Naman Budhiraja
My story begins in New Delhi, India, where I was originally born. However, my residence in India did not last very long, and in fact I don’t remember much of it, as I moved to Los Angeles at the ripe age of two years old following my Dad’s long-time desire to pursue opportunity abroad. My youth was very standard for most immigrant families – academics and hard work were the emphasis much of my life and I am thankful for the work ethic instilled in me during this time by my parents as I have carried that forward throughout. I watched my Dad climb the corporate ladder and build a life in a new country far from any extended family, something that I have always admired and a guiding example I have used in my pursuits.
When it came time to pick universities, I took what some may call the safer route and stayed close to home by attending UCLA, a university just a mere 30-45 minute drive from my parent’s home. While initially, I sometimes thought it may have been better to venture a bit further, I now am eternally glad I was able to mix the independent, character-building years of college with the proximity to my family. I got the opportunity to grow as a young adult while also maintaining a strong relationship with my family. Furthermore, this also meant I was able to keep in close contact with childhood friends while making new friends from all over the world in college – all of which I maintain close contact with to this day, which I view as truly invaluable. Throughout my collegiate experience, I was pretty set on pursuing a career in finance, specifically investment banking – a result of googling the highest paying profession I could enter without having a STEM degree or many years of additional schooling. I do not hesitate to acknowledge that income was what brought me to my career path originally, but since then I have come to truly believe that finance is the industry / role I plan to be in long-term and couldn’t imagine doing anything else at the moment for a multitude of reasons, which would be hard to delve into in this short piece.
Thinking about the future, I have refrained in making any concrete plans as I firmly believe what’s meant to happen will happen and things will always work out for the better. I plan to remain in New York City in the near term, a city I dreamed of living and working in as a child, but I also remain open to an opportunity that would take me abroad to experience a new world. However, long-term I do firmly wish to be back in Los Angeles, close to family and my original home. Career-wise, while investment banking has been a good ride, I do wish to explore different opportunities in the field, especially those that may be more intellectually stimulating on the investing side – perhaps a hedge fund, private equity, etc. My motivations have evolved over the years – they used to be achieving academic success, then acquiring the “right” job, and now they are a bit more abstract – I just hope to continue having a fun, fulfilling time with my family, friends, and loved ones while seeing all the world has to offer.