'Dream' Job At JPMorgan Chase Was Just The Opposite: Why One Employee Quit Shortly After Landing It

Xaviera Ho spent years working toward becoming an analyst at JPMorgan Chase & Co JPM. When she finally landed the position, she quit less than two years in.

Feeling Small: "It was my dream firm, and I thought I would stay there until I became a managing director," Ho told Business Insider.

While she learned a lot in her first year, the second year saw Ho's work-life balance slip away.

There's "no such thing" as work-life balance in banking, she says. "Because I was so involved with the markets and making trades, I had to be on top of the financial market news. I also had to be constantly available to respond to senior bankers and clients, even after hours and on weekends."

While at JPMorgan, Ho began feeling lost in a "web of bureaucracy," or that she was just a "cog in the wheel."

Ho eventually realized she wanted to be closer to key decision-makers and perhaps start her own projects. So, she left JPMorgan to join a private investment firm.

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"Compared to JPMorgan, where the impact of my work wasn't so tangible, I feel a sense of ownership over the portfolio companies that I help manage," she added. 

Dreaming Big: Ho recalled reading Robert Kiyosaki's "Rich Dad Poor Dad" book when she was 16 years of age. The lessons about using investing to build wealth sparked her interest in finance.

In high school, she was awarded a scholarship to study at the National University of Singapore Business School, where she completed several internships in the finance world. 

Ho spent four years at the university level before getting a job offer from JPMorgan, which she has no regrets taking. After all, the firm offered brand-name exposure and networking opportunities.

She now recommends that others follow a similar path.

"Once you have that on your resume, you can branch out and do whatever you want," Ho said. 

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Photo: Håkan Dahlström from Flickr.