Goldman or Cravath? S&C v. Lehman? Someone who has seen both sides of the fence talks candidly about money, prestige and glamour. (The interviewee requested anonymity.)

BBalle: So, what are you doing now?

J.L.: I’m an associate in a law firm, currently reviewing a company’s contracts for laundry services, in addition to some other random agreements… amazing stuff.

BBalle: Let’s cut to the chase. The money has got to be better in banking. So why the move?

J.L.: Two reasons: (1) bankers are incompetent a-holes, and (2) money is only good if you don’t get canned. But if the money is REALLY good, I might be back there regardless of the aforementioned reasons.

BBalle: What do you think has a better quality of life, Big Law or I-banking?

J.L.: Neither in the big scheme of things. But at least lawyers go home when there are no deals, most of the time spent in banking is finding the next deal… so they never go home depending on the greed of the MDs they work for.

BBalle: What about the glamour/prestige factor?

J.L: Lawyers are probably more prestigious given that law is supposed to be a profession. But I think most people think of lawyers as litigators and not corporate factcheckers when they use the word “prestigious”. I guess people probably think bankers are more glamourous after watching all those movies or reading all those books about their decadent lifestyles, but I assure you there is nothing glamourous about making sure the spacing is correct in some power point presentation at 5:00 in the morning on a weekend that has to be perfect for another meaningless call with your client.

BBalle: Perks?

J.L: Free food and free cab rides home at 3:00 in the morning. Two things that are bound to lower your life expectancy by 10-20 years.

BBalle: Which is a more portable skill, banking or lawyering?

J.L: Probably banking is more portable… you can learn to bs like the best of them and use catchy phrases whenever the need arises. Lawyering skills are not very portable outside the industry… except I guess when you need to be very critical and cynical in situations that do not require such anal-retentiveness.

BBalle: At least with law you have a real graduate degree, a J.D. How does that make you feel?

J.L: Is this a setup? Degrees only appease parents when they boast about their children’s accomplishments with their friends. My degrees mean more to others than they do for me… for me, they only represent the stark contrast between what we are taught the real world should be and what the real world requires us to do. But that does not mean I advocate more vocational oriented training in schools, that would be a real waste of money.

BBalle: Lawyers are to bankers as ________ is to _________? (fill in the blanks)

J.L: Carts are to Mules.

BBalle: Which is harder to get into, HBS or HLS?

J.L: Honestly, HBS. You just have to be a super dork to get into HLS. They only care about grades and tests. For HBS, you have to show pedigree, whatever that means.

BBalle: How long do you expect to continue doing what you’re doing?

J.L.: That is the Seven-figure question isn’t it? I don’t really know. Anyone who is interested in banking or law really won’t know how much they like it or despise it without actually working or in my case, even after working. The pay is good, because in either industry you are always going to be held accountable for your group’s, firm’s, colleagues’, supervisors’ actions and will effectively be “on call” at all times. So, it really boils down to whether you want a Career or a Job. There are really no Jobs in the industries that pay this well. So if you want a Career, you got to get through the pain and rigors of either industry and unfortunately there usually is no foreseeable end. I guess the end comes when you feel you are financially comfortable or if somehow you’ve gotten mindf**ked into believing you love what you do. As for me, I haven’t drank the Kool-Aid yet, but also don’t see a forseeable change in my future. So, in short, I will be doing this at least until my loans are paid off, I hit the lotto or someone convinces me that this is my Career.

BBalle: Do you have any regrets?

J.L.: Another set-up question. Even though I have only bitched and moaned through this interview, I can’t say I have any regrets. The work is tedious and long in either industry, but I am comfortable where I am for the singular reason that I chose to be here. Stupid as that sounds, I can’t function if I think about all the what-ifs. As I have said in pretty much all of the hundreds of interviews I have had, if the work and job suck to the point I really can’t take it, I leave. But you can’t think in the past… that, more than anything else causes the “mid-life” stress crap. I still can’t afford the porsche 911 so I can’t reason like that.

BBalle: What about words of wisdom for those thinking of entering either or leaving these fields?

J.L.: For those entering either banking or law, don’t spend any or your time or your money trying to get trained for your jobs prior to starting. Enjoy the free time… you won’t really see it again and you will pretty much learn everything you need on the job. Preferably find a mate prior to working… your social life will be askew for the rest of your employment period.

For those contemplating a move to law school after banking, you really must know that it is hard to go back to banking or the business world after law school (even if the law school is prestigious) and law school while a break, leaves you in a pretty big hole to start up from. Expect to pay your dues again from the bottom up.

For those contemplating a switch from law to banking, stop being afraid of Excel.. modeling is the least of your worries… learning to have a thick skin and working even longer hours than you do now should be expected. And remember if you haven’t before, you are now selling your soul to the highest bidder.

BBalle: Indeed. Thank you very much.