How to be your own career coach

Many people are attracted to the accounting profession because of the seemingly endless possibilities in where it can take their career.

However, a number seem to get their designation and think ‘that’s it, I’ve made it.’

The fact is, that earning your designation, be it a CA, CGA or CMA, is just the beginning! What it’s the beginning of, though, is up to you.

Much of my work in the public accounting domain deals with coaching of different types – from coaching Partners in practice marketing and management issues, through to time management and opportunity spotting for high potential new recruits.

But one theme seems to common among the newly qualified people that I work with – how to take control of their career.

So, with the ‘back to school’ theme being still timely, and professional exams taking place this month, I thought I’d pass-on a few tips to get you thinking about where you want your career to go and how to have some positive impact on the speed and direction in which it goes.

First-up, ask yourself some very basic questions:

· What is it that I enjoy the most about doing what I do now?
· If I could change only ONE thing about my job, what would it be?
· Am I working in a firm where there are some potentially good mentors who I can learn from?
· Where do I want my career to go?
· What can I do NOW that will help me get there, longer-term?

Once you have these answers, you’ll be in a far stronger position to propel your career forward than your competition.

(Oh, yes, there IS competition out there – your peers have plans for the future too, and in the traditional ‘up or out’ practice model of the bigger firms, there’s usually only room for promotion for a handful of people at your level right now.)

If industry is for you, ask yourself the following:

· Am I happy dealing with the issues of only one company, or will I quickly get bored?
· Do I have what it takes to make it to CFO one day?
· Is this what I really want?
· What are my strengths and how do I exploit them?
· What are my weaknesses and how do I improve upon them?
· Do I have the patience required to move up the ranks?
· Are there opportunities for me here or will I have to move on to move up?
· What new skills will I have to learn over the next 12 months?

Then I’d recommend you meet with one or two of the better career services firms (or head-hunters) to get an appraisal of how well suited your background and skill sets are for present opportunities and see how you measure up. I can recommendation a couple of good recruiters to talk with for positions in industry – just call me at my office for an informal chat.

If public accounting is your preference, then there are some more questions I can provide for you to ask yourself to evaluate whether this really is the right direction to take:

· How well do I communicate with clients?
· What are my tax skills like?
· What about my software skills – what programs do I know and how well do I know them?
· Are there any areas of public accounting that specifically interest me (such as Forensic Accounting, Taxation or Insolvency, or am I more of a generalist?)
· What about my presentation skills?
· Can I spot opportunities for new assignments for clients and can I ‘sell’ them to the client in a meeting?
· What are the skill gaps between where I am now and what’s expected of a Partner in this firm?
· How can I fill the gaps?
· Is my dress-sense and personal grooming appropriate for a professional office?

The last question might throw you a curve ball, but you’d be surprised at how many smaller firms have ‘presentation problems’ with high potential professional people.

In other words, you have to remember that the clothes don’t make the man (or woman) but they DO help make the sale!

You are an ambassador for your firm when you’re visiting clients or meeting with them at your office and so you have to give the most favourable impression possible.

Maybe a quick checklist here will help…

· Are my clothes suitable for a professional office environment?
· Are they freshly laundered and ironed/dry-cleaned?
· Is my hair neat and tidy?
· Is my breath fresh and clean?
· Am I making the very best of how I present myself to the outside world?
· Based only on how I look, would I hire me as my professional advisor?

I once worked with a firm (who will remain nameless) who had a Tax partner who was technically brilliant, a genius – but his fellow partners would be very reluctant to introduce him to their clients because his shirt was often un-ironed, his ties usually had gravy stains spilt down the front, his hair was wild and unkempt and his socks rarely matched!

Don’t laugh – this is someone earning over $150,000 a year, but who looked like he lived on the poverty line.

Hardly a laughing matter for his partners and the firms clients.

He ended up being a ‘back-room’ partner with little client interaction (except for on the telephone) and became very frustrated until he brought me in as a coach and we turned the situation around.

This type of situation, fortunately, is fairly rare, and success usually only comes when the individuals themselves see the problem and want to do something about it.

With the assistance of his firm, the first thing we did, was to put a small sign on all the mirrors in the staff washrooms that said: “This is how our clients see you”.

Then we talked about his lifestyle – he was single, a workaholic and rarely made time for doing laundry, it just wasn’t a priority for him. So we set about sending all his shirts to the dry cleaners, for about $1 a shirt ($5 a week) we solved one problem immediately!

Then came some frank and open discussions and eventually the remaining issues we resolved too and he’s still at the same firm and really enjoying his life – with lots of client contact these days.

Why do I mention this?

Because sometimes it’s the smallest of details - that we cannot see ourselves until there is a real problem – that make all the difference.

Finally, two quick tips to help you look your best at all times:

· Always carry some mints or strong chewing gum to use before a meeting
· Have a small comb or collapsible brush and a mirror in your briefcase to use before meetings

Follow these guidelines, ask yourself these questions and you’ll start to become your own career coach. Good luck!