1. 𝐃𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐥𝐨𝐩 𝐬𝐭𝐫𝐨𝐧𝐠 𝐟𝐢𝐧𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐢𝐚𝐥 𝐦𝐨𝐝𝐞𝐥𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐬𝐤𝐢𝐥𝐥𝐬 & 𝐮𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐚𝐜𝐜𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐩𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐜𝐢𝐩𝐥𝐞𝐬
I learned about 5% of my accounting skills in the classroom and 95% from building financial models. Start with a spreadsheet to learn the building blocks, then you can leverage that knowledge into more sophisticated FP&A software.
2. 𝐒𝐭𝐚𝐲 𝐮𝐩-𝐭𝐨-𝐝𝐚𝐭𝐞 𝐨𝐧 𝐞𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐨𝐦𝐢𝐜 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐢𝐧𝐝𝐮𝐬𝐭𝐫𝐲 𝐭𝐫𝐞𝐧𝐝𝐬
If you have a subscription, it's great to make the Wall Street Journal your homepage on your Internet browser. If not, you can subscribe to an email newsletter. I really like ExecSum by Litquidity because it hits on all the high points, but has a casual style and makes for a more entertaining read. Big picture, you need a general sense of "the finance news" when you walk into a meeting.
3. 𝐁𝐮𝐢𝐥𝐝 𝐚 𝐧𝐞𝐭𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐤
I started working in 2009. Some of the people I met back then are still friends and clients. When you're young you have no idea where your career will take you. Be kind to people, keep in touch, and never burn a bridge (even if you want to). That network can pay dividends for years to come.
4. 𝐃𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐥𝐨𝐩 𝐬𝐭𝐫𝐨𝐧𝐠 𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐦𝐮𝐧𝐢𝐜𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐬𝐤𝐢𝐥𝐥𝐬
Cranking on financial models is cool but it's not enough. You need to be able to communicate like a person. Some basic tips for data storytelling: * What happened? (reporting on the data) * Why did it happen? (giving the data context) * What do we do next? (providing a recommendation)
5. 𝐀𝐝𝐦𝐢𝐭 𝐰𝐡𝐞𝐧 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐝𝐨𝐧'𝐭 𝐤𝐧𝐨𝐰 𝐬𝐨𝐦𝐞𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐠
Just gonna put this out there. IT'S OKAY IF YOU DON'T KNOW SOMETHING.
In fact, as an Analyst I don't expect you to know much. I just appreciate someone that is eager to learn and has the humility to admit they're unsure. A good manager will use it as a teaching opportunity to help you and also reinforce their own learning (you have to know it to teach it, so don't be afraid to ask, you're helping your manager too!)
To Recap:
1. Financial modeling
2. Stay informed
3. Network
4. Communicate
5. Humility
Next Steps:
💻 If and when the time is right, I offer Advanced Financial Modeling Courses for FP&A and Private Equity Professionals. Check them out if you're interested.