u/Accomplished-Wish490

Hey guys, Nov’23 CA passout here. Need some genuine advice or maybe just a reality check.

​My first job was at an Indian MNC, and honestly, the work profile was so basic I don’t even know what to call it. On paper, it was making period-end financials and helping out with some acquisition/divestment grunt work (mostly just strategy implementation and ground-level accounting). I was there for about 1.5 years, but the learning completely stopped after the first 2 or 3 weeks. It got to a point where I would have absolutely zero work for entire weeks.

​I didn't want to waste time, so I studied and cleared CFA Level 1. But watching my friends actually excel at their jobs while I sat idle really started messing with my head. The "no work" thing got too much, so I finally quit in Dec’25, thinking I’d easily find something better.

​But then life happened. Some personal stuff went completely out of hand, so I couldn't look for a job for the next 2 months. By then, my CFA Level 2 was due in May, so I just dove straight into studying.

​I literally just finished my CFA exam, and now I’m stuck. I have a 6-month career gap now.

​Should I start job hunting right now, or wait another month for the L2 results? Will having L2 cleared make a massive difference for FDD or Valuations roles, or is it better to just start applying immediately given the gap?

​What skills should I build? Since my actual work experience is pretty weak, what do I need to learn to crack FDD/Valuations? Any specific modeling skills or technical areas I should focus on while I wait?

​Really appreciate any insights from anyone in the field. Thanks!

Hey guys, Nov’23 CA passout here. Need some genuine advice or maybe just a reality check.

​My first job was at an Indian MNC, and honestly, the work profile was so basic I don’t even know what to call it. On paper, it was making period-end financials and helping out with some acquisition/divestment grunt work (mostly just strategy implementation and ground-level accounting). I was there for about 1.5 years, but the learning completely stopped after the first 2 or 3 weeks. It got to a point where I would have absolutely zero work for entire weeks.

​I didn't want to waste time, so I studied and cleared CFA Level 1. But watching my friends actually excel at their jobs while I sat idle really started messing with my head. The "no work" thing got too much, so I finally quit in Dec’25, thinking I’d easily find something better.

​But then life happened. Some personal stuff went completely out of hand, so I couldn't look for a job for the next 2 months. By then, my CFA Level 2 was due in May, so I just dove straight into studying.

​I literally just finished my CFA exam, and now I’m stuck. I have a 6-month career gap now.

​Should I start job hunting right now, or wait another month for the L2 results? Will having L2 cleared make a massive difference for FDD or Valuations roles, or is it better to just start applying immediately given the gap?

​What skills should I build? Since my actual work experience is pretty weak, what do I need to learn to crack FDD/Valuations? Any specific modeling skills or technical areas I should focus on while I wait?

​Really appreciate any insights from anyone in the field. Thanks!

Hey guys,

I have a genuine question for the girls here who always seem to look incredibly chic and "undone" in the most perfect way possible.

Be so for real right now: Are you actually just waking up and looking like that, or is "effortless" just an exhausting amount of behind-the-scenes engineering? Because from the outside, it looks like you just threw something on and walked out, but the closer I look, the more I feel like it’s a trap lmao.

Few things on top of my head:

The "messy" braid or bun where exactly three perfect strands of hair "accidentally" fall out to frame your face. If I try that, I look like I’ve been in a street fight or like a strict school teacher. Do you guys actually spend 10 minutes pulling out precise micro-strands and hair-spraying them? Or does your hair just obey you?

And the open hair situation!! How does it look completely untouched but somehow has volume at the roots and zero frizz in this brutal humidity? Is it a Dyson blowout from the night before or did you genuinely just air-dry it?

Same with the clothes. A basic white Chikankari kurti, boyfriend jeans, and silver jhumkas looks so casual and boho on some girls. But did you spend 20 minutes agonizing over which specific shade of denim makes the kurti pop without looking like you tried too hard? Because when I do it, I just look like I forgot to do my laundry.

Don't even get me started on the perfectly smudged, lived-in kajal look. On you, it's an indie aesthetic. On me, it looks like I had a minor breakdown in the auto on the way here.

I feel like being in our 20s in India right now means navigating this weird pressure to look stunning but acting like we don't care at all about our appearance.

So please spill the tea. If you are one of these girls, how much of it is just genetic luck/good hair texture, and how much of it is a highly calculated routine you've perfected? I need the real breakdown!