Reasons Why Accountants Get Stuck In Their Career
Taking the decision to get qualified is a significant one. And I don’t just mean financially.
When starting out on the road to qualification the long term return on investment that you get in terms of pay and benefits is often a big consideration. These days with students coming out of university with a heap of debt the desire to maximise earnings must be even more significant.
Thing is there are a lot of accountants who want to get on in their career. Many do. Others struggle. While some get so far and get stuck.
Now if there was some guaranteed blueprint that would ensure success then everyone would be following it. Sadly it doesn’t work that way.
So what I’m sharing here is my perspective, based on 25 years in accountancy where I successfully climbed the career ladder from Payments Clerk to Finance Director.
Seeing qualification as the end point
The day you get the notification to tell you that you have been successful in the final set of exams is a great one. Thing is some see getting qualified as reaching the destination.
Qualification is just a start point to a new phase in your career.
Making a bad career move after you qualify
You are highly attractive to recruiters when you first qualify. Chances are there will be no shortage of opportunities. Faced with this abundance it is easy to make a career move that is great in the short term but not good in the long term.
Not taking time to get clarity
Have you really ever considered how far you want to go in your career? If you are like the majority probably not.
Thing is if you don’t have some idea of where you are heading making the right decisions, getting the right experience and building the right skills and attributes is going to be tougher.
Failing to work on developing yourself
Truth is the challenges get bigger and bigger as you move up the career ladder. Technical skills become less important while no technical skills sometimes called soft skills become more significant.
Often the biggest thing that lets people down is that while they may well be as good as anyone else technically they get left behind when it comes to interpersonal, leadership and management skills.
Duncan Brodie helps accountants and professionals build their soft skills and careers.
About the Author Duncan Brodie
Since 2006 I’ve worked with in excess of 8,000 accountants and professionals in workshops, seminars and one to one helping them land their next jobs and become better leaders, presenters and business partners. Before that I spent 25 years in accountancy climbing the career ladder from Payments Clerk to FD. I’m a CIMA Fellow, Certified Professional Coach and Team Coach Facilitator.