First, I wanted to mention a potential great back-up plan with the job hunt. I do have an interest in trading and I actually found a firm where you train for 18 months and you're job is basically a trading assistant. Then if they think you're good enough, you can trade firm capital. Now some places out there require a deposit and you're basically trading your own capital with their systems, low commissions, and leverage. This one appears to be different because you don't put up any of your own capital (a great thing) and you get a salary! I was surprised by that last part, because normally you wouldn't get a salary. Also, the salary at this firm was fairly nice for a young guy out of college. The bad thing: the job is in NYC, which means I would have to leave my friends, family, and girlfriend...
Anyways, on to other things.
During one of my classes (during break actually) I wrote down a more detailed plan of action for the next seven years or so in terms of goals/accomplishments.
Some of it might seem like a long-shot, but I need to aim high.
(as you'll see I haven't spent time figuring out how to make tables, or make the blog appear cleaner, anyways on to the goals)
Age: Goal
23: Pass the level 1 of the CFA
23-25: Have two years of experience in either trading or research
24: Pass the level 2 of the CFA
24: Begin a math degree (I haven't decided in what exact area) at a junior college (to save money)
25: Pass the level 3 of the CFA
26: Start MBA school and either go part-time or figure out a way to work a bit and take class (if I do trading, I might be able to pick up on currency trading, which trades 24hrs/day)
27: Continue MBA school
28: Continue MBA school and start trying to learn C++
29: Depending on the avenue I take, maybe finish up MBA school if I'm not already done with it, and continue with C++ and the math degree
30: Finish the math degree, but this depends on everything else (for instance, I'll value the MBA over the math degree)
Okay, that looks pretty damn tough but I know I can do it (or at least give it a good shot). As long as I remain focus, I'll have a chance. I did manage to finish two degrees in the time it took everyone else around me to finish one, while working through college (so I have a shot!).
Monetary Goals
These were done quickly just to pass some time and I'm not sure these will be my exact goals or what- I'll wait till things settle down a bit.
Age: Goal
23: $25k
24: $31k
25: $53k
26: $78k
27: $106k
28: $139k
29: $177k
30: $220k
I'll see how these shape out later on. Nothing is definite.
A few articles worth reading.
The first one is the Smart Money interview with Bill Miller, and it's a great read. The next two are both from Business Week and the first one involves stocks that have increased their dividends for 25 years or more. The next one is a Q&A section with Barry Hyman and his thoughts (more volatility).
Besides detailing my personal finances I also want to start posting more links to articles worth reading. I'm not sure how often I'll get to this, but hopefully on a daily basis.
