In this episode of the CPA Exam Experience Podcast, you’ll hear how Sandi was able to pass the CPA exams by learning how to study. Sandi had never really had to study in school, so when she got to the CPA exam, she really struggled. She didn’t know what to do or where to start. Eventually, she purchased SuperfastCPA and joined the coaching program.
You’ll hear how Sandi was able to finally finish here journey she had been on since 2007. Years of trying and failing finally paid off once she learned how to study. She changed her study habits from something haphazard to something structured and repeatable. Sandi has a great story and lot of great tips, make sure you listen to the whole episode!
IMPORTANT LINKS:
Master your study process by attending one of our free study training workshops:
https://www.superfastcpa.com/study-secrets/
Episode Timestamps
- 00:00 Sandi Interview
- 03:23 How Sandi Got Into Accounting
- 05:03 Deciding to Get Her CPA
- 06:10 Lost Three Sections Because She Was Unable to Pass FAR
- 06:42 The Struggles of Studying Before SuperfastCPA
- 08:27 Studying in the Beginning
- 09:53 Deciding to Join the Coaching Program
- 11:34 Why She Joined the Coaching Program
- 13:11 Did Not Pass First Try
- 14:58 Things That Made a Big Difference with Her Studying
- 16:51 Sandi’s Daily Study Process
- 18:55 Sandi’s Original Study Habits Before SuperfastCPA
- 20:06 Using the 2 Hour Study Sessions
- 20:50 Using the Spreadsheet to Study
- 23:43 Had the Evenings Free
- 24:54 Passed Her Last 2 Exams During Busy Season
- 26:17 Her Motivation for Passing the CPA Exam
- 26:51 Learning How to Do the Sims
- 27:40 Working Through the Sims
- 30:10 Studying With ADHD
- 32:03 Finding a Testing Center She Liked
- 34:19 Utilizing Flashcards
- 35:03 A Routine for Exam Day
- 36:14 Studying During Busy Season
- 36:47 Getting Your Loved Ones Involved
- 38:56 Almost Had to Retake 2 Section If She Failed AUD
- 40:05 Tears of Joy for Finally Passing the CPA Exams
- 40:55 Got Her EA
- 41:28 Celeberating in Iceland
- 42:28 Top Tips for People Still Going Through the CPA Exams
Interview Transcript
Sandi: [00:00:00] Yeah, so part of my problem was that I, all through high school and all of my college degrees, I never had to study to get the grades. I just, grades came to me. It was always easy.
And the CPA exam is not like that. But I had awful, awful study skills. So part of what the coaching program helped with was just learning how to study and what things I should be focusing on and where, just what to do.
Because honestly, I didn’t even know where to begin when it came, became to studying.
Logan: Welcome to another episode of the CPA Exam Experience podcast from SuperfastCPA. I’m Logan, and in today’s episode, you’re going to hear me talking with Sandi.
Now Sandi is another person that I had in the coaching program, so I was able to work with her directly and see her [00:01:00] progress throughout her journey.
Now Sandi has a pretty cool story. She originally went to school years ago for education, but as time went on, she eventually kind of got put into a position where she was in charge of some of the elementary school and even some Dairy Queens accounting in the city.
So even though she wasn’t really looking for it, she kind of got switched in career paths. And because of that, she started working more in accounting and eventually decided, you know what? I’m gonna go back to school and get another degree and go for the CPA so that I can continue in this career path.
And something that she talks about at the beginning is that she didn’t really know how to study for the CPA exam. In school, she was one of the people where her grades really weren’t difficult to obtain. She was always able to pass her classes without too much difficulty, so she never really learned how to study.
So when it came to the CPA exam, she really struggled to know what to do, which is why she eventually found SuperfastCPA and joined the coaching program. So you’ll hear how she was able to improve her process and finally pass her exams [00:02:00] throughout this interview.
Now, before we dive into the episode with Sandi, I just wanna give a couple reminders. First, make sure you check out our SuperfastCPA training webinar on superfastcpa.com. That is one hour where we will teach you the key ingredients to passing the CPA exam so you don’t waste months or even years of your time failing exam.
And after you watch that, you’re going to want to learn more, so make sure you also check out becoming a SuperfastCPA PRO member. PRO members get access to a lot of great stuff, including the PRO course where Nate explains in depth how to pass the exams. Basically a much more in depth version of the one hour webinar and SuperfastCPA PRO members also get access to the full versions of our multiple choice question walkthrough videos.
These small versions are on YouTube, so if you wanna check those out, you can, but the full versions are in our member forum for PRO members. So check out becoming a PRO member if you want to have access to our multiple choice question walkthrough videos. With all that said, let’s dive straight into the interview with Sandi.
Logan: So welcome to the call today, Sandi, I’m excited to talk to you. Uh, for [00:03:00] people who are listening to this, I know, well, have worked with Sandi, a little bit personally. Uh, she was in the coaching program, so I’m excited to talk with her today.
Uh, how are you doing today, Sandi?
Sandi: Doing good. Doing good.
Logan: And, uh, you have an awesome trip that I am gonna ask you about it, uh, maybe after we talk about your process, uh, but yeah, let’s go ahead and just dive in.
How Sandi Got Into Accounting
Logan: So, uh, what I like to kind of ask is, I like to ask where people were when they started doing the CPA exam like, how did you get into accounting? What were you doing before you decided to do the CPA?
Sandi: Yeah, so accounting was a, um, a second career for me, I was, um, an educator prior to going into accounting. I had my first degree in elementary education and early childhood certification. I worked in preschools for about 14 years, and then they moved me into the office and I kind of started doing [00:04:00] more, I started running the books and kind of became a comptroller for five preschools and three dairy queens.
Um, and my dad had been an accountant, was an accountant, and so I finally decided to take the jump and just go over into accounting. Went back to school, got my bachelor’s, my second bachelor’s and my master’s, and started doing this.
Now I’ve been doing accounting, that was 21 years ago.
Logan: Yeah. So, so you switched to accounting 21 years ago, is that what you said?
Sandi: Mm-hmm.
Logan: Wow. Uh, and that’s a pretty, that’s pretty cool cause it like you weren’t planning on that, but you just kind of fell into it with what they changed you to.
Sandi: I was doing everything in my power not to become an accountant. Cause I had watched my father, um, be an accountant all my life, um, but here we are and he was very excited when I finally made the leap.
Logan: Yeah. Just curious, what was he, what did he do in accounting?
Sandi: Uh, taxes.
Logan: Oh, he was in taxes. Yeah, so I can understand why you were like, [00:05:00] I don’t wanna do that.
Sandi: Exactly.
Logan: Busy seasons and everything. Yeah.
Deciding to Get Her CPA
Logan: Uh, so you were in accounting, you went back to school, got your bachelor’s in that. And then at what point did you decide to go over the CPA and how did that start? What did that look like at the beginning?
Sandi: Yeah, so I had deci, I had gotten my bachelor’s and then I got my master’s, um, which was, I think I finished my master’s in 2006 and I was gonna go, I went right into trying to start sitting for the CPA exam.
So I think I got my master’s in December of 2006. 2007 is when I first started trying to sit for the exam.
Um, my daughter at the time was a year old, year and a half. Um, so I had the responsibilities of her, um, and then I wound up going through a divorce and becoming a single mom. And so the process, it just kind of fell apart [00:06:00] because of life, you know?
Logan: Sorry about that. That makes sense, yeah.
Sandi: it is what it is, right? Like, you, you have experiences. Life is, uh, just a series of events.
Lost Three Sections Because She Was Unable to Pass FAR
Sandi: Um, and so in 2019, I had three parts passed, but my old arch nemesis, uh, FAR, uh, got me and I lost those three parts because I could not pass FAR. Um, so I gave up, I gave up for like four years, but I could just, I could never get it outta my system. And so when my daughter went off to college, I was like, now’s the time.
Now’s my time. It’s, uh, the time for me and so I started again.
The Struggles of Studying Before SuperfastCPA
Logan: Wow. So, so you had passed all three and so, and then FAR just would not let you be? Uh, so what was the, because ’cause honestly, you did incredible in the coaching program, so I’m very interested to hear, what was the difference at that [00:07:00] point? Why, like, what made it difficult to finish? Uh, you know, what was different that, that first time?
Sandi: Yeah, so part of my problem was that I, um, all through high school and all of my college degrees, I never had to study to get the grades. I just, grades came to me. It was always easy.
And the CPA exam is not like that. Um, but I had awful, awful study skills. Um, so part of what the coaching program helped with was just learning how to study, uh, and what things I should be focusing on and where, you know, just what to do. Because honestly, I didn’t even know where to begin when it came, became to studying.
Um, and then the other part that the coaching gave me was the accountability piece because, um, I also was diagnosed with ADHD not [00:08:00] too long ago. And, um, having someone to hold me accountable so that my brain didn’t take me completely off track, um, it was extremely helpful.
Logan: Yeah, that I, I totally understand that. Uh, I was, I was diagnosed with ADD in like November of 2022 or something like that. Um, and it definitely. It can make a big difference knowing that you have that compared to not knowing.
Studying in the Beginning
Logan: Um, and so what, what, what did your studying, ’cause you said you kind of had a, you had, you struggled with knowing how to study, knowing what to do, what, like you passed three exams, so you obviously had something kind of down.
What did your studying look like at that point? Like how did it look then?
Sandi: Um, it was kind of all over the place. I didn’t have a routine. Uh, I would mostly focus on multiple choice because to me, that was the easiest way to get the information in.
Um, listening to [00:09:00] videos didn’t really help me much. Reading didn’t really help me much. I needed to do the multiple choice, um, but I still wasn’t understanding the information. I wasn’t taking notes properly. I wasn’t, um, going back and reworking the problems. You know, I would do it, I would read over the explanation and go, yeah, I got this, and then I’d move on. Um, and I also wouldn’t ever go back to the topics, so if I finished a topic, that was it. I would, okay, I’m moving on to the next topic.
Logan: Mm-hmm. Yeah, that makes sense. So, so it was really just kind of similar as far as multiple choice questions, but just kind of erratic, not really having a strategy other than, other than just jumping into the questions and not really like staying with the information.
Sandi: Right, it was very haphazard.
Logan: Until you really absorbed it. Yeah, yeah.
Deciding to Join the Coaching Program
Logan: Um, and so, you know, fast forward a few years, your door, your daughter goes to college [00:10:00] and, uh, you decide that it’s time to like actually do it, so did you immediate, uh, and, you know, for the benefit of people, uh, who weren’t in the coaching program with you, what, like what were you doing? Did you get SuperfastCPA before you got the coaching program? Or did you get the coaching program right at the start of getting SuperfastCPA?
Sandi: I, um, so when I first started trying again, I actually hadn’t even heard of SuperfastCPA, um, and I continued trying my usual methods and I passed BEC and I passed REG, which those two were always somewhat easy for me because REG, I’m a tax accountant, it is what I do, and BEC just always came easy.
And then I couldn’t pass audit and FAR again, and I finally decided that something needed to change. So I got SuperfastCPA first, and I tried that for a bit, but it still wasn’t quite enough. And then I got an [00:11:00] email or something about the coaching program and I was like, you know what? I’m gonna do it. I’m gonna do, put the investment into myself, and this is gonna be my last straw. I’m gonna see if this works.
Logan: Mm-hmm. Yeah, yeah. And again, like you did really well. I, I remember like you’re one of the coaching clients that like. I could tell you were putting in the work and I could tell that you were like taking it to heart. And, um, I wasn’t super worried and I wasn’t surprised when you passed your exams.
Why She Joined the Coaching Program
Logan: Uh, so when you, you kind of already mentioned this, but just to kind of reiterate it, so you got SuperfastCPA did you get the PRO course or what did you get the first time?
Sandi: Yeah, I got the PRO course.
Logan: The PRO course. And did you get the study? The study? Like did you get the whole bundle?
Sandi: I think I did.
Logan: Like the study tools?
Sandi: But I really didn’t, I didn’t really use it the way I should have. Um, it was kinda one of, it was [00:12:00] another one of the things that I bought it thinking it would be great, and then I just didn’t ever implement it the way I should have.
Logan: That, and that was kind of what I was gonna ask, like what, why wasn’t it working very well before the coaching program?
Sandi: Yeah, I think a lot of it had to do with the accountability. Um,
Logan: Mm-hmm.
Sandi: you know, part of it, I work, I, throughout the whole thing, throughout all of my trying to pass the CPA exam, I work full-time. Um, I do have my kid, even though she’s away at school, you know, I had her that I still have to keep up with. I teach at the religious school.
So there’s always just a lot going on in my life. Um, and without the that accountability piece, I just wasn’t pushing myself the way I should have and holding myself accountable. Um, so I think that for me was like the real important piece to it.
Logan: Yeah. And because, ’cause like I said, you did really well and it must have been just like having that like, you know, me or Nate to talk to and like kind of expecting you to be studying, [00:13:00] you probably, I think you had the ability, but kind of having somebody to be like, no, you need to do this like, or something like that.
I think that must have, that sounds like that must have been something that helped.
Did Not Pass First Try
Logan: Um, so I guess kind of like, uh, let’s dive into your study process a little bit. So you only had to take two exams with us in the coaching program.
Um. And remind me, did you pass both of those first try in the program or what?
Sandi: I did not, I actually failed both of those first try in the program. Um, when I took FAR, I actually failed it, but got a 74. Um, so I was super close and part of the reason why I think I wound up with the 74 is that I had this grand plan, um, that I was gonna go away for the weekend. I was gonna spend the weekend studying that I was gonna take the exam up where I had gone away to, um, the one [00:14:00] key factor I forgot was my charging cord for my computer. And so I wasn’t able to actually study the way I had planned on it, um, ’cause best laid plans.
Um, so it all kind of fell apart and I, but I wound up getting a 74, so I was super close. And so what you suggested was for me not to move on, even though I had already started studying for audit. You suggested that I not move on, that I just take two weeks to cram FAR again and take that before I moved on and uh, when I did that, I got wound up with an 81.
Logan: Yeah. Yeah, I, I do remember that now.
And so what, ’cause you had already passed BEC and REG, but that was kind of more, a little bit more partially because of your background. Um, although I’m, I’m jealous that BEC was easy for you because that was by far the hardest exam for me.
Things That Made a Big Difference with Her Studying
Logan: But when it came to FAR and [00:15:00] what do you think started making a difference besides the accountability for FAR and audit? Like, did you, did you implement the whole program? Like what changed?
Sandi: Yeah, I think one of the big changes, um, that made a huge difference was I started listening to the audio notes all the time. Um, so I have half an hour, 45 minute commute to work every day. I would have the audio notes on coming and going if I was going up to one of my other offices, which is further away, the audio notes were always on in the car.
Um, and I think that helped a lot because I may have zoned out a lot while they were playing, but every single time I would pick up at least one tidbit. And so even though I wasn’t necessarily focused on them, they definitely made a difference.
Um, and then I also started doing the, uh, re-review, which made a huge difference of going back and always reviewing things I had already [00:16:00] conquered, I guess you could say.
You know, like I was already confident that I knew those things, but I was constantly re-reviewing them at the end to make sure I was keeping up with everything and I wasn’t just losing that information that I had already absorbed.
Logan: Yeah, it, I would say like, uh, everything that we teach I think is important. Uh, but if there’s one thing that’s missing from somebody’s process that is causing them to fail, I would bet money that a lot of the time it’s not reviewing what they have studied, uh, in the past.
Cause like you were saying, back when you were studying in 2019, you just, you know, look at the multiple choice questions. Oh, I think I get it. Move on. And then by the time you get to the exam, you don’t, you hardly remember everything that you’ve studied, especially the stuff you studied six weeks ago or something like that. So it is, it does make a huge difference.
Sandi’s Daily Study Process
Logan: Um, and I, I’m curious, what did your typical day-to-day look like? Like if you could kind of walk us [00:17:00] through an average day of studying, like what time did you get up and, and such and such?
Sandi: Yeah, so I am a morning person, so I would get up at four o’clock every morning, um, do whatever I had to do at home, get to the office between 6:00 and 6:30, and so I would study from 6:30 to 8:30 before anybody else got to the office. I would just use that nice quiet time in here to, um, to study. And that was my two hours a day.
And then during the day, I would often do like the little five minute quizzes, you know, uh, five questions or whatever. Um, just every time I was taking a break or picking up my phone, I would run five quick questions. Um, but the main study session was that two hours.
And then on the weekends I would, um, study for probably about I, the weekends I’d go to the library, I’d meet friends at the library and we’d, I’d study for about four or five hours on a Saturday and a Sunday.
Logan: [00:18:00] Yeah, that was, was your library open on a Sunday?
Sandi: Yeah, because, uh, the library that I was going to was part of the, um, university system.
One of our public libraries happens to be on a university college campus, and so I was using that one and they’d be open all the time.
Logan: That makes sense. Yeah, yeah, cause I, I tried something similar. Uh, at first, was I would try to go study at the library on the weekends, but I, it didn’t work super great because I couldn’t always get a room to study in. And then if I wasn’t in a room, then I would be super distracted by all the people around me, just ’cause I, that’s how I am.
Um. So what I eventually started doing was I would go into the office even on the weekends, but, um, I, I like that you mentioned that you would go into work early ’cause that’s exactly what I did as well, so that I could have a place to study.
Sandi’s Original Study Habits Before SuperfastCPA
Logan: Um, do you think that the two hour morning sessions was also a [00:19:00] big difference? Like is that how you studied before as well? Or did you study in the evening before? How did it look before?
Sandi: Um, prior to, I would just kind of, it was all so haphazard. Um, I didn’t have a routine down like the weekends. Yeah, I’d, I’d go to the libraries, I’d made friends go to the library, um, and study there. But during the week it was just kind of haphazard. It was just wherever I found time, I would study. There was no real schedule to it.
Um, but once I started with the coaching I was like, no, we’re doing this. And so I made it a point to get to the office early and the office is my, um, I don’t have quiet space at home, so the office is kind of my place to come and find recluse cause nobody comes in much anymore.
Logan: Yep. That’s exactly, yeah. I, I had two children that I had like a one and a half year old and a three month old when I was starting. So like, it was, I, there was no way I [00:20:00] was gonna be able to study at home cause they were gonna wake up, and so I, I, that makes sense, like I totally relate to that.
Using the 2 Hour Study Sessions
Logan: During your two hours, did you do, like, what did that look like? Did you just spend 90 minutes diving into the questions and then 30 minutes of review? Like how did you work through questions?
Sandi: Yeah, my, my two hour session during the week, um, would really be just that, it would be 90 minutes of multiple choice. What I would usually do is I had a schedule, um, that I had made of what chapters I needed to get through in order to finish my studying in the timeframe that I wanted to.
And so I would study for 90 minutes on those chapters that I had planned on studying for the day. And then I’d do a half an hour re-review of everything that I had learned up to that point. And then on the weekends I would add in the sims.
Logan: Right.
Using the Spreadsheet to Study
Logan: And, and I saw a comment on one of our YouTube videos saying that I should ask people more about sims. So, what was your process for the sims like? [00:21:00] How did you break those down and kind of start learning and mastering them?
Sandi: Simulations were always a little difficult for me. Um, in practice because they’re just, every one of them is, is so in depth, it’s so varied and so, um, I learned to use, one of the main things with FAR was I learned to use a spreadsheet instead of trying to write it all out or do calculations on my, uh, 10 key or whatever, I learned to use the spreadsheet, and that also helped when I was actually taking the exam because I would do it all on the spreadsheet um, and never use their scratch paper cause it made the calculations just so much easier, but I could also keep notes on everything.
And so I could save the work I did and then have notes as to why it was right and where, uh, why I did the calculations the way they were, why I set it up that way. And so I thought, I think that really was key.
Logan: Yeah, that’s definitely something that we [00:22:00] try to push it, you know, you obviously don’t have to study with a spreadsheet, but it makes sense to do it because most of us have experience with spreadsheets in accounting, and that’s what, that’s a tool that you will have on the exam. So. It’s way faster than writing on scratch paper or using the calculator or whatever. So it’s a good skill to develop, um, specifically for the exam.
And if, remind me of are, I’m trying to remember ’cause we did some show me assignments where I reviewed how you were studying. Did you, do you have a calculator, like a 10 key calculator that prints out the, the
Sandi: At my desk?
Logan: Yeah.
Sandi: Yes, I do, but I wasn’t
Logan: I remember you.
Sandi: studying.
Logan: Okay. I feel like I, maybe it was somebody else’s that I reviewed, but I swear I remember like watching it and like I could hear you typing over onto the side, like doing calculations and hearing, hearing, hearing the role moving anyway, [00:23:00] um.
Sandi: I love my 10 key. I, I refuse to give it up.
Logan: I, I never, I mean, I know what they are and I’ve seen them, but I, I never, I’ve never used them.
Sandi: Yeah, my younger staff doesn’t really use them, but I can’t get away from it.
Logan: You can’t, can’t stop, no, it’s that uh, um.
So you know, that was kind of your morning and you said that you would listen to the audio notes on the way to work and then you would do some mini sessions. Uh, did you ever really use the review notes very much or was that one the ones that you didn’t use as much?
Sandi: I didn’t, because for me, reading through things just doesn’t make it stick. So I really didn’t use those. The audio listening to it was a lot more effective for me.
Logan: That makes sense, yeah.
Had the Evenings Free
Logan: So, and then, um, in the evenings, did it, did studying this way allow you to kind of have your evenings to yourself? Or what did it look like after you got off work for the day?
Sandi: Yeah, I typically did not study in the evenings. Um, I, like I said, I’m a morning [00:24:00] person,
Logan: Yeah. So you
Sandi: By the time I got off of work I was just like wiped out, especially because a lot of the time while I was studying for these exams was during busy season, and so I would work 10 hours a day and then by the time I got home, studying two hours in the morning and then working 10 hours, I was just wiped and I was not doing anything more.
Logan: Yeah. And that, and that’s exactly why Nate, and we have this built this way, is because that’s exactly what happens to a lot of people, most people who are doing the CPA exam are working full-time and a lot of them are doing what you were doing where they’re doing it during some kind of a busy season, and it’s so hard to work 10, 12, maybe even 14 hour days sometimes, and then go home and expect yourself to study two, three or four hours. It’s just unrealistic, in my opinion.
Passed Her Last 2 Exams During Busy Season
Logan: So, uh, but that’s awesome that this way allowed you to, even during busy season, did you [00:25:00] pass both of them during a busy season or no?
Sandi: Um, yeah, so I passed FAR in May, um, and in Florida, our busy season this year went through May 1st, um, because of hurricane extensions and I passed FAR just after that. And then, um, I passed audit, um, I took it June 15th, I think it was, somewhere around there. Um, and got the scores in July, so.
Logan: Right.
Sandi: So both of them were pretty much during busy season.
Logan: Yeah, that’s, that’s pretty impressive. Um, and what, I’m just curious, what did people think about, did anybody at your office know that, that you, that you were doing that, were they like, no, you, you can’t pass a CPA exam during busy season, or did anybody, anybody say anything about that?
Sandi: No, they, they all knew, um, they’ve been along for most of the ride.
Logan: Yeah.
Sandi: I’ve been at in [00:26:00] this office for 15 years, so they’ve gone along with me for most of the ride.
Um, and so they all knew and they thought I was insane, but also knew that it was, um, what I needed to do, so they were very supportive.
Logan: That makes sense, yeah.
Her Motivation for Passing the CPA Exam
Logan: Uh, just curious, is this like something that’s gonna hopefully allow you to like, move up, like be a manager or a partner or something like that?
Sandi: So I’m, I am, I’m right now currently a senior manager, and the next step in my career would be partner. And in order to become partner, I had, in order to even be eligible to become partner, I had to have the CPA, which was kind of my motivation, um, for doing it now.
Logan: Yes, that makes total sense. I mean, like in, in the end, it a lot, it, a lot of it always does come back to the progression, you know?
Learning How to Do the Sims
Logan: Um, so kind of going back to the sims, so you said it was kind of hard to prepare for them and kind of hard to study for [00:27:00] them, but how, how did you study for them even though it was kind of difficult and stuff like that?
How did you do it?
Sandi: Honestly just doing them. I just did as many of them as I possibly could. Um, I found if I really understood the information in the multiple choice, that helped.
Um, and then it was just a matter of doing them and learning how to break them down because I would get overwhelmed with the big picture of everything. So I learned how to just break it into smaller chunks and um, take each piece separately.
Logan: Yeah, that’s perfect. Yeah, that’s, that’s pretty much exactly what Nate and I try to explain.
Working Through the Sims
Logan: So just to kind of like dive into that a little bit because I think a lot of people really struggle with the sims. So when you would break it down, how would you do that? Like did you just take line by line and break it apart, or how did you do that?
Sandi: Yeah, it would depend on the type of question it was. Um, if it [00:28:00] was a, like if it was one in FAR where I was having to calculate ratios, then I would take it line by line. I’d be like, oh, wait, I know this ratio. Let’s do this one first.
And I’d go onto the spreadsheet and I’d write out the formula. Then I’d do the, the actual, uh, calculation, and then I’d enter the number. Um, one of, one of the things I did a lot on sims, um, the, one of the mistakes I kept making was I wouldn’t read the whole thing and it would tell you how it wanted you to round it.
And so although I’d have the answer correct, it would be wrong because I didn’t round it the proper way. And it was good that I was making those mistakes during practice because then it made me more aware of it when I actually came down to exam day.
Logan: Exactly. Yeah, I mean the thing that’s hard about sims is there is diminishing returns where like you can’t just do sims for like three weeks straight and only do [00:29:00] that. But you also do have to practice them so that you catch those mistakes like you were like, you found like, oh, I’m not, I’m not reading the whole question and I’m getting this wrong for a reason that I like I should be getting this right.
And that would be point, silly points to lose on test day. Um, and so, yeah, thanks for, thanks for talking about that because again, I know a lot of people really struggle with sims, um, cause they can kind of master the MCQs like, cause it’s more straightforward to do the MCQs. Uh,
Sandi: And the other problem with the Sims, a lot of them, especially the calculation ones, if you get one calculation wrong at the beginning of the problem, even if you do the steps right, the whole question is wrong because it feeds off of it. And so it becomes very frustrating. But you learn to kind of slow yourself down and take a deep breath and just do the best you can really.
Logan: Yeah. [00:30:00] Um, and I’m curious kind of, uh, cause to me that sounds like something that I would do, like not read the full instructions before just jumping into something.
Studying With ADHD
Logan: Um, you know, not to get too personal or anything like that, but what, what strategies did you have for ADHD that allowed you to still kind of like focus and still work and do those things? Does that make sense?
Sandi: Yeah. Um, I think. One of the main things was I had to just keep reminding myself to slow down, that I had plenty of time to slow down, fully read the questions. Um, I did start reading the, the actual end of the question of what it was looking for first, and then going back and rereading the whole question. I would also, um, write down, you know, if it said round up, I would write down, round up, and then, so that it was right in my face.
Um, although I will say I did that on the [00:31:00] exam. I don’t remember what I wrote down, but I wrote something down and I worked the problem. Never looked back at what I wrote down, closed out that testlet. Went to start the next question, looked down and go, oh my God, I know I got one wrong because I didn’t look at that. I didn’t focus on that.
So, um, but writing it down at least kept it in My face. Um, and also if I would feel my mind wandering, because I would notice that a lot,
I would physically say to myself, okay, take a deep breath and focus on what you’re doing.
And I had to do those little tricks to kind of just bring my mind back.
Logan: Yep. That that’s definitely something that, I mean, I deal with that every day, like even if I’m doing something that I want to be working on. I’ll just like start thinking about, oh, I need to be doing this and that, and like, um, so I can totally relate to that.
So anyway, I like to ask those questions because, you know, this, I would, I would’ve loved to have [00:32:00] heard something like that when I was going through the exams.
Finding a Testing Center She Liked
Logan: So, on test day kind of going, ’cause you kind of talked a little bit about test day, like, you know, you’d write it down over to the side. What did your exam days look like? Um, did like, yeah, what, what, what was your typical day like? Did you do it in the morning and can you kind of just us how your exams looked?
Mm-hmm.
Sandi: I, um, yeah, so I found a testing center that I like. There’s three that are close to me, um, within a reasonable distance. And I found one that I really liked happened to be the one that was furthest away of the three. Um, but I really liked the people there, which made a big difference to me.
I’d walk in, they were super friendly, they recognized me, which is not what you want people in the testing center to do.
Cause that means you’ve been there way too much. But they would recognize me, they’d be very friendly, they’d be very helpful. Um, and they made it just a nice calming atmosphere.
Um, I would [00:33:00] typically, because it was about an hour and a half drive to this particular testing center, I would schedule it at noon. Between noon and 1230.
Logan: Mm-hmm.
Sandi: I drive down there in the morning, I’d go to a restaurant, I’d have a nice lunch before going to the exam cause that helped to just kind of calm me and put me in a nice good mood. And then I’d go in and take the exam. Um, this particular testing center. The other reason why I liked it besides the people was that it had windows and so there was natural light coming in.
It wasn’t like you were in a dungeon and that made a big difference to my mindset. And then, and when I’d sit down to take the exam, like on FAR, I would spend a few minutes, um, right in the beginning, like writing down all of the, um, ratios that I knew so that when it came time to do those, it was already there.
I wasn’t having to think about it. I would just go, oh, let’s see which one, you know, I need, and it was just [00:34:00] easier that way.
Logan: Yeah, I, I’ve definitely heard a lot of people doing that. I remember my, uh, coach, uh, when I was working in public accounting, like my mentor, he would, he said that that’s what he did. He would always just like hurry and write down as much as he possibly could at the very beginning, like right before the exam started.
Utilizing Flashcards
Logan: Um, and actually that kind of brings up a question. So as far as like, you kind of having those things on your mind, okay, like, I need to write this down so I can remember it. Did you use flashcards at all during your process for those kinds of things to kind of have them in your mind?
Sandi: Yeah, I didn’t use flashcards too often, but when I was sitting and having my lunch. Before going to the testing center. I sat that whole time going through flashcards and that was like exactly what I would do just while I was eating. I’d just run through a whole bunch of flashcards.
Logan: Nice. And, and did you do physical or uh, digital?
Sandi: I did digital. [00:35:00]
Logan: Yeah, that’s what I would recommend, I, but I was just curious.
A Routine for Exam Day
Logan: Um, and it’s kind of a side question. Did you eat at the same place each time or did you have like a special ritual with that?
Sandi: Ate at the same place every time.
Logan: What would do, what was it? What kind of food was it?
Sandi: is this? Uh, what was it? Um, it’s, it’s called BJ’s.
Um, and it’s just like American food. I’d just have like a burger or chicken sandwich, but it was the same place every time.
Logan: Nice,
Sandi: It worked for me. I get into these routines and.
Logan: Oh yeah. I, I, I, I’ve mentioned this before, and this is a little embarrassing, but I was in a routine where I would, every day I would go into my office, I would. Uh, have a, a hot pocket for breakfast and have a mountain dew. Like that was what I did every morning. Not very healthy, but, you know, uh, just got into that routine and I wore the same shirt to each exam, a Metallica shirt.
So like, yeah, it, you know, it, it kind of, it, I think, [00:36:00] I think there is something to be said about it. Like, it puts you in the mindset, like it puts you in the zone, you know?
Um, and did you have any like other, like any other things you were able to do or rituals that you, well, I guess those are kind of separate questions.
Studying During Busy Season
Logan: Did you have any other things that you were able to do because you were so efficient with CPA exam? Like, did you not have to miss out on things or like what did it allow you to do?
Sandi: Um, I don’t, I don’t know that it really, that I really, um, had anything like that because like I said, it was all during busy season. So if I wasn’t doing studying for the exam, I was working, so.
Logan: But I would say the, the side to the other side to that is that you were able to do it during busy season when probably a lot of people wouldn’t have even tried.
Getting Your Loved Ones Involved
Logan: Uh, so, you know, um, so, and uh, what does your daughter think about all of it? Did, was she kind of like involved or was she kinda like, oh yeah, good job, mom.
Sandi: Well, she knew that I was struggling [00:37:00] with it. Um, I was always very open with her because she also struggles with test taking.
And, so there were a couple things, one, I wanted her to see that you don’t have to give up, that even if it’s hard, we can just keep pushing forward.
Um, and so she knew and she would joke with me about it, whatever.
And, um, when I was waiting on the scores for the last one, she said, um, well, there were two things. One, she said, um, oh, we’re gonna throw you a party and it’s gonna be you over the decades trying to pass the exam in different stages of your life. Like, thanks kid, appreciate it.
Logan: Have a have a slideshow.
Sandi: Uh, and then when I finally passed prior, like a few months, probably six or seven months before I passed, her and I had been overseas and I had bought a purse. Um, it was a Louis Vuitton purse, but I refused to let myself use it until I passed the exams.
So when I passed, she’s like, oh, now you can finally use your purse,
She’s like so I don’t have to take it from you.
Logan: Yeah.
Sandi: I’m [00:38:00] like, yes. That was, that was my gift to myself but I, um, I, it just sat in my closet. I refused to touch it until I passed.
Logan: I, I, I believe Nate shared this, that he did the same thing. He, uh, he did that with golf clubs. Like for each passed exam, he would buy one piece of his golf set, but he wouldn’t let him u himself use it. And he would just, he would just sit there staring at it, like, as a motivator. Like, uh, so yeah, I, I know a lot of people have done that.
Um, I think we’ve covered a lot of the thing, I mean, again, you did really exceptionally well in the coaching program. I remember even when you didn’t quite pass, you were so close. So like I knew that you pretty much had it. Um, so I wasn’t worried. Uh, and is there, before we kind of start wrapping up, is there any other part of your process that when you were thinking about this, you were like, I would like to share this, but maybe we haven’t gotten to it yet?
Sandi: I don’t, I don’t think so. I think we’ve covered everything.
Almost Had to Retake 2 Section If She Failed AUD
Logan: Perfect. One last question before we kind of do the final [00:39:00] question, uh, so you, I remember you went to, you, you were like, now I’m heading to Ireland and Iceland. So was that trip in celebration or had you already had that planned to, how did that work out?
Sandi: That trip had already been planned. Uh, we were seeing Billie Eilish in Ireland and the trip was planned around that. Um, but timing wise, it worked out to be a celebration because I don’t know if you remember, but if I did not pass audit when I did, I was going to lose two parts. And so I was either going to be done or I was gonna have three parts left. And so, um, it turned out into a big celebration of my passing.
Logan: Yeah, I, I do remember that now that you mention it, uh, like I was so, I was so relieved when you said, uh, that you had passed. I was like, oh, thank goodness that [00:40:00] she doesn’t have to do three exams again.
Sandi: Yeah, I was holding my breath the whole week, I was.
Tears of Joy for Finally Passing the CPA Exams
Logan: Uh huh, and what, what was, what was your reaction when you did find out? Like, were you just
Sandi: Oh, tears. No, it just tears.
Logan: Yeah.
Sandi: Because it had been such a long process, because again, I started in 2007, and so because it had been such a long process, it was such a relief that it was just instant tears of just joy and release.
Logan: I can imagine. I mean, just to kind of, so with that, like you were technically taking the exams over the course of, what was it, about 17, 18 years. Did you take them all throughout that, it doesn’t sound like, like were you taking the exams the whole time? No? Okay.
Sandi: No, it was, I would do it and then I would not be passing. And so I’d stop and take a break for a while and then I’d do it again. And then, like I said, in 2019, I was like, that’s it, I’m done. I’m never doing this again.
Got Her EA
Sandi: And I actually
Logan: Because of one exam.
Sandi: I actually went and got my EA [00:41:00] because I was like, I am never doing the CPA again.
The EA will do everything I need it to do, and I went and did that. And then, um, in ’23, I just, like I said, I still just could not get it outta my mind.
So I was like, no, okay, we are trying again. And um, several of my friends thought I was crazy and insane for continuing to try, but I’m like, you watch me.
Logan: Yeah, and, and what are they saying now?
Sandi: They’re like, oh my God, you actually did it. I’m so impressed and I’m so proud of you.
Celeberating in Iceland
Logan: Yeah. Uh, and just, uh, with the, uh, being in Ireland and was Ireland and Iceland was, uh, what, uh, was it just for the concert or did you do any other fun things while you were there?
Sandi: Uh, we did, we were there for 10 days. We did all kinds of fun things.
Logan: Oh, yeah, I bet.
Sandi: I loved Iceland. Iceland was my favorite.
Um, Ireland was good, but not as good as Iceland. Uh, the really cool thing in Iceland was we were going from the airport to the hotel, [00:42:00] and often the distance, far distance, you could see the volcano erupting and the lava like spewing out.
It was, it was actually really cool.
Logan: I I, was it terrifying or were you like, oh,
Sandi: We were far enough away that it was not terrifying had I bit any closer, different story, but we were far enough away where you could see it, but I didn’t, uh, it wasn’t coming anywhere near me.
Logan: That makes sense. Well, it’s been awesome talking to you, Sandi.
Top Tips for People Still Going Through the CPA Exams
Logan: Um, I think that we’re just about ready to wrap up, but I do wanna ask you the last question we always ask everyone, even if it’s something we’ve already talked about, what would be your top two or three tips to people still going through the exam?
Sandi: Um, I think first of all, I would say never give up. Even when you are like, at your lowest point, just don’t give up. It’s, it’s doable. If I can do it, anybody can do it. Um, and then, um, consistency. Consistency really helped. [00:43:00] Um, just setting that schedule, knowing what you need to get done each day. And continuing to review what you’ve already learned. I think those are the main things.
Logan: Perfect. Yeah. I, I, and that’s something, just harping on the consistency right before we finish the, like, that is like, if I could drill that into anybody’s head. That is like the thing that I would try to be like, you have to be studying every day. Try to create a routine where you’re consistent. Like that is just kind of the base of all the success I’ve pretty much ever seen in the CPA exam, so I’m really glad that you brought that up.
Um, but I think that’s just about everything. So again, thank you Sandi for being on the call. It was awesome working with you in the coaching program and seeing you succeed and, uh, yeah, congrats on being done.
Sandi: Thank you. That is a very good feeling.
Logan: I bet. Yeah, I, I know the feel, I do know the feeling, except not after, [00:44:00] not after 18 years. So I think it’s even, even an even better feeling for you.
So, uh, yeah, uh, thank you for being on the call today and, uh, I’ll, I’ll see you later.
Sandi: Great. Thank you.
Logan: Alright, that was the interview with Sandi and I loved that episode. I loved talking to her about her journey and how she went from education into accounting and becoming a CPA. And I thought it was funny that she, her whole life did not want to be an accountant because her father had been an accountant and worked in tax, so she was like, I don’t wanna do that.
But now she’s doing the same thing and it’s working well for her career. And again, it was awesome working with her in the coaching program and being able to see her improve and get to the point where she was able to pass exams on her own. And that’s the whole point of the coaching program is less about tutoring and you know, showing specific problems or things like that in the topics, but more focusing on how to study, teaching you how to basically fish on your own instead of us giving you the fish.
And I [00:45:00] think Sandi did really well with that. And it was awesome to hear about her story of going to Ireland and Iceland. Now with that, that is the end of the podcast episode. Before you go again, make sure you check out becoming a SuperfastCPA PRO member on superfastcpa.com.
You’ll get access to the full multiple choice question walkthrough videos that we have for FAR, audit, a lot of REG, a lot of TCP and a lot of BAR. And you’ll also get access to the PRO course where Nate explains in depth how to pass the CPA exams.
Also, an easy way to learn about all that is by first going to superfastcpa.com and signing up for our free one hour webinar training. We will teach you the key ingredients to pass the CPA exam, so you don’t waste months or even years of your time failing exams. So check that all out.
I hope that you liked the episode. If you did like it, make sure you like it and leave a comment in the YouTube video or leave a rating in your favorite podcast app.
Thanks for watching or listening, and we will see you in the next episode.
​[00:46:00]
