Why “success” doesn’t have to mean staying unhappy in your job

Mike Maksymiw had what most accountants would call making it: partner title, half-million dollar salary, and the kind of career path others envy.

And then he walked away.

Why? Because “success” in the traditional sense didn’t line up with what actually made him fulfilled. Instead, he chose what he calls a coddiwomple—a purposeful journey toward an unknown destination.

No matter what the career journey you’re after is, I can bet you that it doesn’t involve spending all your time filling in timesheets and untangling your billable hours reports. Or worse - having the work you do go unaccounted for.

So in comes Laurel - your AI assisted timesheet automation solution! Laurel is automating timesheets, enhanced by AI to provide better descriptions of the work you’re doing. They also have some great features to prevent revenue leakage from work you forget to enter or out of scope projects you might otherwise sweep under the rug.

Check out Laurel to streamline your firm’s operations now!

The danger of settling for “success”

Mike’s story is one a lot of accountants quietly live through. You land the role you’re “supposed” to want: partner, director, whatever your version is - and realize the day-to-day doesn’t fit. The work isn’t aligned with what you value, or worse, the environment stifles the things that make you great in the first place.

Most people shrug, tell themselves “that’s just how this profession is,” and settle in for 20 more years of frustration. Mike didn’t.

His philosophy: If you tell your firm what you need to grow, and they say no, that’s not the end of the conversation - it’s the beginning of your next step.

How to make bold moves without losing your shirt

Walking away from a secure role sounds reckless until you realize the key piece behind Mike’s optionality: networking.

Mike had built a deep, intentional network over two decades through local CPA societies, AICPA’s Leadership Academy, even nonprofit projects where he could safely practice management. That network meant when he finally said “enough,” he didn’t jump into a void. He jumped into a web of people ready to vouch for him, recommend him, and connect him with opportunities he didn’t even know existed.

That’s how he ended up at Aprio, leading the Firm Alliance - a role that didn’t even exist until a friend in his network vouched for him in a room he wasn’t in.

What you should take away from this

Your career doesn’t have to be a straight line. And it doesn’t have to be miserable just because the role looks shiny on LinkedIn.

• Define your success. It’s not about the title or paycheck if you’re unhappy doing it.

• Examine your fears. Mike’s career coach pushed him to calculate exactly what he needed to survive. Suddenly, leaving didn’t look so scary.

• Coddiwomple with purpose. You don’t need 10,000 jobs - you just need one that fits you.

• Always be networking. Relationships are career insurance. A single connection can change everything. Invest in your network early in your career and engage

Mike’s story is proof: you don’t need to “eat the crap and keep your head down” just to stay on the partner track. Success in accounting, and life, can mean finding the one opportunity that values who you are, not who you’re supposed to be.

So the next time you find yourself in a role that checks all the external boxes but none of your own, ask yourself: are you settling, or are you ready to Coddiwomple?

This write-up is based on a session Mike Maksymiw presented at Bridging the Gap, a conference in Denver that I’d highly recommend you add to your agenda for next year! We also dive deeper into this topic in a podcast episode coming out on August 28th on The Big 4 Transparency Podcast.

Have you logged your latest salary on Big 4 Transparency yet?

Thousands of accountants read this newsletter, and the insights we can share are only as strong as the data shared with us. The more submissions we collect, the sharper our trends, the stronger our analysis, and the clearer the story we can tell about compensation in accounting.

Your entry is 100% anonymous, takes less than 2 minutes, and instantly unlocks access to the full database so you can see where you stack up.

Don’t just read the results, help shape them. Submit your salary here.