Accountant stereotypes are prevalent in society, and unfortunately, many people believe them to be true. These stereotypes often portray accountants as dull, boring, and lacking in creativity or social skills. Accountants are also often seen as number crunchers who are only interested in making money and have no regard for anything else. Not only are these stereotypes wrong, but they do a disservice to all of the hard-working professionals who dedicate their careers to the field of accounting.
Stereotypes like these persist in part because people often have limited exposure to the profession and may not fully understand the diverse skill set required to be a successful accountant. Additionally, media and pop culture often perpetuate these stereotypes, further fueling their prevalence in society. I thought it helpful to give you an insider view of accountant stereotypes and explain why many of them are false or not completely true.
As AI tools like ChatGPT become increasingly sophisticated, efficient, and accurate, many people believe AI and ChatGPT will make human accountants obsolete. AI and ChatGPT can process vast amounts of financial data much faster and more accurately than humans. With their ability to analyze data, they can identify patterns and trends, and provide insights that could assist with decision-making processes. Companies may find it more cost-effective to use AI and ChatGPT for routine accounting tasks instead of hiring full-time accountants.
However, there are still areas where human accountants have an advantage over AI and ChatGPT, including:
Many people tend to view "tax season" as a horrible aspect of my job - many don't realize that I love tax work. What makes tax season horrible isn’t the work, but rather the insane work weeks that many accountants are forced to work because the firm is understaffed or company culture. CPA Edward Mendlowitz outlines the following factors that make tax season unbearable for accountants:
As Edward points out, being constantly overworked during tax season makes many accountants who want a better work-life balance either leave for another firm or leave the profession altogether. I’m fortunate to work at MBS Accountancy, which has made work-life balance a core firm value.
One of the biggest accountant stereotypes is that all accountants are introverted and prefer to work alone. This isn’t necessarily true. As CPA Fabiola Ramirez says, “I'm constantly communicating with my team, my clients, etc. Not a day goes by that I don't speak to a client. You have to learn how to speak to people, and I can see many hardcore introverts struggling with this aspect of accounting.”
The success of an accountant's work often depends on our ability to communicate effectively with different people, departments, and clients. There are several specific aspects of our job that require strong interpersonal communication skills. For example, we must discuss and explain financial statements to clients, collaborate with colleagues, build relationships with clients, and negotiate with vendors and suppliers.
Aside from the interpersonal aspects of an accountant’s job, it’s also key to remember that introversion and extroversion exist on a spectrum. Some accountants may be introverts, prefer solitude and quiet environments, and need alone time to recharge.
An extroverted accountant, on the other hand, will thrive in social situations like business networking events. As an extrovert, this kind of accountant would be highly expressive and talkative and most enjoy activities that involve interaction with others.
An accountant can also be an ambivert. Ambiverted accountants will fall somewhere in between introversion and extroversion, exhibiting both introverted and extroverted tendencies depending on the context or situation.
The point? Don’t assume all accountants are introverts. While it’s true that many accountants tend to be introverted, there are also many extroverts in the accounting profession.
As Nawal Hussein, an accountant at MBS Accountancy, points out, “I rely on clients to provide information in a timely manner. Any delays or unresponsiveness impacts the timeliness of my work for them.” This is a reality that many companies fail to understand and, as a result, they endanger the success of any accountant or tax professional with whom they work.
As a client, it’s best to follow these practices to ensure your accountant is able to provide you with the best service possible:
Most accountants know the fear of being asked “a quick tax question” at family gatherings or while out with friends. Usually, these questions start flying right after we announce we’re an accountant.
However, there are many different types of accountants. Here is a quick summary of each kind of accountant. Spoiler: only some of them do taxes.
Another myth about accountants is that all we do is look at the past as we file returns and issue financial statements. But we do plenty of future-focused activities too, like extrapolating patterns from budgeting and spending trends and preparing for anticipated future events like the sale of the company, addition of a partner, or expansion into a new market or state. Here are some of the future-looking activities we do as accountants:
You only have to look at CPA-turned-comedians like John Garrett and Greg Kyte to know that there are accountants in the world who have a sense of humor. As Mark Lee, FCA points out, most people who say accountants are boring are either parroting what they’ve heard others say or simply don’t care to understand accounting. At MBS Accountancy, we keep our company chat channel alive and very un-boring with GIFs and memes to keep us chuckling and motivated throughout the day.
A lot of people assume, often because they think accounting is incredibly boring, that accountants are only doing their job because of the money. But this is far from true. While accounting is a lucrative profession, many accountants find meaning and purpose in the work they do for clients. For example, our accounting manager Edie Daly sincerely enjoys helping nonprofits by providing controller and CFO services that enable them to succeed and make well-informed operational and financial decisions.
Obviously, we have bills to pay and things we want to buy. But relegating our job to a mere paycheck does a disservice to the many strategic and relationship-based aspects of what we do for clients. CPA Victor Godinez puts it: “If I were just in this for the money, I’d be miserable. I truly believe that my work is valuable and provides clients with accurate, skillful interpretations of their financial statements and financial performance.”
The next time you hear someone say all accountants are boring, do us a favor and throw a marshmallow at them. The jumbo kind. While we may nerd out over numbers and tax topics that many people find boring, we aren’t the boring monolith that non-accountants portray us to be. While legacy accountants may have shut themselves up in a room and cranked out calculations or wore a green eyeshade to bed, modern accountants hone their interpersonal skills to help their colleagues and clients succeed.
