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I am 28 and make a meager 35k a year as an entry level accountant. Life has been terribly ironic to me as I've always been a VERY career ambitious person but yet I've always struggled to find good paying work. I'm one of the few people that actually LIKES working and since childhood have dreamt of having a big career (top level employee such as executive, director, etc)
I recently switched careers to accounting after 5 years in sound design where my pay fluctuated from $5 an hour to $55 an hour and while I averaged about $35/hour for most of the contract work, the work was so unsteady with long breaks of unemployment that my pay ultimately averaged out to about the same 35k a year due to periods of unemployment that easily lasted 6 months or more. Making the switch into accounting and finance seemed like a smart step, but I'm still struggling immensely to get paid something I feel is respectable. My financial struggles have been very difficult, and have prevented me and my family from moving forward in life due to financial constraints. Even something like getting a second car so my wife could work in a better job (further away - couldn't take public transport anymore) were big hurdles. I am fortunate to have no debt other than about 25k in student loans, but day to day life feels like a struggle on my low income! (Wife currently doesn't work as she was laid off and also looking for a new job currently)
What steps should I take to get myself into a higher paying job, and achieve my dream of being a high level employee in a company such as an executive or director? I often feel that I may be doomed to forever work in low paying jobs with minimal 2% raises a year, but I want to believe that my time will eventually come and the struggle can end. I have a Bachelors degree in Accounting, just started my MBA, and plan to get a CPA license afterwards, but I want to make sure I'm making smart choices now so I can find a six figure a year job sooner rather than later.
Build weapons, become an enigneer and build something really cool that can do alot of damage and is easily movable. Big static weapons are not the game anymore. You will not have to worry about 100k a year job as you will be a millionare selling to the highest bidder. You cant just peddle existing small arms (well you can but its super high risk), if you build something really cool people will come to you. You wont need patents or have to battle high power lawyers you will get bags full of money you can put in a numbered account.
100k a year jobs are rare these days, you could become a senior engineer or a financial analyst, atuary.
Umm really you want to walk in "entry level" to a Executive or Director?
Go back to college and get a Masters or PhD in your chosen field get ten or so years experience THEN apply for Director positions.
No, but I want to feel that I'm on the path to getting there in 10 years. I want to feel that my pay remains competitive, that I'm advancing and taking on new responsibilities regularly, and that I'm not sticking with jobs that I get "stuck in" and are not ultimately helping me reach my goals. I also want to learn what other things to do on the side to help me such as networking, conferences, certifications, etc.
I'm currently only a little past one year into my current accounting career since graduating, but at 35k a year I don't feel on that good path yet. I know it's better than nothing, but similar jobs in the area pay starting accountants 45-50k a year. I want to make the right moves at the right times.
Why does your company pay les. What is the career path at your current company?
This is a small business that is still fairly new, the owner ran the business with just an assistant for 5 years and just within the last two years bought an office building and has expanded the team to 8 full-time employees and some temps. I had interviewed for several jobs that offered 45-55k, but ultimately was rejected and kept hearing that they were hiring other candidates that had 3-5 years of experience compared to my 1 year.
My current career path with the company is to actually move into management within the year, especially as the company has plans to continue growing, but I worry that the pay will still remain subpar. I do enjoy my job quite a lot, but at the end of the day I have a family to support and bills to be paid so unfortunately money is important!
Last edited by the_grimace; 01-23-2016 at 10:05 PM..
Get into sales for companies like ADP or anything else that is an accounting software or service. Try to do outside and field sales as they tend to pay better than inside sales.
Get a copy of What Color is your Parachute and study the chapters on informational interviewing. Don't know where you live, or how big a community that is. Identify people you can see in the community who are doing what you want to be doing. Ask your friends and family who they know who knows the people who have the jobs you want. Ask them to reach out to the friends they have to ask if you can get 15 minutes of time of the people who are doing what you want. WCIYP will give you the details of this technique and how to make it pay off for you.
Everyone is only six phone calls away from any other person in the world. But you can't cold call the folks you want to talk to. You need to reach them from someone they know who also knows you or one of your friends. A golfing buddy calling to ask if he'd give 15 minutes of time will have his request honored. A complete stranger calling out of the blue will be ignored.
You're going to school now -- does the school where you are going have a vocational placement service? Do they have an alumni association? Tap into both, and work each for what they can help you with.
Speak to your professors during their office hours about how to build your skills, what growth areas/skills they see as being needed in the next twenty years. Professors on the graduate level need to publish books and papers on a regular basis to keep their jobs. Research each of your professors, so that you know what areas of accounting/business are their specialties. Read some of their papers, go to their office hours with a question or two based on something they've written. See which ones are doing things that interest you. Cultivate relationships with them.
If you have a religious belief, ask through prayer, every day, for guidance in this quest.
Do something every day, no matter how small, to move yourself closer to the goal.
Work on your public speaking skills -- join Toastmasters, which is a club for those who want to better their public speaking skills. Excellent source of networking leads as well.
Several times in your post you mentioned that you worry about various things. I've had to deal with serious anxiety problems at several times in my life. I got a copy of Dale Carnegie's book How to Stop Worrying and Start Living. EXCELLENT book. It's full of tips and tricks that have worked for thousands of people. It's not just ideas that he thought would work -- he canvassed literally tens of thousands of people about how they handle anxiety, and wrote it all up in that book. I use one or more of these techniques every day.
Put aside a consistent amount (even if it's only $20 a pay period) toward investments/retirement.
Look for something you could do as a second job, even if it's only for a few hours on a weekend. Things like freelance writing, ad sales, things that could start out small and build opportunities.
Get a two year degree in Non Destructive Testing or Process Technology.
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