This blog post introduces how to authentically and persuasively incorporate a philosophy on money, formed through everyday questions and observations, into a financial researcher’s cover letter.
Growth Process
For my younger self, finance was a very simple, basic concept—just depositing money in a bank to save or earn a little interest. Money was undeniably essential for living, yet it often felt painfully scarce, evoking sighs. I only had a vague sense that it was something my mother always welcomed with open arms and genuine delight.
It seemed that most people, no matter how much money they had, never felt they possessed “enough to be truly satisfied.” Even those with enviable wealth often felt it was still insufficient and craved more. While the standards for satisfaction in ownership vary greatly from person to person, it remains undeniable that everyone cherishes, loves, and deeply desires money. From childhood, I have always lived with a mindset and attitude of constantly exploring the true nature of wealth.
If money is something everyone so desperately wants to possess, why can’t we ever own enough to feel truly satisfied? Whenever this question suddenly arose, I would fall into deep contemplation. Whenever I ate delicious snacks or favorite foods, I couldn’t enjoy them fully because I shared them with my younger sibling. This experience made me wonder if wealth might be similar. Perhaps money, too, doesn’t easily become wholly mine, which is why it makes people more anxious and greedy.
I sometimes pondered this: What if everyone possessed as much money as they desired? I imagined that perhaps people’s greed itself would vanish, and their longing for money would disappear instead. When I was young, a relative ran a snack factory and once brought us a huge pile of snacks nearing their expiration date. For once, my brother and I didn’t need to watch each other warily, dividing them up fairly one by one. We hurried to eat the snacks before they went bad, stuffing ourselves until we were so full we couldn’t eat another bite. After eating so many snacks we were sick of them, my brother and I were so turned off by sweets for a while that we wouldn’t even look in the direction of the supermarket.
My mother always worried about money, saying it was never enough and that we desperately needed more. Seeing her like that sometimes made my heart ache. I used to wish that, just like those snacks back then, my mother could experience a time when she had more than enough money, when she possessed so much that she no longer felt the need for more.
Even now, I often recall that experience and get lost in thought. Perhaps money remains our most urgent desire precisely when it doesn’t come to us as much as we hope and want. Everyone desires to have more, yet once we actually obtain what we want in sufficient quantity, that fervent longing we once felt seems to vanish. In that sense, I sometimes think our attitude toward money isn’t so different from my own attitude toward those childhood snacks.
School Life
On the Gaps I Discovered Through School Life
Though we were all equal and good friends, there came a time when I acutely felt the differences between us that inevitably arose due to our family circumstances. As a child, I had no fundamental problems with daily life, so my mother’s frequent lament, “We never have enough money,” didn’t resonate with me. Just as I would occasionally throw a tantrum when I couldn’t have all the snacks or yogurt I wanted, I thought of my mother’s words as just habitual complaints. To me back then, all my friends were similar, and I hadn’t deeply considered how much the difference between having money and not having money could impact a person’s life.
At school, there were kids far better off than me, and conversely, there were children who had to rely on government assistance due to difficult circumstances. We didn’t openly discuss it among ourselves, but through subtle rumors or comments from friends, we could vaguely sense each other’s family circumstances and situations. Especially when I saw friends who were financially well-off, taking opportunities like language study abroad or overseas education—things I desperately wanted—so naturally and calmly, I often felt a vague sense of regret. Even though their abilities or academic levels weren’t vastly different from mine, seeing the stark difference in the depth and breadth of experiences they enjoyed during every vacation made me finally understand my mother’s frequent lament: “If only we had money, things would be so much better.”
Through these experiences, I realized that the common saying, ‘Money isn’t everything,’ isn’t always entirely accurate. While money doesn’t solve everything, it undeniably holds power in broadening the range of choices and opportunities for experience. The equal world I vaguely imagined as a child, I came to realize, was largely unattainable through individual effort alone. Factors beyond one’s control—like family circumstances or financial conditions—clearly exist, and they profoundly shape our lives in both big and small ways.
Looking back now as an adult, those childhood experiences were precisely what shaped my perspective on the world. As a child, I thought of financial differences only vaguely, but now I can understand and accept such differences with a more mature view. And above all, I’ve come to know how precious it is to live my best life within the environment and circumstances I have now. It was a turning point that taught me the importance of humbly acknowledging the inevitable practical gaps and differences we all face in life, while still seeking my own values and happiness.
Personality Introduction
I possess a personality that acknowledges the reality of innate disparities, understands them, and then proactively seeks to bridge those gaps. As a child, I vaguely believed in the logic that all people are equal and stand on the same footing. However, as I grew older and encountered society, I acutely felt the vast disconnect between this belief and reality. I came to understand that one must not cling to ideals detached from reality or turn a blind eye to one’s own circumstances.
Just as one must plant their feet firmly on the deep bottom to leap powerfully toward the surface, only through the proper realization of facing reality as it is can one clearly understand how much more effort is needed moving forward. And that ultimately becomes the foundation for building a more proactive and enterprising life. If we refuse to face our unfavorable circumstances or uncomfortable realities, choosing instead to turn away and avoid them, we ultimately cannot grow and are bound to remain stagnant. It is only when we confront things as they are that the path forward opens up.
Therefore, rather than unconditionally rejecting or vaguely accepting the environment and circumstances given to me, I strove to understand them as objectively and realistically as possible. I particularly focused on pinpointing my weaknesses and consistently devising concrete plans for how to improve specific areas to enhance effectiveness and accelerate progress. Descending to the very depths of myself, accepting and acknowledging that bottom as it was, was never easy. Facing the cold, harsh reality without any beautiful dreams or illusions painted over it was undeniably painful. Yet, through this cold, hard self-awareness, I discovered the fastest and most effective way to develop myself.
Ultimately, I am someone who faces and acknowledges the gap in my innate abilities and the walls of reality with cold clarity, yet instead of staying stuck there, I strive to move forward even more actively. I know better than anyone that seeing my own reality as it is is the starting point for true change and growth. That’s why, even today, I reflect on my own shortcomings and move forward by making concrete plans.
Life Philosophy
Rather than striving to ignore humanity’s instinct or desire for money, let us face and understand it as it is. Since the dawn of human society, people have exchanged value in diverse ways—from simple barter to using seashells as currency. As technology advanced, increasingly sophisticated financial products and economic systems emerged, establishing money as a vital means enabling fair compensation for labor and materials. Through this process, humanity achieved remarkable progress in understanding the concept and flow of monetary value.
Nevertheless, in our society, there are times when people hold negative perceptions about money—this entity that underpins so much of life, whose value everyone recognizes and needs. It is not uncommon for people to regard the desire and pursuit of money as something shameful, pretending outwardly to be indifferent or detached while inwardly yearning for it. This likely stems from deeply rooted social prejudice, where those who act in pursuit of money have traditionally been implicitly looked down upon as ‘commoners’ rather than ‘nobility’.
Of course, an extreme attitude that judges or evaluates all values in the world solely by money is rightly something to guard against. However, I believe it is essential to acknowledge that money is an indispensable and precious part of living our lives, and to cultivate an attitude of proper understanding and interest towards it. What matters is not an extreme stance of either excessive worship or outright rejection of money, but a wise attitude that calmly recognizes its essence and value, and knows how to appropriately utilize it as a means for a healthy life.
Therefore, we need to adopt a mature attitude that lets go of excessive wariness or guilt about money, and naturally accepts that money is one of the important parts of life. Only when we enjoy the convenience and stability money provides, yet remain centered and unshaken by it, can we achieve a truly healthy and balanced life. Moving forward, I aim to cultivate a sound value system and wise attitude toward money, enriching my life with greater meaning and abundance.
Reasons for Applying and Aspirations After Joining
People often teach that wealth is not everything in life, and that people and the heart are the most precious values. However, the reality I have experienced from childhood until now has always been a little different. My mother’s quiet lament that she wished we could live just a little more comfortably, and the stark, undeniable differences in our actual circumstances that existed even among friends who believed everyone was equal—these remain vivid and indelible memories for me. And those memories became a constant source of curiosity and stimulation deep within my heart. “Why do people yearn for wealth?” “How does the financial sector, wielding such immense power, shape the world?” These questions grew stronger, and before I knew it, I found myself deeply fascinated by the realm of money and finance, embarking on an intellectual journey of exploration. Recognizing that in modern society, as civilization and progress advance, money and finance gain ever greater significance, I set the goal of building a thorough foundation of professional knowledge and understanding in this field.
As I pursued a deeper understanding of finance and money, your company’s philosophy of cultivating professional talent and walking the path of growth together with shared purpose ignited an even greater passion within me. I firmly believe that your company’s solid expertise and know-how accumulated over many years will synergize powerfully with my personal passion for finance, which I have consistently pursued in my private life. I am confident that by sharing my long-cultivated passion and intellectual curiosity in finance with your outstanding team, I can contribute not only to my own growth but also to the advancement of your entire organization. I aim to broadly absorb your professional knowledge to continuously enhance my capabilities. Building on this foundation, I will dedicate my utmost effort to drive more active research and challenges, delivering positive outcomes for both parties.
Above all, what matters is not achieving success once but continuously challenging myself, evolving, and consistently delivering results. I will always approach new environments and tasks with a mindset of learning, actively embracing them, and growing into a more mature and capable professional over time. If given the opportunity to become a member of your company, I will never lose sight of my original aspirations and will work tirelessly with perseverance to build a better tomorrow together with your company. Thank you for taking the time to read my letter.
