Ok, I was just wondering how people in the wilmott forums deals with this situation (hopefully I am not the only one who has experienced this). So when you meet a girl at say a bar or something, when she asks you what you do for a living, (aside from traders) and you answer something on the line of quant analyst or risk mgmt. Obviously if she came from another background and work in a different field she would have no idea what the profession or job you do. The natural progression would then be so what exactly is it that those people do for a living? Then you go off on a tangent about the basic scope of work. Of course she has no clue what we are talking about and think those words were awkwardly unattractive, so she gives a blank stare and basically kills all mood for the rest of the conversation.So now, how do people go about explaining their job to a possible interest? Do you guys just keep it as simple as possible or have another strategy? I usually explain to them I am an office lackey, an excel monkey, or something interesting which usually gets some laughs and divert the attention back to the party of interest.

Tell them you're in "murders and executions".

Labor of love. You love what you do and that is what you should say. Say that a love of math or physics got you to a bank. Say you hang out with propeller heads all day. Exude confidence and never assume that she doesn't know what you are talking about. You gotta read the situation. Many women would glaze over, so you gotta know when to stop and talk about idiotic crap, like "The Simple Life" or "Rich Girls". Your future wife, however, shouldn't glaze over, but that doesn't mean that some hottie who you'll never marry isn't worth continuing to talk to. You gotta gauge the situation. See, your wife won't care if you pump gas or artificially inseminate livestock, but that girl in the $600 shoes will. I'm taken, but every now and again I find myself flirting harmlessly. They ask "What do you do?" and, because I don't care what the outcome is, because there won't be one, they wind up throwing themselves at me. That is the Tao of irony. You must rid your mind any importance of what you think you do but, at the same time, be confident.

Quote......., but that doesn't mean that some hottie who you'll never marry isn't worth continuing to talk toYeah, you know what I'm talking about tabris!

QuoteOriginally posted by: chiral3...They ask "What do you do?" and, because I don't care what the outcome is, because there won't be one, they wind up throwing themselves at me. That is the Tao of irony. You must rid your mind any importance of what you think you do but, at the same time, be confident.Of course, the difference might be you are a chick magnet and I on the other hand need every strategy possible.

QuoteOriginally posted by: chiral3Quote......., but that doesn't mean that some hottie who you'll never marry isn't worth continuing to talk toYeah, you know what I'm talking about tabris!Of course I do, why do you think they don't understand what I do for a living?

QuoteOriginally posted by: tabrisQuoteOriginally posted by: chiral3...They ask "What do you do?" and, because I don't care what the outcome is, because there won't be one, they wind up throwing themselves at me. That is the Tao of irony. You must rid your mind any importance of what you think you do but, at the same time, be confident.Of course, the difference might be you are a chick magnet and I on the other hand need every strategy possible.I assure you that, if it were not for the alcohol, women would be repulsed by me

Just say "I work on the Wall Street." or Old Broad Street or Bay Street or whatever the street your financial district is on.

The pipe, the 11 children, and the Hobbits have ensured thatI rarely experience this problem in public.The tweed jackets also seem to be a turn off. And that's beforeI begin speaking in Elvish.

When I'm out with certain friends who normally shun talking about work, we sometimes think up funny professions before hand, and sometimes ad-lib. For instance if a particularly annoying girl (aka on the short side, a little chubby, smiling too much, too talkative.... etc) asks, I might say something like "Janitor, so what?", or "You remember a while back when those 'Tomagachi' things were big? Well I was the doorman in the factory that made them." That or something like, "Ever slip in the shower and smack your head on the faucet? Well I'm currently involved in research that should someday create a handle on the side of the bathtub so you can pull yourself up." If the girl is hot on the other hand, then it's the usual "Trader, or Mathematician, etc..." I tend to get hit on by gay guys every so often, and I recently stopped being confrontational and now I sometimes let them buy me drinks. (and my friends of course) Girls have it made.

For the Gucci chicks:"I used to work at a bank, as Head of Department [insert the name of department where you are a minion here]. But I left to become a consultant and now I earn even more money."For the 'I could marry this one' lady:I work at a bank in the [insert the name of department where you are a minion here] department. I love the job and do [insert truth here, not too technical, but not glib]. Now, if she doesn't like the truth, then she's not worth it.Sorry for being so cheesy...

QuoteOriginally posted by: tabrisOk, I was just wondering how people in the wilmott forums deals with this situation (hopefully I am not the only one who has experienced this). So when you meet a girl at say a bar or something, when she asks you what you do for a living, (aside from traders) and you answer something on the line of quant analyst or risk mgmt. Obviously if she came from another background and work in a different field she would have no idea what the profession or job you do. The natural progression would then be so what exactly is it that those people do for a living? Then you go off on a tangent about the basic scope of work. Of course she has no clue what we are talking about and think those words were awkwardly unattractive, so she gives a blank stare and basically kills all mood for the rest of the conversation.So now, how do people go about explaining their job to a possible interest? Do you guys just keep it as simple as possible or have another strategy? I usually explain to them I am an office lackey, an excel monkey, or something interesting which usually gets some laughs and divert the attention back to the party of interest.I try to stay clear of all that for a woman that would really be interesting to talk to anyway. I think it is better to find mutual interests and definitely show a sense of humor. Most jobs are not that interesting to other people....that is even true for trading....it is all relative. Imagine you are at a cocktail party with artists, writers, and musicians. I doubt if they would think you have an interesting job, EVEN if you are a highfalutin trader, EVEN if you made a large bonus.

Every second spent talking about yourself takes you further away from achieving your desired goal. You must talk about her, her, her...P

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Depends on what your goal is, Paul My girlfriend finds it impossible to understand what I do, what I find interesting and how it is possible that I might spend a week thinking about calibration issues in my latest project. She's in the 'arts department' and she hates math. Since I can't explain what I do, I simply try to convince her that it is important to me. My "strategy" is asking her the same question. If she didn't tell me who she was and what's significant to her own happiness, I wouldn't know much. Of course, you got to start somehow. If you don't have any supernatural skills (I don't), then I'd say the only way to go is to mix honesty & humour. Be yourself and see if she likes it. I find talking *a lot* about her a bit of a pitfall, I might not understand what's going on in her head, so I assume it's better to ask. But hey, it's just me and I might be too young to know anything