Considering Accounting? It May Offer You a More Exciting Life Than You Think.
The following is adapted from Dear Accountant by Cecilia Leung, CPA.
When I was a kid, I thought my life was destined to look exactly like the lives of those around me. I never imagined I could create my own future. I certainly had no idea I could live a life as fulfilling as the one I have now. Without a sense of direction or desire to emulate the lives I was most familiar with, I would often escape to books and movies. They allowed me to expand my imagination, and in some way, escape the realities I was struggling with. I wasn’t lacking in basic needs, but I was struggling to find my place.
I was born and raised in the ’80s in the vibrant city of Hong Kong. For over 100 years before Hong Kong was handed back to China in 1997, it was a thriving colony under British governance. Life was good; the economy, businesses, and middle class were all thriving. It created the perfect backdrop for a happy childhood. I had the best memories from my kindergarten days; I remember wanting to grow up to be a kindergarten teacher so I could stay in that happy place forever.
And then suddenly, although I wasn’t sure why, that happiness started to fade as I entered into first grade. I had friends, but I remember feeling out of place and alone — in reality, and in my thoughts. I am Chinese, but I barely looked like the typical Chinese girl — I was a bit chubby with tanned skin, big thick hair, and a big nose. Kids made fun of me because I looked different than them. I tried very hard to be like everyone else, despite knowing it was impossible for me. I often wondered why it was so wrong to be different. Why did I have to be the same to be liked or accepted? I laugh about it now, but it was hurtful to my younger self. I just wanted to fit in.
The Asian Girl Who Failed Math
Growing up in an Asian family, our expectations were clear and straightforward: Respect and obey our parents and elders. Do well in school and extracurricular activities. And, of course, make our family proud. I managed to meet the standards required of me by doing well in both academics and extracurricular activities until the fifth grade. After that, the school environment was extremely stressful. I got a C- in grade 5 math. It may have been the pressure of my upcoming application to secondary school, or maybe it was a result of an unfilled knowledge gap. Either way, my teacher was not pleased. She labeled me as the lazy kid who ruined the class average. She lost confidence in me and no longer gave me opportunities to grow. I lost my momentum and fell into the no one cares pool in school from that point forward.
After feeling defeated, I received what I now know was a lucky break. I moved from Hong Kong to Canada when I was 16. Hong Kong, although a powerful financial hub in Asia, is still a small city of 7 million people and barely a dot on the world map. Canada suddenly made my world bigger, brighter, and full of opportunity. My first year in the foreign land was quite a challenge: not only did I have to translate every conversation from English to Chinese in my head, but I also had to find the courage to speak English to people who would immediately pick up on my accent. I was afraid people instantly knew I was “fresh off the boat” and would judge me. Because the curriculum in Hong Kong was so advanced, math in Canada was easy for me. Adapting to the new culture wasn’t as bad as I’d thought. I was good at math, and I could use that leverage to make friends. Even more exciting, I could trade these skills with others who could help me with my English.
College Graduate in Denial
I always knew education would be the key to financial freedom and independence, so when I finally made it to college, I was thrilled. Unfortunately, another roadblock presented itself just when things were starting to look up again. I attended college in Toronto, a massive change from the super-small town in Canada I lived in until then. The world was so much bigger than I had imagined, filled with talent from every corner. In a strange way, the wide range of people made me feel like I belonged for the first time in my life. Everywhere I looked, I saw someone different. We all had different strengths and backgrounds to bring to the table, especially when learning and working together on class projects or social clubs! I found my small group of people that could geek out with me on different topics, and I learned so much from the new perspectives and viewpoints! I often think of that environment as a bowl of the most nutritious soup — full of unique ingredients.
Deciding what to do after college was a struggle for me. The year I graduated coincided with the SARS outbreak in Hong Kong, making the job market ultracompetitive for new graduates. I had the option to stay in Canada or try my luck in the United States. Each choice felt more terrifying than the last. I was scared of entering the real world and taking on real responsibility.
The unconstrained period after college was supposed to feel invigorating, but I struggled to make a decision. I considered applying to law school, remembering how much I enjoyed analyzing cases in my business law classes. I really did not want to add more to the mountain of student loan debt I acquired, nor did I want to invest any more time into my education. Finally, I narrowed my choices down to 2 options: go with my then-boyfriend back to Hong Kong or stay in Canada. Although I didn’t know much about my future, I did know I wanted more for myself than to be a shadow for a boy. Trusting my gut, I made the tough decision to stay in Canada.
CPA and Big 4…and Then What?
My degree was in finance and economics, so I thought a CPA credential would be a powerful addition to my toolkit. I must have sent more than 100 resumes and talked my way through endless interviews; finally, a mutual fund company in Boston offered me a position. Financial services always interested me, mainly because it’s been a booming industry. The bank evolved in regulations to offer more financial products—not just deposits, but investment and insurance products. After 18 months of financial services experiences, I knew I needed more than just a stable job—I needed inspiration, excitement, and the kind of fulfillment that comes from overcoming big challenges. In 2005, I quit the job and moved back home to Hong Kong. It was time to see the rise of China that everyone was talking about.
I spent the next 3 years working as an auditor for 2 of the “Big 4” accounting firms in Hong Kong and in New York.
I was assigned to one of the most promising and fast-growing groups: the China market group. This involved intense travel to China. My first audit assignment was doing an IPO readiness audit evaluation and due diligence for a renowned electronic manufacturing client. It could not have been a more complex first assignment. Back in the early 2000s, many documents were in paper form. Most of my 12–18 hours a day were in the factory doing manual work — photocopying, marking up contracts and supporting documents, documenting every step, communicating to client teams, and learning simplified Chinese as I went. I started to get homesick with all the intense travel and factory stay, but I stuck it out and told myself to finish what I started: finish this project, then decide my next move. I knew that as a junior person, nothing was glamorous except for my suit and my BlackBerry (at the time!). I would have to complete a lot of grunt work in order to build the career I dreamed of. The boring tasks would serve as a way to learn and accumulate experiences to build a strong foundation in the early stages of my career. Even if I had gone to another company, or had taken a different job, the path would have been more or less the same in those early stages of my career. I could not quite see or understand the big picture at the time, but I knew, at the very least, that everything I did would help prepare me for my next move. I am glad that I stuck it out, because for the past decade, even as lots has changed in the way we do things, many of the fundamentals, concepts, and experiences continue to be reinforced. The grunt work made me a better professional and executive, as I am now able to connect everything all together to serve my clients. Our experiences never go to waste if we use them to serve us.
To learn more about the lives and careers of accountants, Dear Accountant is available on Amazon.
Cecilia Leung is a Certified Public Accountant with 2 decades of global experience in accounting and finance. A graduate of Rotman Commerce at the University of Toronto, she has worked with J.P. Morgan, PricewaterhouseCoopers, and Ernst & Young across Asia, the US, Canada, and Europe.
Now a founding partner with The Entrepreneur CFO, Cecilia uses her international expertise to help growing companies take the next leap forward. You can find her online at http://www.ceceleung.com.
