wow- 10 years. no excuses, though. good luck!

I’m sorry to hear this. Best of luck to you bro.

good luck to you!



things happen for a reason

sorry to hear your news, best of luck...

Very sorry for you. Sadly there will be many others joining you. But for the grace of God could be any of us at some point. 

Has anyone else decided its time to move on or perhaps get a second job until this thing blows over? Im not at that stage yet, but the drop off in biz gets me real nervous and I start thinking PT job. Then somehow I pull it together by the end of the month. And then the battle begins all over again.  

Based on guys Ive seen who have left under similar type situation, 100% of them 2 years later look back on it and it was best decision they ever made in their life.  Maybe stressful now, but pretty sure you will see it was the right move later.  Many Many more to follow you too, this market is done for a long long time.  Only question is how long.

Bondking…get something on the side. I did it in 2001 and 2002 for a while. Biz got real bad and I just had to do something. Working harder in the biz wasnt paying the bills so I got PT jobs and it saved my sanity and helped us get through that tough spell. Eventually was able to rebuild and do well. It sucked but it had to be done. And it may have to be done again. If so, so be it. 

Based on guys Ive seen who have left under similar type situation, 100%
of them 2 years later look back on it and it was best decision they
ever made in their life.
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I think a lot of us would walk if we could make the kind of money we have been making elsewhere in a more stable and enjoyable field. Problem is those jobs dont exist now. So we have to survive this. Just where the heck are we going to start all over at 40 plus yrs of age, for those of us in that age category?

Sad news.  Ten years in and having to get out.  Being only a month in that scares the bejesus out of me.  Though I just left 11 years in the mortgage biz.  Out of the frying pan…

this business is really really hard. i have made a ton of money over the years. wasted 10 years of my life (and one marriage) working like an insane madman. if i had to start again…i would not get in this GD business. when rookies come to me for advice i tell them to get their other jobs back. they laugh   im 100% serious   

Unfortunately, as a sign of the times, this thread could reach a hundred plus pages long.

I wasn't aware you could get a second(pt) job and still keep your day job...

JayMc…I agree. When anyone asks me how to get in the biz, Ill tell them to stay away. Not trying to discourage folks, just trying to spare them the life. I’m 12 years in and have made serious mistakes in this biz and also have recovered by the grace of God, but here we go down the chute again. Its a never ending cycle of highs and lows. Tremendous paychecks to near poverty wages. You have to be able to bank serious coin in the good times to survive the bad and that itself is not the easiest task if you have a family.  

I wasn’t aware you could get a second(pt) job and still keep your day job…
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yes you can. Just not in the industry. Sure the boss may not like it but they can go pound sand. They arent going to help us. Get a job at night and/or on weekends. Find something where you wont run into clients if possible. Security, limo driver, bouncer, bartender. Look for gigs on Craigs List. I know a guy stocking shelves at night. Its sucks, but it helps you and it builds character and its not forever. If your a guy, your wife isnt going to be very happy seeing you sit around complaining all the time about this sh*tty biz of ours. Go out and get a PT job. Helps you pay the bills and helps you keep your self respect. And people will respect you for it, not look down on you. Some will say dont get a PT job, just work harder. Ok great. Try that and if that works, keep doing it. If not, put your pride aside and get something to help you out until this blows over. Just my thoughts on this. Been there.

Before you go out and do this…remember, you’ll need to get approval
from your compliance department AND you’ll need to disclose it as an
Outside Business Activity on your U4.
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Yes this is correct, but in this environment no one will bat an eyelash at this unless you are trying to work for another investment/financial svs firm. No one will tell you that you cannot get an extra job to help make ends meet during this unprecedented economic downturn, if that is what you need to do. Could be the difference between surviving or not. When the recovery eventually comes, this will be a great business again.

I’ve been at this 28 years. There are good times, and there are bad times. You have to watch your expenses, and don’t spend money like the good times will last forever. They won’t, and neither will bad times.

Sorry to hear you are bailing out.  You'll be in my prayers.  Over the years I've seen this business chew up and spit out some of the best.  Unless Congress & the Fed are spot on perfect (which I doubt), there's no way the economy will lift prior to Q4-09....and perhaps far beyond.   We should all hunker down for a rough stretch and hope the lawyers stay away.  It's going to take all the sisu we can muster to ride this storm out!

For longest time I just thought that if things ever  got lean I would just work extra hard and bring in some more clients. Things have changed. I am also considering doing something on the side, including looking at some franchises. Its actually kind of fun to look at! Go to entrepenuer magazine website and look at all the franchises. I mean...who wouldn't rather be driving a Snapon tool truck right now!!