[picontesauce]

After my experience up to this point I’m not so sure accounting is the right field for me. I’ve found that in my experience all my supervisors are very type A and I have had a hard time working well with them. I am not very organized or detailed oriented but enjoyed accounting in college because I found it to be like a puzzle and i did well in my accounting classes. Now that I have started working I seem to do poorly as it takes me a long time to complete my work because I constantly have to redo work so all my I’s are dotted and t’s crossed. I also tend to often come to different conclusions than my coworkers on Work topics. Here’s my back ground:I graduated with my bachelors of accounting with enough hours to sit for cpa. after graduating I spent six months doing a tax internship with a midsize tax/audit firm (40ish employees). While I was there I really struggled with being productive because i was constantly having to redo work because of poor attention to detail. I improved slightly but it felt like a constant struggle and my manager was always having to help me out because I was going over budget on my work. During the final review they did mention that I had poor attention to detail and not the best time management but gave me postives in my other soft skills areas. They did offer me a job if I wanted to stay but they New I was already planning to move to back to home town, which I did. After that I worked at an insurance company doing their investment accounting work. I had a really hard time because my supervisor and I were always butting heads on what the best ways to meet internal control requirements but remain as efficient as possible, and any other semi subjective work. And again i felt like I was constantly behind on my work and it was very stressful. Worked there for a year and then I decided to start looking around. I ended up taking a job with a tech school as a financial aid advisor. After starting here the change has been great and I really enjoy the people I work with and the work environment. The only problem is the pay isn’t great and there is very little expectation of upward mobility.
So my question is, is it even worth it to pursue my cpa, if any of the positions I use it in are going to be such an uphill battle for me? Or are there jobs im not thinking of in the accounting profession that might be more towards my abilities.

[Missy]

Accounting may not be the right field for you, but I think the more important question to ask is how to improve your attention to detail AND efficiency. I cannot think of a professional field where those won't be of the utmost importance.

Licensed Massachusetts Non Reporting CPA since 2012
Finance/Admin/HR Manager

[Anonymous]

Anywhere you work professional or nonprofessional, accounting firm or not…. Your first 2-3 years is all about how well you can follow directions. You are not there to tell the boss what to do, you are not there to give advice and share your opinions.

You do your work and what is asked of you and be sure not to step on any toes.

Sounds like you don't like being told what to do and would rather do your own thing. You would probably be better off running your own business as you don't have to answer to anyone and can do things your way. The thing is you don't have the experience or knowledge to do it on your own. Which is why people work for someone else to get experience.

If you have the technical accounting knowledge, you can definitely do well and succeed, but you'll have to learn your place and work on your form a bit so not to be the weak link and pot stirrer at the office.

[CPA so close, so far away]

While I agree with what people are saying here, I would ask these same questions to family and friends that really know you personally.

[Jdn9201]

I can't tell you if accounting is the right field for you, but what I think I can tell you is I don't think you've given yourself enough time in the field to know whether or not it is. If I were you, I'd take a step back and think why you chose to study accounting to begin with. You're probably being too hard on yourself too – that first ‘real' job after college is hard for many people, especially if that's the time where you're experiencing having to take a long time to understand something. It's also possible that you didn't have the best managers, and they were using your inexperience as an excuse or cover for your lack of success. As far as your comments about “Type A” or detail-oriented, if you do decide to stay in accounting, I'd figure out what your strengths are and pick a niche that plays to your strengths. One thing I really struggled with when I graduated was trying to fit myself into this stereotypical accountant personality. Sure, I'd call my organization and detail skills adequate, but I've never been a Type A personality that has to have a place for everything, and I never will be. I'm a “big-picture” person – sure, I can find a $5 difference in an account if my life depended on it, but I have bigger fish to fry with my time. I'm also very creative and I do not like routine, so I chose tax and haven't looked back. My point being is that it doesn't hurt to work to improve your skills no matter what field you decide to work in. But, don't think that you have to force yourself to be this type of person either.

BEC - 88 8/29/15
REG - 82 11/14/15
AUD - 83 1/8/16
FAR - 80 2/29/16

[Author]

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