quant

May 1, 2024

sharing the resources i sent to friends + a note on why i chose not to pursue quant trading.

good reads to get up to speed

interview prep

math & stats:

dsa:

logic puzzles:

  • Peter Winkler's books

data science & ML:

general problem solving:

  • how to solve it - polya
  • problem solving strategies - arthur engel

other

  • the wisdom of finance (nothing to do with quant finance, just a fun read)
  • the inner game of tennis

resources for starting a fund

why not quant

quant goes onto list b. it's such a close second that I needed to write these reasons down.

  • your work changes you. it's much too easy to lose sight of what i'm doing this for. i don't want the golden handcuffs or the deferred life plan. while interesting, quant is just a means to an end.
  • quant is not the right hill to climb. while i enjoy math and systems, i love words and people. i enjoy toggling between numbers and narratives, statistics and stories. i'm not bad at math, but language comes more easily to me — i love writing! it's important to choose something i can be and want to be great at.
  • mismatch. while applying for quant roles, i hid my digital garden from my website because it was evident my interests were elsewhere.
  • the garden leave is what i looked forward to most.
  • i'm no longer interested in proving myself by subjecting myself to things i don't want to do. if i'm not careful, discipline can translate into achieving goals that are not my own.
  • how could i be your quant when i've never won a chinese math competition nor placed second?