As an accounting professional you’ve been working hard to make your career count. But what if you’re actually standing in your own way? There are a lot of limitations in the accounting field and many of them are surprisingly self-imposed. Are you letting yourself grow as an accountant? Here are some things to look out for and how to fix them.
- Overvaluing or undervaluing your worth. You never want to price yourself out of the market. If the rate you’re asking for is not feasible for most corporations you will not receive a job offer. Conversely, it is equally important that you don’t undervalue your contribution to a company. You may get an offer but you may find the job is lacking in career growth or other essential opportunities. Start by researching sites such as Salary.com and determine what you need to make to pay your bills and still earn money for your savings. Decide on the lowest salary you would accept and use that as your basic for rejecting job offers.
- Poor communications skills. Accountants have a reputation for being introverted. They are often seen as the heads down workers silently tapping away at calculators or reviewing spreadsheets. However, there is a lot of communications that are essential for effectively performing an accounting job. You need to be able to talk to coworkers, management at every level, and even your customers.
- Not having a service mindset. You should always recognize your role is there to help others achieve their ultimate goals. In a corporate accounting setting you want to ensure that your employer understands that you are there to help them with their accounting. Even when you have to deliver bad news make sure you are aware of how it will play into the long term service of the company.
- Not following up on unclear directives. If you receive instructions to complete a task but are uncertain on the exact requirements or reasons the best thing you can do is follow up and ask. Unclear directives often result in you putting in a lot of unnecessary work only to turn in work that doesn’t answer or address the original need.
- Avoiding work/life balance. Working adults spend more of their waking hours at the office than at home with their families. Poor work/life balance leads to stress related health issues and can affect both your work and your home life negatively. Be sure to maintain balance between your career and your family, friends, and health.
Are you looking for an accounting job to take your career to the next level? NRI is hiring for jobs in DC and can help today!
