Trisha is a NINJA CPA Blogger.
I have been looking forward to writing this since I started blogging for Another71
I AM DONE!!!
After 16 months of late nights, early mornings, good news, bad news, tears, heartache, sacrifice and exhaustion, I have finally experienced elation. Every moment was worth being able to say I am done.
I took this exam 7 times. REG 72, BEC 80, FAR 72, AUD 73, AUD 76, FAR 78 and REG 86.
After my third fail (Audit), I actually started to wonder if I could do it. But I have never been a quitter, and I dug deep to stay motivated to keep on keeping on. It was the right decision. ?
When I found out I passed my final section, I was at work and the sheer adrenaline and endorphins made me a mess. Tears flowed and my hands shook. It is crazy how a single moment and turn of events could have such a profound physical effect.
I called my husband at work first, and was so excited I dialed the wrong number. When I told my mom, she cried harder than I did. She was a big part in why I was able to do this. My mom is our childcare, and she put in some definite overtime to say the least.
My family has been an amazing support throughout this process, and it made sharing the joy of my final success with them all the sweeter.
Now that I have had some time to process and reflect upon what essentially will serve to be a lifestyle change, I realized a couple things.
- Never give up. EVER. Eventually you will succeed. You just have to find the right path to get there.
- Make sure to find some time for yourself, your family and important friends. I would take time here and there for a movie day with my kids, a date with my husband or a beer with a friend. Sanity is important. In my humble opinion, never once did this time make or break me.
- Try different study methods to find what works. In the beginning I wasted some time following a prescribed method that was one I had never used before. Once I did it more my way, I was able to better understand the material and gain the extra couple points I was lacking in my first attempts to pass the exam.
- I would have taken FAR first, and then REG. I was 5 years out of school when I made my first attempt at this exam, and my overall academic accounting knowledge was stale and limited. I think FAR gives you such an extensive understanding of all that is within the other sections. Going into REG the second time, I knew the book tax differences so well, all I had to do was flip them. And why not get rid of the beasts ASAP. ?
I am so very thankful to have stumbled upon Another71.com. I was hesitant to blog at first. The idea of having to share my struggles and failures almost kept me from becoming a blogger.
But when I saw what a supportive community Jeff had created for past, present and future CPA candidates, I knew I would never be judged for any shortcomings. And maybe I could offer comfort, insight or entertainment for someone going thought the same types of struggles with me.
It has been a wonderful experience for me. An amazing way to process all of the mountains you have to climb to become a CPA. And the NINJA materials have been a priceless tool for me. I cant tell you how many times I heard Jeffs voice during an exam helping me pick the right answer
Now it is just a matter of time before I am actually licensed. I should be receiving my ethics exam any day, and have started filling out my applications.
Mine will have to go before a board because my experience is not in public accounting. My understanding is that they meet in February, so I am guessing my license will hopefully happen sometime in March
Believe it or not, I still havent received my score report in the mail. For those that are counting, it has been 20 days since scores were released. Got to love Oregon!
Thank you all for letting me share my story, and best wishes to those that are still writing theirs! May they all have a happy ending. ?
This NINJA is signing off!!!
