Tadilliner wrote:
So I know a lot of firms preach that they strive to give their employees good work/life balance. However, the more I read and speak to people about post-MBA life, the more I see a recurring theme of unbelievably long hours and unhappy people. There also seems to be a select few career paths that almost everyone goes into after school. Although, there are still things that are adamant that you can do whatever you want to do with a top tier MBA. I'm really not opposed to working hard for 2-3 years to "pay dues" but my wife wants to start a family shortly after b-school graduation and it would be tough on both of us if I were never around.
I've always been drawn to MC - the work sounds fascinating to me. However, the life sounds pretty miserable for a person who wants to maintain a certain amount of quality time with his family. (I'm sure some make it work, but in general I feel that is true) Also, my personal decision to go to b-school is made harder by having a pretty relaxed job currently. I make around 100k salary + bonuses, with a company car and cell phone. This salary has a typical growth rate and there are some awesome profit-sharing incentives once you've been with the company 5+ years. There is also a stellar 401(k) - 8% match and 5% given regardless of contributions - so 21% of annual salary by contributing 8% personally... This may not be a staggering income amount in comparison to what could be possible in a later-staged career post-MBA, but it's an amount that could easily provide a very comfortable life. I also rarely work more than 40 hours (although I do work extra hours running a side business - which is only possible because of the shorter hours), have weekends off, and can take personal time to do things like take my dog to the vet. The main problem is, my work is not very professionally rewarding and I feel as if I could be doing something more challenging with my life. It is also a position that will have roughly the same day-to-day tasks throughout my career - advancement is made with salary increases and slight responsibility increases. (real first-world problems I have, I know)
I guess my questions are:
1. Are the working lives of MC, banking, and other careers really as tough as they're made out to be? Or is that the case at ALL firms?
2. Do those aforementioned crazy lives get better after you work those initial few years? Or are hours, stress, responsibility still very high?
3. Since it seems that the masses all go into a few very well-defined career tracks after school, is it only very niche positions that are left?
4. (Open to 100% opinion here) With my situation does it seem worth it to uproot my family's life for school just to feel more personally rewarded?
Just some background info: 740 GMAT, work experience is actually very good in interviews and on my resume despite my downplay of it, average community service, and I co-manage a personal training and nutrition consulting company outside of work.
So I would be applying to top 10 schools only. I really appreciate anyone's insight!
here is a good resource for you do do some research
transparentcareer.com