How Studying from Her Phone Helped Meaghan Pass the CPA Exams

In this SuperfastCPA podcast interview, you’ll hear Meaghan’s story about initially struggling with the CPA exams, and then making a few key changes to her study process and then passing.

One of those changes was studying from her phone throughout the day, which helped her pack in extra study time she wouldn’t otherwise have.

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 How Studying from Her Phone Helped Meaghan Pass the CPA Exams
• 03:17 Why Meaghan Wanted to Get Her CPA
• 05:14 Studied the Traditional Way, Failed Her First Exam and Needed a Different Approach
• 08:26 Took a Break After Failing Her First Test
• 09:51 For Things to Change, Meaghan Decided to Leave Big Four and Finding SuperfastCPA
• 11:34 Listening to the Podcasts is a Big Motivating Factor
• 12:41 Watched the Free Webinar and Things That Made Sense
• 16:32 Studied Two to Three Hours After Work and Made Sure Life Doesn’t Stop While Studying
• 19:28 Got Most of the Ideas from the Free Training Webinar
• 20:37 When Meaghan Got SuperfastCPA Study Tools and Using It Throughout the Day
• 24:46 How Meaghan Maximized the Use of the Mini Quizzes on the SuperfastCPA App
• 27:54 Studying Became Easier Once She Found Her Own Study Method
• 28:41 Felt Like Being Introduced to the Questions First Approach is a Game Changer
• 31:56 Meaghan’s Reaction on How Review Courses Gauge How Someone is Test Ready
• 33:45 The Final Review is When Meaghan Would Tackle the Sims
• 35:23 Some Talk About Meaghan’s Podcast Favorites
• 37:14 Catch Up Studying on the Weekends
• 38:04 How Meaghan Would Utilize the Notes She Created
• 40:27 A Tip from Meaghan, You Don’t Have to Do Things in Order
• 45:48 Meaghan’s Process for Learning Difficult Topics
• 47:01 Top Tips for People Still Struggling with their Study Process

Interview Transcript

Meaghan: [00:00:00] So, watch the lecture, highlight along, do all the multiple choice, do all the task based simulations, and then like move on. So I was kind of like going through the motions, and I think even when I was studying at that point, I was like, this does not feel effective, but this is what everybody’s telling me to do, so this is what I’m gonna do.

And it, it just did not work. And I kind of spent that whole summer just going through the motions and feeling like I wasn’t getting anywhere, but hoping like, Oh, people say it kind of clicks at the end, so it’ll click. And then I went and I took my first CPA exam. I took FAR first, cause that’s what everybody said to do.

And I like failed miserably. I did so terrible and I actually like got my score my first day of work I think like the night before my first day of work and I was like, wow, this sucks I was like so just sad about starting like my first like adult job and I got this horrible score I scored like in the 50s and I was like, this [00:01:00] sucks.

And I remember, like, crying to my family, like, why is this so hard? I’ve never had a problem with tests before.

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 Nate and I talk to Meaghan.

Now, Meaghan may be a little bit different than most people because she knew she wanted to be a CPA, even from the beginning of college. She had an older brother who had become a CPA and she knew that she wanted to go into accounting, go to the big four and become a CPA.

So she had that end goal in mind the whole time she was going through her college degree. And once she finished her degree, she went straight into studying for the CPA exam. She had a whole summer before she started her new job with the big four and she figured she’d be able to pass an exam and she went straight into doing it the normal way.

Well, she did it the normal way. Watching video lectures, highlighting, taking notes for hours every day.

She took her exam and [00:02:00] the day before she started her new job with the big four, she got her score back and she had scored in the fifties. She was shocked. She had never done that poorly in school or in any test. She was typically pretty good at this stuff.

And so she just decided to leave it be she was going to go straight into her career and focus on that. About two and a half years later, she hears about the changes coming to the CPA exam and decides I need to get this done before those changes.

She started trying to get at it again. And one day she was looking for podcasts on the CPA exam and she found the SuperfastCPA podcast. She started listening to that. She watched the free webinar, and she was able to pass two exams with just the podcast and the strategies from the free webinar. And then after that she did buy a few of the notes because she needed a little bit of help with REG and FAR. But again, she passed two exams without purchasing anything from us, just applying our strategies from the webinar and from the podcast.

I think Meaghan has a lot of great tips and advice, and I’m excited for you to listen to this interview.

Before we dive into the interview, I just want to give one more reminder about our SuperfastCPA training webinar [00:03:00] on superfastcpa.com. Again, it is one hour it’s free and we will teach you just like we taught Meaghan how to pass the CPA exam without wasting months or even years of your time.

The link to the training will be in the description of the podcast or in the YouTube video. And with that said, let’s dive straight into the interview with Meaghan

Why Meaghan Wanted to Get Her CPA

Nate: Uh, so yeah, so let’s go back to the beginning, uh, when you decided to do the CPA, where were you at in your career and, you know, what made you want to get your CPA?

Meaghan: So I kind of knew from the beginning that I wanted my CPA.

My older brother was an accountant, so I kind of was just following his footsteps, following like kind of the roadmap he laid out for me. So starting like freshman year at college, I was like, okay, I’m going to join the big four, I’m going to get my CPA and like, that’s just what I’ll do. So from freshman year, I was working towards like that 150 credit requirements that we have now.

And it was just kind of always in the back of my mind. Like I got a B law [00:04:00] minor because I heard that B law was like a really big part of REG and it was just kind of always there in my mind like lurking like yeah, you’re gonna graduate college, but then you get to do the CPA kind of thing. So always working towards it from the start.

Nate: Okay.

Logan: I mean, yeah, I I what I was gonna say that I feel like that’s I mean, that’s pretty impressive I seriously had no idea the CPA even existed Until I was like in my like last year of my bachelor’s and I was like, oh, that’s a thing. Anyway, yeah so, I mean, yeah, that’s great Did your brother kind of coach you through it?

Like did he kind of tell you how to do it or not? Really?

Meaghan: Not really. I think he he was just like I figured it out and you’ll figure it out and that’s kind of it I think I was probably like asking questions, especially like career wise like oh like maybe what kind of accounting should I do? And he was like, oh do audit because it’ll help you with the CPA and like your CPA will be more like geared towards that.

[00:05:00] So, but other than that, it was kind of just like, with the flow and listening to like what college professors told me and you know, what big four reps would tell me about like using Becker and don’t worry about it. Like everybody gets through it, you’ll figure it out kind of thing.

Nate: Okay.

Studied the Traditional Way, Failed Her First Exam and Needed a Different Approach

Nate: And so once you started studying, I mean, what did you do in the very beginning? You had Becker or review, review course and you just started watching videos doing this approach.

Meaghan: So when I graduated, like my senior year, I had an offer from big four. So with that offer, they gave us access to Becker. So that summer, like my job didn’t start until mid or late September. So summer 2019, it feels like a lifetime ago at this point, I stayed on my college campus and I was like going through the motions with Becker kind of just doing what they were telling you to do.

So, watch the lecture, highlight along, do all the multiple choice, do all the task based [00:06:00] simulations, and then like move on. So I was kind of like going through the motions, and I think even when I was studying at that point, I was like, this does not feel effective, but this is what everybody’s telling me to do, so this is what I’m gonna do.

And it, it just did not work. And I kind of spent that whole summer just going through the motions and feeling like I wasn’t getting anywhere, but hoping like, Oh, people say it kind of clicks at the end, so it’ll click. And then I went and I took my first CPA exam. I took FAR first, cause that’s what everybody said to do.

And I like failed miserably. I did so terrible and I actually like got my score my first day of work I think like the night before my first day of work and I was like, wow, this sucks I was like so just sad about starting like my first like adult job and I got this horrible score I scored like in the 50s and I was like, this sucks.

And I remember, like, crying to my family, like, why is this so hard? I’ve never had a problem with tests before. And they’re [00:07:00] like, maybe you just need to, like, chill out and, like, take a break. So that’s kind of what I did for too long. Um, and then when I kind of came back at it, I was like, I need to do a different approach because clearly what everybody says works for them or like what Becker says should work for me does not work for me at all.

Nate: Yeah. Well, and you know, the standard approach only works 50 percent of the time, right? Like with the pass rates, cause that’s what everyone’s doing. Everyone has a review course. They watch the videos, read the chapter, just kind of like the college approach. Um, and I was going to ask that I’m like, I’m guessing you had no issues through college.

And so this was like a big. Just a big shock that experience.

Meaghan: Yeah, it definitely was. Like, I can’t say like, I was like the best accounting student, but like I passed all my classes, no problem. And taking like standardized tests, like in the past, like AP exams, SATs, I’ve always been a [00:08:00] really good test taker.

So I definitely probably went into, it was kind of like a cavalier attitude, like, this, like other people struggle, but like I’m not other people like I do well at tests. I’ll be fine. And then it was honestly like the first time in my life where like I really failed something like especially that horribly and I was like, yikes, like, okay, I need, I need to do something different because clearly that was, was not it.

Nate: Yeah.

Took a Break After Failing Her First Test

Logan: And how long was your break? Oh, sorry.

Nate: No, I was just going to say, at least you realize that. Um, yeah. Most people. Sorry.

Meaghan: No, you’re good. Um, so my break was really long. Um, I kind of like failed FAR pretty terribly and was like, I’m just going to focus on becoming a good auditor. I joined a big four. I was doing auditing and it was a huge life adjustment.

Like I moved to a new city. I was long distance from my boyfriend. Like all my best friends were far away. So I was like, I need to just focus on like being an adult kind of for a little while [00:09:00] and I would kind of like pick up studying here and there and I always started with FAR and I would get maybe like halfway through and then work would get really busy or I’d go on a vacation and any kind of study habit I had fell apart. So I didn’t really like earnestly go back to the CPA until it was December, 2021.

And that was like, when I was like, okay, I need to do this. I got the email from the AICPA that all of the new CPA changes were coming out. And I was like, I cannot still be taking this test when it’s a whole new test. Like the people like who taught like the Becker lectures were leaving. And I was like, I cannot outlast like the actual people who run this thing.

So it was at that point where I was like, I need to like get my butt in gear and actually do this. If I’m going to do this.

Nate: Okay.

For Things to Change, Meaghan Decided to Leave Big Four and Finding SuperfastCPA

Nate: And so what happened then? Like what, when you got real serious, like what happened?

Meaghan: So at that point, I was now like two and a half years [00:10:00] into my career. I was a senior at Big Four.

I was kind of over it. I had done a senior as a busy season. I was like, I, I don’t want to stay here. So I kind of paired starting my CPA journey with a new job. I was like, I need more work life balance. Because one thing I did not want to do that I was kind of like starting to like read forums online where people are like just put your life on pause for six months And do nothing but work in CPA and you could be a CPA and I was like, okay, well, that’s great but I, I can’t do that. Like I know myself like I, I like to hang out my friends like to go to concerts like to travel like all this stuff like i’m not doing that. So I was like something has to give so I actually ended up leaving big four and I got a job in industry, which was awesome.

They were so much more supportive of like study schedules and were like, honestly, such a big help to my CPA process. So I got this new job that was nine to five and it greatly like impacted my ability [00:11:00] to like actually like form a study schedule I could stick to because I couldn’t work until nine, 11 o’clock at night.

And then, so that was huge. And I started like listening to the SuperfastCPA podcast was another absolutely game changer for me. It introduced me to like all of your products and things like that. And so every day I’d go on a walk after work, I’d listen to a SuperfastCPA podcast and it would put me in the mind of studying.

And then I’d go home and like study for the night. And that just became kind of the process for me.

Nate: Awesome.

Listening to the Podcasts is a Big Motivating Factor

Nate: So the first thing you saw was our podcast?

Meaghan: Yeah, I’m a huge podcast person. And, um, I work from home most of the time. So for me, like I needed to like, get out and like, move my body, take a walk, get fresh air.

And I was always listening to podcasts, but I felt kind of guilty about it because I was like, I should be studying like, Becker didn’t have audio notes. I was like, I don’t really know where to find audio notes. So I was like, I’m just going to go to like daffle [00:12:00] podcast app and like search CPA and this podcast came up and it was so inspiring where people who had way more than me going on, like kids or like a husband or a wife, like two jobs, like different learning language backgrounds, everything. And I was like, okay, like this, it just really put me in like the mindset. It’s like, okay, I’m going to go home and I’m going to study. And like, I’m going to make this happen. Like it’s, it’s going to happen.

Nate: That’s awesome. Um, did you ever, sorry, I’ve been like sick and I’m, my eyes are just like this light anyways, long story.

It like looks like I’m bawling. Um, it’s a good story. So touching. So touching.

Watched the Free Webinar and Things That Made Sense

Nate: Um, did you ever, uh, watch one of our free training webinars? As far as like, like when or what, what strategies made sense? Did you get those from the podcast or did you watch the free training?

Meaghan: Yeah. From the podcast, you guys are always like talking about the free training seminars.

So I was like, okay, [00:13:00] that’s definitely something I need to check out because like, It’s just like everything you guys were saying made sense and it just resonated so deeply with the way I studied and the struggles I had studying. So when you spoke about like why like kind of sit there and like watch a lecture when that’s not how the exam gets tested.

I was like, thank you. Because that was like my biggest trouble is like I have the attention span of like, you know somebody in gen z who’s like on tiktok all the time. And I just like can’t sit there and watch like an hour long lecture on like fair market values. Like it’s just not happening. When you kind of are like make it work for you and like learn through the multiple choice process.

It just kind of like opened my eyes. Like, yeah, I guess I don’t need to study the way Becker is telling me to, like, I need to make this work for me. So from there, I like totally like shifted my study schedule and I incorporated like processes from the free like lecture you guys [00:14:00] offer where, you know, you kind of spoke about doing questions throughout the day.

Like that was kind of like revolutionary for me because in my mind to study for the CPA I had to like clear my schedule for two hours sit down at a desk and like basically like be in school like put myself like back in school when that’s just like not realistic I don’t think. So I started doing like the five multiple choice questions while I was waiting for the subway or in between meetings at work or just like waiting for a reservation like at a restaurant like I really started to kind of incorporate little bits of studying throughout the day.

And also inc, incorporating, like, cumulative review. Like, that’s, like, not something Becker really does. Like, now they have the mini exams, but at that point, if you’re, like, three or four chapters in, and then it’s cumulative, which, it’s so easy to forget everything you learned in, like, that first chapter. Um, and Becker was a great tool.

I don’t want to, like, diss on them at all, because, obviously, that was, like, the main, [00:15:00] like pillar of my studying, but making sure I was incorporating, um, cumulative review, kind of different review sessions throughout my day. And, you know, getting audio notes and like getting short outlines that I could read, like when I was in the car or just, making it more a part of my day instead of just like this two hour window or three hour window that I was assigning it at night because that was the other thing like everybody was like get up early like some of the other review programs were like get up at 5 a.m. and do all this and then have your review session at night too. And it was like I’m not a morning person like I can’t wake up so it was just about like kind of, and I think it’s true for everybody and they’ll discover this as they go through the process is making it your own. And you guys offer great building blocks and you know, so many different review courses do offer like kind of building blocks, but it’s about like, you know, building your own thing out of those tips and tricks.

Nate: Yeah. Using the, uh, [00:16:00] using study tools throughout the day or studying from your phone. Um, even back 10 years ago, it’s probably longer 11 years ago when I was studying. Uh, even then I did that constantly just because it made so much sense to me. Um, really it was, I’ve said this before, but I would read like the entirety of ESPN, like three times a day on my phone in little breaks.

And, and it like, I started thinking I should really find some way to study from my phone because, I mean, I’m spending like hours on my phone.

Studied Two to Three Hours After Work and Made Sure Life Doesn’t Stop While Studying

Nate: Um, so, so were you doing that almost in place of, or how long would you sit down and do a main study session each day in addition to all the studying from your phone?

Meaghan: So in addition to like studying from my phone, I’d say probably sit down and study for like two to three hours every day. Um, so I would finish up work like five or six. I go on my walk, come home, make dinner, and then I’d sit down and study typically. So [00:17:00] I’d say I’d study from like seven to nine or if I had plans with friends, cause that was also really important to me.

Like I just didn’t want to compromise my life for the exam like it just wasn’t that important I guess. Um, so sometimes i’d be studying from 9 to 11 and like I’m a night out. So that wasn’t a problem for me. So, the way I would study is a little bit different, where I would just do multiple choice questions.

Like, I wasn’t reading the book, I wasn’t watching lectures, I was literally just sitting down and doing multiple choice questions and taking notes from them. So, if I got a question wrong, or if I got it right and it was a lucky guess, or I got it right and I was like, I don’t think I would remember to figure that out, like how to figure that out again. I’d write it down, like I had like a notebook for each exam, and I’d just write down any notes or write down formulas, keywords, vocab that I didn’t know, and that was kind of how I studied, and I would use those notes, you know, moving to the rest of the module, I would use my notes during cumulative review, [00:18:00] um, even during like final review for like the first mocker, um, whatever, like a simulated exam, I would use my notes like as an open book.

And I remember like back in high school and teachers were like, you’ll learn more from actually going and looking up the answer than like, if we just tell you what the right answer is on an exam. So that was really huge. And I think people would benefit from that. I don’t know if people do that. Um, but it really helped me because then even by the time test day came, because I gone and looked through my notes so many times, I can almost like visualize like, what the page looked like, what was around it, like, Oh, this word was in like this section of FAR, which means it probably like, this question’s probably trying to ask me this, which was really helpful.

Nate: Yeah. So, so basically you’re describing just a really, a really active, uh, study process. You’re starting with the questions. You’re kind of letting the questions for a topic inform, um, Okay, I don’t really [00:19:00] understand this, or let me make a note of this, or let me like, re-perform this calculation versus starting with the video, you know, and just trying to take in a half hour’s worth of just someone talking to you, or explaining a bunch of stuff conceptually.

And that just doesn’t really mean anything at the time. And then even then you go to the problems and they’re still not making sense. Anyways. um, so.

Meaghan: Exactly.

Got Most of the Ideas from the Free Training Webinar

Nate: What, how did you arrive at that big shift? I, I know we asked this, but was it watching our free training that kind of gave you those ideas to starting with the questions or did you watch our PRO videos or was it just mainly the free training?

Meaghan: So I didn’t get the PRO course. So it was like through the free training and just listening to other people on this podcast, like strategies, like it’s so helpful to just like hear what other people are saying and kind of like, just to know, like I can allow myself to do a process [00:20:00] that’s not what Becker is telling me to do or like what other people are telling me to do.

And like, I needed to be active and engaged while I learned, like, that’s just how I learn, I guess, like going through college and high school, like, I honestly didn’t even know how I learned, like, it just, like, kind of happened, but the CPA definitely taught me, like, how I learn, and that is, like, by doing things, and, like, active, active learning, because I would sit there, and I’d watch these whole long lectures, and I’d still get, like, a 30 percent on the multiple choice, and it’s, like, wow, that was really just, like, a waste of time when I could have just, like, figured out myself so much faster.

Nate: Yeah.

Logan: Yeah.

When Meaghan Got SuperfastCPA Study Tools and Using It Throughout the Day

Logan: So once you started, you know, you kind of did this fresh start, you got a new job. You started studying, did you get SuperfastCPA, like, right at that same time, or did it take a little bit for you to find it? And then once you did find it, uh, how did, like, could you tell an immediate difference studying for FAR?

Well, I’m assuming you went for FAR again [00:21:00] this way. Does that make sense?

Meaghan: So yeah, so I actually didn’t start with FAR this time around. I was like, it’s never worked for me before. I’m never able to get too FAR so I ended up starting with audit because I was like, I literally am an auditor. And like, if I can’t pass this, then like, I, the CPA just might not be for me.

So I started with, um, audit and I did listen to the free lecture and I started listening to the podcast with audit and luckily audit did come very naturally to me and I felt like I could do this on my own like I didn’t really need that support. So I did audit past audit got like an 86. I was like cool. All right. So something’s like working, something’s cooking I actually like made it through the material for the first time in my life like we could do this. And then I did BEC and it was very similar.

My score like dropped a little bit, but I was like, it’s okay. Got through BEC. And I wanted to get those two done first, because I just needed that confidence boost, like, I needed to be like, you can do this, I was, [00:22:00] like, really terrified that I’d pass FAR, and then, like, get stuck, or like, get lazy with REG, and it would expire, like, My brother had let a few exams expire when he was going through it and I was like, that is the one thing I swear on my life I will not do.

If anything expires, like, I’m out. So I did audit and then BEC and then it came to REG and FAR, which were the two I was very nervous about. I don’t really know anything about tax, so REG was like the scariest one for me and FAR, I had attempted to study for it so many times I’d failed it. Like horrifically bad once before, so I was so nervous and at that point that is when I started to introduce more of the SuperfastCPA tools.

So that is when I got the notes. I got the audio notes and like, that was when I think I started studying even even more for them because I was so nervous for them and like the audio notes were really huge because [00:23:00] I live in New York City, so I’m walking around constantly. I’m on the subway all the time. So being able to like, just listen to audio notes was really huge because you know, yes, I was going out with my friends and I felt really guilty for that like for not studying but hey, at least I’m listening to audio notes on my way to meet them and it just kind of like helped ease that like guilt I had for not studying because that was like the, the worst part of like the two year break I really took from when I first attempted the CPA and when I went back and like actually started doing it was, I would think about the CPA every day and it just felt like such a weight on me because I knew it was something I wanted to do.

My mom was always asking me about it. I had people at work always asking me about it. My friends who were CPA, I remember when I became a senior at my big four, um, I had staff that were CPAs. And I was like, Oh my God, like this is the biggest weight in my life. It was like a stone [00:24:00] on my back that I was just carrying around.

And being able to do little study sessions and listen to audio notes. It’s like, okay, like I’m acknowledging it. I’m studying for, I’m doing it, but I’m also living my life, which was just really huge for me.

Nate: Yeah. Yeah. That’s awesome. And it does, we were talking about this earlier, but it is really effective, or at least it can be to study from your phone, even in these two minute chunks.

Like it all adds up. It’s just, it’s like the screen time report, even if you’re really busy, even if you’re legitimately like a very busy person, you get the screen time report that tells you, you somehow found five hours a day to stare at your phone, you know, so it’s just taking advantage of all that, even in small chunks.

How Meaghan Maximized the Use of the Mini Quizzes on the SuperfastCPA App

Nate: Um, one question I had about the, the, uh, mini quizzes. So one thing we’ll hear from people that when they just sign up and they’re new to using SuperfastCPA, they, they’re like, well, why [00:25:00] can’t I choose, uh, you know, individual topics on your quizzes? It’s just five questions from everything. You know, my response is like, trust me, just, you know, in addition to your main study session.

And this will all start to make sense in a few weeks. So, I mean, did you, did you like how the quizzes were set up that way, where it just quiz you from everything or what was your, uh, I don’t know, just how, how did you like using the quizzes on our app?

Meaghan: I really liked it because it was that cumulative, um, kind of learning that I wasn’t, you know, like, really getting in my day to day study sessions, like, I would always try to do five or ten, like, cumulative, when I sat down to do my big, um, study session, five to ten, multiple choice.

Um, but that was really it. So doing through the app where everything was lumped together was really helpful. And it also, like, if it was something I hadn’t learned before, like, I was able to, like, just give myself the grace and be like, you haven’t learned that [00:26:00] yet, it’s okay, you got it wrong. And it actually would give me like a little bit of context when I eventually did arrive at that topic.

It’s like, Oh, I have seen this. And like, these words aren’t totally new to me. So it was kind of helpful to have that. And I personally really liked it. I also, um, think it was so frictionless to open up the app and do the quiz. Whereas if you tried to do it, like through Becker, it’s like, now I’ve got to click all these things.

And like, nothing’s really optimized for being on my phone. And it was so annoying. So I, it was just so easy to be like, okay, before I go on Instagram or TikTok or whatever, I’m just going to open up the SuperfastCPA app, do my questions and move on. And it was, it was really helpful.

Nate: Nice. Thank you for saying that. Cause that’s a, that’s something that again, when people just get our app and like, they haven’t used it when they’re busy or out, you know, they’re standing in line somewhere and I’ll explain that like, okay, I promise you we do this so that in like literally two taps, you’re like [00:27:00] taking a quiz instead of messing around with 50 categories and then like.

Just that 30 seconds it takes to like, set up a quiz in Becker. That’s enough friction to where you will not use it very often. You just won’t. And so, anyways, yeah, I appreciate you saying that. We keep, I mean, it’s super, super simple for just that reason. That it’s just so easy to just actually use in like, three, five minute chunks.

Logan: I knew that Nate was just like internally just like jumping for joy when you were saying that because he says that exact stuff to me every day. Um, yeah, it’s, uh, it’s super helpful. The I really, I was the same, like the audio, like the podcast and the audio notes were just my, my go to, um, so it kind of sounds like to me, and this is pretty cool.

Studying Became Easier Once She Found Her Own Study Method

Logan: You were able to get through two of the exams just based off of our free stuff, like [00:28:00] the free webinar and the free podcast. Um, and so, my question is how did it, did you pass all your exams first try after, like, once you started it this way or how did that go?

Meaghan: So I passed audit, Becker first try. Oh, like I did pass REG first try. FAR it took me two attempts. So that was really it. But it. Once I found my study method, it, it really worked and I’m so grateful that it did, because I think if I, you know, when I first started again, if I, if I started failing exams, I could have seen myself being very easily discouraged and just like giving up.

Um, so it was kind of huge.

Felt Like Being Introduced to the Questions First Approach is a Game Changer

Logan: So did you notice, like, I’m assuming so, but I just want to like, kind of hear what you have to say so, you know, in contrast to two years prior, where you just were studying, basically like it was school, and then you fail, in your own words, horrifically, uh, FAR, uh, did you, were you just [00:29:00] so relieved?

Like what was your, what was your feeling when it came to studying this way? Especially I’m assuming passing the first exam, but like, yeah, we’ll kind of talk about that.

Meaghan: It just felt like so nice to feel like I was finally doing something right. I knew I was kind of taking an unorthodox way of studying where I was just going right to the multiple choice.

Um, I had friends at EY or like from school who were also studying, and when I would kind of tell them how I was studying, they were like, you know, like what, kind of a little confused and I was like, trust me, like this works, like you should try it. And you’re like, yeah, I kind of do see how that makes sense because you’re getting the same multiple choice scores that I’m getting and are like better scores than I’m getting.

And I’m like sitting here watching those lectures. So it’s just not very validating to finally like be passing exams and like understanding and learning the material. Um, it was, it was huge.

Nate: It’s also when, like you said, when you know that you’re kind of [00:30:00] understanding the material and you’re starting to figure out, okay, here’s how these questions work, it’s a lot more rewarding.

Like, so it’s a lot easier from a motivation standpoint to study. When what you’re doing is working or it feels like it’s working versus, you know, your first, uh, your first experience studying where you’re spending all this time, it just felt like it wasn’t working. So it obviously gets really hard to want to keep doing it.

If the whole thing, if it’s just this constant source of frustration. That you’re spending time on and not hanging out with friends to do this thing. That’s just frustrating all the time. Um, so yeah, there’s, there’s a lot to that. Like when it’s working, the motivation kind of take care, takes care of itself or go at least a big part of it.

Meaghan: And I think I knew when I was studying and I would assume other people feel this way also, like when I was having a good study [00:31:00] session, I knew like I could feel it. I was like, this is really clicking. Like, I remember this, like I could go and then like tell a friend or tell somebody like, I just learned this, like this tax law, like if you’re a married single filing, like whatever, this is your deduction, whatever.

Um, whereas previously, like when I was sitting there, like watching lectures, highlighting along, I was like, man, I, this is doing nothing for me. And I knew I was just kind of going through the motions and following the steps, but I was like, they say this works, like it must be working and I’ll get to that test and everything will magically bubble up to the surface and I’ll remember everything I highlighted, which just was not the case. And I think I probably internally knew that, but was hoping I was going to be proved wrong that first go around.

Nate: Yeah.

Logan: My review course is all green. It says I’m good.

Meaghan: Yeah, exactly. It, you’re exam ready.

Logan: It lures you, it lures you into that false sense of security for sure.

Meaghan’s Reaction on How Review Courses Gauge How Someone is Test Ready

Meaghan: And that was, like, something else I had to get, like, used to, was, like, I’m [00:32:00] definitely, like, a very type A perfectionist, so knowing my exam is tomorrow and Becker says I’ve only done 15 percent of the material or whatever was, like, kind of stressful, but I, like, I had to just know myself and be, like, no, you’re ready, like, and it’s crazy to me that, like, 15, 30 percent multiple choice is only 15 to 30 percent of their material, like, I would do every multiple choice I wouldn’t do every task based simulation.

Those, I felt, were just very time consuming and very demotivating to me, so I would really only attempt those during my, like, final review. But it was crazy that I could do every multiple choice and Becker would still be like, on like the thermometer of like how ready you are, you’re like less than 50%. I was like, how can that be?

Like, and I was scoring like well on multiple choice too. So I was like, that kind of showed me that something was wrong because they’re saying I’m not even ready to take the test. And I got an 86 like, come on.

Nate: Yeah. Yeah. The, uh, I guess the kind of the vanity [00:33:00] metrics is what I call that. Or the other thing people do is even if they’re kind of following our strategies, they’re doing their sets of 30 and they’ve memorized a lot of the questions like they know that it’s B, but they don’t really know why but they’ll click it anyways to get the higher score and then there’s just, uh, yeah, you, you have to know that you’ve kind of manually covered every topic because again, you can’t go in or someone said this on another interview.

You can’t screenshot your nicely green, uh, Becker dashboard and send that to NASBA. Um, the only thing that counts is you going in there and pulling it out of your own head and scoring at least a 75.

The Final Review is When Meaghan Would Tackle the Sims

Nate: Um, so I, I was going to ask about the sims. So you, what was your, you didn’t really do them on a daily basis.

I’m assuming you did some maybe towards your final review just to be used to like the format.

Meaghan: Yeah. So I would, when I was doing [00:34:00] sims, I would, I would always do the mock exams. I know some that’s now that I’m so deep into the, the CPA world, like I’m very heavy into like the r/CPA subreddit, which is a great tool.

And a lot of people there would be like, I don’t waste time with mock exams or they’re too long. Like you’re not going to get anything out of it. Um, I found them very beneficial. One, because it was usually my first exposure to the, the task based simulations during my course of studying. Um, and two, it just, Normally I did like pretty okay on them and it gave me like a good boost of confidence, so I would do the sims at that point, and then I would also try to do sims for areas where I heard they were like commonly tested sims, and areas that I was struggling on.

Because those, um, Becker does have very good explanation videos for those sims. So that was always very helpful and it does kind of like teach you a little bit more of like how to think. [00:35:00] So I do think the, um, the explanation videos at least on Becker are almost as good as like doing the sims themselves just because it does offer a lot of insight on how you should be thinking about them and like how to actually do them.

Nate: Yeah, those are good. The skill builder videos. Those, much better than their lectures. Topic by topic I think.

Meaghan: Yes.

Nate: Um.

Meaghan: I would agree.

Some Talk About Meaghan’s Podcast Favorites

Nate: So what are your, what are some of your favorite podcasts?

Meaghan: Um, I really like pop, pop culture podcasts. Um, it’s like there’s this network called like Betches where they do like podcasts on like Bravo and, um, just like, you know, current events in the pop culture stratosphere.

Nate: Is Bravo where, uh, the Desperate Housewives shows are all on? Is that what you’re, I mean, is that part of, like, do you watch that?

Meaghan: I watch some of the Desperate Housewives. It’s a very large universe. So I’m only like, it’s like the New York ones and the Jersey ones, but it’s, it’s very good. Especially after studying, [00:36:00] like just mind numbing, like, wow, I don’t have to think at all. I can just watch these women yell at each other. It’s amazing.

Nate: Yeah. It’s weird how that is. Um, like if I’m, like, I try to listen to productive podcasts, like, uh, stuff on investing or the stock market or stuff I like want to learn about. And there’s just, there is some, like, there’s some little friction amount.

That’s a little bit, whereas like if I listened to NFL podcasts or sports or like the daily, there’s just, it’s like completely fun. I don’t know. I don’t know what that is about. Human nature, or maybe it’s just me, but it’s whenever you want to do something productive, there’s just like a shred of resistance. Um.

Meaghan: Yeah, I’d say the daily or like those morning news podcasts are really like as productive as it gets with me. In my podcast listening.

Nate: Yeah. Yeah. But audio is such a [00:37:00] good tool though, like you were saying, because you can be doing other things, whether it’s podcasts or the audio notes, if you’re in the middle of studying for these, it is just such a helpful, uh, thing because you can do it while you’re doing other things.

Catch Up Studying on the Weekends

Nate: Okay, so let’s see. We talked about, so how would you study on the weekends? That’s one thing we haven’t talked about. Would you study longer or kind of just the same thing?

Meaghan: Yeah, I would usually try to study for like four to five hours on the weekends if I could. Um, and it’s weird because that was usually the only time I would say no to plans, like if somebody was like, Hey, can you do this?

I’d be like, Oh, no, actually, like, I have to really study today. And that is typically because I would use the weekends to catch up. So I would always make study plans of how many modules I want to get done in a week. So if I was behind on that goal, I would always, like you say, like, try to be ready for Monday, like really try to catch up for Monday.

So Saturdays I would usually try to study [00:38:00] like four to five hours and Sundays probably about the same.

Nate: Okay.

How Meaghan Would Utilize the Notes She Created

Nate: Um, and then you mentioned your, your notes that you would just, you would just kind of take like as needed basically, which is really the perfect way of doing it. It’s just everything about this should be very personal in terms of how do I make this make sense to me.

So, so you would make these notes and then when would you use those down the road? Would you review them weekly or kind of just all in your final review or how would you use them after you’ve made them?

Meaghan: Yeah. So I would first, I would always try to keep notes like limited as I could because I knew if I just took pages and pages, I wouldn’t use them.

So I always tried to like kind of each section, unless it was like a very large important one, I would try to keep it like one page of like printer paper, like one page in a notebook, like front side only. And then I would use those notes continuously while studying. So [00:39:00] I would reference them while I was going through the multiple choice for that section even.

So if I’m like, Oh, I actually took notes on this like theory or topic, um, for one of the earlier questions, let me look at that and then while I was doing cumulative review, I would always kind of try to flip back just because it would help me, like, visualize the notes better and just, like, memorize, like, what I was looking for and kind of understand it and then I would also use it typically for my first mock exam would be open book and then for like the last two, I would try not to use them. So I could, like, really get a sense of whether I was ready for the exam or if I wasn’t.

Nate: Okay, that’s a good idea.

Meaghan: So I wouldn’t usually, yeah, I wouldn’t usually sit there and like read them because I just really need the context of like that question of like what are they asking me? Like me sitting there reading them, I don’t know how helpful it would have been.

Nate: Yeah. So you would use them at [00:40:00] like, when you needed something off of them instead of just reading them just to read them. Yeah. Yeah. That makes sense to me. Cause I, reading anything, well, reading is low value. That’s what I was about to say. Um, that’s not what I mean. Yeah. When it’s all just in front of you and there’s not a reason you’re trying to kind of retrieve it with your mind is, yeah, just not as valuable.

It’s kind of back to the same idea of why video lectures are so low impact, it’s just.

A Tip from Meaghan, You Don’t Have to Do Things in Order

Nate: Um, I think we’ve kind of gone over everything. Was there any other study method or any tricks or tips you had that you felt like were just made a big difference for you in your study process?

Meaghan: One thing that did really help me, um, as I mentioned earlier, is I definitely am like a type A, like, like to be organized, so it was hard for me to move on to the next module without completing like the one before it, but sometimes there would be topics or modules [00:41:00] that I just really struggled with, like I feel like it might have been like some of like the cost basis stuff for inventory.

Like I just found doing those multiple choice so painful that I would like avoid studying just because I didn’t want to do them. But in my mind it was so hard to be like, well, you can’t move on until you finish them. But once I was like, you know, I asked that like I need to study, I just can’t deal with that right now. I would start like moving on to other modules and other like chapters or whatever before completing things. So if there are other people out there who feel like sometimes a topic is just really hard and it is creating so much friction that like you don’t even want to sit down because you can’t look at it, like just try skipping it and coming back to it at the end.

Once I started doing that, especially with like FAR and REG, it was really helpful because there were days where I would only study for like 10 minutes simply because I felt [00:42:00] so demotivated because I found it so hard. I was like getting all the multiple choice wrong and it was like, well, you know what, just don’t do it and come back to it later.

Cause when you’re at that finish line and when the test is literally in a week or two, you’re going to have more motivation to actually go back and finish that section than you do right now when you still have this very long road ahead of you the exam. So I think don’t be afraid to, like, do things out of order, is another suggestion I wish I had heard, because it really did help.

Nate: That is a, that is a really good tip, could be a slippery slope for some people, you know, like, Oh, this is too confusing. Let me just, you know, cause we deal.

Logan: Stick with that five modules in a day.

Nate: Well we deal with that exact thing with our, uh, with our coaching clients. And it’s hard to, some of the stuff, some of that’s like, that’s a very judgment based, um, strategy like it makes, that makes sense to me, you know, [00:43:00] you’ve, you’ve really tried, I guess, is the key thing.

Like you’ve spent time on it, done a bunch of questions, but it’s, uh, it’s kind of preventing you from studying in general. So yes, it does make more sense to just move on so that you can work on the other, you know, the other 100 topics that are going to be tested. Yeah. But.

Meaghan: And it also could be hard if the topics like build on each other so I guess it definitely was a judgment, judgmental thing where I was like, I need to know this. For everything else, it won’t work, but.

Nate: Yeah, there’s a lot of this is that is like kind of a, a judgment call that we can’t give, like in our PRO videos, we can’t give a, perfectly, like, every little element of the study process should be this, and then you can move on.

There’s all these little judgment calls that are just required. But then, on the other hand, there can be bad versions of those things. Anyways. Yeah, I do like that is a, that is a really good tip and no one’s ever [00:44:00] really articulated it that way before, yeah.

Logan: Yeah, you did it the right way because you you still were like, okay, I still need to go back to it. It’s not like you just avoided it and we’re like, yeah I’ll just hope that I don’t get a question on that on test day and you, you know, you’re guaranteed to get a question on it if you did, if you did something like that. Um, and another comforting thing too is, uh, and I, I, I felt like this too, uh, with some of the sections that, uh, you are still going to see some of it as you’re doing your cumulative review each day. Um, as long as you, I mean, I guess as long as you include it in your cumulative review.

So you might get a little bit of practice with it as time goes on, and then when you come back to it, you’ll have, maybe have a little bit more practice, a little bit more background from other sections you’ve done, and then, you know, you can still, you can learn it without it being this big roadblock, uh, preventing you from studying.

So I mean, yeah, there’s, it’s definitely, done right, which you did it right. I think that [00:45:00] it could, it’s a definitely a good strategy.

Nate: What, what did come back? What did coming back to it look like? Was that on your weekend study sessions or like clear at the end?

Meaghan: It would usually be like at the end, like I’ve done every other module. There’s nothing else I can do, but go back to that section. And I think like Logan said, just like that extra like background and perspective on the topic would usually just be very helpful because I think normally in accounting and with most topics, there are like kind of two ways to approach, like a problem or an answer.

So, you know, maybe like if it’s like the boot thing or whatever, there’s just like another way you can think about it, which would typically be pretty helpful, especially on the topics that’s like very complex and challenging.

Nate: Yeah.

Meaghan’s Process for Learning Difficult Topics

Nate: And so practically speaking, so you get to your final review, you still have these inventory costs things that are, you know, you know there, you’ve got to like deal with it. So would you just go back to that [00:46:00] individual lesson or in the test builder, would you just create like 20 questions from those topics or how did you actually like revisit it?

Meaghan: I would go back to that actual, like module where like all the multiple choice are. And like, I would finish them if I hadn’t finished them.

And like if the multiple choice, like the score on them was like really low, like 20, 30%, whatever, I would probably redo them. And then I would always try to do, um, how you can like set up those mini quizzes for areas, like specific areas. I would try to do a mini quiz or two on areas I struggled with or like they call them like adapt to you questions on Becker.

But I would advise not to do those like the day right before your exam because obviously they’re going to be your worst sections and you might not do well on them. And there’s nothing quite like getting like a 30, 40 percent the day before your exam. And you’re like, yeah, I do not need this confidence killer right now, but it is a useful tool.

Nate: Yeah. [00:47:00] Um, okay.

Top Tips for People Still Struggling with their Study Process

Nate: Well, I, we’re at the hour mark, so I don’t want to take up your whole morning, or I guess it’s one where you’re at. Um, so yeah, I guess the, the last question we always ask, even if it’s stuff we already covered, what would be your top two or three tips to people that are still struggling with the study process?

Meaghan: Um, I would say to make it your own, like, whether it’s changing, like whatever you need to do to get it, to make it work for you, do that. Don’t be afraid, um, it’s different for everybody, so whatever skills you use, like, do it that way. Um, don’t be afraid to, like, go out of order if you need to, and, uh, just, like, have confidence in yourself that you can do it.

Like, I think at the end of the day, just be like, maybe I’ll fail this one, but like, whatever, like, yes, it’s like a little bit of money, but like, you will pass it, and like, I think, I truly believe anybody can pass these exams, as long as they [00:48:00] have, like, the right toolbox, and like, a positive attitude. I think a positive attitude is also so, so important going into an exam, like, on exam day, just feel like you can do this, and that is a game changer.

Nate: Yeah, this is pretty much strictly about your strategies, um, you know, cause doing what I do or what we do, we’ve had so many people that have struggled for years, they just change a few, start doing a few of the right things with their study process and they just, then they pass. So it’s like, yeah, it’s not an IQ test.

It’s, uh, basically strictly about is your study process effective or not? I mean, so yeah, well, thanks Meaghan for doing the call. That was, it was fun to hear your whole story. And, uh, I really liked how you just pointed out the studying from your phone. You can still go and do things you like doing. You can still have a life.

This doesn’t have to be a, you know, a complete all consuming nightmare. Um, [00:49:00] so I’m glad you found our podcast and that it was helpful and congrats on being done.

Meaghan: Definitely. Thank you guys. And thanks for everything you’ve contributed to the CPA community. These podcasts and the tools are so helpful to so many people.

Nate: Yeah. Thank you. That’s awesome to hear.

Logan: All right. That was the interview with Meaghan and again, I thought it was awesome. It was amazing to see how she had that big shift from, scoring really low on her first exam. Waiting a few years. And then when she came back to it and she applied even just the strategies from the podcast and from the training webinar, she was able to pass two exams. And then with just the help of the additional notes from SuperfastCPA, able to pass the other two exams.

And it just goes to show how useful this podcast is, it shows that people can learn a lot from just listening to this podcast that will help them pass their exams.

I’m sure you liked this interview. And if you did like the episode, make sure to like it and leave a comment in the YouTube video or leave a rating in your favorite podcast app and make sure to share this podcast with anyone you know who is going through the CPA exam.

[00:50:00] Again, it is the best free training resource out there. Meaghan was able to use it to help her pass two of her exams. So, again, point this out to people you know who are going through the CPA exam.

Thanks for watching or listening and we’ll see you in the next episode.