/biz/ - Business & Finance

>>22836242
Cons:
Boring
Pros:
Insider info

Bump

(((((((((accountant)))))))))

>>22837055
take your pills schizo

The accountant I paid $2.5k to 5 months ago to do my taxes still hasn't done my taxes and doesn't believe in giving timelines.

Anyways OP become a tax accountant.

Gotta love a profession that comes with the hidden risk of going to jail for your boss's crimes

>>22836242
u count dollas n shit nigga

>>22836242
its very comfy
i am about to become the CFO of a startup and will have equity stake in the company, here is my career progression to date:
>big 4 accounting firm
>got my CPA
>moved to a small firm as a finance manager
>moved to an S&P 500 firm as a finance manager
>today
its pretty comfy, you work about 40-50 hrs a week (less if you're not in S&P 500)

>>22836242
it sucks. i've been an accountant for about 2.5 years. 1 year in big 4 audit, 1.5 years in publicly traded corporate accounting. public accounting is terrible just avoid it. long hours for shit money. working in industry pays better (but still shit) and hours are much better, but 90% of your time will be spent doing retarded shit. arguing with dumb boomers in FP&A, completing mindless ad hoc projects to satisfy FP&A boomers, being forced to explain retarded flux analysis rollups by faggots in financial reporting, etc. basically endless meetings and pointless busy work.

i live in a high COL area (central NJ) and i make $70k. i might get a promotion next year to senior accountant to $80-82k. this is still shit money. i'm self-teaching web development so i can pivot to tech, where starting wages for competent developers is $70-80k and 2 years experience can get you $100-120k.

>>22836242
I work closely with accountants in probably just as boring of a job, corporate tax. I’d maybe try to make it a springboard to something else depending on how you like the work for you personally. I’d for sure get your CPA asap and get that out of the way. Might also want to check out actuarial opportunities. Really any of the typical boring office jobs will be available after a little time. Boring shit but stable and great benefits depending on the company.

>>22836242
My dad was an accountant for 50 years, 30 running his own firm making mid-high 6 figures. Tax season [oct-apr] he would work 70+ hours every week but the schedule was much more relaxed the rest of the year

>>22837163
>work 40-50 hours a week for someone else
Work to live, life to work. Why even live at that point.

>>22838151
he also left out the part where he worked 60-80 hours a week for 4-6 months out of the year in big 4 public accounting.

>>22836242
CPA here. Do not fucking go into accounting. It’s a terrible career. I worked in Big Four tax for three years and recently got into industry at a Fortune 500. The hours are still crazy. Go into corporate finance and work in the finance department at a corporation. That’s actually comfy.

>>22838191
Lol at 60-80 hours. Try 100+ during busy season.

>>22837333
My main goal at this point is to retire early. There’s no way I can still do corporate tax in my 50s. I’m 26 right now and am really trying to retire by 40.

>>22838292
i don't believe 100+. people inflate hours wildly. 60-80 is realistic. i only did big 4 for a year because it sucked cock but the worst i did was like 55-60 plus a 2 hour round trip commute, which was pretty fucking awful.

>>22838370
I worked at a Big 4 firm for three years. 100+ hours is absolutely common during busy season. 60-80 is fucking nothing.

>>22836242
Chainlink will replace the need for accountants.

I'll redpill you on why not to pick accounting as a career.

>>22838457
Knew we would get this brainlet answer. And I say this as someone who fucking loathes accounting, too.

>>22838457
accounting can increase business profitability a lot (especially for small firms)

big 4 audit: do you like working 80 hrs a week in busy season filling out countless checklists and interviewing clients who don't want to talk to you and actually hate you because you are wasting their time, meanwhile you are evaluated against your peers who are slaves imported on H-1B visas and pass the cpa exam before you

industry: do you like replacing someone at their job for less money than they were paid, inheriting all their ugly messy spreadsheets that barely make sense, and constantly feeling the dread of "did i pay this bill on time" and every month is exactly the same except some months are worse because you get to do extra "fun" projects like tax filings and sales commissions

accounting is a shit tier profession

Got CPA in a public firm theb went to work for the gov't (Canada). Pay isn't great at 65k CAD but I "work" from home, probably doing like 25 hrs a week of work max. Also during the lockdowns had probably 3 months of cumulative free time this year which was based, and got paid 100% of that time

>>22837125
>>22837127
>>22837163
>>22837333
>>22837394
>>22838093
>>22838292
>>22838457
>>22838625
>>22838640
Now redpill me as someone who barely passed algebra classes

>>22838625
> inheriting all their ugly messy spreadsheets that barely make sense

>senior accountant quits.
>wagie manager divvy up his work.
>inherit a spreadsheet/account with a cumulative $250k plug going back 12+ months
>involves complex intercompany revenue transactions, zero cost revenue/cogs inventory transactions with an external manufacturing agreement, misclassed service charges, etc.
>took 1 month to investigate, involving corporate controller.
>ended up blindly writing off $200k of it.
boy that was a fun account to reconcile and i'm not even a senior accountant.

>>22838693
You won't be able to pass unless you join the Chinese cheating ring

>>22838457
Confirmed. I've lost an accounts payable position to a software upgrade already

>>22838693
As far as math goes, accounting doesn't require anything beyond basic arithmetic.

>>22838191
I probably did around 60-80 hours during busy season. Honestly you gotta have some work ethic if you want to make it. That or get extremely lucky through business ventures.

>>22838921
thats comforting to hear. I am completely retarded when it comes to math and im not proud of it

>>22836242
smart contracts are destroyinf your field lol

>>22838935
it's not worth it.

$120k in accounting
>graduate with high grades, internship, CPA eligible
>wageslave to big 4 manager for 5 years while also passing CPA exam
>exit to industry for $120k

$120k in comp sci
>graduate with decent grades and an internship
>start at >$120k if youre a FAGMAN worker
>otherwise be a middling software developer for 3-5 years to reach $120k

>>22838921
>>22838970
true if you're a bookkeeper. If you're in corporate tax, a controller, or anything mildly interesting then it is more like algebra

>>22836242
I thought it would be a comfy job for a social autist but it’s looking like I’ll have to talk to a lot of people.
Also my school has been hinting at the fact that what we’re learning is becoming obsolete because of blockchain tech so they’re trying a more “analyst” based curriculum. Not very comforting.
I don’t like that I’ll basically be a schoolcuck forever because of the gay standards but ig the money will make it worth it.

i'm doing a economic business, started my 3 year and looking to do the CPA after this degree.

thoughts?

>>22837127

Dude what? How is this a thing? This is a redpill I can't pass up.

>>22839118

$120k in engineering
>Graduate with decent grades
>Get lucky and graduate when oil is expensive
>Get hired at oilfield services company
>$70k plus all living expenses covered starting pay
>Promoted when you finish training 6 months later and get a raise to $120k/year
>Plus a significant amount of living expenses covered

I worked one year in the oilfield and it put me ahead in life significantly.

>>22839588
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Legal_liability_of_certified_public_accountants#United_States

realistically it's not a concern unless you're the engagement partner (public accounting) or a senior manager/director/executive (industry.)

>>22839538
But I was thinking of working 2-3 years as an accountant for a firm, regardless of pay and then fucking off to my 3rd world country and becoming an accountant/economic advisor.

I never want money, buy a chill work and open up my own office. Sounds comfy, and money isn't the priority.

Accounting is the fucking WORST. Go into programming, learn to build beautiful things, be happy in life. Programming is part art-form. Accounting is soul sucking bullshit. Source: I'm an actuary and program at work as much as possible to avoid blowing my brains out.

>>22836242
I'm thinking about accounting but threads like this are convincing me that it's an awful job if you don't want to be a slave (i'm in that boat). What are some actual make it jobs?

>>22839871
software development.

>>22839871

If you can keep your back straight and wear your PPE like a non-retard, IBEW linemen make ridiculous money.

You guys should have told me this stuff 3 years ago...

>>22836242
Post tits or gtfo

>Accounting is the fucking WORST. Go into programming, learn to build beautiful things, be happy in life. Programming is part art-form. Accounting is soul sucking bullshit. Source: I'm an actuary and program at work as much as possible to avoid blowing my brains out.

>>22838457
Based

>>22836242

As someone outside of it and working in tech, it always seemed one of the most boring careers to me when I was younger (I don't think anyone dreams of being an accountant when they're a kid). However, it's looking more and more comfier to me compared to working in software (notwithstanding the imminent danger of the current automatization that's happening in that field).

>>22840133
>Source: I'm an actuary

Do accountants have a shorter life expectancy than other professionals? Possibly because of their suicide rate, stress and sleep deprivation?

Imagine considering a career as accountant while millions of pajeets leave their shithole daily to come working as accountants creating a surplus of labour and inflating the salaries for that job...
in case you are a pajeet, well done sir.

>>22839484
>I thought it would be a comfy job for a social autist but it’s looking like I’ll have to talk to a lot of people.

Just as a PSA to others reading, if you go to a software developer gig and expect that this would be another path for achieving this you couldn't be more wrong. Modern software development involves a lot of ((( teamwork ))) and ((( communication ))) nowadays.

How accountants viewed themselves in college

>>22840458
isnt that al pacino?

What they ended up becoming

>>22840458
wrong. pic related is how i pictured life after college.

>>22840558
>>22840458
and pic related is what it actually is.

>>22840458
>>22840505

Shockingly accurate. If I went into debt for a 4-year degree so I could work 60-80 hour weeks and get paid less than a licensed plumber, I'd take up drinking too.

FUCK MY LIFE IT HAS BEEN MY DREAM JOB AND I'M ALMOST DONE WITH MY DEGREE BEFORE TAKING CPA EXAM. STOP.
STOP FUCKING.

STOP FUCKING REDPILLING ME REEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE

>>22840617

and THIS would be a circle of Hell if Dante's Inferno were written in the 21st century.

>>22840672
the 9th circle of open office hell is trying to work while you're constantly distracted by people walking past your open office cuckstation and by fat, loud, middle aged women gossiping and cackling loudly on the other side of the room.

>>22838292
I’m in my last semester as an accounting and want to get into finance now, any tips of positions I should be looking for?

>>22840776
>last semester
probably too late but FLDP (financial leader development positions) at F500 companies will fast track you to management over a 2-3 year structured rotational period. otherwise entry level "financial analyst" positions.

so many mixed answers wtf

>>22841065

Everything is shit anon.

>>22836242
lol no
learn to code anon, idk why you faggots ignore this advice repeatedly

>t. 300k, 3 years of experience

>>22838457
retard, if you're gonna shill at least do it properly, chainlink does literally nothing for accounting beyond theoretically providing the data

>>22839118
>>start at >$120k if youre a FAGMAN worker
more like 160k...

levels.fyi

>>22838757
redpill me on the chinese cheating ring

Bump

>>22836242
Soulless drone shit

>>22842112
chinks cheat on everything. all of the chinks in my masters program cheated. makes no sense because they fucked off back to chinkland once they cheated their way through a masters in accounting.

>>22843190
Because western degrees earn you a shitton of money in the eastern parts of the world

>>22843359
>Because western degrees earn you a shitton of money in the eastern parts of the world
Yep! Prestige/status/connections work better in the East.

A friend at FAANG in the US is able to get me an interview there. A friend at a company in China can just straight up get me the job while we chat over lunch.

>>22842028
accountants often do manual data entry. ensuring the correctness etc.
high security interoperability through blockchain middleware combined with one oracle fail insurance can increase efficiency and cut down costs instead of 15 insurances a ''normal'' account needs atleast indirectly

>>22843849
block is just transaction linkage in a ledger. it does absolutely nothing to verify the data inputs for the various assertions: existence, occurrence, completeness, rights & obligations, valuation, etc.

i hate accounting and i wish it was automated out of existence but there is a reason why accounting still exists today and it's obvious that you have no idea what you're talking about.

>>22836242
I have friends who got burned out by accounting by thirty; one owns a bar in Queens and the other [redacted].

And here I was all excited to start my Accounting degree this Spring. Fuck all of you.

>>22844664

Better to suffer for a bit now then to suffer later but for much longer.

fuck accounting, the best way to make money is to join a community ponzimatics and increase your stack by 20x. check out orb.bz

>>22844929
I guess I’ll become an electrician or something

>>22845050
I would've became a welder if i were in America