Safe In The City???

What in the Sam Hill (I love that phrase, and who the hell is Sam Hill BTW??) Was going on last week in the markets and Investment Banking world? My mother asked me "have you considered getting a job in a different field?" And a returned call from my aunt, (which was about 4 days overdue was calling to see if everything was alright with the company that I work for and my job, with all of the bad news going on last week. To answer their questions, queries and concerns, no, and never until I am good and ready, am I getting out of this field of work no matter how dark it gets, or how many people lose their jobs, and no matter how many financial institutions collapse. I will move on just like I have always done. And as for the company I work for, no threats like those who worked for Lehman's encountered or the potential job losses that may arise with the HBOS and Lloyds TSB merger that's in talks. But never say never it can happen.

To put it simply the money is too good to move. And I do very well for a college dropout. So for that alone, taking a pay cut, just because of the potential threat of job losses is not up my alley, nor is that part of my mentality to just give up either. There are tons of jobs out there and for those that don't want to work for investment banks can go and work for custodians on pretty much the same money.

You see the 5,000 or so that lost their jobs in London are probably going to have a problem, due to the likelihood alone that a lot of them either

(a) were permanent and had been in their jobs for x amount of years
and/or

(b) had no savings and probably lived from pay check to pay check.

If either of the above had been me, I would have been crying with my box full of desk laden possessions too.

After numerous lengthy discussions with friends and family members over this past week, it seems the key to surviving in the City and making sure you are indeed safe is simple. Look at your finances and manage them accordingly. Do you need the cable subscription if you're working 40 hours a week and only watching 1 hour of TV a day? Do you really need to spend £5 a day on lunch when you can spend 10 minutes at home the night before and bring it into work? Do you still need to be paying the gym membership that you haven't used in god knows when?
Taking charge of your finances and saving as much as you can maybe the difference between losing your job unexpectedly hitting you so hard you have no idea what you are going to do, compared to taking it lightly on the chin and being able to chill for a week or 2 before deciding what your next path is going to be because you are prepared and have money in the bank that your next move is clear with thought and not made in haste or panic.
That Lehman's news broke a week ago today, and that same evening, I looked at my finance spreadsheet (yes I have a spreadsheet, and some may laugh, my spreadsheet has been the ridicule of many. At least after my bills are paid I know how much money I'll have 1, 2 and 3 months from now), and made sure come the end of my contract at the end of the year, there was money to tie me over if I made a few adjustments and lived like I was a pauper for the next 10 to 12 weeks.

Luckily and god willing if nothing happens between now and then I will be totally fine, and if it's not, well then you know what I'll go and work for a custodian or another investment bank on be it a short or a long term contract. I'm getting 40 jobs daily sent to me with salaries that surpass the national average tenfold via e-mail from ONE SITE, so when people are saying there are no jobs I have no idea what they are talking about. Maybe another excuse to sign on at the Jobcentre rather than log in online and take a look and see what's going on out there. Or is it fear stopping them from going out there and theoretically speaking, standing on the street corners of Bank and Canary Wharf hoping for the highest bidder to drive by and offer them a job?
When you're permanent you have a "It won't happen to me mentality" compared to us contractors who know "Shoot, tomorrow could be my last day, but if it is I have 7 agency contacts and will be working within a week." Without the bad news going on in the city, this is a way of life for us City Banking Contractors (CBC's), with contracts that are short term to long term we are used to moving on, putting yourself forward for jobs, going on interview after interview and having a new induction at every company we join making sure we are aware of where the fire exits are. This is a way of life for us, and although the sound of it may be like fingers on a chalk board for people used to being at a firm for 5 years and being comfortable, this is what now may need to be done for a lot of people.

There are too many things I want out of life and places I need to travel and see to have a 'throw in the towel' mentality because the job market is taking a hit. And no amount of bad news and scaremongering is going to make me think any differently about my position and whether it's 'Safe In The City' I'm here to stay until I decide I want out.