5 Surprisingly Fun Things About Being an Accountant
Boring bean counters, stuffed shirts, geeks…. is this your perception of the accounting profession? If so, you’ll likely revise that opinion after learning all the super cool, amazing facts about this line of work. Not only are some of the toughest and coolest guys on the planet among their ranks, accountants can plan on bringing home the bacon like nobody’s business.
1. Accountants Got Moves Like Jagger
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Before the legendary Rolling Stones lead singer was an international sensation, he was studying to be an accountant at the London School of Economics. But Mick isn’t the only totally cool pencil pusher – he’s joined in rank by the brilliant (and wildly successful) suspense novelist John Grisham, the hilarious comedian Bob Newhart and super-slick jazz musician and lady-killer, Kenny G. Ultimate Fighting Champion Chuck “The Iceman” Liddell and professional wrestler D-Lo Brown also studied accounting.
2. Accountants Are Safe, and Employed
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But unlike struggling musicians and unemployed comedians waiting on us in restaurants, accountants have a solid future. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, accounting jobs are growing at a rate above average. Accounting jobs are projected to increase by almost 16 percent by the year 2012, and earn a higher than average mean income of almost $63,000 per year, with the highest earning accountants making a solid six figure income. Accountants rank in the impressive 75th percentile of earners. Accounting is also one of the top ten safest professions.
3. Accountants Are Super Sleuths
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Accountants don’t just balance the books, they’re on the forefront of crime fighting. In fact, without the FBI’s force of crime fighting accountants, the government would never have been able to get the notorious and dangerous Al Capone off the streets of Chicago. The FBI employs an army of 1,400 accountants, who serve as special agents. Law enforcement at all levels of government depend on forensic accountants to trace money trails leading to extortion, money laundering, embezzlement and even murder.
4. Accounting May Actually Be the Oldest Profession
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We all know what most people consider to be the oldest profession, but the honest and upstanding accountant could actually predate the seedier one. Ever since cavemen decided stuff was important, there’s been the need for someone to keep track of clubs, stones and woolly mammoth hides. In fact, the earliest human writings uncovered by archeologists were actually tax records.
Accounting became a recognized profession by the time of the Roman Empire, where large teams of accountants kept detailed records of the empire’s holdings. Long before we had online accounting degree programs, the word accounting was derived from the French “comptr” meaning, “to count or score.” However, the Renaissance Italians get credit for being the fathers of modern accounting.
5. Accountants Are in the Know
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Accountants are often the first ones to know the news everyone’s dying to hear. Since 1935, the first people to know who won Oscars are accountants. In fact, CPAs employed by the Oscars spend about 1,700 hours counting the ballots – by hand. These guys also get a first hand look at the books we’d all love to see, such as how much the government really spends, what kinds of lavish vacations Bill Gates enjoys and whether or not our boss deducted his mistress’ condo payments.
Accounting attracts a variety of people, including those who enjoy making order out of chaos and people who want to make right what once was wrong. Are you up for the job?
References:
http://www.ptcaccounting.com/index.php/Our-Company/Blog/5-Fun-Facts-About-Accountants
http://www.guardian.co.uk/money/2010/jan/09/accountant-career
http://money.usnews.com/careers/best-jobs/accountant
http://money.usnews.com/careers/best-jobs/rankings/the-100-best-jobs?page=4
http://news.everestonline.edu/post/2012/07/11-amazing-accounting-fun-facts
http://inventors.about.com/od/astartinventions/a/History-Of-Accounting.htm
Category: Career
