After Molly Wakefield left an information session about the finance program at the BYU Marriott School of Business, she felt overwhelmed by information. But she says her parents didn’t raise her to give up after one try, so she decided to go “all in” and give finance her best shot. As she did so, she says she found joy from fully committing—and learned that going all in is easier with a focus on serving others.
“When you’re all in, it’s just so easy to love something,” says Wakefield, from Alpine, Utah. For her, that full commitment meant getting involved with finance before she even started the program. During her sophomore year, she completed internships in venture capital, investment banking, private equity, and wealth management. And, week after week, she attended BYU Finance Society meetings.
Wakefield says her initial stress was replaced by excitement as she connected with upperclassmen who helped her prepare to apply for the program. At the start of her junior year, she was accepted into the finance program and appointed vice president of research for the BYU Finance Society.
“I have this problem where I overcommit to things,” Wakefield laughs, as she remembers second-guessing her decision to take on a VP role during a busy junior year. “But then I would present to underclassmen about what the finance program has to offer, and they would come ask questions,” she says. “It’s rewarding because all these amazing people paved the way for me, and I wouldn’t be here without them. It’s really nice to be able to give back in that same way.”
Wakefield completed her junior year and started another internship, this time in New York as a summer analyst with investment bank Piper Sandler. She says that throughout her internship, she saw that finding ways to serve—such as picking up dinner for a struggling coworker—made her a better employee. “Everything feels more intentional when you have a background of service,” she says. “If you care about your boss or client and want the best outcome for them, you’re going to want to do your job better.”
For Wakefield, maintaining a focus on helping others was an extension of the culture she found at BYU Marriott. “At BYU Marriott, doing the right thing comes from us all having the same values,” she says. “We believe in Jesus Christ and believe that He served, so we should serve, too. As people continue to serve at BYU Marriott, we continue to uplift each other and create this culture. Then we go out into the world and the expectation and habit are already set.”
As she comes back to Provo at the end of the summer, Wakefield will have a new opportunity to serve: as copresident of the BYU Marriott Student Leadership Advisory Council (SLAC). While she works to serve BYU Marriott’s student body, she says she’s excited to continue to go all in. “SLAC is already at a really good place,” she says. “But we have a year—it’s exciting to think about where we can take it.”
