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Zeratul
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Posted: 25 Jul 2011 at 13:17 \| IP Logged

I've never had a job I was passionate about (though some were better than others, obviously).

I remember while in school reading all this stuff (particularly in management classes) about how important it is for employees to enjoy doing their job and feel empowered and such. I've had jobs I downright hated at times and have never felt empowered. I know who really holds the cards (a combination of he who determines whether you have a job and he who signs your checks) and have never tried to delude myself otherwise.

For me, it's about showing up, doing my job, and going home. Wash rinse repeat. In my most hated job, I was even offered a promotion (which I turned down because I needed to focus on school and the new job would have taken up significantly more of my time). I don't know who started this generally accepted myth that it's only people who are in love with their jobs who perform well and work well with others (probably some management consultant guru) -- in my experience, it's complete nonsense. Adults can get the work done to pay the bills without having to love or even like it (although if you downright hate your job it'll probably bleed over into other aspects of your life and make your general existence suck).

Anyways, accounting is not my passion -- in fact, I considered majoring in computer science and philosophy when I started and even got my associate's degree in English. It just happens to be more stable, and despite the economy, I think the jobless rate among accountants is probably lower than that of many other majors (especially in the liberal arts).

Kfan
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Posted: 25 Jul 2011 at 16:47 \| IP Logged

Exactly. I came to accounting later in life. It appealed to me as a
reasonably stable way to pay the bills. I would have loved to try acting,
but I am too risk averse for that. The odds of being able to pay your
bills in that field are low.

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guachapori
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Posted: 07 Aug 2011 at 21:30 \| IP Logged

In my case, I looooooooove accounting. Specially, governmental. However, i've only landed audit jobs which i do not like, but i am doing well (they are well paid actually). Still, I would prefer doing what i am passionate than making a lot of money. I dislike audit because you have to meet with a lot of people that are rude and defensive a 100% of the time.

UCFAccountant
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Posted: 09 Aug 2011 at 19:19 \| IP Logged

Not at all, it's bearable as others have put it. They really don't do a good job of giving you a taste of what your actually getting into before getting your degree. Had I known I'd be behind a desk most of the time I woulda pieced out and joined the marines, maybe serious lol.

While I'm not passionate about it, the forensic side of things makes life more bearable. As others, go to work, do job, come home, put good food on the table, rinse and repeat. I'm happy that I'm able to bring in ~70k two years out of undergrad, but at what cost? My brain almost feels like a zombie.

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almurra1
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Posted: 10 Aug 2011 at 03:43 \| IP Logged

Wow...it's really sad to see that so many of you are pursuing
accounting with no passion for it at all. What a dreary view of what the
professional world has in store for me. I'm fresh out of a masters
program and I've had the Accounting bug for at least 5 years now.
When I took my first intro to financial accounting course, there wasn't
a doubt in my mind that I was born for a career in Accounting. Part of
me wishes that more people that I'll be working with were as
passionate about it as I am, but people who lack passion for the area
will invariably leave or be stepping stones on the way up anyway.
Bottom line, sure, you can work in the field without being extremely
passionate about it, however, you will likely find yourself lacking drive
and constantly miserable about work. A man who can wake up and be
happy about what he does is a lucky man. I hope you gain experience
in Accounting and eventually find something that you are truly
passionate about.

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