My best advice for a career in Finance?

Try to get some Operations experience.

Finance is often thought of as behind-closed-doors "scorekeepers."

We just "check in" once a month to tell you why you missed your budget.

This perception exists b/c a lot of finance professionals don't have Operations experience.

In fact, that was me for several years.

I "knew" finance academically. Knew how the pieces fit.

But I mostly did "desktop analysis." Looked at the numbers and reported them.

I could tell you WHAT happened but not WHY.

Fast forward to my private equity days... Suddenly I was:

▪️ In the warehouse

▪️ Building the equipment

▪️ Driving the trucks

▪️ Stocking the shelves

▪️ Creating content

▪️ Locking up at night

Did this make me a pro? No way. I still spent most of my time looking at deals.

But —

I started to answer "WHY" in a lot of our meetings.

"If we want to stock the shelves faster we can try [X]."

🔑 Over time I was able to weigh in on our future strategy, not just report the past.

🔑 This moved me forward in my career.

Fast forward further to my Solopreneur days:

▪️ My finance knowledge keeps my strategic decisions in check

▪️ The Ops experience enables me to get stuff done

▪️ They work in tandem to make good use of my time

▪️ (I still make plenty of mistakes — that's life)

So what can you do?

▪️ Ask to be involved "on site" in someway

▪️ See if you can "shadow" here and there

▪️ Not with the intent to give advice — just to observe & ask

▪️ Doesn't have to be all-consuming — just something you can point to

An Operational thinker with a Financial background is a powerful asset.

This can be a great way to differentiate yourself.

So — that's just my two cents.

What's your opinion?

❓What advice would you give to someone pursuing a career in finance?

—Chris

If and when the time is right, I offer refreshingly straightforward Financial Modeling Courses for FP&A and Private Equity Professionals that have been recognized all over the world.  Check them out if you're interested (if not, that's cool too 👍).  Just click here.