Accounting For Life

For those that don't know, my career outside of food delivery in periods between jobs is accounting.  It's a natural career for me, because it aligns with several qualities that I have, which I think is actually very needed and often lacking in the world, today.  Stick through the first paragraphs to get to the larger application.

People think accounting is about math or numbers.  Those are some expressions of it, sure.  But, I worked one accounting job for oil and gas supply where a whole section of the company accounted for barrels of oil transferred... no money accounted in that process.  Others would handle that.  Accounting was and is about first getting an accurate understanding of what it is you have, got, or sold.  There are no assumptions.. no we thought we had, or we thought it was worth more.  If it is not accurate, it is not accounting.

In order to be accurate, it MUST be seen objectively.  Your job is not to please the management.  In fact, they are counting on YOU to determine when it is not.  Some positions, in fact, are internal auditors whose job it is to catch when lower or middle managers are trying to blow sunshine up the CEOs ass.  You don't make friends that way, but you serve a valuable service.

So, it fits me like a glove, since by nature I am driven to analyze what actually exists by poking holes in assumptions and prejudice in groups around me.

But, some things cannot be analyzed and must be taken on faith, some would say.   Indeed, every dictator or abusive person... whether political figure, cult leader, management figure or abusive spouse would say the same thing.  Pretty much always the loudest voices opposing oversight are the ones with something to hide.  Those who don't often welcome an objective eye or voice.  Every major company gets audited every few years at least, and I think the devil is in fact God's auditor of virtue and does a pretty good job at it.

But, it's also false to say some things cannot be analyzed.  There is a very good one season show on Hulu of a massive supercomputer valled Devs designed to analyze everything... down to things like what did you ear or what did you hear or what was the weather like that led you to conclude in your quantifiable history to decide one thing over another.   And, if you can do that, you can predict the next steps.  This was also a major part of a season of Westworld.  Ultimately, everything... even emotions.. can be identified as the results of other influences.  So, the challenge and opportunity we have from understanding this is to let "our head rule our heart" as they say.  

For the last several months, that's been my guide... choosing what is wise, and know what?  It has led to a less emotionally rocky result with more steady joys, as well.  

So.. give it a shot.  What areas of your life do you KNOW are unwise and need adjustments.  What areas can you improve at it.  If you are not using your brain to guide your life, you cannot blame others for the choices you make without consulting it.