Hypothetically considering accounting for a career change

[sevenofnine]

I think it depends more about your location and job opportunities in your area. and well what you more or less enjoy doing, or you can stomach, to do for 8 hours a day.
its more of a personality thing, I couldn't sit in some office all day long, just me, and have a boss standing over me, or be someone's boss,
my job, though it happened by accident is perfect for me, easy peasy and I can do it forever. but it isn't for everyone.

in Calgary in the office towers downtown, I imagine there are a few accounts, I new one or two, worked for big oil companies, made big bucks fucking big bucks,
during the down turn they did contract work in the middle east, and in Columbia made fucking a lot of money.
but yes I also new one or two who worked the night shift at some hotel. for peanuts.

speaking of a big company pension or government pension, you would not believe the deductions taken off your cheque to pay for it, people look at your hourly wage, and go geez that's good, then you tell them what your take home is, and they say no thanks, you pay for it up front. up front being 25 years or forty years depending,

you finally get a return, and hopefully your healthy enough to enjoy it,

the smart money would be to invest a percentage of your salary when your young, every payday, the return would be better, and there is a lot more flexibility to do with the million or so you have accumulated as opposed to the million or so in your a pension plan, and you can actually will it to your kids when you die.

but financial discipline is hard, and well a pension plan forces you to save for your retirement so there are pluses and minuses

 

[JonnyBoi]

Seems to me OP's issue lies with he is not being intellectually challenged or dissatisfied at the lack of personal growth in his current career path.

I would echo some of other members that a MBA is probably the best way for you to climb out of that ditch. Consider Queens or West Ontario, both B-school has quite a bit of reputation in Canada and can be a great spring board into your next job. I would say a good after MBA job starts around 100-150k.

Do decide on a specific discipline however; do you like strategy? Tech implementation? Finance (I personally think it's the most boring, being an I-banker or bond trader is lucrative, but you do the same thing day in and day out, and you have to be/deal with jerks all day long), etc, etc.

As far as retirement goes, go find yourself a good financial advisor/CFP and read up some highly reviewed blogs to figure that bit out - seems to me you've got a great handle on life and just wanted confirmation to make that switch: I say DO IT!!

 

[CrazedandAbused]

CFO's don't do accounting, they manage the company's finances. That is completely different. They might have been accountants once, but it is not necessary. What they do need are skills and experience working with bankers/investors (or have experience as a banker or stockbroker) and business economics in general. People who come through IR or MBA routes will have that sort of experience and can function perfectly well as CFOs. A CFO deals with macroeconomics, not doing the companies books (that is something underlings do).

Sorry Tugela but you're barking up the wrong tree.

CFO's do accounting every day. That's one of their main responsibilities. There isn't a CFO I know do isn't confronted with accounting issues every day: revenue recognition; accounting policies; financial reporting; audit and oversight; public disclosure; tax issues; capital investment and depreciation, and on and on. Accounting has changed so much, and the standards have become so complex that no "simple" MBA or economics major can step in do the CFO's job any more. Impossible. Those days are OVER. No board in their right mind would hire a CFO who didn't have a formal accounting designation - they wouldn't trust that to an IR. It's hard for those guys to even become Controllers any more.

Maybe when you say "accounting" you're thinking of "book keeping" or the transactional part of accounting. That is such a small part of the really important elements of accounting that can impact a business.

Not to say your other points aren't true, meaning the CFO certainly is the key person for financial strategy, macroeconomics and forecasting, treasury and banking and M&A strategy. But to say "CFO's don't do accounting" under represents a major aspect of their role.

 

[BaconNeggs]

Well obviously a CFO deals with accounting as part of their job. But that is a whole other conversation.
I just have to wonder why anyone would be interested in the damn job of being an accountant. What passion can a person find in that work?
I am glad that people do want to be an employee, because owners need staff.
I'm just often surprised by people who want to work for someone, instead of being self employed.
If someone just wants to switch up their job try United. I bet many get fired there after this weeks senseless beating of an innocent old man. Maybe become the new sensitivity training manager. Or leader of stewardess training on how to serve and protect the customers. And many more job openings they have coming up.
Yes i am being a little sarcastic.
But my point is there are so many good opportunities out there for someone only just in their 30s. Decide what you want to do and pick one of those jobs.
Personally I would rank being an account at about the very bottom of the list of good jobs.
And the wage they make really isn't much at all. Just the fact of you asking members on this forum what we think about it, tells me it isn't a passion. Personally I would rather own a food truck, or sell tires at Big O, than be an account, but that is just me.
And while this is a great group of people here, we don't know what job will make you happy. Only you can decide that. And who knows how long you will stay at something, as many people switch careers several times in their life. So ask yourself honestly what you want to do.
If the answer is be an account for someone and sit behind a desk dealing with the headaches for a paltry 60k to 80k a year then do it.
If you do not really want to then don't.
Follow your dreams man!
I switched jobs so much for the first part of my adult life it was wild. I hated them all. Then i was truthful with myself and my choice was clear. Couldn't be happier in my choices than i am now.
Huge mistakes made from 17 to 22 were my learning more about myself.
Even became a cop briefly because i wanted to serve and protect people. What a frigging eye opener that was. I was young and dumb. The corruption makes the hells angels look like alter boys. Winnipeg academy is where the truly hardcore criminals train to be liars and deceitful scum. Then i sold vehicles.
Sold motorcycles.
I was good at it and could sell far above the average number of units the others did. But i hated it despite my selling on average 4 times as many units per month as the average salesman. In my heart i knew i need to work for myself. So i quit and did just that.
Steep learning curve OMG.
But rewarding as can be.
If the company has a great month or year it goes into my pocket, not someone elses. I don't have to work with a terrible coworker. If someone is horrible in the work place i can fire them, I'm the boss. If i want the afternoon off to go for a ride or maybe see an SP, i decide that because i don't punch a time clock. Looking back on it all now at the age of 42, i am not able to find so much as a single negative thing about being self employed.
I admire an Indy SP for their business sense and the guts to go self employed. And they sure as hell don't work for a measly 40/hour. Sometimes people hire me to be a help to them. I am all to glad to help if i can, but my consultation fee is 1000/hr with a 8 hour minimum charge. If i am only needed for 2 hours it doesn't matter as i have a set minimum.
Honestly if someone offered me a job at 50 hour i would turn it down flat and fire up my boat or motorcycle instead for a rip. But if you value your time working at say 40 or 50 an hour to crunch numbers for people then go for it.
We all have a price we attach to our time. Be it an SP who bills out at 300/hour or a surgeon at 1900/hour.
We all must choose our own path.

 

[JohnT]

I'm always looking for consultants. So what are you going to do for me for at $1000 an hour with an 8 hour minimum?

Interesting question. Apparently the chargeout rate for lawyers with 20 years experience is approx $450, so one wonders which industry has $1000/hr chargeout rate?

 

[JonnyBoi]

Leave the gun, take the cannolis.

I wonder how many young'ens didn't get that reference.. :heh:

 

[Peyton Alexander]

I'm always looking for consultants. So what are you going to do for me for at $1000 an hour with an 8 hour minimum?

Is this really the appropriate etiquette to ask someone about their restrictions? Tsk, chivalry really is dead. :eyebrows:

Clearly in jest, I hope that's obvious. Heh.