The 30-Year Old Crisis

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Time is ticking and when you turn 30 years old it seems life changes. More realistically, sometime around the age of 30 as we are all unique. The biological clock is ticking away for having kids and finding a spouse. This life change can have a large impact on one's career, especially in quantitative finance. I am currently struggling with this as I am very career driven and am the personality type that needs to be busy and productive constantly. About a year ago I had a daughter and she turned my world upside down. A younger me always though you had kids and there were a few adjustments but that my career would stay on track. To my surprise learning to juggle a family and a career as well as my previous life has been very challenging. I now want to be a great father and spend a lot of time with my wife and daughter however I also need to be putting in extra time at work if I want a career and not just a job.

This life change impacts both men and women. Finding a spouse has a clock ticking on it as well because many people find mates by 30. This means the number of people you can marry gets smaller every year if you want to marry someone around your age who doesn't have kids. Marriage is also time consuming as you now have to share your time with someone else. Having someone there to support you can also help propel your career however the focus from career to family seems to naturally shift around 30 years old. There is no right decision here. I'm not saying you need to be married or have kids however if these are things you do want in life, there is a biological clock ticking and you need to make a decision. Having a career (not just a job) and balancing a family is challenging and not very likely for most.

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