Well Accounted Props

Accountants are buttoned-up. They're straight up and down. They go, literally, by the numbers. Let the stereotypes be what they are, though, because in these days of financial crisis, accountants are the ones cleaning up the mess — and finally getting their due.

NPR's Marketplace reports that at USC's school of accounting, the number crunchers are not only cool — they're sexy, even. All those swaggering MBAs down the hall who became brokers and bankers have been humbled by the financial fallout they helped cause. Accountants, on the other hand, are the ones balancing the books, trying to keep these banks afloat, and are getting recognition for it.

This follows comments from philosopher and writer Alain de Botton in his new book, The Pleasures and Sorrows of Work. He says he actually envies accountants. "I spent a lot of time with accountants, and they were really a jolly bunch compared with writers. And I wish I was part of them and had those talents and interests, but I just don’t," de Botton told Bnet.com.

Looks like it might be time for finance majors to start accounting for happiness.

Photo courtesy of Tracy O via Flickr.