Golly gee, doesn't everyone love trips to the bank? What's that? You don't? You think they're "tedious" and "dull?" Well...maybe a bit. But there are usually free lollipops, and all the workers have those shiny nametags. If you're lucky, you might even get to meet the bank manager—the person with the shiniest nametag of all.

It's not exactly the same as being the "Wolf of Wall Street," but to be honest, being a white-collar criminal isn't that great. For one thing, you're a criminal. For another, you never win that Oscar. And he—er, you—so totally deserves at least one for his—we mean, your—stirring performance as...

You know what, we're off-topic. We're not here to talk about the injustices dealt to Leonardo DiCaprio by the Academy. We're here to talk about the sweet nametag and $56,000 (source) salary that you could earn as a commercial bank manager.

First, though, it's time for a history lesson. No, we're not off-topic again. The history of banking has a lot to do with what a commercial bank even is and how it differs from an investment bank.

 

That turned out to be a bad move. (Source)

If you were awake for a couple seconds during your American history class, then you remember a little thing called the Great Depression. During the Great Depression, banks were taking risks with consumers' money by lending it to investors.

After the Depression hit, the legislature passed the Glass-Steagall Act of 1933, distinguishing between "commercial banks" and "investment banks" (source). What it boiled down to was that commercial banks—the ones that J. Average deposits his weekly paycheck in—couldn't trade securities with their clients' deposits. Investment banks could still do that, but commercial banks were far more restricted in their movements.

In 1999, the Glass-Steagall Act was repealed. People thought it wasn't necessary anymore. Nobody wanted a repeat of the Great Depression, so banks would be more careful, right?

Wrong. Just nine years later, the 2008 financial crisis (a.k.a. "the Great Recession") hit. The truth is, letting little commercial banks do what the big investment banks of Wall Street do just doesn't end well. The Glass-Steagall Act was implemented again in 2014 under the Dodd-Frank Act of 2010; and nowadays, corporate investment bankers handle the high-risk stuff, and commercial bankers deal with small but steady cash streams. 

If you like finance, but can't stand high-stress environments, commercial banking is the gig for you. You'll never have to worry about wrecking the global economy or pulling all-nighters. Being a commercial bank manager is more like being a retail manager than an economically-powerful bundle of nerves.

Commercial banks do all your banking oldies-but-goodies: deposits, checks, certificates of deposit, and loans of all stripes (source). Need a loan to buy a car? A house? Stuff to start your business? Your local commercial bank can help.

 

Six more of these sold, and I'm going to hang with Old Faithful. (Source)

Like a retail manager, bank managers encourage their staff to push their products. Only instead of selling lawn chairs, banks sell credit and debit cards, checking accounts, and loans. And, like a retail manager, you're the boss of your staff, but you still have higher-ups to answer to. 

If they're not happy with the numbers your branch is turning out, you're going to get in trouble. But if they are happy, say hello to that second car and that road trip to Yellowstone.

If you want, you can get a job as a bank teller right out of high school and then work your way up to a managerial position. Or—how's this for an idea—you can get a college degree in finance and jump-start your career. Combine that with some people skills, a desire to lead a team to greatness, and a fondness for paperwork, and we bet you'll have "manager" on your nametag in no time.

But why stop there? For those who are really motivated to achieve greatness in the commercial banking world, branch manager is just another ladder rung on the way to the top: regional manager. A regional manager can get up to $80,000 a year and has lots of people to boss around. So what are you waiting for? Start dreaming big.

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