Sixth Day of Work

My sixth day of work was Saturday, the 21st of February. I have not updated in a few days for two reasons:

1) I worked 13 hours on Saturday.

2) I woke up Sunday at 2:00 PM to study for my upcoming accounting exam. My lunch consisted of cocoa puffs and a hot dog. I didn't know that the hot dog had expired some time ago, and as a result I experienced a "pleasant" onset of food poisoning symptoms that has yet to abate. I went to the Emergency Room today (Monday)...

Saturday was a long day at work. I worked on 6 tax returns and performed some clerical work. The clerical work consisted of going through a few check book registers and recording all the transactions in a spreadsheet. As for the tax returns, 3 of them were for college students.

Some clients insist on sending in the documents required to complete their return one at a time, so occasionally a statement or tax document will come in and need to be added to a client's return. I did this for one client, who received a huge stack of statements from his/her broker.

The other two returns were about the most "normal" returns that I've seen yet. No crazy numbers of mortgages or sources of income. Just typical families with typical incomes (job and interest). I sorted through the documents and wrote them into some blank "Pro Forma" forms that my supervisor could check. Eventually, I put these numbers into the tax program on the computer.

In my opinion, preparing a tax return requires two jobs: deciding where to put all the figures, and calculating the return. The computer is able to complete the second half, so we (tax accountants in general) are able to focus more of our energy on placing the figures in the most qualified places. The computer also allows us to create tax-planning scenarios which are a huge help when it comes to ensuring compliance for clients with businesses, for the next year.

Even as an intern at the tax firm, I still get Mobius-strip days. I get a pile of work sometimes that appears to have no beginning and no end. Every accountant has been there before. Nobody asked me to stay 13 hours on Saturday, but I take my job very seriously and sometimes things just need to get done.

Coffee in the Workplace

I'm beginning to understand Wally from Dilbert. If you read Dilbert, then you'll know that Wally is a coffee addict. He seems to operate only on java.

I actually like my new job, and in no way do I think of it as futile. My accounting classes, on the other hand... I've had really great Accounting professors at American University thus far in my curriculum, however it's reading the accounting textbook and doing problems from it that I find.. mind-numbing. I have actually gotten into the habit now of not doing accounting homework unless I've drunk coffee beforehand.

My accounting text smells (wreaks?) of coffee because I'm always toting it to Starbucks to do work. When I drink a few cups of coffee, I begin to feel wired. It's as if my brain goes into overdrive and I'm able to really focus in on the accounting text. I can go off to "accounting land" once the black stuff starts pumping through my veins. Next thing I know, 3 hours have passed and my problem set is complete.

Caffeine never used to do much for me. Things are different now.

I don't think that I'll need this kind of stimulation at my office this semester. I ask enough questions that it's impossible to lose focus of what I'm doing. Additionally, the company keeps snacks and drinks in a small kitchen that are complimentary to employees. Talk about a morale booster. For one, free anything excites me; but secondly, I never have to leave the office in search of something to drink. Between free coffee and soda, of which I may consume a retail value of 1 dollar's worth every 8-hour shift I work, the company actually saves money because I'm always at my desk, working. Jobs I've held in the past didn't afford this luxury, and I've always wanted a job that did. Before, I would go out for a drink and take at least 15 minutes, sometimes much longer, to get back to the office.

I've realized that complimentary beverages for one's employees is a wonderful way to boost productivity and morale, and save the company money, rather than the other way around as the misperception perpetuates. This is another instance of where some companies can be nearsighted.. they may save money by not providing employees with complimentary drinks, but do they sure lose out big time in lost productivity and bloated wage expenses.