Friday, August 7, 2015

Day in the life

Linking up with Cynthia, Mar, and Courtney for the Friday Five.

This week's topic: A Day in the Life.

You ready to hear about the heartpounding, riveting, spellbinding life of a corporate accountant?!?!? (Side note - prior to joining my current company, I spent the vast majority of my career working as a financial analyst. Finance is more intuitive to me than accounting. But I do like my current role.)

My non-deadline and deadline weeks are pretty different. Here is a typical business day for me during a non-deadline week when I don't have any evening social plans.

7:30 or 7:45 AM - The time my alarm is set. I usually wake up a little earlier and turn off the alarm before it goes off. I usually lie in bed for a few minutes and read my email (both personal and work), some blogs, and a few social media/news sites. Then I get up and moving.

8:30 or 8:45 AM - Depending how quickly I am moving and how much night-before prep I did (e.g. packing my lunch, laying out my outfit for the day), I depart to go to work. Sometimes I eat breakfast at home, other times I eat at my desk. I am extremely fortunate that my office is only a 10-minute walk from my home.

8:45 or 9:00 AM - Arrive at the office. Boot up my computer. Log into all of the applications that I use on a regular basis (I once counted that I have to enter my password at least seven times before I can get rolling). Deal with any emails or other requests.

This is what my office cube looks like:
My workday in general:
As an accountant, I spend the bulk of my days preparing, reviewing, and approving journal entries, account reconciliations, financial reports, analyses, and statements/schedules. There's always a lot of planning work, too. Some days I have a lot of meetings and interaction with my team or other colleagues. Other days I work independently the whole day.

I've mentioned many times that I work for an amazing company that offers unlimited ways to get involved. Aside from my accounting work, I'm also frequently attending trainings, info sessions, management updates, webinars, and other company initiatives.


12:30 or 1:00 PM
I almost always bring lunch from home and eat at my desk. While I am eating, I will either keep working, or I'll surf the net. I prefer to eat lunch later rather than earlier because I think it makes the rest of the afternoon go by more quickly.

Working Out:
I try to use the company fitness center three or four days a week. Some days I will attend a lunchtime group exercise class (Zumba, yoga, strength, or core), and other days I will attend a mid-afternoon class (yoga sculpt, pilates, or another Zumba offering). Some days I'll go for a quick run after I get home from work.

If I'm on a deadline and/or don't have time to work out during the day, I might go to the fitness center after work to lift on my own. If the weather is bad I'll use a treadmill.


5:00 or 5:30 PM
Shut down the computer and head home. (Note, however, that during deadline weeks, I can be at the office much, MUCH later than 5:30 PM.)

5:15 or 5:45 PM
Arrive at home. Change out of my work clothes, go through the mail, run some errands if needed. If I'm heading out for a run, I try to get moving on that as quickly as possible. Get started on making dinner most days. Maybe do some stuff around the house.

7:15 to 7:45 PM
Dinnertime, depending on when Adam gets home. Once in awhile we'll go out for a quick dinner in the neighborhood.

8:30 or 9:00 PM 
Adjourn to the couch. Depending on the time of year, watch one of a few different things on TV. The usual suspects include whatever professional sport is in season for any Chicago or Pittsburgh team; the news; or some sitcom in syndication (Fresh Prince, Seinfeld, etc.)

I might turn on the computer on the side to blog or work if needed. Otherwise, I might talk to my parents on the phone or do some stuff around the house. I try to remember to do my PT stretching routine and/or foam roll before bed. If I'm feeling organized/proactive (sadly less than 50% of the time), I'll prepare the next day's lunch, outfit, breakfast, and anything else that I need to remember to bring to the office.

11:00 or 11:30 PM
Bedtime! I am usually asleep within 15-20 minutes of my head hitting the pillow.


So there you have it! Not very glamorous, eh? I am guessing most folks wouldn't expect anything too earthshattering from someone who works in an accounting role. But, I am grateful for the peaceful life that I have.

Incidentally - deadline weeks and weekends are whole other stories. If I didn't bowl you over with today's captivating recap, maybe I'll talk about those some other time?

[Looks around and sees everyone in this state:]


OK, maybe not.

Your turn! Please tell me about your typical day!

15 comments:

  1. What?! I would kill to be able to sleep in until 7. I'm up around 5:30 every morning. :-( *tears*

    Like you, I have an equally glamours work life, though my desk is much more ... Decorated. Are you not allowed personal items at your desk, or are you just super tidy? My desk is a war zone compared to yours, and I actually thought I was fairly tidy.

    Also, I'm with you - later lunch, faster afternoon.

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    1. 5:30 every morning? Wow!!!

      I like to keep my desk clean. It makes me feel more streamlined and productive. I am very anti-paper so I'm fortunate that my company does almost everything electronically! (Incidentally - you can't see it in the picture, but the one personalized item I do display at my desk is a "Let's Go Blackhawks" sign. =) )

      Yay for later lunches!!! It really works!!!

      I would love to hear more details about your typical day!!! Please share!!!

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  2. I work in accounting/finance as well. Number, numbers, numbers. You are a very tidy worker! I grew up with Snoopy BTW. Love him. If you are looking for a place to recap your week or weekend (or really whatever you want) I'm co-hosting a new linkup called Weekly Wrap. I'd love for you to join in!

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    1. Yay for us accounting/finance folks!!! Incidentally, when folks find out your line of work, do they always assume that you're good at math? I get that remark ALL THE TIME! Little do they realize that Excel does all the work. =D

      Thanks for the kind words on the state of my office! I feel better and more streamlined when my workspace is clean. I think it contributes to increased productivity.

      I LOVE Snoopy, too!!! The Peanuts cartoons are so classic!!! I used to watch the Charlie Brown specials on TV all the time as a child!

      Would love to join Weekly Wrap! Thanks for letting me know!!! I look forward to hearing more details!!!

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  3. i don't think your day is boring -- i think we're all just adults :) have a great weekend!

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    1. Thanks Courtney! So true - when I was a child, my parents would have days similar to mine. Kind of a startling realization, but so true! Have a great weekend, as well!

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  4. There is very little routine to my day! I always start the day with a workout (except on rest days), there is work (but it starts at all different times) and who knows what the day will bring... The most routine is in the evening when I have my wine and dinner...then I go to bed...LOL

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    1. I can imagine that in your line of work, every day is unpredictable and every day brings some new challenges!!! But cheers to the routine of wine with dinner every night. That is a great routine that more of us need to adapt. =)

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  5. Getting up when you do sounds so luxurious as I'm up at 5 and out running at 5:30. But there's no way in hell I'd be able to stay up til 11. I'm in bed by 9:30 so I guess it evens out. I'd love to know what a good running route around your place is. I know someone who is now working VERY close to your building. : )

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    1. Wow, 5 AM wake-up and running at 5:30 AM? More power to you!!! I am glad that you are in bed by 9:30 because I hear of plenty of folks who go to bed at 11, but still get up at 5 AM. Heaven knows how they function on so little sleep, yikes!

      I have a standard 5-mile loop that I default to in my neighborhood. Starting at Halsted and Madison, I head west on Madison to Damen, then south on Damen to Roosevelt, then east on Roosevelt to Halsted, and then back north on Halsted to Madison. It's basically one giant square! The grid system in Chicago is wonderful. =)

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  6. I love these linkups! Oh, and I love reading about other people's days that have a real job. No, I don't want to read about a professional blogger's day. :-) Have you read any of them?

    My days are not too exciting right now. Ask me when I am back at school.

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    1. Thanks Zenaida! Please share a typical day in your life - would love to hear about the details from a teacher's perspective! I think I've only read one "day in the life" by a professional blogger and it sounded like it had so much flexibility! Must be nice!!!

      Enjoy the peace and quiet right now before the school year starts back up!!!

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    2. I think I will share once I get settled in. At least that way it will be interesting and exciting!!

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  7. My day is similar to yours, except I'm usually up an hour before you and in bed about an hour before you. :) That would be awesome to have classes you could go to during work.

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    1. Tedi, I am glad to hear that you get a good amount of sleep!!! It seems there are so many folks out there who function on 6 hours or less of sleep every night. How do they handle the sleep deprivation? Cheers to being well-rested as much as possible!

      And yes - I am very, very fortunate and blessed to have fitness classes available during the workday. It frees up a lot of valuable evening time. =)

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