A recent study has showcased that a whopping 99% of accountants suffer from some level of burnout. This number is not just alarming in terms of the mental health of these professionals. The same study also shows that this high level of burnout leads to errors in the books. Nearly 49% of the accountants had to reopen the books to rectify an error in three or more months over the past year. The tax season is here and there are still heated debates on whether there should be an 80-hour week. It is high time that the leaders of the industry reflect upon their current policies and practices that make accountants miserable and burnt out.
In this article, Finsmart Accounting – globally trusted for bookkeeping outsourcing services in India – will share everything about accounting burnout. From meaning to signs and recovery tips to recommendations, we have it all in this blog! Let’s start by understanding what accountant burnout is!
What is accounting burnout?
The immense pressure and strain imposed by strict deadlines, overwhelming workloads, and long hours often lead to burnout. But what causes this accounting burnout? More than anything, it is the nature of the job itself. Besides the need to deliver on time and maintain impeccable accuracy standards, there is a heavy reliance on technology. Modern-day accounting professionals are constantly expected to learn new tools and stay up to date.
Accountants are compelled to work extremely long hours, especially during the tax season and year-end. In the pursuit of meeting deadlines, many end up working late at night and sacrificing personal time and leisure activities. The constant expectation to remain productive while sacrificing other aspects of life can be taxing for their physical and mental health.
As a job, accountants need to be attentive to details. Every number counts, and an error in each calculation and financial statement can cost a fortune to their and the clients’ firms. The fear of mistakes, the constant need to double-check, and the pressure to remain ahead cause pressure and anxiety. This leads the accountants to doubt themselves and their work, leading to deteriorated self-confidence.
Accounting burnout is more serious than the leaders consider it to be. It not only affects accountants individually but also has a serious impact on the overall quality of work. An accountant struggling with burnout will struggle to focus, make errors, and even overlook critical details. This can lead to a negative impact on the business, leading to loss of business and reputation.
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Signs of accounting burnt out
The thing about stress, and burnout, leading to crippled mental health is that it does not always come with visible signs. Sometimes the signs are so silent that it becomes difficult for the person suffering and those around to identify a burnout. As leaders of accounting firms, all you can do is be mindful of the culture, and the practices and foresee the impact it has.
Here are some of the top signs that can help you identify a prospective burnout. These signs can be identified by the one suffering or when you hear a colleague talking about signs like these:
- The feeling of being exhausted and tired, even after sufficient sleep
- Struggle to focus on jobs and making decisions – personally and professionally
- Doing the work for the sake of it. There is no sense of attachment, achievement, or pride
- Constant irritation while dealing with colleagues and clients
- Lack of motivation in work, leading to decreased productivity
- Headaches, backaches, gastrointestinal and other physical symptoms
- Withdrawal from social activities in both personal and professional life
- Lack of interest in activities that previously brought joy
- Difficulty falling asleep due to overwhelming work thoughts
- Constant sense of not being good enough
As an individual in the accounting profession, be mindful of what is bothering you. No matter how much external help comes, the correction of the situation begins with self-awareness. Talk to someone you can trust – a colleague, a senior, the leader of the firm. Ask for help.
Read on to discover expert tips for managing accounting burnout or read this blog about how to start an accounting firm or CPA practice.
Tips to manage accounting burnout
28% of accountants complain that their work is affecting their mental health. The problem with burnout is that it levies a heavy cost on the accounting firms. A burnt-out employee is not just unhappy. In most cases, they are unlikely to stick around.
Firstly, accountants have become hard to find due to the talent shortage – 3,00,000 people have quit their jobs in the past three years, boomer accountants have retired from the workforce and the new generation is turning away from being an accountant, even after having a degree in the field. Secondly, replacing an employee can shoot up a business’ cost by three to four times the current pay. This can be more for niche fields like accounting.
Hence, curbing burnout has become all the more crucial. Here are some tips that can help:
– Understand stress and burnout difference
Being burnt out is more than just stress. At workplaces, the line between the two is often blurred. Burnout results in chronic professional stress with symptoms like cynicism, lack of energy, and inefficiency. Stress, on the other hand, is just temporary. Stress awareness in accounting firms can help individuals identify when they need help.
– Establish boundaries
This can be about whether you will provide “support” on your off day or pull up for another colleague. While helping out the team, sometimes, is okay, continuously doing this can blur the lines further between personal and professional. Accounting firm leaders should inculcate a practice of encouraging setting boundaries, and they should do the same with the clients to avoid unrealistic expectations.
– Break every task down
When you have too many approaching deadlines, work can seem overwhelming and unbearable. The rational thing to do here is to break your to-do list down into small, achievable pieces to ensure a steady workflow. When you break the accounting tasks down, you can see whether or not you need additional help and seek help accordingly. A great way to avoid accounting burnout if you ask us!
– Talk about workload concerns
As an employee, you should try and have as much open communication as possible. As a firm leader, you should encourage your teams to raise their concerns as and when they happen. Raising workload concerns before they reach burnout is important. Understand the team’s distribution of tasks and re-delegate if needed. Addressing excess workload issues can prevent burnout.
– Embrace professional development opportunities
Employees feel burnt out when they don’t see growth and feel stuck. Continuous learning and professional growth opportunities lead to increased job satisfaction. Give your team new opportunities to develop their skills, sharpen job performance, and reduce burnout. A sense of accomplishment can go a long way in helping employees maintain their sanity.
– Take breaks, take leaves
Encourage taking breaks. As a leader, set an example. Instead of blowing the trumpet about hustle culture, be a differentiator. Regular breaks help employees maintain focus, reduce stress, and prevent burnout. A 15-minute break away from the desk helps improve overall productivity. Similarly, prevent penalizing employees or guilting them into taking leaves. Remember they have earned every bit of it and have the right to enjoy some time off.
– Make stress-relieving activities a part of the culture
Stress-relieving activities don’t need you to allocate a separate budget every time. It lies in the simple things like ensuring that accountants and other team members do not have their meals on the desk, or in front of the computer. Or, it could be integrating short walks and mindful exercises. They help employees prioritize their mental health. When this becomes a part of the culture and employees, across all levels, indulge, the chances of people feeling burnt out are reduced.
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– Leverage technology to your advantage:
The world of accounting is blessed with technology. Streamline your workflow by adapting to technology that suits your firm’s needs. Automation and new-age tools can help free up your team’s time and enable them to focus on more strategic aspects of work. In short,technology can help minimize the chances of burnout!
– Use outsourcing to address talent shortage problems:
Talent shortage problems have been increasing over the past few years. Performing repetitive tasks is another main cause of burnout. But as a firm leader, you can prevent it. Get access to highly skilled and trained accountants, without spending a fortune. Outsourcing also allows your team to focus on jobs that are more important, giving them a sense of achievement.
Ways to beat the accounting burnout
Burnout has become an increasingly common phenomenon in the accounting industry. The number of accountants who complain of chronic stress, fatigue, and burnout is increasing. What is important here is how accounting firms choose to address these issues. The tips will help the employees and the leaders of an accounting firm to identify burnout. Instead of treating burnout as an individual problem, it is important to treat it like a collective one.
To know how outsourcing can help combat burnout, write to us at connect@finsmartaccounting.com.
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Director Growth Strategy & Alliance
Maanoj Shah is a finance and outsourcing expert with strong Business Strategy and Scaling-up experience. Over the last 20 years, he has incubated multiple businesses and helped build global enterprises in verticals as diversified as hospitality, technology, and healthcare.
