Everybody who makes contact with at least 25 decision makers and asks them for an order, an appointment, or a referral will be around in 3 years. The firm is irrelevant to success. What are the chances that you will make 25 contacts per day? 100% if you decide to and zero, if you decide not to.

I just want to add one thing…If you fail at a wirehouse, a bank may give you a last chance. Banks are where people end up before they fail out of the business.

Dirk is right.  Clients want a firm they have heard of (generally) but it’s the man, or woman that will make the difference.  Whichever firm you choose, assume that if you do the work, you will make it

Great replies, but don’t think any of them answered his real question though. What is the percentage?

Maybe as high as 30% still around at 3 years?  But perhaps another
10-15% will just be hanging on at the 3 year mark and clearly don’t
have the long viability but haven’t accepted it or had a firm make the
decision for them.  If you stretch the time horizon to say 10
years, probably between 10-15% really making a reasonable living is
something that resembles a full-blown broker (ie not at a bank where
they feed off of current bank customers).

I meant of the 30%, 10-15% (so 1/3 to 1/2 that are left) will be gone eventually (not additional to the 30%).

[quote=Cowboy93]I meant of the 30%, 10-15% (so 1/3 to 1/2 that are left) will be gone eventually (not additional to the 30%). [/quote]

Give it one more try.

OK, I meant:  maybe 30 of 100 left after 3 years…but of those
30, only 10 or 15 are still kicking long term (say 10 years in). 
I don’t know about differences in that rate between wirehouses; I
started at Jones.  But seems like any differences would be based
on individual circumstances.



I do tend to think that if you took the average wirehouse recruit–more
polished and/or accomplished than the avg EJ recruit–and put them
through the EJ training, you’d probably raise the success rate a decent
amount.  I am probably biased to think that way because EJ was
useful to me early on.

I would say 35% max.  Unless the major firms begin being more selective.  They tend to hire a lot of people who have no real shot just so that they can fill a quota.  I agree that the firm is irrellavant because all the big firms are pretty similar.  You make or break your own career.

[quote=iconsult100]I would say 35% max.  Unless the major firms begin being more selective.  They tend to hire a lot of people who have no real shot just so that they can fill a quota.  I agree that the firm is irrellavant because all the big firms are pretty similar.  You make or break your own career.[/quote]

Agreed.  This has been my observation over very many years.  They don't get nearly as many qualified applicants as seats they are required to fill....so they hire who they can and throw it all against the wall to see what sticks.....

Cowboy…Did you mean that you think the average wirehouse recruit is more polished than a Jones recruit? I am not fishing for Jones bashers, please

[quote=JonesIR]Cowboy...Did you mean that you think the average wirehouse recruit is more polished than a Jones recruit? I am not fishing for Jones bashers, please[/quote]

I worked at HO for other firms and in Field Service for your employer. I can unequivocally say YES wirehouse recruits on average are MORE polished!

Jones IR…yes, that’s what I meant–on AVERAGE.  It is probably a
function of paying $24k (EJ) vs. a lot more (other) to
newbies…you’ll just attract a little more accomplished people with a
higher guaranteed income, despite the fact that it is irrelevant to
success.  I meant that statement to be very matter-of-fact (or
opinion I guess), not a bash at all.



I’d tell any new person that you need to find the situation that gives
you the highest probably of success (as they define it), regardless of
how little or much they pay you.  As we all know, the 1 or 2 years
of salary is quite fleeting.