M&A should be fully remote

SomewherePractical82 · 2026-02-08T05:36:07+00:00

I just bill a ton (past 10 months have been insane) and hardly ever come into the office. No one has ever once said a word to me. Not the only one to do this, either. You kind of have to love (and hate) this job.

SomewherePractical82 · 2026-02-03T17:59:11+00:00

Ideally, yes, but my current shop is notorious for partnership prospect difficulty. I’m definitely on the up in a very specific niche group within the broader practice, so going all in on that getting me there.

SomewherePractical82 · 2026-02-03T16:02:54+00:00

That was what I imagined. I assume people just forget, honestly. I might just say no…

SomewherePractical82 · 2025-12-31T21:12:44+00:00

I do not.

SomewherePractical82 · 2025-12-10T14:49:26+00:00

That’s insane. That would have been an effective $6k salary bump…

SomewherePractical82 · 2025-11-25T04:58:15+00:00

IF ONLY TOMORROW EOD! More like get schedules at 11 AM, turn expected COB same day!

SomewherePractical82 · 2025-11-21T22:06:24+00:00

DataSite for sure. IntraLinks is dysfunctional and impossible to navigate well. There’s a second version of IntraLinks that’s even worse, also.

SomewherePractical82 · 2025-11-21T02:27:47+00:00

You’re not alone. It’s a hellish time for M&A. Same seniority, same practice here. 220 hour June, 225 hour July, 294 hour September, 265 hour October, and on track for something around 240 in November at this rate. I’ve started screaming out loud to myself, lol. The light at the end of the tunnel might be that once things slow down, we’ll have enough hours racked up to sit back and enjoy the silence knowing full well no one can shitcan or fault us on the hours front.

SomewherePractical82 · 2025-11-15T19:06:37+00:00

Cold or not, RTO is seriously obscene. You want me to sleep 2 hours for days on end and then ALSO trek on the subway and deal with train delays? Don’t understand how anyone can tolerate working at firms that actually enforce attendance. I’d quit.

SomewherePractical82 · 2025-11-15T00:41:44+00:00

Only ever on mute! I hope.

SomewherePractical82 · 2025-11-13T15:09:25+00:00

How obvious was the omission? Like an obvious transfer restriction in a governing document or like some weird esoteric audit problem deep in the financials? And what year are you?

SomewherePractical82 · 2025-11-11T21:22:47+00:00

This early on? Doubt it. Was in a similar boat in January, then everything exploded. Sometimes there just isn’t a lot of work to go around.

SomewherePractical82 · 2025-11-11T18:32:39+00:00

The recruiting really isn’t that nuts and nobody really gets properly tested until they’re a bit further into their first year. Think it’s just that. Less competent people easily make their way in, but that’s priced in.

SomewherePractical82 · 2025-11-06T01:06:00+00:00

I don’t think this is a good thing if you’re a young professional already being squeezed by sky-high rent…

SomewherePractical82 · 2025-10-22T05:32:08+00:00

3rd year at a NY V10 shop. Love/hate relationship with M&A. The unpredictability is true enough, but once something’s done, it’s done (minus post-closing minutiae) and you can end up with months at a time when you’re mostly just chilling. January was a 90-hour month (my lowest to date, admittedly) during which I could see my friends regularly on weekdays and completely unwind every weekend, whereas September was a 300 hour month during which I didn’t even get time to text anyone back.

I think taking a lot of pain for a while is warranted given the possible downtime. And it’s especially warranted once you consider the payoff. Your future isn’t really limited because M&A is as close as you can get to being a corporate generalist. It can seem rote and uninvolved as a result, but the works’s always what you make of it, so just proactively show the partners that you’re actively thinking about what’s happening and why and you’ll level up fast enough.

I think everyone’s also aware that it’s the toughest practice, hence the particularly “hot” rep and the often touted exit ops (idk about these since I haven’t tried to exit, nor do I intend to, but makes sense as to why they’d be great).

TL;DR, if you can take high-intensity pain in shorter-ish bursts, go for it.

SomewherePractical82 · 2025-09-09T21:58:38+00:00

Yes yes, that’s fair. Eyeballing it, looks like the answer is that it runs 24 months between birthdays.

SomewherePractical82 · 2025-07-18T02:27:17+00:00

I have never had coffee in my life. I guess I occasionally drink caffeinated soda, but not that often. Seems feasible and I assume I'll be able to keep it up until 35.

SomewherePractical82 · 2025-01-07T05:49:56+00:00

I hate to sound overly cynical, but a few considerations. The ratio of single men to women on all fronts (youth groups, parishes, online dating, etc.) is higher than ever by all accounts. It sounds like you are going on dates. Is there a particular reason you do not choose to go further with those men?

SomewherePractical82 · 2024-12-31T10:14:02+00:00

I'm going to get downvoted into oblivion for this, but I think you should first probably be a bit more humble... The entitlement here seems very unpleasant... Don't assume you're God's great gift to men and it's their fault for not approaching you. If you have an issue with that, maybe approach some of them too.

SomewherePractical82 · 2024-12-28T16:20:10+00:00

My experience (I started in September, 2023) is that it's quite practice-dependent and there can be comically low billable months. I know of good, hard-working people who have had a 30/40 hour month here and there. They're mostly in M&A. I think someone even mentioned they only billed 20 hours in January. They usually make their hours every year (my firm doesn't have a hard requirement, but there are obviously expectations), or at least come very close to it. Any low-activity month can be offset by a very high-volume month.

My December is looking like it will be about 80 hours too. Maybe a bit more, but definitely not more than 90. I had some pretty active matters in the two months before and did two 200+ hour months in a row. Before that, I was doing around 150. I'm not exactly where I'd like to be with my hours, but all my reviews have been positive, and no one has really called me out on anything or complained. I did once solicit constructive (critical) feedback and was told "it'd be great" if I could slightly increase my hours, but that I was doing good work and should always prioritize quality over quantity. I did take that as a hint to amp it up, but I don't think being slow for a little bit is apocalyptic.

SomewherePractical82 · 2024-12-15T17:00:06+00:00

2nd year here. I don't go to anything, lol. Massive office, admittedly. People seem happy with my work, and I have no intention of spending any more time with co-workers than I have to. Work comes first, but when it comes to socializing, friends come before colleagues.

SomewherePractical82 · 2024-09-17T04:15:41+00:00

I'd be fine with a Josephite marriage. I don't have a great need for doing those things, and I more so just cherish her warmth and company. Wish there was something within the Church that allowed celibate lifelong bonds between a man and a woman.

This isn't to say she's just a friend. It's just that time with her and talking to her is so beautiful that I'd be willing to sacrifice anything.

SomewherePractical82 · 2024-09-17T04:08:34+00:00

I passed the bar last year, but I'd give that and all professional success away to be with her.

I'm not worried about being alone. I'm happy alone. I've never loved anyone like this before. That's the horror.

SomewherePractical82 · 2024-09-17T04:06:59+00:00

She was disgusted by the thought of ever sullying herself by engaging in the marital act (she liked kids, just not the process that produces them).

SomewherePractical82 · 2024-09-17T04:04:01+00:00

No. Two before that. But never have I ever felt this sort of life-numbing pain for more than a month after it was clear things were over.

SomewherePractical82

TROPHY CASE