. You don’t need them – they are useless. You need a high degree of Emotional Intelligence to manage risk or to trade. This type of intelligence was totally absent from the CFOs resumes of the major Wall St. banks. Unless you have Emotional Intelligence, no degree or designation is going to help you. You will shy away from being an individual or from being unique. You will be relegated to those that want to fit in.
You figure that at least one of the Street’s CFOs would have said, “Uh, we have way too much exposure here and we need to pull back. The trade was good while it lasted, but now we need to be proactive and at least sell this shit to someone else.” A good trader knows not only when to get in and when to get out, but what the right position size is for the level of heat he can withstand.
Why didn’t they do something? They were scared to stand out from the crowd and do something different. The sad part is, they were scared to feel their own feelings and do something about it for themselves. Not only did they fail in protecting shareholder wealth, but they were not honest with themselves either. They are the bleating sheep now.
IMHO, the CFOs should go back to their respective Alma Maters and demand a refund. All the big-named schools and all the the bullshit designations didn’t mean shit. They are shit.
The next time a recruiter or headhunter tells you that you need a terminal degree or designation, tell them that you want to be different from the rest of Wall St. and have integrity by NOT getting one.
It’s all about how you feel and how you put those feelings to work.