Positive Experiences in Audit/Accounting?
Group,
I was wondering if anyone here (preferably those with industry experience) would be willing to share some positive experiences they've had in accounting/audit and how they didn't want to kill themselves/spend every waking moment wishing they were a banker. I'll be attending a masters of accounting program and while I'm going to try applying to some IB/Consulting positions because I have a strong interest in corporate development/strategy, I also don't hate accounting either and don't think going to a Big 4 firm would be the end of the world if I don't make it into an M&A shop.
Additionally, while I don't mind grinding hard at work till my late 20s or so, I don't think the lifestyle of high finance is a good fit for me and I would really like to have a fair amount of time (eventually) outside of work to pursue my other interests/have a social life. Plus, living in NYC permanently would be hell to me and I'd like to option of living in a smaller city down the road.
However, browsing this site honestly makes me feel like I'm inferior by going for a MAcc instead of running an all out blitz to make it into high finance. Admittedly, I'd like to eventually have an upper middle class lifestyle, but I'm not sure if choosing accounting necessarily precludes me from attaining this. My real goal from my career is to get an understanding how businesses work/operate and how to make them grow, but I'm starting to wonder if this is possible in accounting given how much people here look down on the profession. Let's say that I "only" become a controller and not VP of corp dev; will accounting still satisfy this goal of mine if I choose it as my profession (I realize this is vague so I can elaborate on it if necessary). I keep hearing that all controllers do is count other peoples' money and cry themselves to sleep at night because of how boring their jobs are and how little money they make, but I somehow doubt this is reality.
Therefore, I'm really wondering if anyone has had positive experiences in accounting and if they can elaborate on why they like it, how accounting relates to my goals, etc. This group is a bit isolated from the rest of the WSO community, which is why I'm posting here, so if anyone is willing to help, I'd really appreciate it because I'm beginning to rethink my decision to attend a MAcc after browsing this site for such a long time even though rationally, I'm in a good spot right now.
Thanks and I apologize in advance for sounding like such a Negative Nancy.
I'm just going to do a really quick, incomplete reply because one, I know other helpful members of this group will contribute soon enough, and two, I'm studying for an intermediate financial accounting test as we speak :)
I can tell you that we are probably a little similar. While I never even had the chance to get into IB because of my school, I can say that it never attracted me at all. I too put priority on life outside of work. I love accomplishing things and working hard, but there is a limit for me where I stop enjoying it. I know Big 4 audit is long hours in busy season, but outside of that it gives you an opportunity to enjoy your early 20s, which can be a hard time for a lot of people. I'm looking forward to that time and moving to Chicago for Big 4 audit.
As far as your lifestyle goals, I don't know the exact numbers, but if you hit the 150k marker around mid career or before, which is VERY attainable coming from Big 4 audit, you will be in the upper 90-95% of HOUSEHOLD incomes in the US. Whether or not that can give you the lifestyle you want is up to you, but if you feel it isn't, just keep in mind that 90-95% of households make less. And controllers at big companies make very good money.
I know all about the negativity of this site (besides this group of course) and it has made an impact on me. I've learned a lot, but I also feel worse about my career, and have to shake myself from that mindset. The high finance bubble is a super tiny percentage of the population, it just seems like a lot because its all concentrated in one area. In the real world, post-Big 4 CPA money is great money that many people would kill to make.
Yeah I know that I shouldn't really care, but it's somewhat hard knowing what else is out there (I guess this is why "ignorance is bliss" sometimes). I'm also of Asian descent and grew up in a community full of middle to upper-middle class Asian families who are 1st generation emigrants and super competitive about their kids getting into an elite school and making the big bucks (basically, living out the parents' dreams). Therefore, I also know of a large amount of kids who got into elite schools and are now at elite firms making stupid money. That also makes it harder to avoid this whole world, especially since my parents raised me to have a competitive streak, despite that not being my nature (I postulate that this is part of why I'm a "failure" compared to a lot of the other kids; I was much more interested in a balance and I wasn't born with a mean-streak/cutthroat side really).
The other thing that I'm honestly worried about is how a lot of accountants do seem to hate their jobs. I know I can make very good money as a controller one day and I certainly believe that I'm smart enough to do this, I'm not sure if I'll be happy if I absolutely loathe going to work every day. I understand that there's no such thing as a perfect job (even the ones we fantasize about usually sound cooler than they actually are), but compared to bankers, it seems as though auditors/controllers hate their jobs even more relative to the finance equivalents. That's why I'm trying to figure out if accounting is still a good match for my interests longer-term. Honestly, I think a lot of the discontent is either the "grass is greener" issue or the fact that finance guys make more money and seem to have more responsibility/prestige, but all the people on here claiming that they hate accounting and are desperate to get into banking is kind of worrisome.
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