A new book written by Thomas Dunbar could give recent college grads a leg up early on in their careers.
The Northside accountant recently published his first book, “Leapfrog Public Accounting’s Learning Curve: Real Life Advice for New Hire Success.”
The volume is now available at Amazon.
Despite its title, Dunbar said the book has lessons that could benefit young professionals in any field, not just accounting.
Of course, the book does have some accounting-specific tips, such as how to study for the Certified Public Accountant examination, but Dunbar said it’s mainly a self-help book.
“It mostly focuses on interpersonal skills, the good and bad attributes in new hires,” he said. “When I reflect on my experience in public accounting, I realize that most of the people who are successful not only have great accounting knowledge, but have interpersonal skills, such as the ability to navigate the office environment.
“It’s everything you didn’t learn in school that you need to experience massive success in public accounting.”
Dunbar, the son of Mary and Tom Dunbar, is a graduate of Jackson Preparatory School. After high school, he attended Washington and Lee University, where he ran track his freshman year. “I toured the school and felt it was the right spot,” he said. “I was ready to explore out of state a little bit and figured I could come back to Jackson if that didn’t work out.”
Dunbar initially was planning to major in business but took a required accounting class and fell in love with it.
“It was like putting a puzzle together. The credits and debits have to match up,” he said. “You get to learn a lot about businesses by studying accounting.”
After four years, he received his bachelor’s degree, he went to the University of Texas at Austin to continue his education.
“I studied four years in college, so I thought I might as well try to get my CPA,” he said. “I needed one more year after my undergrad program.”
Certification typically requires 150 credit hours, more than students retain during their undergraduate education.
“Washington and Lee was such a small school that it didn’t have a fifth-year master’s program,” he said. “I applied at UT and got in. Dad grew up in Austin, so I figured I’d go out there. While on campus, I got recruited at UT Career Day.”
After nearly three years, Dunbar decided to return home. “My lease ended and my roommate was moving, so I thought it was a good time to come back to Jackson if I was coming back,” he said. “I grew up, had a great childhood and wanted to be closer to my family.”
Dunbar has one younger brother, Wirt, and a younger sister, Mary, who is a junior at Auburn University.
After returning home, it took Dunbar about five months to complete the book and publish it through an online publishing house.
He hopes the 190-page book will help up and coming professionals when they enter the world of work.
Among tips, the book talks about the importance of making good first impressions, as well as good last impressions.
Looking back, Dunbar wishes he would have told more people in Texas that he was returning home.
“People are going to remember you just as much at how you leave as how you perform,” he said. “There are some people I should’ve told privately that I didn’t tell before I announced my resignation to the public.”
Dunbar is now planning a second book, which will be geared more toward helping professionals in every field.
“There’s a of stuff they don’t teach you in school that you need to learn on the job,” he said. “I got a great education and still had a major learning curb. Everyone’s going to have one, and that’s why I wrote the book.”
