Carle 1 Nicholas Carle Mrs. Gardner English 10 Hon, 1.

13 February 2014 Financial Analysts Reflection Choosing a career path can be a difficult situation as each direction will ultimately change your life all together. Commonly influenced on high school students, this remarkable change from childhood to adulthood, shows significant impact in the development of ones character. Growing up I was fascinated with numbers as they expressed what I now realized represented money. At a young age, I realized that there were numerous ways one could make their money grow. Starting with a simple CD bank account paying a 5% annual interest, my obsession soon developed into a more complicated market: precious metals. I found that precious metals such as silver, gold and platinum had a simple market value that would fluctuate based on certain aspects of the economy. The idea was simple to me; buy low and sell high. Quickly advancing into what some compared to as gambling, the stock market showed huge benefits financially. Unlike Blackjack and Poker, the stock was perceived that i could be beet. Unaware of it at the time, my career path was predictable just as I presumed the stock market to be. Narrowing down the professions that satisfied my interest, I could relate myself most to a Financial Analyst. As a greater demand for this profession has increased due to many new ways an investor can diversify their portfolio, a financial analyst not only helps himself succeed but help his his clients. With the average pay nearly over $100,000 a year, the job would allow me to express my interests and personality while still satisfying my financial needs. Unlike other jobs,

Carle 2 a Financial Analyst provides an opportunity for growth as a character. Constantly looking into the structure of companies, ultimately making up our society, a Financial Analyst is an ongoing learning experience. In an attempt to learn more about the reality of the career, I turned to a local Financial Analysts: William Roland. With several questions in mind, I was intrigued by answers I received. Learning that there wasnt a specific category that defined a typical day in the office, but rather three primary categories:ongoing education, preparation for a client meeting, and lastly the client meeting whether it was in person, through skype, or by phone. Similar to that of many high school student, he too wasnt sure what he wanted to pursue until late in college. However for me, it was the diversity and ability to work with others that persuaded me to continue my career path in business and finance. It was numbers that defined me because unlike any other subject there was only one answer. As we approach adulthood, we are commonly asked what we want to do once out of college. The typical answer would be I dont know yet, however the importance of looking into our future now can only help us down the road. A wise man once said You're not living unless you're doing something you love and that something is already in my life.

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