Tag: t_vague

$100,000 personal income in the U.S.

Posted on by tiger40490
Among the working people in the US, how many earn more than $100k/year?
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Personal_income_in_the_United_States shows that only 6.61% of Americans had incomes exceeding $100,000 in 2010. 
 
But how many people were surveyed? Apparently all of the Americans there were. US population is about 300 million. In total 244 million individuals aged 15 or higher received income in 2010 as recorded by the United States Census Bureau. http://www.census.gov/hhes/www/cpstables/032011/perinc/new01_001.htm is the official data source behind the 6.61% statistics. That 6.61% percent means 13,970,000 individuals.
 
Goldman Sachs has about 30,000 perm employees. Most investment banks (or the IB arm of universal banks) employ many more. Morgan Stanley has almost 60,000. I would guess the combined headcount in the sell-side exceeds 300,000. I also guess Wall St + Chicago finance sector would support at least 200,000 jobs paying 6-figures. Silicon Valley + other high-tech regions may also support a similar number of 6-figure jobs. 
Like any large scale survey, I’m sure there are many major sources of estimation errors. Not sure which are the most severe —
* did the people being surveyed lie about their income, perhaps to reduce tax?
* did some people miss the survey altogether? 
* Were some people between jobs in 2010 therefore earned lower than their normal income?
 

Fwd: Ubuntu laptop you set up for me

Posted on by tiger40490
(See also post on “why invest so much in c# and detailed technical knowledge” in the 610610 blog.)

I often feel a persistent self-doubt about the hands-on learning curve. It often feels too stiff and time-consuming and I wonder whether it’s worth the effort. I mean, will I ever use this c++@linux PPS skill?

(Luckily, the algorithm type of coding IV doesn’t involve a lot of infrastructure set-up…..)

Well, I see no better directions for professional growth. The few good directions are quant and c#. I feel c++ is more strategic. IF this is indeed strategic (as mentioned in the earlier mail), then this effort would give me a real edge over my competitors. Every one of them must go through the same learning curve but very few are willing to.

Perhaps most important of all, this c++ skill opens up a new area of job opportunities as we age.

In interviews and work projects, hands-on coding ability is essential.

I believe some hardcore interviewers (esp. in the US) are very picky about hands-on coding capabilities esp. in algorithms. Beside that, candidates may need IDE familiarity. The Other PPS skills (see earlier mail) may not be easy to test during interviews.

Is there a self-improvement free of self-doubt? I feel the reality is that most serious self-improvement efforts have an element of uncertainty, so when the going gets tough self-doubt is inevitable.

———- Forwarded message ———-
From: Bin TAN (Victor) <tiger40490@gmail.com>
Subject: Ubuntu laptop you set up for me – thanks

[13]le2XR: some personal problems we face

Posted on by tiger40490

XR,

I see you are under stress from work, renovation, new born … Here’s some personal reflections to share with you.

I feel multiple pains in spouse communication, pains in child education/discipline, pains in boss relationship, pains in unhealthy lifestyle. It’s good to identify the  fundamental problems, but before that, it’s also important to strengthen the no-problem areas (otherwise they too can become problems) —

+ I have no-problem with my cash flow, though it’s going to become much heavier, due to mortgage, masters’ program starting soon, and 2nd child.
+ I have no-problem with the mainstream technical skills such as java, SQL, though c++ still needs improvement. C# is new growth area for me.
+ my son and wife have no-problem in health — nothing major so far. In contrast, my dad has conditions, and I have a stubborn cholesterol level to work on
+ my job is secure, as OC doesn’t layoff people just because they are not performing so well. They may give me no raise no bonus or transfer me out. I am preparing myself mentally for it.
+ I have no-problem with colleagues — no major issue
+ I have no-problem with sleep, even though I sleep less than I need
+ I have no-problem with appetite. No too-low appetite, no too-high appetite

Now, among the problem areas, I feel stress management is a common thread.

Time (and priority) management is another common thread. Why?
– I need more time to exercise (but can’t convince myself to);
– I need to postpone a lot of less critical plans so as to focus on the tough challenges;
– child education is a slow process — patience.

I used to effectively put off a lot of non-urgent and non-critical items, but now as head of a family many non-urgent decisions become urgent, so I can no longer put them off, not effectively. I feel overwhelmed with many small decisions.

Related to that is my detail-oriented and perfectionist habits — another common thread. A bit too slow. Sometimes people say I’m too careful too slow making decisions. I now feel some decisions have consequences we need to understand, so we better assume they are important. Many decisions turn out to be so minor that even an unwise choice won’t have a big impact. I probably tend to treat too many non-critical decisions as critical — stress, time-consuming decision making.

Another common theme is leadership (and communication as such). I have never been an experienced leader. Now I find myself leading my family, though I never chose the job. Fundamental change to my role. Not used to it. I have too many quarrels with my mother (staying with us to help take care of kid) and, worse, with wife. That’s not leadership at all. I make decisions and they object. I’m not used to listening and adjusting my decisions. I wish my home be a happy place with laughter but it’s not, partly because of the tone I set. Perhaps more subtle is the influence on my son. I set a role model. I also influence my wife and indirectly affect my son’s attitude and character. I find myself much better at technical stuff than being a head of a household.

well done, even if not perfectly done

Posted on by tiger40490

It’s busy time due to the stamp duty payment, wardrobe decision

making, selling 2nd appt negotiation, selecting a contractor,

citizenship application …. So many decisions to make.

well done even though I didn’t study c++ or math. Actually i did study

a bit of math.

well done even though I didn’t go jogging.

well done at NUS even though I didn’t really speak to any professor.

well done taking care of boy on the trip even though he didn’t want to

listen to stories.

well done flossing even though only 3 spots

well done fixing recycler, even though after a long procrastination —

I finally did it

well done installing antivirus, even though after a long

procrastination — I finally did it

well done returning grandpa’s call, even though rather late

well done arranging the visit with Wilson

well done discussing, researching and resolving the Hobbit issue.

I’m basically doing my best so I don’t deserve any punishment,

self-hate, hostile comparison, unrealistic standard and criticism

Sometimes i feel no matter how hard I try, the Judge is displeased.

what motivates you

Posted on by tiger40490

Are these good enough answers?

A common IV question is “what motivates you” (or the similar “your career goals”, “where do you see yourself in 10 years”). I don’t like to give vague answers nor detailed answers. Here’s my answer

 

My family. Long term well being of my family.

 

I hope interviewer doesn’t ask further. If they do, I’d add

 

              I’d like to find a promising company, add real value, and remain on the cutting edge of technology.

If the company specializes in a particular market (FX, fixed income, options etc), I would say

              I'd like to build on my experience in other asset classes and deepen my expertise in this promising market.

If the company specializes in some particular technology (low-latency, python, risk engine etc), I would say

               I'm fascinated with this technology.

—
TAN, Bin (Victor) http://blog.tanbin.com

high maintenance – a few observations

Posted on by tiger40490

I was less high-maintenance on EOS, Aise, pershing, hamper… because I know these better than anyone in the world.

 

Email-review-by-mgr is classic highman.

 

Highman is infinitely better than offending people. I messed up with my emails to GS users. In citi, external (support) team is also considered “user”. Yet, in the big picture, I still fare better in written than oral communications.

##significantly better than 2005

Posted on by tiger40490

It’s easy to fall into a hole of self-pity and fail to raise your head and see …

* better than 2005 — didn’t have a wife
* better than 2006 — didn’t have brank
* better than 2006 when trying US jobs from S’pore. now I’m in such a strong position.

* better than 2007, facing difficulty conceiving.
* better than early 2007. unable to get out of Polaris and break into a good company
* better than 2008. Hoping to stay for 12 months
* better than those 25% laid off

* better than months ago. There’s a clearer path ahead. (Good I planned my sg strategy in Nov.)

Re: performance review this Friday

Posted on by tiger40490

My managers gave me about 20 – 40 pieces of advice…

My Plan#1 — follow 20% of their advice — the simple ones — and ….

However, Just to maintain my current level of productivity (which is below their expectation), I need to push myself to my max which is barely below self-torture. This so-called 80% level is still a painful workload though.

Now, to follow their simple advice, i need to follow up more, write more careful emails, do more professional documentation … requiring an x% additional effort. Remember 80% was already my max… Once I start my Plan #1 some managers will probably complain about my productivity drop, but I know what i have to do — i will tell them “i already gave my best shot.”

project management

Posted on by tiger40490
During my year-end performance review, one important area is project management esp. written specifications. We call them “functional spec” and “tech spec”.
 
I was expected to run the project FOR my managers and present them a set of control documents such as requirement spec, design spec, time line etc. They would read these from time to time and get an idea of where things stand.
 
I did a lot of these “quick-and-dirty” documentations for myself primarily and also made them readable by others. I used several “wiki” pages, which are not consolidated into one document. My managers didn't like these documentation. I think they prefer a consolidated MS-Word document. Due to this and other factors, they perceived that i failed to meet their expectations on project management, planning and organization. It also affected (to a lesser extent) my ratings in communications, initiatives.
 
Throughout my career, I pay more attention than colleagues to (early) planning, self-organization, documenting things, preventive initiatives… These are my strong areas, as many classmates, clients and colleagues told me. I feel my project management performance was average, with some strengths and also, due to the drive for speed, some weaknesses. My managers considered it below-average.