[thatb8y]

NINJA Question –

Hello All!

I just found out that i’ve passed my last exam on 11/4/16. I wanna leave my note here before I move on to my next part of life. I started my CPA journey back in 2010. That is when I first graduated and in a full time job. School wasn’t for me and I was overly joy that I’ve graduated and got a sweet full time job in the financial industry. My mentality back then was really “screw books and study” forever! and lets make money! However, the line of work required CPA or otherwise I couldnt stay at the same company. I wasn’t motivated to study but still studied anyways to make money. As a result, I scored 51 REG, 53 AUD, 68 BEC, and no show FAR. When I first received REG test at 51, I thought to myself.. “wow.. im pretty dumb”. I lied to coworkers, boss, and family about my score. But most importantly, I lied to myself. That is the worst because the only person you cannot lie to in the whole world is yourself. I didn’t learn that until later on. My whole world crashed bc I knew I had to make a choice. Either I really commit myself to study to pass or I find another job. Yes, you guessed it. I went for another job to save the embarrassment. Even though the second job didn’t require CPA, but I knew it was a dead end job. In financial industry, companies wouldn’t advance anyone to managerial positions unless they have CPA, other prestigious certificates, or MBA. And my CPA road was dead for years..

Fast forward to November 2015. Having lost myself for awhile. Asking myself what should I do next? Should I change my careers? I hardcoded myself with the fear that passing CPA was nearly impossible. Finally, I hit rock bottom. After hearing CPA was about to change its format in 2017, I knew I had to make a decision. Otherwise CPA was only going to get harder to pass. I had to face my fear. And so I did. But this time was different. I changed my motivation for studying. In 2010, I studied because I was passively being pushed by a job. Through that, I studied long hours yet nothing retained in my head. In 2015, my motivation for studying became purely for educating myself, curious of the whys in each topics, and understanding the chapters. You can have your motivation but it definitely needs to be more aggressive approach. Your motivation needs to come from you. Not from your parents, boss, or bc you are depending on other reasons. Otherwise, studying CPA will be a long painful road. 85 REG, 82 AUD, 75 BEC, 79 FAR.

Here are few of my tips:
1. Do not skim through the topics thinking you think you already know. You have to understand it.
2. Do not memorize the right answers. If you can answer practice questions by answering why each wrong answers are wrong, then you are ready to sit for the exam.
3. Quality before quantity. You can practice a thousand time on the same question, but if you dont understand fully why then you still wont understand.
4. Make a plan. Follow the plan with disciplines. I take out a piece of computer paper. Drew a month calendar from day 1 to 31. Each day is daily work. (e.g. Day 1: (a)Read chapter 1-3 (b)Do 30,30,30,30,30,30 practice questions – and i crossed each 30 questions off whenever i complete them. Like a to do list that needs to be checked off)
5. Silent cellphones when you are studying. Stay away from social medias. And tell your family and friends that you can’t be bothered during certain period.
6. Write “Stay focused!” on a 3×5 white card and put it in front of you when you are studying. It helps keep your mind from derailing other thoughts. Don’t follow your random thoughts. It will only take your random thoughts into more thoughts and more thoughts and more endless thoughts. The mind is very tricky. It is like a monkey that jumps around randomly. You have to direct your mind’s attention to studying. (if you have free time, google “buddha quotes”. there are some motivational quotes that’ll keep you going).
7. Sometimes you’ll feel down. So, def take breaks. Drink coffee or tea. And contemplate that everyone that’ve passed was in your position. So, you can do it! You can pass!

Lastly, I want to thank the Ninja community. You guys kept me up when I was down. The one painful year felt eternal when I didn’t pass. But when I found out the good news, I felt all the doors are opened. Grass is greener on the other side. I hope to see you ninjas there!

2010
BECKER

2015
REG – Roger/NINJA (170hrs)
AUD – Roger/NINJA (170hrs)
BEC – Roger/Becker/WIley (250hrs) – didnt pass first time. passed second
FAR – Roger/Wiley/Ninja (300hrs) – didn’t pass first time. passed second.

Thatb8y’s 6 years CPA journey. Signing off.

[Larry]

Congrats! Now you can enjoy your life again! It's not a good bye, but a see you later..

AUD - 83
BEC - 76
FAR - 78
REG - 82

Licensed in Florida

REG - 82
FAR - 78
BEC - 76
AUD - 8/27/16

[mylifeisover]

Very cool post

congrats

ROAD TO CPA

AUD - 59, 73, 86
BEC - 72
FAR -
REG -

[Anonymous]

Congratulations and thank you for the study tips and honest post.
Wishing you all the best in your next chapter!

[Author]

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