Switching from actor to auditor
It’s never too late to start a new career. Gerald Matthews traded costumes for calculators, and he hasn’t looked back
What does an actor do when they have time to spare during a performance? They read a lot and let their imagination wander. At least that’s what Gerald Matthews CPA, CMA did when he played the role of Ghost of Christmas Future in a past performance of A Christmas Carol. One of the books he read was inspired by a line from the play: “Mr. Scrooge is taking the books home to go through the accounts.” Gerald wondered what Bob Cratchit, Mr. Scrooge’s clerk, was doing when he had to balance his boss’s books. Armed with Calgary Public Library books about Victorian-era accounting, Gerald embarked on a research trip that changed his career trajectory.
Motivated by the results of his research, Gerald decided to enrol in an accounting class at Bow Valley College. He realized a career in accounting would be more stable and pay better. Gerald quickly learned that he was good at accounting, just as he was at acting. Remembering his return to post-secondary in his then-early 40s, he says: “At that point, I had learned how to learn…. When I went to university the first time, I was clueless.”
As he started his accounting journey, he was impressed by the friendliness and helpfulness of CPAs. “They will mentor you at the drop of a hat,” says Gerald, as he recalls meeting with a CPA early in his education and chatting about what it meant to be an accountant.
For Gerald, acting was a fun job but not a great career. Long hours with six-day workweeks barely paid above the poverty line. Transitioning into accounting gave him financial stability and Saturdays and Sundays off. “Actually having [extended health and dental] benefits for my family is huge,” says Gerald. “I love getting a regular paycheque, and I love the vacations.”
Even today, Gerald is impressed with how much of his accounting education he uses regularly. “Going into the education program, you know there are going to be a lot of different subjects, but you don’t know what you’re going to use when you get out into industry,” he says. “As it turns out, the only thing I haven’t used yet is pension accounting.”
For the last 12 years, Gerald has been an Internal Auditor at Enerflex Ltd. He is also on the board of a small theatre, where he uses his CPA skills to give back to his old profession. Today, he appreciates having a credential people recognize and being in a profession that people respect.