An Unplanned Switch
At no point prior to 2025 did it occur to me that I should pursue accounting, much less a CPA.
In an economic climate where layoffs are rampant, underemployment is alive and well, and employers are posting ghost jobs, I’ve found myself looking for a safe haven career-wise.
Accounting may not be sexy—but boring and indispensable beats the latest tech trends by a mile in terms of stability and income upside.
Those who are already in the field might say I am overly optimistic about the outlook here. However, when you’re coming from the current slaughterhouse that is tech, anything with a faint whiff of stability is infinitely more appealing.
Stability, and the future prospect of working for myself, are what have motivated me to look into accounting and the CPA (as well as the EA).
That said, switching careers—especially switching into a career that requires more education and credentials—comes with challenges:
- Time: Working a full-time job and then grinding out additional requirements after hours is about as fun as going down a sandpaper slide in assless chaps.
- Money: Getting those college credits requires funding. You can either cash-flow it, take on debt, or work somewhere that will pay for it. Those are the only options. Those are not a lot of options.
The question, then, is: how can I meet all academic and state requirements in the least amount of time with the least amount of cash outlay possible?
That’s it. That’s the goal. Pure and simple.
When you’ve hit the middle of your career and have stalled out, you’re looking for a parachute.
This is all about rolling your own parachute.