GEN NEXT: Embrace Risk: Pursue Opportunities Tied to Your Passions

In 2014, I spoke at my alma mater’s Symposium Day, focused on identity, where I shared my insights on values-based decisions, earning opportunities, and embracing adversity to align careers with purpose and passion. Although my career at that time was still in its infancy, I was inspired to share the many lessons I learned through my “unconventional career path,” drawing from my experiences in accounting and unique roles supporting entrepreneurs and business leaders in Africa.

Now, 15 years into my career, what I’ve learned is that these lessons still hold true to me—if not more. Every person, passion, risk, and opportunity that I embraced along my career journey has played an integral role in getting me to where I am today. Here are three lessons that I hope inspire you to grow and make a lasting impact.

1. Mentorship, coaching, and team building are critical to the journey. My leadership approach has been shaped by family, teachers, coaches, and serving as a team leader in sports and summer leadership camps. These experiences taught me discipline, resilience, collaboration, and the importance of building inclusive teams. Additionally, my parents taught me the importance of engaging with mentors with responsibility, commitment, and action. This allowed me to develop meaningful relationships that encouraged me to embrace opportunities and take calculated risks. So, whether you find them at home, in the classroom, at the office, or even on the court, everyone needs selfless role models to help them succeed and grow.

2. Aligning your passions with your career can make the greatest impact. Whether it’s from family ties in Europe, my experience at a global leadership camp, or participating in programs in China, Spain, and West Africa, I’ve always harbored international aspirations. So, it’s no surprise that as my accounting career evolved, I pursued my passions for global impact by finding opportunities to work on technical accounting and cross-border transactions and teach entrepreneurial leadership programs in sub-Saharan Africa. This led me to take a calculated risk and pursue a career outside the Big Four focused on the intersection of business, geopolitics, sustainability, and impact in Europe, the Middle East, and Africa. This experience allowed me to engage with impact investors, corporate leaders, and entrepreneurs, which allowed me to learn firsthand how sustainability is integral to business strategy, resilience, and growth. Of course, I’ve now returned to the Big Four, but I remain inspired by this intersection of sustainable growth and impact. I believe there could be a significant role for accountants in responding to global sustainability regulation and environmental, social, and governance reporting drivers. Today, I’ve aligned my purpose, passion, and experience in emerging markets to advise the executive teams of clients seeking to embrace sustainability and impact as critical business levers. I also continue to support organizations that embrace this mindset through serving in advisory board roles with the Chicago Council on Global Affairs, Amahoro Coalition, and TechLit Africa. The point in sharing all this is that you can—and should—seek every opportunity to align your personal passions and interests with your career goals.

3. Your team’s success is your success. As a leader, I focus on fostering team development and high performance by creating an inclusive environment, leading by example and with authenticity to promote accountability and trust, and aligning my priorities with team members’ goals, clients’ needs, and the firm’s priorities. As a mentor, I encourage rising professionals to say yes to new opportunities, pursue their goals and passions, invest in continuous learning, and not be afraid to ask for help. Ultimately, my personal accomplishments and most rewarding experiences have been defined by the development and collective success of my teams.

Whether speaking with young professionals at Deloitte, students in graduate or undergraduate programs, or social entrepreneurs around the world, I still often reflect on the lessons I shared that Symposium Day, and the lessons I continue to take with me. As you look to grow in your career, I hope these lessons help you embrace the people and opportunities around you.

Matthew C. Pelton, CPA, is the audit and assurance managing director at Deloitte & Touche LLP.

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• The Power of Purpose: How an Accounting Career Can Support Your Passions: Workers today, especially among younger generations, are prioritizing roles that provide a deeper sense of meaning and purpose. Six CPAs share—and prove—how a career in accounting can offer just that.