I love accounting ... what is wrong with me?
"People always ask me, 'Were you funny as a child?' Well, no, I was an accountant." - Ellen DeGeneres
Finding my Love What You Do profession.
There is the old saying that if you love what you do you will never work a day in your life. When I was young my father passed that advice on to me adding that he loved what he did and wished the same for me. With excitement I imagined that someday I might be digging up dinosaur bones, headlining a Broadway show or winning a Grammy.
I did not choose accounting as my “love what you do profession”… it choose me. After college I fell into it, discovering I was good at working with numbers. Strange, I was never good at math in school. But this was not math, it was something different and I really liked doing it. But accounting? And I liked it? Just a few years earlier I was making fun of the accounting majors walking around campus in suits and carrying their briefcases (nerds!). “What is wrong with me?” I wondered.
I decided to go “all in” with this accounting thing. Back to school, the CPA exam and two years of slave labor at a public accounting firm for my hours to get licensed. Many years later I am still doing what I love and loving what I do. I never would have imaged that accounting was my “love what you do” profession but am grateful I stumbled into it early in my career.
What is there to love about accounting?
Accounting is the language of business, it is logical and beautiful in its simplicity. Like some kind of mystic incantation the debits must always equal your credits and the balance sheet must balance.
Like a painter, an accountant can study a business landscape and visualize what brush strokes are needed to complete the picture. In the role of detective, accountants solve complex financial mysteries with clues only they can identify. Akin to an architect, accountants are able to design, build and implement solutions to help businesses understand their financial performance and grow. As the chameleon of the business world, the accountant is not limited to a specific industry and has the unique ability to adapt. This last point provides the accountant with endless opportunities for growth and organizations with insight only the accountant can provide.
Why you should love your accountant.
Undervalued and at times misunderstood, respect your accountants and include them in your business decisions. Hated for enforcing "the rules", feared for talking in that funny language and overlooked as they toil away in some far off cubicle, the accountant literally knows the "ins and outs" of your business. If given the opportunity they can help guide you in ways no one else can.
One of the biggest mistakes organizations make is not including the accountants in the planning process and other financial decision making. Take advantage of the knowledge that is right under your nose. You will not be sorry and I promise you will love your accountant for it.
"If my father had hugged me even once, I'd be an accountant right now." - Ray Romano
