Monique is a NINJA CPA Blogger.
Have you ever lied about passing a section? Have you ever told someone that you sat for an exam when in reality you didn’t?
Maybe you needed another week to study but didn’t want to let your friends know. Or maybe your boss asked you how the exam went and you didn’t have the nerve to tell him you rescheduled – again.
I am a habitual re-scheduler. I undercompensate for life when I set my rigorous study plan. I don’t build in time to get off track.
If you’ve read Jeff’s CPA Exam Survival Guide you’ve read how he stresses the importance of keeping your spouse happy. I never “plan” to keep my marriage or home life on track so when obstacles come up I am unprepared to keep up with my study plan.
My kids get sick, my husband has a series of doctor’s appointments, I have to work overtime, yada, yada, yada. I lose 3 days of studying and it’s impossible to catch up. What happens? I reschedule. And people lose faith in you…and you lose faith in yourself.
I was planning to take FAR at the end of November. Then when I found out that the window was extended into December I planned to take advantage of that. When I mentioned to my manager that I might move the exam to January she had that look of “here she goes again…”
I’ve passed FAR already … and lost it. This is a retake and my manager knows that. She’s afraid that I’ll fall in the same trap I did before and lose another section. I have until June 2014 – really May since we can’t test in June – to pass FAR (again) and BEC.
I have it all planned out of how I can do it and have plenty of time left for retakes if necessary. But I had it all planned out of how I could be done with this exam by November 2012 … then March 2013…then May 2013 … then November 2013. See where I’m going here?
So now what do I do? Well I’m not going to lie … I just don’t have it in me. But I wonder what other people do. A coworker once told me to just not talk about the exam. That way people won’t know what you’re studying for or when you plan to sit. Easier said than done especially when you try to get in a few questions throughout the day.
Plus, I’m horrible at hiding things. So now I will just suck it up, keep quiet as much as possible and if someone asks I’ll tell the truth … I rescheduled again. I least I won’t have the stress of trying to keep up with lies weighing on me!
Maybe its time to tone back you focus on the planning and turn up the focus on your studying. Sometimes the planning stage is where the real time suck happens. You know what you have to do, watch the lectures and take intense notes. Then start your non stop MCQ phase, then rewrite your notes, then take the test. Just do the work. I have fallen into the planning trap myself and decided I knew the 5 steps, and just did the work. Good Luck to you.
I applaud you for not lieing. I agree with your new approach to only talk about the exam when asked. That approach definitely worked for me. I know life happens, but the only way to stay on track is to keep the same schedule until it becomes a routine. And then when something unexpected arise you adjust temporarily, but immediately return to your schedule. Best Wishes!!!