If investment banking is something you’ve always wanted to do, seek consolation in the fact that the Wall Street job market experiences cycles of growth and contraction. Yes, the sector has had to endure the Great Depression, the market crash of 1987, and the burst of the dot-com bubble, but there have also been remarkable periods of success and affluence intermingled in the field’s long history. When you work in finance, it is part of the job to understand that the tide of the economy ebbs and flows. The smart employee knows how to handle both ends of the cycle.
Opportunities within the realm of finance exist for persons interested in investment banking who are having difficulty finding a job because of the current circumstances. Employment and management expert James Peter Rubin, writing for Wetfeet.com, recently quipped, ''Opportunity can spring from dark times.'' He suggests that displaced I-bankers look toward financial sector positions in hedge funds, private equity, or venture capital. According to Rubin, out of work bankers should also think about working as the finance person at companies in other fields or at non-profits. And if all else fails, you might finally have found your excuse for pursuing dormant interests in more creative fields like cooking or the arts.