📦Tariffs Made Simple + The Exact Cold Email That Got Me 5 Internships

WHO AM I?

🏋️ Background on Me

How are we, legends? I'm Jai, the founder of The Finance Grind, and I’ll be breaking down the relentless grind it took me to break into high finance—just six months before graduating from a non-target school. Brutal. Chaotic. But 100% worth it.

Let me tell you straight—I didn’t come from a fancy Ivy League school. No silver spoon. No family connections. Just pure hustle. Six months before finishing college, I didn’t even know what investment banking was. Now, I have 4 internships in investment banking and moved for a role at an investment bank in New York City.

BREAKDOWN

📌 What You’ll Get in TheFinanceGrind Newsletter

Every week, I’ll break down:

🔎 No-BS Finance Concepts – Universities teach fluff. Banks don’t care. I’ll break down only what actually matters—Tariffs, M&A, valuation, interest rates, and more. Quick, simple, and interview-ready.

💡 How I Broke Into Wall Street in 6 Months – No target school. No connections. Just a system that works. Learn the exact strategies I used to network, cold email, and land interviews.

🎯 Bi-Daily Technical Interview Question – Sharpen your skills every morning. Get real IB/PE/HF/ Asset Management technicals, plus clear, simple breakdowns so you don’t just memorize—you actually understand.

📩 Networking & Cold Call/ Email Playbook – My exact email templates & LinkedIn strategies that landed me 100+ calls with bankers. No generic advice—just what actually gets responses.

WEEK 1 TOPIC

🤔 What’s All This Talk About Tariffs, and How Do They Affect You?

A tariff is a tax on imported goods, designed to make foreign products more expensive than local ones. The government collects these taxes when goods cross the border, but don’t be fooled—consumers usually foot the bill.

📌 Why Should You Care?

💸 Higher Prices → Tariffs push prices up faster than your heart rate after a triple espresso, leaving less cash for that overpriced avocado toast.

🏭 Protecting Local Industries? → Some say tariffs help domestic businesses; others argue they’re as useful as a flip phone in 2025—inefficient, outdated, and full of trade war headaches.

📉 Market Volatility → When tariff wars heat up, markets swing hard. Just ask investors who watched the S&P 500 tank 6% in a week after Trump’s 2018 China tariffs.

📌 TL;DR: Tariffs in a Nutshell

💰 Tariffs = Import Taxes – Makes foreign goods more expensive.
📈 Prices Go Up – Consumers foot the bill, not governments.
🏭 Protects Local Industries – But often causes trade wars instead.
📉 Markets React – Tariff battles = stock market volatility.
⚖️ Double-Edged Sword – Helps some businesses, hurts consumers & global trade.

🚀 Bottom Line: Tariffs are the government’s way of saying, "Buy local, or pay up!"

COLD EMAIL TECHNIQUE

📩 The Cold Email Blueprint That landed me 100+ calls with bankers (How to Get Responses)

Most people send terrible cold emails—too long, too generic, and no value. Differentiate yourself and highlight your strengths straight away. Use this simple format

1) 📌 Subject Line: (Most Important Step!)

Hi"[First Name], Quick Question – [Your Accomplishment]" 

2) Opening

"Hey [Name], I know you’re busy, so I’ll keep this short."

3) Personalized Hook

"I’m [Your Name], a [Your Accomplishment]. I saw you worked at [Firm] and transitioned from [Background]—I’d love to hear about your experience."

4) The Ask

"Would you be open to a 10-minute call to chat about your experience at [Firm]?"

5) Close

"Thanks in advance—I really appreciate any insights you can share. (Attach Resume)"

EXAMPLE

📌 Copy & Paste Ready-to-Go Example

⚡ Subject: 2x NCAA Soccer National Champion Turned Investment Banker

“Hey [Name],   

Hope you're doing well! I’ll keep this short— I know your extremely busy.

My name is [name], a, 2x NCAA college soccer champion and founder of the Student investment club on campus. I have 4 internships in Investment banking and I’m looking to push my career to the next level.

If you ever have 10 minutes i’d love to hop on a quick call to hear about your experience at [firm name] and your path to becoming a [position]. I’m really looking to learn from someone who's been where I want to be and has stood out as much as you have.

Would you be open to a quick chat next week? Happy to work around your schedule.

Best,

[name]

[Linkedin]

[Phone number']”

✅ Success Rate

📩 Response Rate: 10-15% → For every 100 emails, expect 10-15 replies.

🔄 Follow-Up (Up to 5 Times) Success Rate: 30% → Most bankers forget to reply—a polite follow-up puts you back on their radar.

❓Why This Works

📌 Short, direct, and stands out – Bankers skim emails in seconds. Get to the point fast. What makes you different from the 200+ college kids flooding their inbox?

🎯 Flattering hook – Show you’ve done your homework. Reference their background, deals they worked on, or something specific. Make it personal.

✅ Clear ask – No one likes vague requests. “Can we hop on a quick 10-min call?” is way better than “I’d love to connect.”

☑️TO-DO LIST

1️⃣ Fire off 25–50 cold emails per day
→ That’s 125–250 shots per week.
→ Expect 5–10 solid replies — that’s where the magic starts.

2️⃣ Follow up like a pro (in 5–7 days)
→ Most people give up too soon
→ Following up can boost your success by 30%. Don’t leave that on the table.

3️⃣ Track every response. Lock in those calls.
→ Stay organized, stay relentless.
→ The follow-through is where deals are won.

BEFORE YOU GO!

Here’s How We Can Help You

Internships/Jobs: Click here to join the WhatsApp Group chat for higher finance jobs posted in the market (updated daily).

Reward Program

Know someone else trying to break into Wall Street?

📩 Refer just 1 friend to TheFinanceGrind and you’ll unlock:

🧠 “The Must-Have PDF of The Most Common IB Technical Questions (Used in Real Interviews)”

No spam. No catch. Just one referral and the full breakdown is yours.

See you tomorrow.

- Jai 

Founder of TheFinanceGrind