It used to be that, if you were an accountant or in any other area of the business world, you would be expected to behave and dress in a certain way. As recently as 1963 one accountant said that an accountant has "a wife and children, lives in the suburbs, works downtown, is happy, respected, and imitated by others."
Well, that's not exactly realistic today. Even movie stars can't expect that little slice of the American Dream. A lot has changed in this country since the early 1960's. To begin with, there are plenty of women in the accounting field who possibly don't have a "wife and children." In fact, many accountants -male and female-are unmarried. Their marital status certainly doesn't make them better or worse accountants.
And where an accountant lives is up to him or her. Although the trend has been for more and more people to move to the suburbs, these days many are moving into the city. It used to be that most businesses and accounting firms were located in the center of the city; today, they're located wherever there is enough land to support four walls and a roof.
Imitated? Well, perhaps that's an overstatement. But respect? That's true. For some reason, in our society doctors, lawyers, and CPAs are people who are revered and respected. That doesn't mean, of course, that everyone thinks it's such a "big deal" to become a CPA-or a doctor or lawyer. As you are probably aware, these once godlike professions are coming under much closer scrutiny by people who want to know more about the services they are getting. For example, years ago most people never had thought to question their physicians about the medicines they were giving out. But today, through the advent of consumerism, people are questioning their doctors the way they would ask their butcher about chuck roast. In a sense, this is a very good thing for doctors (lawyers and accountants, too), because it forces them to be accountable. What you as an accountant will do is a service to people (just like filling up an auto with gas or selling groceries), and although it's certainly more "professional" than most fields, you still have to remember that you are working for people, and they expect many things from you besides just your skills as an accountant. They also expect honesty and accountability.
On a more specific level, there are many other advantages in being an accountant. Working conditions are usually excellent. Most offices are well lighted, well ventilated and air conditioned. (As a public accountant, you have more liberty to set up your own choice of working conditions because you are the boss, and if you want a more comfortable chair, you pay for it.)
Hours of work vary. But the private accountant in a firm or government agency usually puts in a standard 40-hour workweek. He or she might begin working anywhere from 8 to 9:30 a.m., and work until about 5 or 5:30 p.m.-with time out for lunch. Working overtime is not frequent, because an accountant is able to spread work-time over the length of a day or a week. Of course, there are rush periods for certain types of accountants, such as around the end of the year and during tax time.
For the public accountant, the busy time comes toward the end of the year, when most businesses and individuals are getting end-of-the-year (annual) reports ready for tax filings. During this time, beginning late in November of one year and ending toward the end of April of the next, the public accountant will be putting in many more hours than usual. But this is also the public accountant's money-making period, and some of the profit is his or hers. And, of course, the public accountant has the flexibility to select the time for a vacation.
But what about the cons? What's wrong with the field of accounting?
Surprisingly, the same things that seem so positive about the accounting world could be taken as negatives, depending on your viewpoint. For example, working in an office might appeal to some people but be very boring to others. The 9 A.M. to 5 P.M. hours don't appeal to everyone. For others, it's as basic as the fact that they aren't interested in working with figures and machines; they would rather be forest rangers (but even forest rangers need accountants).
Like any other job in the world (and by now it's an old and worn-out cliche) your job is whatever you want to make it. It can be as glamorous and exciting as you want or as tedious and dreary as you want. It all depends on your attitude. It all depends on you.
