Sherjan - My Personal Mentor

Today's guest is Reza Jafer, who I met at one of my Toronto workshops. Reza defines what it means to hustle to break into competitive industries. He studied at York University and then turned every stone possible to break into investment banking. He started his career at RBS and then at MUFG in investment banking. After a while, Reza wanted to pursue a career where he could consistently wake up happier and still work in a fast-paced team. Reza then transitioned from investment banking to Lending Loop where he leads Wealth Management for the startup. Tune in, it's story time.

On today's episode I have my good friend Salmaan Javed. He's definitely one of the coolest kids I know, and lives a life that is instagram worthy, but more importantly, Salmaan has always pursued avenues that he is passionate about and has avoided chasing brands and validation. He started his career at Allen & Co. where he worked closely with rising early-stage companies and now recently he has transitioned to a stealth startup that is quite literally going to change how we live our daily lives. Salmaan's story is full of passion and excitement and he is the definition of work hard play harder type of character. Tune in, it's story time!

On today's episode I chat with Eliza, one of my closest friends and a rising start in the world of finance in Asia. I met Eliza in Singapore in 2013 and she has had one of the most impressive career paths I've ever seen She did multiple stints in investment banking at J.P. Morgan, Standard Chartered, and HSBC, and then transitioned to Temasek's hedge fund called SeaTown Holdings where she focuses on Global Internet and Oil & Gas investments. Tune in, it's story time!

In today's episode I chat with Prarthana who is currently a Senior Analysts of Business Analytics at Vista Equity Partners, a leading software private equity firm. Prarthana studied at University of Texas Austin and graduated to pursue a career in consulting at Deloitte. Her passion for working with businesses and analyzing companies from a data perspective took her to joining one of the top private equity firms in the world where she analyzes various metrics of portfolio companies and helps with strategy. Tune in, it's story time!

In today's episode I chat with Asad Malik, who I first met at my workshop in London. Asad started his journey at LSE and began his career at Goldman Sachs in the Emerging Markets Equity team in London. He then transitioned to Google where he helps the firm with Strategy, Investments and FP&A for the Technical Infrastructure team with a focus on machine supply chains, robotics and automation. Asad is a new father as well and on this episode we chat about his journey and some of the struggles he faced in making the transition from pure finance to the wonderful world of tech. Tune in, it's Story Time!

In today's episode I chat with Elizabeth Zhan, or as the homies call her, Bairu. Bairu started her career at Goldman Sachs in Singapore and then joined Morgan Stanley's tech group in Hong Kong. She then left the world of banking and joined TPG Capital and is now back in Singapore investing in late-stage companies. Tune in and listen to Bairu and her journey through the crazy world of finance. 

In today's episode I have my good friend Christina Nguyen. Christina studied at USC (some say the 2nd best school in LA) and always had the love and passion for pursuing a career in consulting. She joined PwC as an intern but found LEK to be a better fit for herself and what she wanted to do long-term. After a few years at LEK, Christina left to join industry and help companies with their overall strategy and operations. Tune in and listen to Christina's story. 

Pawan leads strategy at Academic City, a state-of-the-art STEM focused University across Africa, pushing the boundaries on practical and skills based learning. Prior to leading strategy, Pawan worked at Nio and Faraday Futures in California. In this episode we talk about Pawan's early childhood in South Africa, he path to the U.S., and how even though he grew up in an affluent family, how he always kept focused on working on projects that he felt most passionate about. Tune in!

I've known Imtisal all of my life, literally. He was my first ever best-friend when I grew up in Pakistan. Imtisal is the Founder of Verve Management, Pakistan's top event management company and one that is pushing the boundaries for events and entertainment in Pakistan and in broader Asia. In this episode I chat with Imtisal about his journey, how he has expanded what it means to be Pakistani and brought the Pakistani culture outside of its shell and into a global scale. Imtisal is a self-started and has travelled to more countries in the world than anyone else I know and his journey is inspiring and uplifting to thousands. Hope you enjoy this episode with my OG best friend.

In this episode I chat with my close friend Augi. Augi began his journey in Southeast Asia and then went to Stanford to study economics. He then interned at Citi and Bain & Co. and then joined McKinsey & Co. for full time. Augi's passions and deep interest led him back to Southeast Asia where he helped McKinsey with multiple projects across the region. He then got into Harvard Business School but decided to postpone that to pursue a career in venture capital at Sequoia in Singapore. Tune in!

Sherjan here, your host of My Personal Mentor podcast, bringing you unfiltered and candid advice related to careers and life.

On this episode of Story Time we have Angad Singh Padda. Angad grew up in Chandigarh, India and worked hard to get accepted into U.C. Berkeley. There, through his passion and charismatic personality, Angad rose amongst his peers and graduated as the commencement speaker at U.C. Berkeley and brought the world together through his emotional and passionate speech that went viral. After graduation, Angad joined J.P. Morgan and worked in both the San Francisco and London teams of the investment bank. This podcast episode is another one of my favorites, it is full of passion, laughs, and excitement. Tune in and enjoy the ride.

Pei Li is the founder of CodeMode, a small development agency specializing in building MVPs. Prior to building CodeMode, Pei worked as a software engineer at Wealthsimple, a quickly growing startup disrupting the finance industry by making great financial services easy accessible to everyone. Pei started his journey at the University of Toronto's extremely challenging Engineering Science program and soon realized that it wasn't what he was excited about. What he craved most was to build. In today's episode we go through his journey of building the next big thing. Tune in!

Sherjan here, your host of My Personal Mentor podcast, bringing you unfiltered and candid advice related to careers and life.

On this episode we have Alan Cheng. Alan's journey begins in Hong Kong and takes him to California where he pursued a degree at U.C. Berkeley and then joined investment banking at J.P. Morgan and Morgan Stanley. He then left the world of banking and joined tech and venture. Alan is passionate about Hong Kong and hopes to make the future of his people a little bit brighter. Tune in, it's Story Time!

Sherjan here, your host of My Personal Mentor podcast, bringing you unfiltered and candid advice related to careers and life.

On this episode we have Alissa Hew. Alissa started her journey in Singapore and then ventured to London to pursue education at London School fo Economics. She then interned at Barclays and Goldman Sachs and graduated to join Goldman's sales and trading division. After a few years in London, Alissa transitioned back to Singapore with Goldman Sachs and is a rising star in the firm covering the region. Tune in, it's Story Time!

Sherjan here, your host of My Personal Mentor podcast, bringing you unfiltered and candid advice related to careers and life.

On this episode we talk about how to still remain passionate within an organization and grow strategically without offending fellow co-workers. 

Sherjan here, your host of My Personal Mentor podcast, bringing you unfiltered and candid advice related to careers and life.

On this episode of Story Time we have Bansee Dave. Bansee's journey starts in Toronto where she pursued finance like many young students, but after spending some time in the industry, she realized her true calling was beyond the 3 walls of her cubicle. She dropped everything and went to India where her family was from and truly found her inner peace in the mountains and valleys of the Himalayas. Bansee's story is one that makes everyone pause and think about "what's truly important to them, what is their purpose, and what does happiness mean to them." Tune in, it's Story Time!

Sherjan here, your host of My Personal Mentor podcast, bringing you unfiltered and candid advice related to careers and life.

On this episode we talk about the hidden power of networking which can lead to you getting promoted at your firm or even getting a higher salary.

Sherjan here, your host of My Personal Mentor podcast, bringing you unfiltered and candid advice related to careers and life.

On this episode we talk about why having a great attitude is the best way to be successful in competitive industries and team environments.

Sherjan here, your host of My Personal Mentor podcast, bringing you unfiltered and candid advice related to careers and life.

On this episode of Story Time we have Marko Damnjanovic. Marko's family immigrated to Canada from Serbia and he went to undergrad at the University of Toronto where he studied Industrial Engineering. After joining investment clubs and seeing what drove him, he started pursuing internships within finance and after graduating with a near 4.0 GPA, he joined Morgan Stanley's investment banking team. Marko believes in building expertise and bridging geographies through his experience and his story is just beginning. Tune in, it's Story Time!

Sherjan here, your host of My Personal Mentor podcast, bringing you unfiltered and candid advice related to careers and life.

On this episode of Story Time we have Richard Henriques. Richard was born in Los Angeles and has made it a mission of his to never leave the beautiful la la land. He went to Cal State Los Angeles and when there weren't a lot of employers hiring at his school, he took it upon himself and created a group to attract employers to the school. Through networking and building relationships with people far and wide, he broke into Boeing, then NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, then Deloitte, and now at Internet Brands. His story is one of perseverance, staying focused on the long term goal, and being happy along the way. Tune in, it's Story Time!

Sherjan here, your host of My Personal Mentor podcast, bringing you unfiltered and candid advice related to careers and life.

On this episode we talk about some of the best ways to finding a mentor at work and getting their help and support.

Sherjan here, your host of My Personal Mentor podcast, bringing you unfiltered and candid advice related to careers and life.

On this episode of Story Time we have WenChun Low. WenChun was born and raised in Singapore and always loved planes and dreamed of being a pilot. He started his career by first graduating from Singapore Management University and then worked at multiple tier-1 finance firms and investment banks such as Deutsche Bank, Tata Capital, HSBC, and Standard Chartered. The longer he spent in finance, he realized his true passion kept calling him. So, after many years, WenChun decided to apply to Singapore Airlines and has now fulfilled his dream, as a pilot for the top airline in the world. WenChun's story is a true testament to why one should follow their dreams no matter how old they get, that's where happiness is. Tune in, it's Story Time.

Sherjan here, your host of My Personal Mentor podcast, bringing you unfiltered and candid advice related to careers and life.

On this episode of Story Time we have JingJing Zhong. JingJing's story starts in China and then in Alabama where she grew up but soon decided to move to LA to go to college. Then, through her hard work and passion to do the best she can, she transferred to U.C. Berkeley and broke through the barriers and became an investment banker at Houlihan Lokey. Her experience spans multiple geographies and she is now running operations at one of Singapore's leading startups, Helpling. Tune in, it's Story Time!

Sherjan here, your host of My Personal Mentor podcast, bringing you unfiltered and candid advice related to careers and life.

On this episode we talk about what are the best paths to take after finishing a couple of years in Investment Banking, Consulting, and Accounting.

Sherjan here, your host of My Personal Mentor podcast, bringing you unfiltered and candid advice related to careers and life.

On this episode of Story Time we have Talal Mansoor. Talal's story began in Pakistan and then in Toronto where he pursued a degree in health science. But something in his heart always leaned towards building. Following his passion and his true calling, he started to lean more towards technology products and helping build them. Talal has worked on numerous products that we use on a daily basis and has brought ideas of many Fortune 500 companies to life. Tune in, it's Story Time!

Sherjan here, your host of My Personal Mentor podcast, bringing you unfiltered and candid advice related to careers and life.

On this episode we talk about how to balance and maintain a healthy personal life while working in competitive industries like investment banking, consulting, or accounting.

Sherjan here, your host of My Personal Mentor podcast, bringing you unfiltered and candid advice related to careers and life.

On this episode of Story Time we have Shayan Panjwani who is currently a rising star at Facebook. Shayan started his journey in Atlanta, Georgia, studied engineering, then joined McKinsey & Co., then Google, and now is working and building cool things at Facebook. Shayan is an inspiration to me and I've been a friend of his ever since we first met at Google training. Tune in and listen to one of my favorite episodes of this podcast.

Sherjan here, your host of My Personal Mentor podcast, bringing you unfiltered and candid advice related to careers and life.

On this episode of Story Time we have Rob Keith, a rising investor who started in Los Angeles, joined Morgan Stanley's technology investment banking team in Menlo Park, California, then moved on to joining Salesforce Ventures and is now helping the firm invest in SaaS businesses around the world and especially in Australia. Rob brings the right mindset and personality to crush it in the world of finance and investing and has a unique attitude that helps people gravitate towards him. 

Sherjan here, your host of My Personal Mentor podcast, bringing you unfiltered and candid advice related to careers and life.

On this episode we talk about what is lifestyle like when you're an investment banker at one of the top investment banks in the world.

Sherjan here, your host of My Personal Mentor podcast, bringing you unfiltered and candid advice related to careers, startups, and life.

This is another one of our Story Time episodes where I want to take the listeners on a journey through someone else's life. Someone just like yourself, doing amazing things, one step at a time.

In today's episode we have Panpan Punyaneramitdee, one of my favorites in the world and someone who keeps rising every time I check in on her. Panpan started her life in Thailand, then moved to California and went to study at U.C. Berkeley. From there she tried a bunch of things before joining Jefferies in investment banking. That journey also took her to London and then to Tencent where she has been working on some of the most cutting edge products. Panpan's next step is joining Harvard Business School and hopefully return to tech. Tune in, this one is amazing!

Listen in and let me know your thoughts on twitter.

Sherjan here, your host of My Personal Mentor podcast, bringing you unfiltered and candid advice related to careers, startups, and life.

On this episode we talk about the boring topic of note-taking and how it can help you in your career. Listen, learn, and tweet at me.

Sherjan here, your host of My Personal Mentor podcast, bringing you unfiltered and candid advice related to careers, startups, and life.

On this episode we talk about how to maintain your network and still remain close with people you meet on your journey. Listen, learn, and tweet at me.

Sherjan here, your host of My Personal Mentor podcast, bringing you unfiltered and candid advice related to careers, startups, and life.

On this episode we talk about how to cold email like a pro. Listen, learn, and tweet at me.

Sherjan here, your host of My Personal Mentor podcast, bringing you unfiltered and candid advice related to careers, startups, and life.

This is another one of our Story Time episodes where I want to take the listeners on a journey through someone else's life. Someone just like yourself, doing amazing things, one step at a time.

In today's episode we have Melissa Roy and she is one of the few humans in the world to have travelled to every country on this planet! Melissa started her journey in Michigan, then went to Pepperdine University, and on her first exchange program in Argentina, fell in love with exploring our beautiful planet. She then made a pact that she would try to travel every year as much as possible and over 16 years had travelled to every country in the world and has amazing stories to share from that experience. 

Listen in and let me know your thoughts on twitter.

Sherjan here, your host of My Personal Mentor podcast, bringing you unfiltered and candid advice related to careers, startups, and life.

On this episode we talk about how to handle stressful situations, like an interview, the right way. Listen, learn, and tweet at me.

Sherjan here, your host of My Personal Mentor podcast, bringing you unfiltered and candid advice related to careers, startups, and life.

On this episode we talk about how to improve your confidence and help you overcome fears. Listen, learn, and tweet at me.

Sherjan here, your host of My Personal Mentor podcast, bringing you unfiltered and candid advice related to careers, startups, and life.

On this episode we talk about how to push beyond the platform that is provided to you. It is not enough anymore to just be a top student or top employee at a firm, that's just table stakes. Listen, learn, and tweet at me.

Sherjan here, your host of My Personal Mentor podcast, bringing you unfiltered and candid advice related to careers, startups, and life.

This is my new series that I am really excited about. We will follow one entrepreneur and their startups journey from inception to where it takes them. For this series, I have chosen my good friend David Phan's startup called Huppy. Huppy is changing everything you know about toothpaste into a new, eco-friendly, tooth-tab format. Listen, learn, and tweet at me.

Sherjan here, your host of My Personal Mentor podcast, bringing you unfiltered and candid advice related to careers, startups, and life.

On this episode we talk about how being geographic-agnostic opens you up to more opportunity and a better career experience. Listen, learn, and tweet at me.

Sherjan here, your host of My Personal Mentor podcast, bringing you unfiltered and candid advice related to careers, startups, and life.

This is another one of our Story Time episodes where I want to take the listeners on a journey through someone else's life. Someone just like yourself, doing amazing things, one step at a time.

In today's episode we have Santo Chen. Santo is one of my favorite people in the world, she is charismatic, smart, passionate, dedicated to what she loves and never giving up, but most importantly, she is another one of those "good humans" I've always been in search of. Santo began her life in China and moved to the U.S. alone, without knowing a word of English, she picked her name from a dictionary and that's where her story begins. She continued on to doing great things including working at Yahoo and now at Facebook. Santo is just getting started, I can't wait for her next chapter. Listen in and let me know your thoughts on twitter.

Sherjan here, your host of My Personal Mentor podcast, bringing you unfiltered and candid advice related to careers, startups, and life.

On this episode we talk about best way to generate good executable ideas for a startup that you'd be passionate about. Listen, learn, and tweet at me.

Sherjan here, your host of My Personal Mentor podcast, bringing you unfiltered and candid advice related to careers, startups, and life.

On this episode we talk about how to stay focused and healthy. These days we are all facing some tough times and have a lot of free time on our hands, best time to get in the best shape of our lives and maintain in. Listen, learn, and tweet at me.

Sherjan here, your host of My Personal Mentor podcast, bringing you unfiltered and candid advice related to careers, startups, and life.

On this episode we talk about which industries to avoid during and after a recession. Listen, learn, and tweet at me.

Sherjan here, your host of My Personal Mentor podcast, bringing you unfiltered and candid advice related to careers, startups, and life.

On this episode we talk about which industries are the best ones to target during and after a recession. Listen, learn, and tweet at me.

Sherjan here, your host of My Personal Mentor podcast, bringing you unfiltered and candid advice related to careers, startups, and life.

This is another one of our Story Time episodes where I want to take the listeners on a journey through someone else's life. Someone just like yourself, doing amazing things, one step at a time.

In today's episode we have Gabriel Bianconi, one of the smartest and brightest talents I've ever met. Gabriel is the founder of Scalar Research, and prior to this he has worked at Google and Facebook. Gabriel specializes in the world of computer vision, machine learning, and artificial intelligence and helps companies solve large problems using some of his research. Gabriel's story begins in Brazil and I am so proud of all that he has accomplished so far and so much more to come. Listen in and let me know your thoughts on twitter.

Sherjan here, your host of My Personal Mentor podcast, bringing you unfiltered and candid advice related to careers, startups, and life.

On this episode we talk about how to network and reach out to potential employers when it is particularly difficult to do so. Listen, learn, and tweet at me.

Sherjan here, your host of My Personal Mentor podcast, bringing you unfiltered and candid advice related to careers, startups, and life.

On this episode we talk about what I think will happen in the next two quarters with respect to the economy, hiring, and just the overall status of this pandemic and its effects. Listen, learn, and tweet at me.

Sherjan here, your host of My Personal Mentor podcast, bringing you unfiltered and candid advice related to careers, startups, and life.

This is another one of our Story Time episodes where I want to take the listeners on a journey through someone else's life. Someone just like yourself, doing amazing things, one step at a time.

In today's episode we have Abby Lyall. Abby is the Program Director at Big Idea Ventures and prior to this was at Quake Capital Partners. Abby started her career at firms like Morgan Stanley and BlackRock but soon realized her passion for startups and investing in them. Her journey is full of amazing learning experiences, eye-opening encounters, and most of all, living every day to its fullest. Abby challenges the way most of us think about living our life and pursuing our dream careers, I know she challenged me in this chat, and I am sure she will change the way you think about your life. Listen in and let me know your thoughts on twitter.

Sherjan here, your host of My Personal Mentor podcast, bringing you unfiltered and candid advice related to careers, startups, and life.

On this episode we talk about how to win by changing where you compete and who you compete with. Changing your geography and winning in a market that you have total control in is the best way to get an edge in a tough recruiting environment. Listen, learn, and tweet at me.

Sherjan here, your host of My Personal Mentor podcast, bringing you unfiltered and candid advice related to careers, startups, and life.

On this episode we talk about how to recession-proof yourself by going to grad school. It is one of the best ways to weather the storm, upgrade, and re-enter the workforce when things normalize. Listen, learn, and tweet at me.