Feeling lost and overwhelmed starting a new accounting job
Switching to a new company with unfamiliar processes and systems can make even routine tasks like prepaid expenses feel confusing, triggering intense self-doubt. This sudden lack of familiarity leaves experienced CPAs feeling completely behind and questioning their career path despite having a solid educational foundation.
What people tried
Every workaround mentioned in the threads below. We haven’t tested any of them — and nobody here is claiming they worked.
Found another way around this?
Share your steps and trade-offs so fellow engineers don't have to reinvent the wheel. No account required.
- 1trying my best to follow old examplesDid this help you?
- 2asking for helpDid this help you?
- 3learning how the systems work firstDid this help you?
- 4Accepting a long timeline of 3-5 years to become marginally proficientDid this help you?
- 5Experimenting with software and breaking things during the initial grace periodDid this help you?
- 6Staying in industry accounting rolesDid this help you?
- 7Entering public accounting at the lower associate level instead of seniorDid this help you?
- 8Secure a staff accountant role in industry instead of public accountingDid this help you?
- 9Work for government agencies like the IRS to avoid excessive overtimeDid this help you?
- 10Start or join a small local firm or practiceDid this help you?
- 11gaining practical, real-world experience on the jobDid this help you?
- 12explaining concepts repeatedly to othersDid this help you?
- 13working with actual assets and liabilities rather than theoretical problemsDid this help you?
- 14Moving from public accounting to industry rolesDid this help you?
- 15Setting boundaries to avoid dealing directly with customersDid this help you?
- 16Using dealer/corporate settings to force communication skill improvementsDid this help you?
- 17taking note of mistakes to avoid repeating themDid this help you?
- 18slowing downDid this help you?
- 19making a tiny checklist for repetitive tasksDid this help you?
- 20laughing about past mistakes nowDid this help you?
- 21using custom sorts instead of cutting rowsDid this help you?
- 22moving to the lunch room or car during breaksDid this help you?
- 23pushing through till something better comesDid this help you?
- 24staying at the current job out of fear of unemployment due to a tough job marketDid this help you?
- 25sucking it up for the next 8 months until moving awayDid this help you?
- 26studying for a CPA to transition to remote workDid this help you?
- 27Bringing a notebook to training sessions to write down stepsDid this help you?
- 28Asking the manager to record meetings or interactions over teamsDid this help you?
- 29Compiling a list of questions to discuss in scheduled meetingsDid this help you?
- 30Using Google as a resourceDid this help you?
- 31Demanding high pay, significant bonuses, and an equity stake to compensate for the risk and workloadDid this help you?
- 32Learning pivot tables and vlookup/xlookupDid this help you?
- 33Getting comfortable with month-end close checklistsDid this help you?
- 34Brushing up on keywords, Excel functions, and good formatting habits for documentationDid this help you?
- 35Asking online forums for advice to mentally prepare and understand day-to-day expectations.Did this help you?
- 36Building in little checkpoints to catch errors before they snowball and require rework.Did this help you?
- 37Sending strict 48-hour nudges to other departments clearly stating that late files will derail the process.Did this help you?
In their words
Unedited, grouped by where they were said, most upvoted first within each place, each linked to the thread it came from.
“always thought accounting was the perfect career for introverts. Now I’m actually working in accounting, and somehow I spend half my day talking to people. Clients, coworkers, calls, emails—when did accounting become so social?”source ↗
“I feel like as a senior accounting student having seen the recruitment process and having been a part of it interviewing for internships at big public accounting firms, the vibes just seem off putting and fake.”source ↗
“Yeah, I know all jobs involve talking to people, but I honestly thought accounting would involve a lot less of it. Turns out I was very wrong.”source ↗
“The deadlines are so tight and it seems like everything is urgent so that we don’t hold up the close process.”source ↗
“Between reviewing others work and trying to get my own work done I never have any time to catch my breath.”source ↗
“Instead, I’ve been struggling much more than I expected.”source ↗
“Even something like prepaid expenses, which should be easy, feels confusing when the process and schedules are unfamiliar.”source ↗
“I just have a lot of self doubt right now in my capabilities and if I can handle being an accountant for the rest of my life. I just feel so lost and discourage.”source ↗
“I have about 5 years of industry experience as a construction/project accountant and recently obtained my CPA license.”source ↗
“I don’t have any public accounting or external audit experience.”source ↗
“I’m considering transitioning into Big 4 audit and was wondering if my industry experience + CPA would make me a realistic candidate for a senior associate position”source ↗
“The biggest regret in my career so far is thinking I needed to be in public to succeed. It accelerated my progression, but it ruined my mental health that took over a year to recover from.”source ↗
“ETA: I am a major league introvert. After all the talking at work, I'm exhausted.”source ↗
“I feel like the CPA exams gave me an okay base to work with, but I feel very behind.”source ↗
“I was wondering if there was anything that people recommended I focus on in the beginning of my career while I have a "grace period."”source ↗
“I recently graduated with an accounting degree and started my first corporate role about 2 weeks ago as a Controlling Analyst at a manufacturing company.”source ↗
“the amount of information being thrown at me is overwhelming.”source ↗
“A lot of the time my manager verbally explains or demonstrates a long process once and then expects me to try it later.”source ↗
“I’m not going to lie I’m pretty nervous about this job though because I’m a few years removed from college and I’m worried that I’ll forget some accounting concepts that I’m supposed to know.”source ↗
“the fake vibes are real, and they don't stop once you're in. every firm mixer feels like a casting call for a cult where the kool-aid is just unpaid overtime”source ↗
“Deferred tax assets and liabilities. Spent a whole semester drawing T-accounts and nodding along, then got to my first real job and just froze every time they came up.”source ↗
“Everyone gets there at 730 and usually stays till 5 or later. They said I could do 830 - 5 with a 30 min lunch. These people have kids and lives, but their entire day is here.”source ↗
“They say they wake up at 430/5 am then make breakfast and drop the kids off, come to work, and legit grind in silence the entire day, and no one really talks all that much outside of questions. Then they get home at 7 and go to bed at 9.”source ↗
“What kind of life is that? Am I crazy to not want that for myself? And is this truly normal?”source ↗
“I don't even know how to ask about taking time off to go to a weekly therapy appointment or a couple of annual doctor appointments next month. I feel so trapped and dumb.”source ↗
“I'm scared this is what the next 50 years will look like.”source ↗
“First close flying solo is always a mess though, I spent half of mine wondering why the balance sheet looked like it was having a seizure.”source ↗
“Retained earnings”source ↗
“I know I got scammed on accounting. Now I’m forced to go outside my comfort zone and ask dumb questions all day. As an introvert I feel I have to work harder than extroverts. Scam”source ↗
“I made a huge mistake. When matching a receipt to an invoice, I missed matching the dates by a few weeks.”source ↗
“I’ve also made a lot of mistakes, and feel I’m making way more than the other interns.”source ↗
“I don’t think they said I’ll get fired, but I am worried for the future. Isn’t this a sign I could fail miserably in this profession?”source ↗
“I am starting a new job as entry grant accountant at local college and wondering what it's like.”source ↗
“I have no accounting experience and transitioning into accounting career.”source ↗
“Any tips and advice?”source ↗
“If I could go back in time, I would have searched for an industry position and would probably be much happier now.”source ↗
“I felt the same way toward the end of college. I ended up going to work for the IRS for a few years after college.”source ↗
“Accidentally clicked a macro in a clients excel file emailing all their clients”source ↗
“Expense accruals. Wild to me now that there was a time I couldn't grasp them.”source ↗
“In Intermediate I had such a hard time with cash flow statement. I remember struggling with it on exams.”source ↗
“I took out how much of exempt interest was not public activity bond exempt interest, making client subject to AMT”source ↗
“Cutting rows in excel to move them in the correct order instead of doing a custom sort.”source ↗
“I’ve always hated any accounting class I’ve been apart of from high school to university so obviously I started off on a negative mindset towards the job.”source ↗
“It’s been 3 weeks and I still hate it maybe even more I’m pushing through till something better comes but I can’t stand it sometimes (my boss is also a huge issue).”source ↗
“I also recently discovered that my colleagues that are also recent graduates (they have accounting degrees) received a better offer while I’m stuck at a lower level.”source ↗
“The past few years since college I’ve mainly worked AP jobs or costing. But I just landed an entry level staff accountant role and am just curious if there’s anything I should brush up before I start.”source ↗
“Would it be a bad gig to be the sole corporate accountant at a new-ish PE backed mid-sized, multi-entity, multinational manufacturer?”source ↗
“That sounds horrible.”source ↗
Where this came up
People with this problem also raised
- 31Why do debits and credits make no sense?
- 7How to survive difficult undergraduate accounting classes
- 43Why do I feel so overwhelmed after starting a new job?
- 4How to make a career pivot out of accounting
- 12How to escape high-stress corporate accounting and public tax roles
- 5How do I get back into accounting after a long pause?