OK, here is a 110+ seats trading room in the real world. A trading room is a restricted area in any investment bank. Only authorized persons can access. I have the privilege to borrow this photo from one of my clients.
If you want to be a proprietary trader or any other kind of trader, consider two things first. These have to come before qualification and experience counts.
Working Environment - Looking at the photo, you’ll see it is a huge room with no partition. There is no privacy at all. What you say on the phone will be over heard by people around you; and what you say on the phone will be recorded. Some banks ban the use of mobile phones within the trading floor. Some encourage you not to use mobile phones.
You need to also consider the noise level. People shout on the phone, because they were excited about a deal or because they couldn’t hear what the other party said due to noisy environment. If you feel comfortable working in a noisy open area without privacy, you meet the first criteria to become a trader.
Taking Risk – Chinese has a proverb ‘create wealth from taking risk’. You need to make quick and important decisions everyday and take risk. If this describes your personality, you meet the second criteria to become a proprietary trader.
I don’t mean to scare you. This is just a beginning. Please make sure you meet these two criteria before submitting a resume targeting for a trader’s role. Want to know more about a proprietary trader’s life, come back to my next post.
Taking Risk – Chinese has a proverb ‘create wealth from taking risk’. You need to make quick and important decisions everyday and take risk. If this describes your personality, you meet the second criteria to become a proprietary trader.
I don’t mean to scare you. This is just a beginning. Please make sure you meet these two criteria before submitting a resume targeting for a trader’s role. Want to know more about a proprietary trader’s life, come back to my next post.
Investment Banking Career - Proprietary Trader