September 15, 2008, was one of the darkest days in the history of Wall Street. For four new college graduates, it was also their first day of work at Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc.

Sohil Sheth, Luvleen Sidhu, Justin Gaines and Brian Grossman walked through the doors of Lehman just as the venerable investment bank filed for bankruptcy protection, an event that sent shockwaves around the globe. The aftershocks continue to define many aspects of American life a decade later.

The crisis provided these unlucky millennials with a new perspective. Big institutions were no longer infallible. Wall Street no longer offered a guaranteed career path. Life was more fragile than they knew.

One thing was certain: Their world would never again look the same.