freedom and some free career advice

Today the Hub wrote his final Board exam to qualify as a CA(SA). If you knew the years leading up to this point (9), the sacrifices made (many), you would also be driving to work with fat, warm tears in your eyes. It feels like we are on the precipice. At the point where stones are crumbling beneath our scared toes, and we know if we fall into the abyss freedom will follow.

I will be hard pressed to encourage my children to follow the same path we have. The sacrifice is too great for the gain. If you can pass all the exams required to qualify on the first go, then fine. Excellently done. I was one of those lucky few. If not, go and be happy rather. Even if you pass all the exams, by which time you will be a problem solving, analytical machine (something like 90% of South African Financial Directors are CA’s), you have a life of long working hours in front of a laptop to look forward to. Eyes so tired they go fuzzy at around 230 every afternoon, back and neck pain from sitting in your desk chair for hours at a time and fighting off marketing and sales people with a stick. (They think we are there to do all their admin/steal all their money/STIFLE ALL THEIR JOY). If you are lucky enough to work for an understanding company, where you only work 40 hours a week, you will be the minority. Any creativity will be stifled under the weight of enough Excel spreadsheets to sink a battleship. Speaking of Excel, I can guarantee you will be a pro by year 2 at the most. Most of us can mine data into a pivot table quicker than you can sneeze. Did I mention the working for peanuts as an article clerk for 3 years, while your peers earn decent starting salaries and get a lovely head start on the lifestyle every 20-something desires?

But what do I know? According to my friend and doctor, Te’, their profession is even worse. At least it’s rather unlikely you will kill someone behind that laptop screen.

PS If you haven’t a clue what a CA(SA) is…read this.

PPS If you haven’t a clue what a pivot table is…trust me, you don’t need to know.

// image from here