Daniel Drew,  6/2/2015

Michel studied two departments at two investment banks (one comprising corporate financiers, the other salespeople and traders) and conducted hundreds of interviews. She eventually concluded that bankers go through a cycle of bodily abuse until they either drop out or take control.

One to three years: Abuse

In the first 1-3 years of a banking career, Michel discovered that bankers tend to repress their bodies. During this period, they work hard regardless of exhaustion/broken legs/eating disorders/alopecia and do whatever is required to get the job done. Michel came across one female banker in this phase who had fallen and broken her leg in two places on the way to a meeting. Although it changed colour and was painful, the banker ignored the symptoms until her meeting was over.

Four to six years: Breakdown

After 4 years in a banking career, Michel said bankers' bodies start fighting back. "Bankers developed embarrassing tics, such as nail biting, nose picking, or hair twirling," she discovered, adding that the bankers she studied, 'shopped, partied and consumed pornography' to combat numbness, achieve control and escape. At this stage, however, the previous years of bodily abuse start to become an issue. "It is an ongoing battle. My body caves in one way and I find another way around it'" one banker told Michel.

Six years plus: Care and attention

Bankers who make it through the body-meltdown phase were compelled to start taking note of their physical limitations and to start looking after themselves, said Michel. Interestingly, she suggested that this applied most effectively to bankers who'd spent six years or more working for a single firm: "Bankers had to be socialized before they could distance themselves."