Regrets, have I made a mistake.

Triple9

I've been worried as of late that I have made a mistake by starting a career in accounting. I am 21 years old and at the time of leaving school accounting seemed to be something I would enjoy and be good at so I decided to study AAT instead of going to uni. I've worked at a small company for about a year and a half doing book keeping and general admin this was good start but wouldn't lead me anywhere, so I got a job at an mid-sized accounting firm and have been their since March, I thought this was somewhere I wanted to be but I am not happy and I have not learned anything since joining, I spend the day doing data entry or filing I know as a junior this is what happens but how long goes this last? I am studying level 4 and all I have every done is book keeping, I am starting to forget the things I learned in class as I don't use it at work. I've made my boss aware of how I feel, he assures me that it will be fine and he will get me doing other things but I can't trust him as it took 6 months for him to get me a desk and there are rumors of him leaving.

Have I got myself into a dead end job and messed up my foundation to build a good career ? Regardless I will finish my level 4 but do I then change careers as it seems the world of accounting isn't what I thought it will be. My mum tells me that everything will be ok and I am just trying to rush into things and I should give it some time but if I can't visualise a bright future for myself maybe there isn't one there for me.

Has anyone been in a similar situation or having doubts ? I have been thinking about this for a while and would appreciate some fresh perspectives on the matter.

Adele69

I wouldn't give up on it just yet.

I've been in the public sector for a long time, so can't really say how it is in private companies, but something that is apparent is that not all Managers are really cut out to manage people. A lot are promoted into more senior roles and along with this comes the responsibility to manage a range of junior and senior staff, while in some sectors there are quite low paid positions expected to manage large teams.

It sounds like you have someone who doesn't have much time for junior staff or managing staff at all. I've had a couple of managers who were good mentors, but on the whole, with team restructures, and redundancies and little cliques it's hard to make your mark and a lot of times they just need someone to do much the same thing day in day out. A few years ago I missed out at a College finance position because they saw it as a role that wasn't going to change much and previous holders getting bored and leaving.

Sometimes it's better to stick with it but plan to move internally or externally to find the right environment that suits both what you want and what your manager and the business wants.

zebra246

If you're 21 and you are not building your skills and experience (which you state you are not really doing) to fulfil your career potential, then don't hesitate, change your situation.

For you, that may mean working out what area you would like to work in; leaving your current employer; going back into full-time education; changing your role completely.

Trust me, when you are in your forties, your options to change career direction will be greatly curtailed.