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Long Island, New York. I have about 9 years of experience - 3 in auditing in public accounting, and 6 as assistant controller for a publicly traded company. Have never used quickbooks though which is the biggest hurdle. If I had quickbooks experience I would feel more confident doing bookkeeping as a side hustle right now.
You will find out the answer to your question by doing the work you want to do as a side job in addition to your corporate work. You can get clients by doing tax work and offering bookkeeping/accounting services as a sideline. I did this when I was an audit manager. I provided accounting services and computer services for a few businesses as a sideline for about 10 years. But unlike the OP I never lacked confidence or felt I needed someone to review my work. That seems like an enormous negative for a person contemplating going into business for themselves.
What I realized after about 10 years was that I never made much money at it compared to my corporate job. Despite high hopes and expectations (pipe dreams), it just was extra money, that's all it turned out to be. I also realized that in a corporate environment a lot of problems were handled for me, namely selling my services and getting paid for them. Doing the work was the easiest part, getting clients and then actually getting paid for the work I did was the hard part of being in business for myself. It sounded good in theory but was much more difficult, and less lucrative than working my corporate day job.
There's no rule that says you have to take the next step at work. It turns out I was a failure as an audit manager. I was great auditor but tended to use my people as my eyes and ears rather than trying to make them self sufficient. After 7 years, with a change in bosses and a new management philosophy I was demoted. So I took some advice and eventually became an individual contributor as a sys admin and dba for the same company. I made less money but I enjoyed the work and freedom much more. After several years of working on my own, essentially being my own boss as long as the systems ran smoothly, I was told I would have to supervise a crew of workers due to budget consolidations. I told them I had been there, done that and would quit before doing it again. I continued to have a happy career for another decade until I retired. A year after I retired I got two additional years of work as a contractor due to the skills and experience I had gained as a sys admin and dba.
Bolded paragraph is the reason why i'm hesitant to switch paths. It could be a total bust. But what I know right now is that I'm not happy in the corporate world. So i guess it's a risk/rewards type of situation.
Like I said in a post above, I'm not confident doing it on my own on the side yet... I would like to get some experience working under supervision first. That's my problem. Or do I just risk it? I'm sure I'd figure out whatever comes my way, but if there's a mistake I make or an error I make and then I mess up a client's books? working under supervision for 6 months-1 year would make me feel more comfortable doing it part time on the side on my own. But maybe I just don't believe in myself enough... which sometimes is true. I tend to underestimate myself.
my rule of thumb is never make a lateral move unless a new job provides benefits/pension that the other did not and if you get a better title it could look good on a resume.
Maybe you should question why you don't like working in the corporate world. What I found was it was absolutely necessary to manage my bosses so I would be left alone to do work I enjoyed and was good at. I learned early on that there were people in corporations at lower levels that actually did the work, and that everyone at levels higher than manager or in some cases general manager, were strictly political. They only cared about their careers, their positions, power and money. They cared nothing about the people or about the stated goals and objectives of the corporation, other than increasing profits, and therefore their own rewards, at any cost. I don't know if this is your gripe with corporations, but you will find it in every walk of life. It's inescapable. The most mercenary people always wind up running things.
At one point around the middle of my working life I was very dissatisfied with my position. I kept looking for a better way but never found it. Finally the light bulb went off and I realized I was where I was supposed to be. That I wasn't suitable for any of those ways out or I would have gotten them. I learned to appreciate what I had instead of what I didn't. My whole outlook changed and I started to enjoy an environment I had tried to escape from for years.
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Originally Posted by bell235
Bolded paragraph is the reason why i'm hesitant to switch paths. It could be a total bust. But what I know right now is that I'm not happy in the corporate world. So i guess it's a risk/rewards type of situation.
Like I said in a post above, I'm not confident doing it on my own on the side yet... I would like to get some experience working under supervision first. That's my problem. Or do I just risk it? I'm sure I'd figure out whatever comes my way, but if there's a mistake I make or an error I make and then I mess up a client's books? working under supervision for 6 months-1 year would make me feel more comfortable doing it part time on the side on my own. But maybe I just don't believe in myself enough... which sometimes is true. I tend to underestimate myself.
This was my original plan/idea, but the problem is I lack the confidence to really do it on my own. I feel like I need a supervisor or a boss to just look over my work and say it's okay. I hate the idea of potentially messing up someone's books/records because I did something wrong. I would love to work on the side *for* someone but I can't seem to find those opportunities. I thought there would be someone at a small CPA firm who would need extra help, maybe 10-15 hours per week I could fit into my schedule, that way I could get the experience... heck, i would even do it for free/pennies just to get the experience, but I'm having trouble finding this (that's why I feel like it's switch to full time or give up my dream)... I even put an ad on craigslist lol... but didn't get any responses, I could try again. Otherwise, I will have to network.
After seeing your other posts I see that your experience is in auditing and being an assistant controller. Seems that your job as assistant controller would have you handling the financial statements so you'd have that experience to draw upon. However, I totally understand your feeling that you'd be afraid to mess up a client's books. I used to work on the financials and tax returns for clients when I worked at a CPA firm and was always glad there was a reviewer to check my work before it went out. I think it'll be kind of hard to find part time work at a CPA firm that would offer you a chance to do what you mentioned. In my experience the few part time employees at CPA firms tend to be admin staff, former employees who help during the busy season, or specialists who have a lot of experience. Probably unlikely to hire someone they'll have to train who will only work part time.
How do you plan to attract and keep clients? Is there anything that would differentiate yourself from your competitors? What services will you offer and what will you charge. Seems like that other poster who did it as a side business wasn't satisfied with his earnings. To make the same or even close to the same money you're making now, I'd think you'd have to charge people at a rate equivalent to other CPAs, not what a bookkeeper would charge. At the very least I'd talk to those that are in a similar position that you want to attain (self employed CPA). Though that may be difficult since they'll see you as a competitor. Though of course that's better than throwing caution to the wind with disastrous results.
I'm an accountant and have my CPA license. I'm on track to be Controller, or maybe a VP of Accounting/Finance role at some point in my life - that is the road I'm on right now (currently Assistant Controller at a company).
I kind of hate the corporate world and don't really see myself managing people. I just want to do the work - schedules, workpapers, preparing financial statements, keeping the books, etc, etc... I look at job postings that are open that are my logical next step and I'm just not interested in them and don't see myself being happy at any of them.
My dream is to one day have my own bookkeeping company where I do the books for small business clients... almost like an outsourced accountant. Since I'm a CPA, i feel like I could offer more than just basic bookkeeping.
There are a few positions I've come across that would be a great stepping stone to possibly having my dream come true one day. But the problem is that they all pay around $70k... I currently make $105k (i think i may have seen 1 or 2 for like $90k, so it's possible to get close to what I make, but rare).
My other issue is that I've never been in that kind of role so there is a chance that I could hate it and regret switching "paths". Also, would i ever *really* have my own business? it's nice to dream, but is that something that will actually ever happen for me? I mean, I dream of doing a lot of diff things that I know will never happen.... so is this just one of them?
I mean it wouldn't be a total career path change but it would be like taking a different road in the same industry... so maybe it's not as risky of a chance as i think it is?
I guess my question is - has anyone ever taken a pay cut to make a change? did it end up working out or did you regret that decision?
I'm also hoping there are a few accountants here that could maybe offer some advice.
Most of the big $$$$ comes with managing department and companies. Not only in your field.
If you want to do basic accounting work without managing anyone, you will take a cut, and your career will be sidetracked. If that's your intention and you're happy with that, then do it. If you want to start your own bookkeeping company doing work that's worth $7-15/hour, that's your choice. It's not so much taking a different road in the same industry as much as it is traveling a few miles backwards, then sitting down on the road.
Bolded paragraph is the reason why i'm hesitant to switch paths. It could be a total bust. But what I know right now is that I'm not happy in the corporate world. So i guess it's a risk/rewards type of situation.
Like I said in a post above, I'm not confident doing it on my own on the side yet... I would like to get some experience working under supervision first. That's my problem. Or do I just risk it? I'm sure I'd figure out whatever comes my way, but if there's a mistake I make or an error I make and then I mess up a client's books? working under supervision for 6 months-1 year would make me feel more comfortable doing it part time on the side on my own. But maybe I just don't believe in myself enough... which sometimes is true. I tend to underestimate myself.
hard to believe you're an assistant controller & cpa, but dont know enough to do basic bookkeeping work. You literally are doing the work that someone with zero education can do. bookkeeping is like being the mcdonalds fryboy of the financial world.
After 30+ years in a tech career, I went back to get a second Master's degree in clinical psychology and practiced as a counselor for six years. I enjoyed the work, but it pays peanuts unless you go into private practice and develop multiple streams of income. I ended up going back to high-tech work for the $$. I'm now semi-retired, and am supplementing my income as a board certified coach and website developer. In retrospect, I wish I'd known about business coaching before I invested time and money in my clinical psych training - I would have trained as a business coach and skipped the second Master's.
Long Island, New York. I have about 9 years of experience - 3 in auditing in public accounting, and 6 as assistant controller for a publicly traded company. Have never used quickbooks though which is the biggest hurdle. If I had quickbooks experience I would feel more confident doing bookkeeping as a side hustle right now.
You can teach yourself QB. I am in IT and run the QB side of things for miscellaneous cash for a couple of accounting clerks. It's not complicated.
You can teach yourself QB. I am in IT and run the QB side of things for miscellaneous cash for a couple of accounting clerks. It's not complicated.
Yeah I have taken a bunch of courses on it. And I use peachtree at work now, so I'm sure I can figure it out. It's not like I've never used accounting software lol... So maybe I should just try to get a client then... and stop being so nervous about it. I think I underestimate my abilities a lot.
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