"Smile" - You're an Accountant!

If a smile can launch a thousand ships, then CPAs and accountants should get their sea legs ready to sail.

According to a new survey of 1,400 chief financial officers, conducted by temporary staffing giant Accountemps [1], a "positive attitude" came as the most important trait a CPA can possess in the new century.

Forty percent of participants ranked this trait as number one. Coming in second was the ability to be a "team player" (30 percent), "speak well" (16 percent) and "written communications skills" (8 percent).

Ranking last was "sense of humor" at only one percent, indicating that CPAs should have a smile on their face, but stay away from bad accounting jokes.