Why I Hated Accounting – and Suddenly Started Enjoying It
How I learned to understand subjects I didn’t like – and why your environment plays a crucial role
The moment when nothing worked anymore
I sat in front of my accounting book – and understood nothing.
Columns of numbers, tables, technical terms. Page after page.
I read. Maybe I understood a sentence here and there… but nothing really stuck.
Instead, another feeling kept growing stronger:
What am I even doing here?
It felt pointless. As if I was investing time in something that had nothing to do with me. As a creative person, accounting felt like the exact opposite of what I enjoyed: dry, rigid, lifeless.
I closed the book.
And I knew:
This can’t go on like this.
The key observation
Instead of continuing to fight the material, I started to observe.
There were other students who seemed to understand everything effortlessly. And what surprised me most: I didn’t consider them more intelligent than myself.
So I asked myself:
What are they doing differently?
The answer was surprisingly simple.
They were organized.
Clean notes. Structured documents. Clear thinking.
They kept an agenda, were punctual, and appeared calm and focused.
And then I noticed something:
Our teacher was exactly the same.
Suddenly, a pattern emerged.
Maybe the problem isn’t the subject – but my approach to it.
I started to change myself
The next day, I didn’t start by studying.
I started with my environment.
My room was full of unfinished things – projects, ideas, half-completed work. Creativity everywhere, but nothing truly finished.
I cleared everything away.
Consistently. Intentionally.
Until my desk was empty.
I sharpened my pencils.
Replaced broken pens.
Reorganized my workspace.
Small things.
But they had an effect.
The change came quietly
Over the following weeks, my daily routine began to shift.
I woke up earlier.
I went jogging in the morning.
I studied with calm, quiet music.
I started finishing things I had begun.
I kept my agenda properly.
I suddenly had an overview.
I no longer needed to ask what the homework was.
At the same time, my mind became calmer.
Less chaos.
Less stress.
More clarity.
And then something unexpected happened:
I started to enjoy order.
The turning point
I sat down again with my accounting book.
Same content.
Same exercises.
But this time, it felt different.
No resistance.
I understood the connections – not just logically, but almost intuitively. The structure suddenly felt calming. Coherent.
I drew lines, organized numbers – and it felt good.
In that moment, I realized:
I hadn’t changed the subject.
I had changed my approach to it.
And through that, something new emerged:
Enjoyment.
What I later understood at university
This experience stayed with me.
In chemistry, physics, mathematics – but also in languages.
I began to realize:
Every subject has its own way of thinking.
For French, I often just let the radio play in the background. At first, I understood almost nothing – but slowly, I adapted to the rhythm and developed a feeling for the language.
I structured my days:
- Morning: analytical subjects
- Afternoon: lighter content
- Evening: more creative subjects
Learning was no longer a struggle.
It became a rhythm.
Why “only focusing on strengths” falls short
And yes – there is value in focusing on your strengths.
When you work on what you’re naturally good at, you experience faster progress, confidence, and motivation.
But this is also where a limitation appears.
Because if we stay only in that space, we often avoid exactly those areas that challenge us – and where we could grow the most.
The key ability is therefore not just to use your strengths,
but also to develop a way of approaching things that initially feel unfamiliar or difficult.
Growth doesn’t only happen where things are easy –
but also where we learn to move closer to something that doesn’t naturally fit us at first.
Strengths give you momentum – but growth begins where you learn to find access to your weaknesses.
What I learned from this
👉 Motivation doesn’t come first
It often emerges only after you start.
👉 Your approach is everything
It’s not the subject that is boring – it’s often your perspective on it.
👉 Order creates clarity in your mind
A structured environment changes how you think and learn.
👉 Small changes have a big impact
A clean desk can do more than hours of overthinking.
👉 Enjoyment can develop
Even in things you initially resist.
The principle of intrinsic momentum
At the beginning, there is resistance.
Then comes a small step forward.
A moment of understanding.
A small success.
And suddenly:
It starts to carry itself.
Like a wheel slowly gaining momentum.
That’s intrinsic momentum.
And once it’s there, learning is no longer a duty.
It becomes something that drives you from within.
In the end
Maybe the most important insight is this:
You don’t have to wait until something interests you.
You can learn to become interested in it.
And often, that process starts with something very simple:
Your environment.
A clear, calm place to live and study can make a huge difference – especially in student life.
Whether in a shared apartment or a furnished room:
The space you live in influences how you think more than you might realize.
And sometimes, that’s the very first step – not only to learning better,
but to finding enjoyment in it again.
