[Serenade]

But I'm scared to major in business. I heard that there are presentations and group work, and I'm not much of a people person and absolutely hate following and leading. (Oh, woe is me!)

Being an accountant is a set in stone goal for me, though.

Just wondering if its a good thing for someone who has mild social-anxiety to major in. Accountants don't deal with a lot of people, right?

 

[anarchitektur]

But I'm scared to major in business. I heard that there are presentations and group work, and I'm not much of a people person and absolutely hate following and leading. (Oh, woe is me!)

Being an accountant is a set in stone goal for me, though.

Just wondering if its a good thing for someone who has mild social-anxiety to major in. Accountants don't deal with a lot of people, right?

It all depends on your professors, but you can generally assume there's going to be bullshit presentations and/or group work in any major you choose.

Accounting is a service industry, which means you'll be dealing with clients. Depending on your actual position, this could be something concrete like actually having to meet with clients, or it could be something pretty far removed where you're just doing work for the clients, but you aren't the one who actually interacts with them.

 

[Serenade]

I'm planning on getting an accounting job behind the scenes. That is, if I survive university.

 

[sraddatz]

But I'm scared to major in business. I heard that there are presentations and group work, and I'm not much of a people person and absolutely hate following and leading. (Oh, woe is me!)

Being an accountant is a set in stone goal for me, though.

Just wondering if its a good thing for someone who has mild social-anxiety to major in. Accountants don't deal with a lot of people, right?

I've been an accountant for about 10 years. When I was choosing a career path, I thought like you do now. "what can I do to make a decent amount of money, and deal with as few people as possible?".

I can tell you now, though, that to truly be successful in the field, you will need good communication skills. You need information from other departments. They need information from you. I'm constantly emailing or calling people. I've worked my way to a VP position at a small bank. I love my job.

There are a ton of resources to help you with communication skills if you need those skills. You are also more than welcome to use me as a resource.

 

[Serenade]

@sraddatz

I was reading about jobs on this site called career cruising. I don't know why, but I think all the information I've received glamorized things, especially when I attended a presentation where my school brought in guest speakers to talk about their experiences. I did read some articles when they were interviewing accountants, and they did say you needed to have good communication skills to present information. I get that. I can be sociable when talking about work, but for small talk I give off weird vibes. (Or that could be my low self-esteem/weak inner voice talking. I always think I'm awkward. I learned not to fret about it, so my self-esteem of awkwardness isn't that low anymore).

Partly why I want to be an accountant is because I get business concepts easily. And I'm decent at math. When I took an accounting course, I could've gotten perfect, but got lazy and let my grades slip to a ninety-something. I'm trying harder this year, though.

What type of resources for communication? And must I be good at communicating verbally? I think I can get my points across through writing.

 

[Figure]

What kind of accounting would you be interested in?

At my university, there were really three routes for people who wanted to get a CPA: Audit, Tax, and Finance/MSA (some of which go on to Forensic). While most people I know who chose Tax make it a point to say they chose it because of the interaction they have with clients, I'm certain that the other types of accounting involve that too. In something like corporate accounting I'd imagine there being a need to communicate well, since accountants ultimately provide data that shareholders need, and the shareholders mean a lot to management. Even if the accountant isn't communicating all the time, they also are not mere bean counters walled off in a backroom and have a significant impact on the way that the company operates strategically.

Perhaps this is watered down if you work for a smaller company, or for a non-profit, but again I definitely wouldn't discount the need for good communication skills in any business field.

 

[tangosthenes]

From what I've seen, accountants are pretty solitary. The worst they have to do is take questions from other office people, or catch up with some miscellaneous stuff when the office is under-staffed. None of it is really that hard. Stuff I could do, for sure, and I have very little specific industry experience.

It does seem pretty easy, although you will likely need to do some research and personal exploration of typical accounting software. Job hunting before you need a job by cruising job ads never hurts. What you really need to be an attractive candidate though, is putting yourself out there for some hurts doing the job you are seeking before you actually get hired to do it. Say a small business puts an ad on craigslist for quick help, go do it, and learn how to go for other needs that they have, advertise yourself to fulfill them, even if you're not sure you can. Some of these jobs won't end so gracefully, some of them will end excellently, those are the jobs you need to keep for references. Do not be afraid to ask. The only thing you need to worry about is HOW TO ASK. There are so many ridiculously incompetent people in the world that manage to eke out a middle class existence, even some above what they should really be offered, and there are many that are seriously incompetent, and earn their status as such. If you are even middling, you can trust that your ability to work at the job, even becoming embarrassed, and out of your depth in the process will afford you so much in your younger 20s.

When they say now is the time to make mistakes, they aren't kidding. Do not give in to your anxieties, or they will eat you alive.

 

[donkeybals]

But I'm scared to major in business. I heard that there are presentations and group work, and I'm not much of a people person and absolutely hate following and leading. (Oh, woe is me!)

Being an accountant is a set in stone goal for me, though.

Just wondering if its a good thing for someone who has mild social-anxiety to major in. Accountants don't deal with a lot of people, right?

As far as the material goes, it's a lot of business jargon and terminology. It's similar to poltical math class, which throws some people off since it is not about the nature of math, like calculus or physics or even statistics, it is using a lot of percentages and numbers tied into business law and a man made mathematical system. As far as industry, industry is industry depending on what you do with your degree. Being an N myself it didn't necessarily come naturally to me at first - as it does not come naturally to anyone since it is not exactly a natural system. Again politics thrown into math.

 

[Serenade]

Chartered Accountant. I'd liked to work for a corporation.

Yeah. I realized that communication skills is a key factor in the business world. I'm not that bad at talking to people. I'm great at presentations, if that concerns anything accountants have to do.

 

[sraddatz]

Chartered Accountant. I'd liked to work for a corporation.

Yeah. I realized that communication skills is a key factor in the business world. I'm not that bad at talking to people. I'm great at presentations, if that concerns anything accountants have to do.

I don't give that many presentations, but I do lead meetings in which I am the main speaker.

 

[Razare]

But I'm scared to major in business. I heard that there are presentations and group work, and I'm not much of a people person and absolutely hate following and leading. (Oh, woe is me!)

Being an accountant is a set in stone goal for me, though.

Just wondering if its a good thing for someone who has mild social-anxiety to major in. Accountants don't deal with a lot of people, right?

I'm an accountant, and an INFJ. If I take a personality test, it scores me as an INTP, though, because I have very strong Ti-tendencies. In this way I am slightly similar to an INTP.

Accounting is a field that has diverse possibilities. You always have to work with people at some level, but about 90% of my day is solo work that I do on my own. I think if you get into a larger accounting department, you will have to deal with more people. The smaller the business, the fewer accountants, and the more solo-work there is to do.

Where I work, there are 2 accountants, my colleague and myself.

I do the more advanced accounting functions and she handles the customer interaction accounting functions... which is AP & AR.

If you are an AP / AR accountant, you will deal with customers and suppliers. Now, if it's just paying the bills sort of AP, there is not a lot of supplier interaction. With AR, there is almost always customer interaction.

One difference to take into account between INFJ and INTP is that INFJ's are probably more confident in terms of making decisions and recommendations based on figures. In this way, INFJ's are probably going to be more driven to the management end of things while INTP's more suited for the detail-oriented end of things.

There is place in the accounting field for both. Like if one wanted highly detailed and complicated analysis for accounting activities, I think the INTP is naturally more inclined toward looking at the information and presenting it unbiased.

INFJ's will project a bias on the things we do... this can be good and bad. It just depends on the application of our talents.

Finding the right area of accounting job is probably essential for you to find the right fit. In my recent job search, here are some job titles that I kept coming across over and over again... very common positions.

Clerk - This person is a manual accounting clerk, performing routine and non-management functions.
Bookkeeper - Smaller businesses, that usually have one accountant, and that person is the bookkeeper who does AP/AR/Payroll. If they are skilled, they can produce financial statements and do taxes.
Payroll Accountant - Payroll accountants specialize in performing payroll functions for larger businesses that usually have more than 100 employees, which means they can dedicate one person to this aspect of HR management. I mention HR because these people are often hybrids with the HR department, performing non-accounting functions. CPP certification is useful, and this role requires experience.
AR Specialist - These people deal with accounts receivable. Much of their work will be billing and dealing with customers, usually.
AP Specialist - These accountants deal with paying bills, and dealing with suppliers. Usually, if it supplier related, the company will require you have experience in the specific field they are in. If it is a manufacturing company which hires you, you will need manufacturing AP experience to get hired.
Junior Accountant - Like staff accountant, but generally lower. Usually requires a degree.
Staff Accountant - Larger companies which have you work under other accountants have staff accountants. This position varies somewhat from business to business. If a CPA firm is hiring you as a staff accountant, it means something entirely different than a normal business hiring you as a staff accountant. Sometimes these positions require CPA certification, sometimes they do not. You really have to read the details of the job with this description, as different businesses have different functions they perform. CPA certification goes over well for these positions. If you work at a CPA firm, this is your entry-level job which gets you certified. Degree required for this job and all jobs above it.
General Ledger Accountant - Very similar to the staff accountant position, except it focuses on general ledger entries. (This is what I do.)
Financial Analyst - This is a fancy title for an accountant or analyst who does financial analysis. The actual functions performed varies from company to company. This position is usually higher up than staff accountant and pays better. Experience is always required.
Tax Accountant - These accountants deal with tax matters, usually for businesses that handle their taxes internally. Sometimes CPA firms will list this position, and it means they want to hire a CPA who can focus on tax matters. These jobs always require experience dealing with tax matters. CPA certification is usually required, sometimes very rarely, EA designation works.
Senior Accountant / Financial Analyst - This job usually oversees staff accountants, or other accountants performing AR/AP/Payroll. CPA certification works. CMA certification can also be used. Must have experience and be responsible.
Auditor - Usually hired by CPA firms to perform audits. You need to be a CPA and have experience.
Internal Auditor - Performs internal audits. Works for a regular business, instead of a CPA firm. CIA designation desired.
Assistant Controller - Assists the controller with accounting functions.
Controller - High level managerial accounting job. These guys make sure the accounting is running smoothly for the business, and that the financial results produced, are good numbers. CPA or CMA required, usually. Requires much experience.
CFO - The boss of the controller. CPA or CMA.

(With these higher level jobs MBA is usually desired.)

-------------------

Just to give you an idea of how to go about it. First, you need experience combined with a degree to get the better jobs.

I started out with an associates and worked as a bookkeeper while I got my bachelor's. As a bookkeeper, I constantly improved the work I performed, and toward the end I was producing good financial statements for the company.

This more advanced stuff you can do as a bookkeeper looks good on a resume. So when I got my bachelor's, I got hired as a General Ledger Accountant because of the more advanced stuff I pushed myself to do as a bookkeeper.

I could have also ended up as a staff accountant.

Now, for my current position, I had God's favor which got me this position. It's favorable because I am doing very advanced accounting functions, like 12 month cashflow forecasts and 1 year budget forecasts for an international company. This sort of work qualifies me to become a CMA after 2 years, if I pass the exams.

So if it is God's will, in 5 or so years, if I decide to find a new position, I could possibly become a senior accountant, or assistant controller.

That said, there are people who park themselves into one area and specialize in that, and are happy doing it. There are lots of AP and AR accountants who are good at what they do, and enjoy where they are at.

 

[sraddatz]

I'm an accountant, and an INFJ. If I take a personality test, it scores me as an INTP, though, because I have very strong Ti-tendencies. In this way I am slightly similar to an INTP.

Accounting is a field that has diverse possibilities. You always have to work with people at some level, but about 90% of my day is solo work that I do on my own. I think if you get into a larger accounting department, you will have to deal with more people. The smaller the business, the fewer accountants, and the more solo-work there is to do.

Where I work, there are 2 accountants, my colleague and myself.

I do the more advanced accounting functions and she handles the customer interaction accounting functions... which is AP & AR.

If you are an AP / AR accountant, you will deal with customers and suppliers. Now, if it's just paying the bills sort of AP, there is not a lot of supplier interaction. With AR, there is almost always customer interaction.

One difference to take into account between INFJ and INTP is that INFJ's are probably more confident in terms of making decisions and recommendations based on figures. In this way, INFJ's are probably going to be more driven to the management end of things while INTP's more suited for the detail-oriented end of things.

There is place in the accounting field for both. Like if one wanted highly detailed and complicated analysis for accounting activities, I think the INTP is naturally more inclined toward looking at the information and presenting it unbiased.

INFJ's will project a bias on the things we do... this can be good and bad. It just depends on the application of our talents.

Finding the right area of accounting job is probably essential for you to find the right fit. In my recent job search, here are some job titles that I kept coming across over and over again... very common positions.

Clerk - This person is a manual accounting clerk, performing routine and non-management functions.
Bookkeeper - Smaller businesses, that usually have one accountant, and that person is the bookkeeper who does AP/AR/Payroll. If they are skilled, they can produce financial statements and do taxes.
Payroll Accountant - Payroll accountants specialize in performing payroll functions for larger businesses that usually have more than 100 employees, which means they can dedicate one person to this aspect of HR management. I mention HR because these people are often hybrids with the HR department, performing non-accounting functions. CPP certification is useful, and this role requires experience.
AR Specialist - These people deal with accounts receivable. Much of their work will be billing and dealing with customers, usually.
AP Specialist - These accountants deal with paying bills, and dealing with suppliers. Usually, if it supplier related, the company will require you have experience in the specific field they are in. If it is a manufacturing company which hires you, you will need manufacturing AP experience to get hired.
Junior Accountant - Like staff accountant, but generally lower. Usually requires a degree.
Staff Accountant - Larger companies which have you work under other accountants have staff accountants. This position varies somewhat from business to business. If a CPA firm is hiring you as a staff accountant, it means something entirely different than a normal business hiring you as a staff accountant. Sometimes these positions require CPA certification, sometimes they do not. You really have to read the details of the job with this description, as different businesses have different functions they perform. CPA certification goes over well for these positions. If you work at a CPA firm, this is your entry-level job which gets you certified. Degree required for this job and all jobs above it.
General Ledger Accountant - Very similar to the staff accountant position, except it focuses on general ledger entries. (This is what I do.)
Financial Analyst - This is a fancy title for an accountant or analyst who does financial analysis. The actual functions performed varies from company to company. This position is usually higher up than staff accountant and pays better. Experience is always required.
Tax Accountant - These accountants deal with tax matters, usually for businesses that handle their taxes internally. Sometimes CPA firms will list this position, and it means they want to hire a CPA who can focus on tax matters. These jobs always require experience dealing with tax matters. CPA certification is usually required, sometimes very rarely, EA designation works.
Senior Accountant / Financial Analyst - This job usually oversees staff accountants, or other accountants performing AR/AP/Payroll. CPA certification works. CMA certification can also be used. Must have experience and be responsible.
Auditor - Usually hired by CPA firms to perform audits. You need to be a CPA and have experience.
Internal Auditor - Performs internal audits. Works for a regular business, instead of a CPA firm. CIA designation desired.
Assistant Controller - Assists the controller with accounting functions.
Controller - High level managerial accounting job. These guys make sure the accounting is running smoothly for the business, and that the financial results produced, are good numbers. CPA or CMA required, usually. Requires much experience.
CFO - The boss of the controller. CPA or CMA.

(With these higher level jobs MBA is usually desired.)

-------------------

Just to give you an idea of how to go about it. First, you need experience combined with a degree to get the better jobs.

I started out with an associates and worked as a bookkeeper while I got my bachelor's. As a bookkeeper, I constantly improved the work I performed, and toward the end I was producing good financial statements for the company.

This more advanced stuff you can do as a bookkeeper looks good on a resume. So when I got my bachelor's, I got hired as a General Ledger Accountant because of the more advanced stuff I pushed myself to do as a bookkeeper.

I could have also ended up as a staff accountant.

Now, for my current position, I had God's favor which got me this position. It's favorable because I am doing very advanced accounting functions, like 12 month cashflow forecasts and 1 year budget forecasts for an international company. This sort of work qualifies me to become a CMA after 2 years, if I pass the exams.

So if it is God's will, in 5 or so years, if I decide to find a new position, I could possibly become a senior accountant, or assistant controller.

That said, there are people who park themselves into one area and specialize in that, and are happy doing it. There are lots of AP and AR accountants who are good at what they do, and enjoy where they are at.

This is great! I love big picture and planning. Booking debits and credits and routine tasks bore me to tears. There is room for both in accounting.

 

[Moonious]

I'm in business school. I don't know exactly what I want to major in yet, but it's nice to see some INTPs at least a little happy in business. Most sites say no to business for INTPs. :bored:
I know I don't want to do accounting though, but there are a lot of possibilities.

Good luck! :kitteh:

 

[sraddatz]

I used to be terrible at verbal communication. I joined Toastmaster's for about 2 years. The change was like night and day. Toastmaster's is international, so more than likely, there's a local chapter no matter where you are.

If you're unfamiliar with Toastmaster's, I'll give you a quick run down of what a normal meeting is like.

Members of the club give prepared speeches
There is a formal evaluation of that speech
Members also complete informal evaluations

The next section of the meeting is Table Topics.
You are given a random topic, and have to speak on that topic for 1-2 minutes.
The short speech should have an intro, body, and conclusion.

I actually did pretty well, and surprisingly, enjoyed me time in the club. I strongly recommend you find a group. Dues are extremely cheap, and the skills are invaluable.

BTW (I don't work for them. It honestly changed nearly every facet of my life.)

 

[Serenade]

I got myself into some school trouble.

My prerequisites to get into university are jumbled together, and I can't take another year in high school because apparently that's the worst possible thing to do. I've always been between Law and Accounting throughout my high school career. I'm pretty good at English, Social Sciences, Economics, Math (NOT DATA MANAGEMENT. HATE THAT), Philosophy and Accounting, so I took a bunch of courses that were related to the aforementioned subjects in the grades nine to eleven. Since no one at my school is taking Gr. 12 Accounting, I cannot go into a Commerce program. Unfortunately, I have to fall back on my back-up plan—become a lawyer. Thank you for the help, Razare, it was very insightful and the exact answer I was looking for, but I'm afraid I cannot become an accountant, which has always been one of my dream jobs.

I'M SO ANGRY THAT I CANNOT GET INTO COMMERCE. GAH! :angry:

 

[Serenade]

@sraddatz Do I have to pay to join Toastmaster's? Maybe I should join clubs at my school and participate in class more to get my communication skills going. Believe it or not, I used to be an extravert. Then the inevitable school bullying happened, and that really damaged me. Maybe I can bounce back to becoming an extravert again. :happy:

 

[Serenade]

I'm in business school. I don't know exactly what I want to major in yet, but it's nice to see some INTPs at least a little happy in business. Most sites say no to business for INTPs. :bored:
I know I don't want to do accounting though, but there are a lot of possibilities.

Good luck! :kitteh:

Thanks! I might be doing a dual-degree Bachelor's for history/law/economics (kinda like business, ya?). I know what you're talking about. I searched careers related to the MBTI, and none of them recommended business, so then I started worrying about my future career plans.

What do you plan to be, if I may ask?

 

[Moonious]

Thanks! I might be doing a dual-degree Bachelor's for history/law/economics (kinda like business, ya?). I know what you're talking about. I searched careers related to the MBTI, and none of them recommended business, so then I started worrying about my future career plans.

What do you plan to be, if I may ask?

Haha, I have no idea right now! Maybe finance or MIS, but I'm really not sure. I like economics too and took law throughout high school (though I don't think I will continue that).

So far, I feel comfortable/ like I fit in with all of the other business school students ( especially compared to other schools), so that is good. I haven't taken any majored classes yet, just the prerequisites, but I am happy with business right now. I joined a few clubs and programs, and they are good too . Are you still in high school? I just started college this year.

 

[sraddatz]

@sraddatz Do I have to pay to join Toastmaster's? Maybe I should join clubs at my school and participate in class more to get my communication skills going. Believe it or not, I used to be an extravert. Then the inevitable school bullying happened, and that really damaged me. Maybe I can bounce back to becoming an extravert again. :happy:

Toastmasters is really cheap, but yes, you do have to pay. Annual dues are less than 30 usd.

 

[sraddatz]

@sraddatz Do I have to pay to join Toastmaster's? Maybe I should join clubs at my school and participate in class more to get my communication skills going. Believe it or not, I used to be an extravert. Then the inevitable school bullying happened, and that really damaged me. Maybe I can bounce back to becoming an extravert again. :happy:

I was damaged by the assholes I went to high school with, too. Hardly anybody liked me because I was different. I find joy that many of them amounted to absolutely nothing. I knew they wouldn't.

From that perspective, their opinions don't matter. Hopefully you'll realize this as you gain years and wisdom.