I haven’t worked at an accounting firm in over three years.
This morning, I was looking back at my past life as an accountant and wondering, do I miss anything about that job?
And what don’t I miss?
What I don’t miss
I don’t miss…
the long, forced hours,
working on subject matter I didn’t care about,
putting my creativity aside,
corporate politics that I didn’t care about,
a structure that prevented utilization of my full potential and skill set,
no room for scary experimentation,
the focus on compliance,
worrying about billable hours,
not working towards something that creates an exciting future,
the hierarchical power dynamics,
difficult clients,
wishing I was doing something else.
What I do miss
Actually, slight rephrase. This is what I value from my experience.
Some things I actually miss, like the people. Others I simply value, but wouldn’t necessarily want to repeat.
I miss / value…
Many of my coworkers and bosses,
getting to experience environments of different businesses,
gaining accounting expertise to apply any future business I start,
learning what it means to act like a professional,
the emphasis on accuracy, details and excellence,
learning how to execute well under pressure,
understanding how finances of a variety of businesses are structured,
working as part of a team,
friendships.
Overall, I’m grateful for what accounting has taught me about what I like and don’t like.
I always viewed accounting as a temporary bridge to where I wanted to go, which was somewhere entrepreneurial, creative, exciting and near the edge.
I never really fit in with the profession, and if you would have asked me during or right after I left, I would be tempted to write off (no pun intended) an unfair portion of my experience as little to no value.
But looking back, it seems like there was more value in my brief time as an accountant than I thought.