Day in the life of McKinsey

Here is the life of a McKinsey consultant... Do these guys have life outside their work???

06:30 Back at my apartment to shower and get ready for the workday, I can't get yesterday's team meeting off my mind. We had a real breakthrough with the lead client, a large consumer goods company. But a new wave of issues came up too. On the surface, the issues seem trivial, but because they're politically charged they'll greatly affect our workplan. As with most of our engagements, sensitivity to internal client dynamics is critical. We rarely solve problems that don't hold implications for individual managers.

09:30 I lock myself in a closed office to "ghost" (i.e., sketch out) pages for my part of the presentation we are preparing for the client. I'm not completely sure how my final pages will look, but I want to get a few ideas down on paper now. This will give me some direction and provide a springboard for getting my EM's reaction.

18:45 The team gets together to talk about the progress we made today. As a team, we were able to filter the feedback from yesterday's meeting and adjust our workplan accordingly. Despite the frantic start to the day, we're still on track.

22:00 After eating and talking about our teams, we go our separate ways. Thinking back on my day, three key points (of course!) come to mind: 1) I was mentally challenged and learned new things; 2) I truly enjoy working with my colleagues; and 3) I've had longer days!

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