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Paula Hanson

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Dean Dorton Allen Ford, PLLC
Lexington, KY

 

Even though Paula Hanson’s personality profile says, “Whoa,” she should be anything but a CPA, she absolutely loves her career choice.

“Don’t let the old paradigms fool you – this is fun stuff,” she says. “I love the variety, the opportunity to meet with clients, train staff, and be involved in the community and the profession and life-long learning.”

Paula says one of the great things about her career as a CPA is that she gets to do what she is passionate about – help people be successful. “Money is good. Satisfaction is better,” she says.

Paula grew up the daughter of a banker and always knew her collegiate path would take her into business. Having decided that accounting was a profession with a great future, Paula took the steps to get there. She majored in accounting, interned between her junior and senior years of college and dove into public accounting after graduation.

“After being at Ernst & Young for 10 years, I went to work for a client,” she said. But it didn’t take long for her to realize how much she missed and enjoyed public accounting. Three years later Paula began with Dean Dorton Allen Ford, PLLC, where she’s been for the last 18 years.

There is more to life than work, though. Paula is an advocate of finding a balance. “Grades do count, but you have to have fun, too. Balance studies with fun,” she says. “Do both and have a great time in school. You will work for the rest of your life.”

Paula follows her own advice as well. She loves to get out and socialize, play golf and attend University of Kentucky football games while visiting her college-age children. “I laugh a lot and you rarely find me in my office,” she says.

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