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Do You Really Need Your CPA License?
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May 3, 2024
Get our free "CPA Study Hacks" training here: https://www.superfastcpa.com/passnow #cpa #cpaexam #superfastcpa In this episode we'll answer the question, "Do I really need to get my CPA license?" So in this episode, here's some of the things we're going to cover. We're going to talk about what the question "do I need my CPA?" really means, and kind of my response to that. We're gonna talk about having a stable and successful career without getting your CPA and maybe what that would look like. We will cover the top five benefits of being a CPA or meaning, getting your CPA. And then we're gonna talk about the obvious truth about careers in general and how having your CPA changes that. Then we'll go through a rough calculation of what every hour of CPA study is actually worth to the "future you," and I think you'll be surprised the amount on that. Important Links: Don't have a review course yet? The best thing you can do is get a free trial from several courses and see which one YOU like the best. Get free trials from the top 3 courses here: Wiley CPAexcel: https://www.superfastcpa.com/cpaexcel Roger CPA: https://www.superfastcpa.com/rogerreview Surgent CPA Review: https://www.superfastcpa.com/surgent Get our free guide "The Busy Candidate's Guide to Passing the CPA Exams Fast" and 500 Free MCQs here: https://www.superfastcpa.com/free Also check our podcast, the CPA Exam Experience podcast on iTunes here: https://cpa-exam-experience-superfastcpa.captivate.fm/listen Or just search "superfastcpa" in your favorite podcast app and you'll find it. Here's some of our popular videos:
View Video Transcript
0:00
That's something that will then return
0:02
over a million dollars over your career. So, again, there are not many investments
0:07
with those kind of ROI numbers. All right. Welcome to Episode 14 of the
0:12
CPA Exam Experience podcast from Super Fast CPA. I'm Nate and I know we've been publishing
0:19
these interviews each week. Lately, I still have several, more than several of those that are going
0:25
to be published. But this topic is something I wanted to publish
0:29
I've been getting asked this more than normal. And it's basically the question, do I
0:34
really need my CPA license? Do I really need to get my CPA
0:39
So in this episode, here's some of the things we're going to cover. We're going to talk about what the
0:43
question, do I need my CPA really means and kind of my response
0:48
to that. We're going to talk about having a stable and successful career without getting your CPA and
0:54
maybe what that would look like. We will cover the top five benefits of
0:58
being a CPA or meaning getting your CPA. And then we're going to talk about the
1:03
obvious truth about careers in general and how having your CPA changes that
1:09
Then we'll go through a rough calculation of what every hour of
1:13
CPA study is actually worth to the future you. And I think you'll be surprised the
1:19
amount on that. And then just some practical considerations. So before we get into this really quick
1:26
what I would recommend is if you're watching this for whatever reason, if you come across this a year
1:33
from now, this will all be evergreen info. So the information in this will
1:37
basically never change. We're not covering any specific topics that might change
1:41
What I would recommend you do is go and find our podcast. We have a lot of very high value
1:46
episodes that we've already published. Go and find the podcast. If you're listening to this, you've
1:53
already found the podcast. If you're watching this on YouTube, there are some episodes
1:57
It's a lot easier to just find the podcast. You can listen to these whenever you have time kind of in the
2:03
background or while you're driving. But specifically, you should find the episode that's titled CPA
2:08
Exams and Deep Work. Find that episode and listen to that. That's a very good one
2:14
Just has a lot of things that you need to hear that are kind of
2:18
unrelated to the specific study strategies, but just is important at the same time
2:24
Then I would recommend you find the very first episode, which covers my
2:28
CPA story. And it's not that I'm interested in people hearing my story
2:32
I don't really care about that. It's it's more hearing how the study process changed
2:38
for me based on my experience the first time around. I failed far once
2:44
I had three distinct realizations of how I was going to study differently
2:48
going forward from that. And after I did that, I ended up passing all four sections in one
2:54
three month period. Back to back to back to back. No more failed sections
2:58
Studying about two hours a day on workdays because that's all I had time for
3:02
And it was during my busy season. So I got completely different results
3:08
obviously, because when I failed far the first time, I had all day, every day to study
3:12
So listen to that episode. And then any of the interviews we've done with past CPA customers, I think
3:17
you'll find very, very helpful. I mean, I would recommend you listen to all of them
3:21
If you find them useful, all I ask is that you tell a friend that's
3:25
working on their CPA exams. You don't have to recommend our products or try to get them to buy anything
3:31
I think the episodes speak for themselves. They're very valuable all by
3:35
themselves, even if you're not interested in our study tools or anything like that
3:40
So all I ask, if you find these episodes useful, whether it's a video, one of our walkthrough videos
3:45
or a podcast episode, just recommend it to somebody. The specific episode you found
3:50
helpful, recommend it to a friend that's working on their CPA exams
3:55
Now, we're publishing walkthrough videos on where we go straight into practice problems
4:00
Those are only published on YouTube. So find our YouTube channel and subscribe. So you are notified
4:05
when those come out. And then, again, just the fee because the
4:11
this whole free content side of things, the best way you can pay us something is
4:17
just to recommend it to a friend or find the podcast on the podcast
4:21
app and leave a review. All right. So now let's get into the question. Do I really need my CPA license
4:30
So the question is that I get asked a lot and I've been getting asked this a lot more
4:36
during this whole quarantine lockdown thing. People are finding extra time where they're going and
4:43
working on their CPA exams when they've maybe kind of slacked on it for the last few months or whatever
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But there's a lot more interest. I think also a part of it is people are realizing that going forward
4:55
if we are kind of headed into a recession, not even necessarily
4:59
that we are, but just the realization that recessions, you know, ups
5:03
and downs in the economy are going to happen. And having your CPA is
5:09
the most distinct way in the accounting world to set yourself apart, make
5:13
yourself more valuable. So there's been more interest in general. And then along with that, people
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asking me, is it really that valuable? You know, this will take a few months
5:23
It'll take a lot of money for me to try and take these exams, get a review course
5:28
All those things considered. Is it really necessary? Now, when someone asks me that, what I
5:34
think they're really asking is. They want to hear that, no, you
5:39
don't need it. You know, you can have a stable, successful career. You can make a lot of money in your
5:44
career without it. Now, is that true? That's obviously possible. You know, the thing that people when
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they when they asked me that, though, I feel like sometimes it's a specific
5:57
kind of person they want to hear, you know, that, no, you don't need it
6:02
Everything will be your career will go exactly the same. You can just completely skip this
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And, you know, that that may or may not be true to an extent
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Maybe someone ends up having the same career essentially, even if they
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got their CPA. But there's a lot more going into that than the simple question of
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do I need my CPA? It's not really just a yes or no answer
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First of all, one of the things I want you to understand is the people
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that get the best jobs and move ahead and have a lot of options
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and they get paid a lot. They are proactive. They're go-getters. They strive to be the best at what
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they do. And the thing about all that is you're going to have to do that if you
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want to have a stable career and have a lot of options and you're always considered for promotions
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and you make more than your peers, kind of in the same experience level group
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You're going to have to be one of those types of people anyways. And getting your CPA
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is like having a permanent badge that says or even proves I am that type of person
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So that's almost the biggest advantage to having your CPA. You know, not getting into all the
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specifics or the specific industry areas where it's going to be an actual requirement to
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be a CPA. Having your CPA is just kind of having this proof that will
7:25
always be attached to your name, that you are a proactive, smart, go-getter type person
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So going along with that, if you plan on being that kind of
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person in your career, which I hope you are planning on that, then
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I guess my question would be, why wouldn't you get your CPA
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I mean, why wouldn't you spend a few months of your life now for this thing that is always going to
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benefit you and cause you to be paid more, be considered for promotions
7:54
You have a higher career ceiling. I'm getting ahead of myself. I have a slide about the top five
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benefits of being a CPA and we'll get into that in a second. Instead of having the mindset of
8:05
what can I avoid or what can I get out of, you know, in your career
8:10
you should have the opposite mindset. You should have the mindset of what can I do to set myself
8:15
apart that not everyone is willing to do. And again, the CPA is
8:20
a very concrete example of that exact idea. There are a lot of people that go
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into accounting. There are a lot of people that go into accounting with the specific plan of getting
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their CPA and the first few months goes bad. They might fail a few sections and
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they just kind of give up and convince themselves they don't really need their CPA
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And a lot of those people will have great careers. I'm not saying your life's going to
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be a train wreck without your CPA, but there's a lot of
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there's a lot more upside to having it, obviously. Now, yes, like I said
8:55
you can move up, you can get promoted, you can earn a lot of money and be great at what you do without
9:00
having your CPA. But having your CPA in addition to doing those things anyways
9:06
which again, those are like the basics, those are like the bare minimum requirements
9:11
to being that type of person that gets paid a lot for
9:16
whatever they do. Having your CPA, if you're already that type of person, will only
9:20
amplify all those benefits and help you reach each new level in your career faster
9:27
than you would have without it. So, again, it just adds upside
9:32
to everything else you're going to do in your career. All right. So now let's just go over
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the top five reasons of having your CPA or the top five
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benefits of getting your CPA. You will always get paid more for
9:43
the same job. That's that's a fact. CPA versus a non-CPA. So at each level, you will always
9:50
be paid more for the same job. There's not really anything else like
9:54
that, that doing one little action one time will result in every year of your life
10:00
always getting paid more for this thing that you did in the past. The next thing is having a much
10:05
higher career ceiling. And that should be obvious that we could go into a lot of things
10:10
explaining the how and the what behind that. But I think you get it
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You will always have a higher career ceiling as a CPA than a non-CPA
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You will just reach levels where the requirement is that the distinction is that you have
10:25
your CPA to even be able to apply for that job or whatever it is
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And going along with that, it's kind of the same idea. You just have so many more options
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so much more flexibility in your career and the career choices that you'll have
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Now, this one we talked about in the beginning, you will always have more job security as a CPA
10:44
than a non-CPA. Because again, first of all, a lot of employers
10:50
for certain jobs, that's just a requirement. And then second of all, the CPA
10:56
like we talked about, it's just this badge, this permanent proof that you have, that you are
11:03
that type of person. You're the type of person that employers want to have
11:07
And I just got ahead of myself and I already mentioned this bullet point, but it's just that permanent
11:12
badge that you're a smart, high achiever, go-getter. It's just highly respected
11:17
You will always have that. So a quick viewer poll as you're watching this
11:21
I want you to go to the comments below, pause the video and just answer the question, where are you
11:26
at in your career and what is your reason for getting your CPA
11:31
It might be the general answer that I just wanted. I know it's going to be valuable. Or maybe you have some
11:36
specific, you're at a specific crossroads in your career where you've been informed that you need to
11:41
get it. Whatever that is, let us know in the comments below. All right. Now, if you can't tell what
11:46
my answer to the question is, should you get your CPA? I think that if you are watching this
11:53
that means that you are somewhere on the accounting spectrum. You're somewhere in this arena
11:59
If you're even watching this video, then I think that the CPA will always be a benefit
12:05
to you. And it is worth far more in the long run than the
12:11
six to 12 months and the, you know, thousands of dollars that it
12:14
will cost you in the next year or so to get it. So it will always be a far
12:21
higher benefit. There's just, it adds so much upside to the rest of your career
12:26
For this tiny, you know, it might be, it might even get excruciating
12:31
in this, the whole study process, taking the exams. You might fail a section before you
12:36
pass all four. You might, you might fail multiple sections. However that goes for you, that
12:41
doesn't matter. The fact is having your CPA, you know, five, 10
12:47
15 years from now, that will add so much upside starting from the first year that you have
12:53
your CPA versus the relatively small cost over the next year of however long
12:59
it takes you in terms of time, money and effort. You know, to study for and finish
13:04
your exams. Now, we already covered this, but I think this is the most key point
13:09
Again, assuming that you're planning on or you already are kind of a go getter
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You set yourself apart at work in all the ways that are possible to
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do that. You are planning on moving up or you've already moved up
13:23
You're continually being promoted. In your company or industry, having your CPA just adds
13:29
upside to all those other things you're doing to already be that kind
13:33
of a person. And it just gives you more flexibility and more options at every stage and arena
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within your career. And of course, higher pay. Now, another thing that isn't talked
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about that much, but is a very real factor is the process of getting your CPA is transformative
13:50
It will give you a lot of confidence in your own abilities. And again, being able to say
13:56
you're a CPA, the people that kind of matter in your career
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whether it's partners above you, management, the people you're talking to to possibly move jobs
14:06
to a different company. Anyone that is a decision maker having anything to do with
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where you're able to go in your career, they know what being a CPA means
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And being a CPA is just a tangible reflection or again, proof
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of those abilities. So it gives you a lot of confidence in yourself and your own abilities
14:26
So the inward facing things that the getting your CPA provides to you personally
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But then having the CPA, having those three letters after your name is an outward reflection
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and it communicates a specific level of value to the people that
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matter in your career. Now, getting into the ROI side of it or getting into some specifics
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If you break this down, this is something that might cost you if you do it right, if you do the
14:53
study process right. And that's where we could really help. And I'll get to that in a minute
14:57
But if you do this right, it should only take you all things said and
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done, you know, six to 12 months, maybe even faster, obviously. But somewhere between six to 12
15:08
months of time and effort to pass the four exams and getting a review course, the exam fees and everything
15:14
It'll cost somewhere between four to five thousand dollars. That's something that will then
15:18
return over a million dollars over your career. So, again, there are not many
15:23
investments with those kind of ROI numbers. And by the way, on this million
15:28
dollar thing, it seems like Becker's the one that kind of promotes this idea
15:33
And it's very true if you just kind of run some of the basic numbers or you can go through kind of the
15:38
like the Robert Half salary guide within the accounting profession and extrapolate
15:45
these numbers and figure out that that's a very realistic thing. And that's only referring to
15:50
earnings, like what you're getting paid in salary and stuff like that. But if you
15:56
do some rough calculations and you factor in how much more you would have to
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invest each month by earning an extra million over your working life
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that could turn into far more than a than a million. And that's extra capital that
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you wouldn't have had to invest. That's just a side note, another consideration
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But it could be in a very real sense worth a lot more than a
16:23
million over your career if you look at it that way. Now, if you break this down
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let's just stick with the million dollar number. And let's say that
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you spend anywhere from 250 to 500 hours total on the four exams
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which is very realistic. Again, when you're studying effectively, every effective hour spent on the study process
16:50
is worth two to four thousand dollars to your future self. So that is a good way of thinking
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about when you don't feel like studying. OK, if I sit down and do my two
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hours this morning, that's four to eight thousand dollars I'm paying myself in the future
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And that's a very real, that's a very realistic estimation to make
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Again, the CPA is by far the most valuable and respected accounting certification or designation
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So I would say do the CPA first. Again, if you're anywhere
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near the accounting profession in or out of public accounting and you're watching this video, I
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would focus on the CPA first. That's by far the most valuable designation
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And then do the other ones later if you want. Now, let's go over some practical considerations
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Do you want to stay in public accounting? If you think that's even a maybe
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then you want to get your CPA as fast as possible. Now, even this question is a great
17:47
example of the flexibility aspect that getting your CPA affords you. You might not know if you want to
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stay in public accounting. You might think for sure that you want to be in public accounting and
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you're gunning to be a partner. You might think that you want nothing to do with public accounting
18:03
It's your first year. It sucks. You're busy all the time. You have no free time
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You're hating it so far. You're confused all the time. You're in the learning process
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Like you're at the bottom of the learning curve, so to speak. You might think you want nothing to
18:17
do with public accounting. Those ideas could change in your head drastically
18:22
either way in the next three to five years. So, again, what would give you the
18:27
most flexibility? It would obviously be buckling down, spending a year, your free time, sacrifice the
18:35
free time you do have or you create free time to study. Regardless, you get
18:40
your CPA because that affords you the flexibility to make that decision from a place of
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truly what you want to do. And you're not forced to leave public accounting because you're
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you know, a three year senior and you never got your CPA. If you're in tax, that's another
18:56
thing where if you're going to work in tax, you need your CPA
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But your bottom line. The other thing is, do you plan to move outside the accounting track
19:05
Maybe you're much more interested in just general business management. Then, you know, the CPA might not
19:12
be as important 10 years down the road. But again, you're going to have to
19:16
be to always be moving up, getting the best jobs, getting paid a lot
19:19
for what you do. You're going to have to be kind of an all-star regardless
19:23
And spending six months to a year getting your CPA would only add upside to that whole
19:30
calculation, even if that is your plan. Another consideration is if you're the type of person that
19:35
has a lot of soft skills, you're great dealing with people. Or are you a numbers person
19:41
If you are kind of the numbers person and you're great at your
19:45
job, like your literal job in front of you, meaning what you do on a computer each day
19:50
And the idea of ever doing business development or kind of schmoozing clients
19:56
terrifies you or is something you don't want to have anything to do with, then for you, getting your
20:01
CPA is even more important. But again, it just kind of goes back to even if you are the
20:06
client schmoozer, you're great at business development, having your CPA and I don't even know why I'm saying
20:14
this, because if you're that kind of person, you're end up being a you're going to end up being a
20:17
manager or a partner and you obviously need to have your CPA at that point
20:22
All right. So a recap. In my opinion, if you're watching this video, you should set aside
20:28
the 6 to 12 months and just buckle down and get your CPA
20:32
You will always be glad that you did it. It will never be something that you regret
20:37
Now, you obviously can have a stable job in accounting without your CPA by being
20:42
a good employee. But for anything great to happen to you in your career, you
20:48
will have to be great. And I would say if you're going to put in that kind of time and
20:52
effort, then the 6 to 12 months of getting your CPA only adds upside to that equation
20:58
and really is not that big of a cost in the long run. Having your CPA means that you will
21:03
always get paid more for the same job. You have higher career ceiling
21:06
more options, better job security, etc. We already went over that stuff. Now, if this happens to be
21:12
the first video or podcast episode you've ever heard from us from SuperfastCPA
21:18
the whole thing with us is how you study is the secret
21:22
to passing your CPA exams. The last thing you want to do is sit down
21:27
each day without a real plan or a real strategy and just pour
21:31
hundreds of hours into the CPA study process and then end up failing sections and eventually
21:36
giving up because by then you've invested thousands in review materials. You've invested hundreds of hours
21:42
of your time. And so to not get it at that point would be a small tragedy
21:47
that you could avoid by just having an effective study plan from
21:51
the beginning. And that is what we specialize in, our study strategies and then our study tools
21:57
So what we teach our customers specifically, we have a free one hour training where we will teach
22:02
you how to have a two hour main study session structured completely differently than the
22:08
normal way of studying. When you do this right, you can get more done in two hours than someone
22:13
studying four to five hours the normal way. To register for one of these
22:17
trainings, just go to superfastcpa.com slash pass now, or you can text the word pass now
22:23
as one word to 44222 or just go down below. There will be a link in the description
22:28
If you're listening to the podcast, the easiest thing is just to go to our Web site
22:32
It's easy to find a link to one of these upcoming trainings. I hope you found this episode useful
22:38
If you're one of those people out there that in the back of your mind or deep down, you kind of know
22:43
that you should do your CPA, but you've kind of been putting it off or just avoiding the thought completely
22:49
Hopefully this video or this episode inspired you to just buckle down and do it
22:54
The best place to start is with one of these free one hour trainings. This one hour training will
22:58
literally save you months and months of time and frustration and hundreds or even thousands of
23:03
dollars from avoiding failing sections and just getting your CPA exams done within the first
23:09
six to 12 months instead of ending up messing around with this for
23:13
years of your life. And that happens to a lot of people. I've talked to a lot of people that
23:17
that ended up being their situation. So thank you for watching or
23:21
listening and we'll see you on the next episode
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