FOCUS
CPA Couples’ Therapy
I have a few thoughts I’d like to share. I am in the somewhat unique position of meeting regularly with the most experienced members of the CPA profession in Indiana and with the newest CPAs making their way through their first jobs. I hear from both sides what’s “wrong” with public accounting firms of all sizes, what’s “wrong” with young people, what’s “wrong” with partners, what’s “wrong” with corporate finance departments … you get the picture. As someone who has worked with CPAs for more than a dozen years and who is right in the middle of all of this, I feel I’m able to observe the serious disconnect between our mid- to late career members and our younger members and it’s kind of baffling. Te disconnect isn’t in end results—you guys often want the same things. Te disconnect is that you’re just not talking to each other enough. Since wide-scale couples’ therapy for bosses and staff accountants isn’t likely to happen, let me offer a few observations that you can take or leave, but could make your unions stronger.
A I say all of this with great respect.
Tink about what you want your life to look like and then try to build it. You can have it all, but maybe not all at the same time and not in exactly the way you thought you’d get it. So, think hard about what you want and why you want it. Be willing to want something different than the people around you. Ask your boss sometime about the early days of his or her career or about what they hope to do in the future.
22 CPAFOCUS May/June 2015
t the risk of becoming the 40ish, female version of Andy Rooney in the CPA world (young people, Google him),
Yes, they still think about their futures. Bosses are people, too, and they are probably willing to share some important tidbits about being successful in a one-on-one conversation if you are interested. Ask for what you want. Don’t demand it.
Don’t expect it. Tink about it, ask for it and see what happens. If nothing happens, follow up. Don’t gripe and don’t talk to your friends about it. Follow up with the people you asked. Maybe they forgot. Seriously. Even if it was of paramount importance to you, it’s possible it wasn’t top of mind for the person you asked and they just need a reminder. What if you don’t know what you want? Ten ask someone you admire what they wanted when they were your age or what they’d do differently and go from there. Asking for what you want is so much better than thinking “Hey, I do a good job and someone will notice.” Tey might not actually— and not on purpose. Everyone is just busy. So be patient, but also be persistent and don’t move on to the next job if you don’t immediately get the answer you want. Follow up. Take on more responsibility. If you want something to change or if you want the right to complain about the way things are, you need to take on more, possibly even before you think you’re ready. You’ve all heard of the 80/20 rule? Twenty percent of the people do 80 percent of the work. Tis can make that 20 percent cranky. Take on more responsibility—take the weight off of someone else and you’ll be surprised how much more willing they are to listen to your ideas, bring you into meetings or give you more challenging work. Also, ask a lot of questions with an open mind; if you are not willing to learn more and try to understand
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