Damn, it Feels Good to Be a Banker: And Other Baller Things You Only Get to Say If You Work On Wall Street [Paperback]

Leveraged Sellout (Author)

Book Description

Release date: August 5, 2008

In one word: egregious.

Damn It Feels Good To Be A Banker is a Wall Street epic, a war cry for the masses of young professionals behind desks at Investment Banks, Hedge Funds, and Private Equity shops around the world. With chapters like "No. We do not have any `hot stock tips' for you," "Mergers are a girl's best friend," and "Georgetown I wouldn't let my maids' kids go there," the book captures the true essence of being in high finance.

DIFGTBAB thematically walks through Wall Street culture, pointing out its intricacies: the bushleagueness of a Men's Warehouse suit or squared-toe shoes, the power of 80s pop, and the importance of Microsoft Excel shortcut keys as related to ever being able to have any significant global impact.

The book features various, vivid illustrations of Bankers in their natural state (ballin'), and, in true Book 2.0 fashion, numerous, insightful comments from actual readers of the widely popular website LeveragedSellOut.com.

Thorough and well-executed, it's lens into the heart of an often misunderstood, unfairly stereotyped subset of our society. The view--breathtaking.

Reader Responses

"After reading this clueless propaganda, I strongly believe that you are a racist, misogynist jerk. FYI, Size 6 is not fat." --Banker Chick

"Strong to very strong." --John Carney, Editor-In-Chief, Dealbreaker.com

"I used to feel pretty good about making $200K/year." --Poor person

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Leveraged Sell-Out is Amit Chatwani. Chatwani graduated from Princeton in 2004. His interest and cynicism of finance culture come from his friendships and interactions at Princeton and in New York City. His first year out of college, he lived and in a TriBeCa apartment with 4 investment bankers with 5 more living directly upstairs. As a Management Consultant, he is both immersed in the industry and detached from it simultaneously, which allows him to ridicule the industry as well as he does. Amit also works with two Internet startups for which he has managed their Internet marketing. In this role, he has helped to drive hundreds of thousands of viewers to the respective website, all through his contacts and knowledge of blogs and Internet culture.

Product Details

• Paperback: 224 pages
• Publisher: Hyperion (August 5, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1401309682
• ISBN-13: 978-1401309688
• Product Dimensions: 5.1 x 0.5 x 8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (20 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #164,648 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

43 of 46 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars A working definition of Schadenfreude... September 21, 2008

By O. Buxton

Format:Paperback

I pity poor old "Leveraged Sellout", which would be the most wounding thing one could do to him ("one" being a person not blessed enough to work in front office advisory M&A at a bulge bracket investment bank), but only for his timing. After the events of September 2008 it's going to be a while before anyone preens about working in a Bulge Bracket investment bank on Wall Street. At this point (still in September 2008) there are only two left, one (Morgan Stanley) looking likely to go the way of all flesh in coming days (horror of all horrors courtesy of *Wachovia*!), and the last man standing, Messrs. Goldman, Sachs & Co, facing a very uncertain road ahead as an independent investment bank no matter how excellent its risk management, deal execution and intellectual capital may be.

So I pity the anonymous "Leveraged Sellout" simply because, as a result of his timing, this excellent and brutally funny little book will either disappear into the same gaping void that claimed Bear Stears, Merrill Lynch, AIG and Lehman Brothers or, worse, be held up by moronic lefties as a poster child for everything that was wrong with Wall Street.

It is no such thing. It's actually a riot - imagine a young Hunter Thompson or Tom Wolfe writing with verve about modern day Wall Street but not as an outsider or an ingenue, but fully steeped in the technical and cultural world of a 24 year-old master of the universe.

I have no doubt that whoever wrote this was a genuine insider - the observations and devastatingly funny sending up of the minutiae (such as the distinction between IBD and FICC and importance of never using your mouse when manipulating a spreadsheet) would never be apparent to an outsider who hadn't done a significant stretch. I spent 7 years at a bulge bracket bank myself (as a lowly inhouse lawyer, resolutely in unglamorous back office), and but for the inevitable comic hyperbole, Damn It Feels Good To Be A Banker rings very true. I loved every moment.

So it's kind of a historical document, even though it is pure satire. It captures the zeitgeist, circa August 2008, and if you've had any interaction with the IB fraternity in their prime - that is, before the Sub-Prime got them, you'll find this hysterically funny.

Olly Buxton

27 of 29 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars =IF(1+1=2,DIFGTBAB>BIBLE,0) August 6, 2008

By John Matthews

Format:Paperback

I'm still trying to discern what the funniest aspect of this book is. Is it the blatant elitism/classicsm? Perhaps. Is it Wall Street's misogyny and generalizations of foreigners? There's definitely something there. Perhaps its LSO's ability to apply banker-speak and concepts to everyday life? That plays a role no doubt. Or maybe it's simply everything about the LSO including the aforementioned plus utter disregard for anything below investment bankers (just about everything), complete with a hilariously satirical glorification of their larger-than-life existences. Bingo.

This really is the most prestigious book ever written.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars Loved hearing How Great Thou Art! December 13, 2008

By R. Spell VINE™ VOICE

Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase

This is a pretty funny book trying to describe the life of young investment bankers with big egos and immaturity as they grow up in NY working hard and playing hard. Maybe this guy is too cocky and really meant all this. Maybe he's just giving you a peek at the life. But it's enjoyable but not to be taken too seriously.

Unfortunately, while the guy describes the appropriate path to the buy side and ultimate wealth he really overstates his position. Young investment bankers are tools to work massive hours propping up the real bankers with the math so the real bankers can advise on the deals. MAYBE these young bankers will grow into real bankers but eventually he will lose the attitude or doubtful he will make it.

The book is a relic as I-Banking is dying on the vine as we speak. Still, an entertaining book of the life of young bankers. Cocky? Yes. Talented? Sure. But there is much more to it than that.