Herwin Gill - My Life

I'm Good

Hey, it's been a while. Thought I'd share an what I've been up to and how my experience is turning out.

On the doing side of things, I mostly hibernated through winter. So far only a couple days have gone below zero, we've had a single day of snow, and it barely rains. Everyone said the weather is similar between London and Vancouver, but my experience is proving them wrong. Over the short break, Sonia and I explored the Christmas market (Winter Wonderland), went shopping, and browsed London's museums. Not terribly exciting. The semester so far is shaping up reasonably - still too many hours of academia, but a lot less time on the job hunting front.

On that note, I didn't quite have the success I was hoping in consulting, but at the end of the day, some companies with interesting roles have expressed interest in me. My stress levels plummeted and my confidence was restored.

On the growth side, here are some things I've been reflecting on:

  • When you don't know what you want, be careful of wanting what others do. It's easy to look around and let your environment get you excited about opportunities and dreams - just be sure that they're your own.
  • My worst case scenario might be someone else's best case scenario. Don't get caught up when things don't go your way. Most of us will always have options that provide more than what you need (don't confuse wants for needs).
  • Focus on the opportunity, not the risk. Risk will paralyze you, opportunity will inspire and mobilize you.

Beyond school, my focus right now is finding something to dedicate my "cognitive surplus" to. I'm a builder and need to building something or else I don't feel fulfilled. Anyone working on anything neat they'd like some help with? I've got new found expertise in start-ups, venture capital, private equity, and management buy-outs.

How have you been?

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Still alive

I thought the program started off busy, but four months in it's still picking up. I'm writing this during a class on valuations; I haven't really had any free time to write. Right now is probably one of the busiest and most stressful periods in the program - major projects due on Monday and exams during the following week. So my update: I've been studying, working on projects, and applying for jobs. Sorry, not the most exciting update. How about instead you update me on how life's going for you? (as a comment or email [don't expect an immediate response!]).

On my grind...

I wrote my first mid-term last week (3 weeks after class started). I was worried I'd be rusty so I put in a few extra hours of studying. I did well, but the Professor warned us there's a negative correlation between midterm and final grades.

I wish I had some stories to share, but the week after studying was dedicated to putting my all into applications to the top tier consultancies (submitted them today). Spent more than 10 hours in presentations and networking between five firms. I know it's going to sound like BS, but I easily put in another 30 hours getting my applications together. Yesterday alone, I worked on my applications for 7 hours after attending a 6 hour workshop on Private Equity and Leveraged Buyout Modeling. I've come to far not to give it my all. I can accept failure, but I won't be able to face regrets of not putting in 100% effort.

Call me sick, but putting in these hours is gratifying... nothing beats working hard towards your dreams.

One Month In

One month down, ten more to go...

Our programme is becoming a little more relaxed in terms of scheduled classes and events, but time's still scarce as events have been replaced with assignments and it's recruiting season for many of the big firms. Going to start flexing my networking muscles and try to get in contact with people from the companies I'm interested in (if you have contacts in London, New York, Singapore or Toronto in PE/Banking/Consulting, help me out!).

Now that I've been here a month, here's what I think of London so far. My overall impression is that it's a dynamic city, but nothing particularly special (or at least not when you're cash-strapped as a student). The weather so far has been worse than Vancouver - cloudy for the most part and I usually need a jacket. On the rare days it's sunny, the wind kicks in hard. The grocery stores are probably the part I dislike the most about being here. No less than half of every grocery store is frozen foods and meats, and the other half is split between liquor, dry foods, veggies and fruits and clothes. Selection is particularly bad - you can choose between bland food and more bland food. And lastly, unless you made your money in GBPs, everything is ridiculously overprice. Everything costs at least what it would in Vancouver, but in GBP vs dollars in Canada.To be fair to the city, I've been exposed to the parts I dislike, but not so much the parts I'm likely to enjoy. Work-life might be completely different.

Anyways, I'm keeping focused - putting my all into it.

Here's what my Financial Accounting and Analysis binder looks like:

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First week of my Masters

When I set off for London, I had no idea what I was in for. Just this Saturday I went rock-climbing… blindfolded.

I’ve only been in school for 7 days but I feel like I’ve been studying and mingling with fellow students for months. We definitely didn’t ease into it, or if we did, keeping up with London Business School (LBS) at full-thrust is going to be challenging to say the least. LBS has done a great job creating an environment and circumstances for students to quickly start trusting each other. The blindfolded rock-climbing was a part of some outdoor activities we participated in to develop trust in each other.

The students here are definitely top notch. Last week, we tore into each other’s CVs/resumes and it was amazing reading about how quickly some of my fellow students have grown into high-level positions. Many of these guys have been working 80-100 hours a week and none of them are burnt out. And here they are at LBS reaching for extended responsibility. Being surrounded by such calibre is definitely lighting a burning desire in me.

But it’s not just the students. The whole city gives off a let’s-make-it-happen vibe. It’s a fast paced and dynamic city. Right or wrong, it evokes the desire for prestige and riches – and it feels good to aspire to a lifestyle. I wouldn’t say London's better than Vancouver, but I do think it’s better suited for my current stage of life. Let's see how my view of the city evolves over the next year.

Welcome

Welcome,

You asked me to keep in touch and I want to honor that request. So I'm starting this journal. Over time, it will evolve from my trek over to London into my thoughts of reaching for my potential.

If you're game and want to keep up with my adventures, please subscribe using the Subscribe by Email link or RSS button, both on the right.

I would love to have you as part of my journey, so please leave comments and share your own thoughts on my posts.

So welcome into the mind of Herwin Gill.

Rock Climbing (Belay Lesson)

In anticipation of an outdoor rock climbing adventure, Sean, Sonia and I took a belay lesson at Vertical Reality. I saved Sonia's life several times during the lesson and earned the nickname Hero. On the flip side, I ended up all scratched and bruised as Sonia let me plummet to the floor on more than one occasion (kidding, she's actually pretty good).

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