Most stockbrokers arrive at the office anywhere between 6am and 7.30am GMT. This is an uncivilised hour at the best of times, but one that is particularly grim on a bleak morning in February. Those who live far from the office can expect to hear the alarm go off as early as 4am.
Now that’s not funny, is it?
Sadly you don’t have much of a choice. European stock markets open at 8am and brokers, traders, analysts and fund managers must all arrive early enough to prepare for the day ahead.
Exactly what time you arrive will depend on your own ambitions or on the guidelines set by your firm, but it invariably follows that the more ambitious you are or the more aggressive your firm is then the earlier you will arrive. How you get to work is up to you – some take the underground or bus, others drive scooters and a handful take taxis (but these tend to be either the crème de la crème or the habitually late). Some use the journey to read the Financial Times or Wall Street Journal or will catch up on sleep. You’ll soon get used to the early mornings – everyone has to – but most nights you’ll be tucked up in bed long before others in less exacting jobs have even considered leaving the pub.