CPAKillah wrote: gmeyers wrote: Is it so unrealistic that some people might actually find their job interesting and use that rather than money to choose a career? Glorified overhead? You have a terribly naive view of the range of services provided by accountants. Trust me, the vast majority of people that enter accounting care nothing for the profession. A lot of them couldn't cut it as engineers or couldn't survive on liberal artsy dreams. For those that are business ambitious people to begin with, accounting is seen as a stepping stone to something better, never the final destination. Then we have the final group who don't particularly care about anything and just want to get their paycheck and be home by 5 to walk the dog. I think you have a far too exalted perception of accounting. Take auditing for example, if there ever comes a time when computer controls were so robust that financial reporting can be trusted to be accurate right off the press and auditing as a profession became extinct, no one would shed a tear. The process is not a value-adding part of a business. Only necessary because people can't be trusted. Same with tax, only necessary because the tax code is too much complex for its own good. Some small businesses spend tens of thousands on tax preparation when they barely break even. It's ridiculous

You don't have a clue what you are talking about. I don't know one person that is an accountant that wanted to be an engineer. While there is likely to be the exceptions, it certainly isn't the norm. And doesn't that happen with every field, some enter it for the wrong reasons?

From your posts, its obvious that you are not an accountant, I'm not sure why you are on this board. Almost everyone I know that works in the accounting field are people that enjoy business and wanted to work in a conservative field. And that's what accounting is, you will most likely never make a ton of money, but you will likely always have a job.

Some small businesses spend tens of thousands of dollars to get their tax return prepared? Are you kidding me? Do you realize how big a company would have to be to have a tax prep bill in the tens of thousands? If you worked for a public accounting firm, you would know.  You obviously never have.

So why don't you run along now and go talk about a subject you are actually knowledgeable in, because the accounting field clearly isn't it.