One of the great things about an accounting career is the stability, because no matter how big or small a business is - there needs to be accurate and responsible financial reporting and record-keeping involved. No matter where you are in your accounting career, there are always new skills to develop, ideas to explore, and steps to take. Here are some steps that you can take to further your accounting career.
Networking
These days, every professional should maintain a wide network of contacts to make sure that they are in tune with their industry. The truth is that the right referral can still go a long way. Although we might live in a world where social networks make it so that we can contact many individuals we otherwise wouldn’t be able to, old-fashioned networking still has its place in the world. Of course, you should maintain these relationships, and add value, and seek to help others, so that the relationships can grow. You never know when knowing the right person can help your career path!
Feedback
No one wants to have to constantly repeat themselves. If your job has given you feedback with regards to your job - whether it’s about your attitude, performance, or another aspect of your job - take it to heart. You will be surprised at how much you can impress someone simply by proving that you truly took some constructive criticism to heart. When it comes time to evaluate careers, bosses who can see a significant improvement in terms of productivity will surely be more likely to help you advance your accounting career.
Technology
If you truly care about your accounting career - it means that you certainly care about technology. Every year, there is all sorts of accounting software, or resources that could help you learn new skills. This kind of proactive attitude can certainly help with regards to standing out in terms of your business. It’s easy to see how a CEO can be impressed by informing their accountants about new software, only to find out that you have already mastered the software on your own time! The truth is that technology is always changing, and attempting to keep up shows that you are passionate about dominating the competition.
More Learning
While education is necessary to become an accountant, the truth is that no matter what profession that you have: there is always more to learn. For example, there are economists that have studied economists for decades, that still examine industry trends and read the latest papers regarding economic analysis in order to understand their sector even more. Similarly, no matter who you are - there are always meetups or webinars to attend for accountants where you can learn concepts that you might not have heard of, or tricks of the trade that you weren’t aware of. For those who might be more interested in virtual options - a cpa education webinar, is also a possibility, as well.
Sit-Downs
It’s hard to truly advance in any career without having honest conversations about it. There are all sorts of individuals, with different personalities. We all might know one or two individuals that lack the ambition or motivation to ever truly move further in their career. As a result, they might be fine in a particular role, but never truly care to outgrow that position. There is the famous saying that “closed mouths don’t get fed”. In order to move further in your accounting career - you obviously need to let it be known that you want to move forward. This might involve a sit-down with management, or a lunch with your boss, where you can be honest about your ambition. Whether it’s someone at your organization or not, you can also search to find a mentor to give you the valuable advice that you might need to proceed, as well.