Kids, don’t study economics and don’t do investment banking

Don’t be like me.

I have a messaging group with my four close friends. We all studied Economics for our undergraduate degree and then worked in investment banking.

I generalized a little — one of my friends studied math, and the other didn’t land an investment banking job — but our professional journeys have been similar.

So one of my friends messaged us the other day about how he was finally throwing away the notes from his Economics degree. He sent a few images with the caption “no shit” and went on a rant about the meaninglessness of it all. His point — if I were to simplify — was that economists describe the most trivial phenomena and develop models that no one actually needs. Out of all of us, he once had the most passion for economics as an academic subject, and now, twenty years later, he’s disillusioned.

I agree with him. I got disillusioned long ago. We went to Cambridge! We were at one of the world's most prestigious and ancient universities. We roamed the streets that Isaak Newton roamed. And instead of doing something special, we studied damn Economics.