This blog was intended to have been written last week. The Longhorns’ loss to Arizona completely crushed my spirits, however, leaving all motivation I had in disarray for the week. The Dance goes on though, and with it comes the next installment of my take on my internship.

A lot of questions I think a lot of people ask and a lot of recruiters receive is, “What is an average day like as an auditor?” Most people will kind of give you the same answer, but in an attempt to situationally convey my perception while portraying emotion, I will answer the question by comparing with film characters.

Unconventional? Yeah. But it’s my blog, and I can do that.

Before that though, here’s what’s up since the last installment…

The Big Dance Update

Well, it didn’t take me long to come back to this topic, but being the most wonderful time of the year, I have to bring it up. Even though the Longhorns’ season ended last week, I do want to extend a congratulations on what was still a spectacular season! We won 27 games, and if Thompson and Hamilton return like they say they will, the Longhorns will not only bring talent but a load of experience to the court next season!

Congratulations to Coach Krzyzewski on winning his 900th game! Coach K has won four national championships and a gold medal in his career at Duke, and will almost certainly overtake his former coach, Bob Knight, as the winningest coach in men’s D-1 next year. This is an amazing accomplishment, and I look forward to seeing what the Blue Devils will bring to the table next year also.

This is a shout-out to Butler and VCU, the two “mid-major” schools to reach the Final Four as 8 and 11 seeds respectively. Although I had doubts about Butler heading into this tournament, they have certainly proved me wrong again. (Yeah, that’s right—I picked ODU over them this year and UTEP over them last year.) And why did I pick ODU over Butler? Because over my internship, I caught the championship game of the Colonial League and saw Old Dominion survive VCU. Thus, VCU made an impression on me, but ODU made an even bigger one. What an achievement for both of these programs to prove the analysts to be mad…of course, that’s why they call it March Madness!

Geraldine Ferraro Passes Away

For those who are unfamiliar with Geraldine Ferraro, she was the first woman to be on a major party’s presidential candidate ticket, running as Walter Mondale’s running mate in 1984. While a representative in Congress, she cosponsored the Economic Equity Act (1981). Mondale said the following about his former running mate: “She was a pioneer in our country for justice for women and a more open society. She broke a lot of molds and it’s a better country for what she did.”

And now into the Audit Room:

Auditing…in Movies…

So auditing was complex in the fact that UT cannot train us to audit a specific methodology because, as one employee told me, every firm kind of audits its own way. While we enter the internship with a sense of how an audit is executed from studying GAAS and GAAP, the nitty-gritty mechanics are at the discretion of the respective firms. It is almost similar to being a musician: every ensemble may receive the same printed sheet music, but each will have its own similar but unique method of interpreting a piece. Thus, in terms of how I felt and what my perception was like, here you go!

Jefferson Smith from Mr. Smith Goes to Washington (1939)

In this film, Jefferson Smith (James Stewart) is appointed to fill the senate seat of a recently deceased senator until the next election. The governor, just trying to fill in the spot with a good name, appoints a popular boy scout-type figure to take the seat. Smith is relatively naïve going to Congress and is actually misquoted and mocked by the media. Jefferson Smith, who went into Washington full of stories of the principles established by the Founding Fathers, starts his political career without bridging the gap between those principles and real world politics.

Likewise, I feel I went into my internship trying to “light it up” without considering the nuances that fill the gap between what it actually takes to achieve the noble concept of auditing financial statements. Am I saying I was naïve? Kind of, but mostly due to putting unnecessary pressure on myself to do well; likewise, Smith tries to push a bill for a boys’ camp without considering the political ambush that he would face as a result.

Happy Gilmore from Happy Gilmore (1996)

This may well be due to my short temper, but honestly, come on! A computer put these numbers together….Why wouldn’t EVERY ONE OF THESE NUMBERS tie?! Essentially, being inexperienced, I was kind of surprised when I saw how often figures weren’t perfect. This shouldn’t be a problem because auditors only provide reasonable assurance, but if you’re like me and it takes you a while to get into the mindset of it-can-be-off-and-still-be-fine, auditing can get pretty frustrating. Thus, being greener than a cucumber, relatively simple concepts—like putting in Mr. Gilmore’s case—can seem overly frustrating.

Rick Blaine from Casablanca (1942) & Sam Spade from The Maltese Falcon (1941)

Why two movies? Because Humphrey Bogart is such a boss in both of these movies. Auditing isn’t just about book smarts—you have to have wit, charm, and street smarts. Third-year MPAs have probably already figured this out in their recruiting process this far. You have to be able to talk to people, get information, and, well, you have to know how to be liked in order to make your client comfortable giving you that information. What does this encompass? You have to dress appropriately, act professionally, and smile more hours than you sleep.

Darth Vader from Star Wars (1977)

So you go through a lot of work so that your client feels comfortable with you…but you’re still the auditor. I’m going to say it took me a while before I grew accustomed to being called “The Auditor” instead of just “Paul.” That being said, except for maybe upper management, auditors are probably perceived to be more of a nuisance than a necessary step to running an extensive organization.

That being said, I feel that sometimes being the auditor can be somewhat intimidating to the client. And after growing accustomed to being on the auditor’s side in class, it took me a while to remember that my job wasn’t all roses.

Any Character You So Choose from 12 Angry Men (1957)

In this play-turned-movie, twelve jurors are put into a room to decide a verdict to what is a seemingly obvious case. One juror, however, feels that the jury should at least discuss their reasoning before merely condemning the defendant. In a heated and intense discussion, the jurors ultimately change their minds and decide “not guilty.”

There are some times in an audit where, albeit less dramatic, the treatment of some transactions may not be so obvious or further investigation may reveal unrevealed information. For example, you and your coworker might be auditing two different sections, but in discussing a completely different topic, the different pieces of information may paint a completely different picture. Thus, a healthy audit team should display an appropriate amount of open discussion.

Travis Bickle from Taxi Driver (1976)

If you haven’t seen this film, beware. Travis Bickle is a mentally unstable taxi driver trying to make his mark on the world. The controversial film may be the biggest stretch of movie-to-audit room I have listed, but let’s face it—any time you’ve been working for 16 or 17 straight hours, you’re bound to be a bit edgy and wacky. Everyone’s raw emotions come out at around 1 a.m., so don’t be offended if someone snaps back.

Don Lockwood from Singin’ in the Rain (1952)

Don Lockwood (Gene Kelly) is realizing that his film career may be in jeopardy with the innovation of “talking pictures.” Depressed and frustrated, he concedes to his two friends that he might as well throw in the towel when the three of them come to a solution to what was previously a glaring problem. From down in the dumps to elated and ambitious, Lockwood realizes that life is so great that the storm pouring all over Los Angeles doesn’t even phase him.

Likewise in the audit room, I can’t even begin to describe how many times it felt like I had an unsolvable problem—or, rather, one that I wasn’t experienced or trained enough to tackle in any acceptable amount of time. Thus, when breakthroughs happen, you just feel like doing a mini-celebration. At least I did. (My audit team called me out on raising the roof once. Just saying…)

Final Thoughts

Unconventional approach? Yes, but hopefully my point got across. If not, then at least I’ve provided a good starting point for you to catch up on your classic films.

Seriously, the gist of this blog is to demonstrate that there were many times during my internship in which I was frustrated, ecstatic, exhausted, edgy, etc. This is not meant to be discouraging, but merely as a reminder that this is definitely a learning process and that great things do not happen overnight. Patience is a must, and it is crucial to keep that in perspective while on your internship in order to ensure that stress does not impair your ability to learn and think clearly.