The Finance Bro Effect

Social media basically coined the whole "finance bro" vibe, I think we've all seen those over-exaggerated POVs of a guy practically shouting at his Bloomberg terminal, or wearing a Patagonia vest throwing over the top terms as if they personally control the markets. I'm sure some of it is satire, but it works because it's true. The funny thing is finance bros aren't impressive because they're geniuses (though obviously you do have to be smart to be successful anywhere), they're impressive because of their confidence. Just pure oblivious, unshakable confidence. And that's where the lesson is. Channeling your inner nerd through confidence. The Finance Bro Effect has nothing to do with finance, Wall Street or the corporate world. It's about what happens when you decide to back yourself fully, with zero hesitation.

Oblivious Confidence: If there’s one defining trait of the “finance bro,” it’s in my opinion oblivious confidence. It’s that vibe of I am the exception to every rule. And the trick is if you look the part you can usually get away with it. Confidence is contagious, not just in conference rooms or sales calls. People in general trust people who trust themselves. A ridiculous story I once heard that parallels this was about an advisor who gave terrible advice, but because they delivered it with such conviction, the clients trusted them anyway. Obviously this isn’t something to copy, but it does show how delivery can overshadow substance. Confidence in this sense isn’t about being right, it’s about acting like you’re THE person. There’s a fancy science term for this called the Dunning-Kruger effect which is that when you don’t know much, you often overestimate your ability. It can be dangerous, but it also explains why misplaced certainty sometimes creates momentum when hesitation would have stopped you. The lesson isn’t to stay ignorant, it’s to see how conviction itself can get things moving by using it as fuel for building skill through feedback and curiosity. When you move through life with that kind of certainty you create motion. Posture can be staged, evidence cannot. Be confident in where you belong, then do the work to deserve it. Confidence opens doors, and feedback will keep you in them.

Fake it til you make it (Law of Assumption): Confidence is an act first, then a feeling. In my opinion confidence isn't something you wait to feel. It's kind of something you perform first by rewiring your mindset about it. And then the feeling catches up. That's why the "fake it til you make it" argument works. You don't actually have to be a confident, smooth expert, you just have to act like one and then magically you are one. The finance bro doesn't stop to think "do I actually know enough?" He assumes he does, and that assumption whether it's a bad or good thing then shapes the way he moves, talks and sells. To be clear, it's not about faking data or credentials. This is not the show Suits. That's fraud. The point is faking confidence until your skills catch up. Finance bros need to be persuasive and confident to attract and retain clients. This is basically like the law of assumption in practice, what you assume about yourself becomes your reality. If you assume you're confident, you carry yourself like someone who belongs, if you assume success is yours you start embodying it. Instead of waiting until you feel 100% qualified, you can act confident, commit, and learn on the go. What you assume about yourself shapes the way you move until it becomes true. The assumption drives the action which then creates the result. The point isn't to have an over-inflated ego or bluff your way through life. It's more so having faith that you are capable and that confidence isn't waiting for permission. That’s how I feel about this blog anyway. I don’t know how to write, but I’m going to do it anyway because it’s fun and I like it.

Commitment over Hesitation: Another part of the Finance Bro Effect is that they don't overthink it. There's no overweighing every option, constantly analyzing the risks and wondering if "I'm ready" It's just moving. Commit first and figure it out later, that's usually enough to get ahead. Momentum over hesitation. A recruiter once told me that when he interviews people he looks at cultural fit and the person's personality the most because "you can always teach a person a skill." What he meant is that you can learn and be trained to financially model out what-if scenarios but confidence, presence and the ability to just go for it is much harder to teach. After I got hired at my current job my boss told me that he thought I was quirky because of my eyeglasses and they're these huge red frames. So, be what you think is cool, and be confident in doing it because it truly sets a person apart. A past boss during an internship (that I actually quit lol) said that what stood out to him about me was how witty I was during the interview. He said it took him by surprise and I honestly don't even realize when I do it but I know that I do it when I'm incredibly nervous to offset the nerves to not look disoriented. People always compliment me on my confidence and ability to take on a foreign situation or meet someone new, truth is in my head it's like breaking the ice between me and myself, it's a threshold that I just need to break to get over it. Like letting go of the rope while rock climbing, you don't get hurt. So there you go! Confidence + personality > technical precision.

Detachment: The catch is that sometimes it's not about pushing harder, it's about letting go. If you grip too tightly, I feel like opportunities tend to slip. I believe that if you chase something like success like it's life or death, it tends to run away, at least that's how it feels to me. When I graduated I was locked into the mindset of landing the perfect job as fast as possible. I don't even wanna get into the details because it was literally doing too much. When I loosened up, and just trusted myself and had faith in the process, not joking I felt like my job right now almost found me, and it turned out to be exactly what I needed. If you're going to get anything out of this entry it's that confidence isn’t just about showing up loud, it’s also about trusting your capability and having faith in the process. Detachment is just a part of that. Have fun, keep it moving and trust that what's meant for you will align and enjoy the process instead of forcing the outcome while you're at it. When you stop signaling desperation, you stop pushing opportunities away. Detachment isn’t giving up, it’s trusting that what’s meant for you will meet you halfway.

That's the secret sauce, being able to take the chance, speak up and risk being wrong. Faith in yourself and faith in the process matter. A lot. Finance bros kinda have zero self-awareness but it works in their favor because by default it leads to oblivious confidence which gets the job done. Moving forward, even if it's not perfect, will get you somewhere faster than thinking about how to do it. Of course, the danger of misplaced confidence is there. When you're wrong in high-stakes situations, other people can pay the price. The Finance Bro Effect is about the alchemy of confidence plus action. Moral of the story: be confident for absolutely 0 reasons at all.

Your finance sis, B