Most of us have had a crushing job experience at least once in our lives. Here’s mine (and what I learned from it)
Feb 4, 2021 was perhaps the worst day of my professional life. It was the day my dream job slipped through my fingers.
Here’s the story.
After graduating from my MBA program in 2018, I took a job with Deloitte Consulting in Boston as a management consultant in their Strategy & Operations division. It was, at the time, the “biggest” job I had ever had.
I had prepared rigorously for the last 3 years to get accepted into a top consulting firm. And after 30+ practice case interviews, hours of networking, and an intense 2-day interview at Deloitte’s office in Atlanta (they even put me up in the Ritz Carlton!), I had finally reached my long-time goal.
I vividly remember getting the call from a senior Deloitte partner offering me the job (as my 1st kid had just been born only a few hours earlier and my wife/I were still basking in the joy of being new parents; it was probably one of the best days of my life!).
At first, things in consulting were great. The work was exciting. My coworkers were incredibly bright and willing to teach me the ropes. My family loved living in Boston. And I was getting incredible experience, working with clients across a huge range of industries (from Silicon Valley Startups to Global Defense Contractors), and getting to advise senior leaders at major corporations.
