Confidence is Key

Confidence is key. That's the word on the street, and basically that's what it all boils down too. I've been having some great study days. I have 11 days until my test and I'm ecstatic that I still have so many days to do a second, third and maybe fourth review (yes I'm that anal).

My confidence today is from corporate taxes. When I first took REG this was my weak area. I can honestly say now looking back that I don't know how I got the grade I did when I first took REG because I have had so many A'ha moments.

I'm feeling good now. I'm not a tax expert but I feel like I know enough to teach someone who didn't know a thing about taxes.

I think Becker and Wiley supplement each other well. Becker has some flaws but thats where Wiley picks up.

My confidence boost is also coming from my new found Kaplan audio (thanks to Miss Gina). This to me is 10 times better than flash cards ( and cheaper).

I'm adopting the attitude of getting excited about studying. I have to look forward to studying. If I don't I won't have the attitude necessary to succeed. I try to accomplish everything at work pertaining to outside business before I get home, so that when I get home its all about CPA.

I'm so focused right now I can't contain it.

One Question At A Time

Reg is in 13 days and I'm feeling Ok. I don't feel 100% but I feel better then I did a month ago.

I've been working tons and tons of questions. My plan is to continue working on entities until the end of the week. This weekend (Saturday and Sunday will be B-Law and Individuals). Monday and Tuesday will be a review of all the areas that make me nervous. Wednesday will Friday will be tons of questions and Saturday will be D-DAY!!!

I did work one half of a simulation today on Corp taxes and it was fairly difficult! I'm going to have to comb through that one again.


After REG I'm jumping right into BEC AGAIN.

After BEC is FAR (shivers) and then

Audit (Finally).

I'm learning to tackle my weak areas effectively and learn how to better manage my study time. I set daily goals and I follow a schedule. In the past I wasn't as organized or determined. According to my previous plan I was already supposed to be a CPA. But God had another plan.

I'm not even thinking of what if I don't pass because I can't let those thoughts consume my brain.

I must say that I have never felt so motivated in all of my months of studying. A large part is due to my study buddies at #twudygroup on twitter.

REG Final Review Calendar

It's Official.....I've made my final review calendar.

My promise to myself is that THIS CALENDAR COMES FIRST
ALL ACTIVITIES ARE SECONDARY UNTIL FEB 26TH
I WILL COMPLETE ALL TASKS ON THIS CALENDAR
I WILL NOT BE SATISFIED UNTIL I HAVE A THOROUGH UNDERSTANDING OF THE TOPICS IN REGULATION

The Power of Support

I found this great article on line regarding effective study habits. You can check it out here . One of the many reasons why I decided to take Becker live was so that I could meet like minded people who were also trying to conquer the beast. I’ve met a couple of people in my class but I’ve also met some friends online. It’s so important to have a good support system because frankly many people just don’t or never will get it. So far I’ve met so many great friends online who are such an inspiration as well as a source of encouragement. One of my goals other than passing this test is to be able to provide the same support to others who are trying to pass. I can’t wait until the day when I can write about my whole exam experience.

Tonight is going to be a study group on twitter. It’s amazing how technology allows so many of us to communicate when we are all over the country and the world. A study group doesn’t necessarily have to be face to face but it should consist of people who are motivated and willing and able to share knowledge and encouragement.

Here’s to studying and becoming a CPA!!

I'm Not Going to Leave You Hanging

Ok....so not much of an update....but I promised that I would be a better blogger....

Studying is going good. Becker's recommendation is so true that for every hour of lecture they recommend 2-3 hrs ourside. So that's a total of 16-24 hours outside on my own of studying.

This past week I studied about 17 hrs outside of class and I did around 180 MCQ's and 2 sims.

This week my goal is to get atleast 20 hrs in. I'm not a night owl so its hard for me to stay up when I'm tired. I'm going to attempt to start getting up 45 mins to 1hr earlier every morning to get some studying in (crossing fingers).

Other than that everything is going good.

Oh, but there is one thing on my mind. I have identified my fears with this exam. My biggest fear is that I will study and study and just won't pass. I know that sounds crazy, but it is what it is. I'm just wondering for those who passed, what did you do to make sure you passed or when did you feel confident that you really could do it? What is your method for studying? My method of studying is to read and re read and then basically speak what I learned. I speak it as if I'm teaching what I learned to someone. I then answer MCQ's and read the right and wrong answers.

Does that mean I'm giving up. Definitely not! I just want to be a CPA!

OMG!!!

In the midst of my productivity I got hit with the FLU!!! Yes I sure did.

And I got hit hard. I've been out of it since Thursday but I managed to drag myself to 8 hours of Becker lecture today. My table today looked like a medical office. I had my orange juice, tea, oatmeal, Sudafed, tissue, mints, halls, and anything else that could get me through the day.

As I'm typing this now I'm feeling a bit dizzy but I made it. I plan on resting tonight and making a spreadsheet to track my progress. Tomorrow and Tuesday its R2 and Wednesday and Thursday its me and R3 baby!!! ( I have to psych myself up...LOL).

The Becker Software is amazing and I feel that the structure is what I needed.

Granted, today after class I felt lost in some areas, but that's because I haven't picked this up in a couple of months. The good thing is that I've got some heavy duty notes that I had from my last attempt so I can use those and build upon them.

Ok I'm off to enjoy some free time for about an hour and then its off to bed.

p.s. Special Thanks to Miss Gina (Hey Girl) and Kookie28 (Hey Girl) for wishing me well while I was whining like a baby while I was miserable and stuck in the bed while sick. You are definitely appreciated.

I'm Back at it!!!!!!!!

The pity party is over and the laziness is gone. I'm ready to pass!

That's my mindset.

I'm so happy I took my almost two month break off from studying.

I started my live Becker classes yesterday and I must say that I liked it.
I thought that the fact that I have to be wide awake and ready to study and take notes on a early Sunday morning would be hard, but honestly I really absorbed a lot because that is the only thing that I'm doing at that time. I'm not being distracted one bit.

I've already answered over 50 questions today and I only have one more section of questions to do (and this is only Monday). I'll be more than ready by next class to learn something new.
I've created a study plan via the passmaster software and I think it will really help me get through the test.

My plan is to use my Wiley Test Bank and PassMaster Questions. That's it! No other material. I don't want to spend my time trying to decipher the explanations between different materials. If Becker says its blue than its blue!


Other than that everything is great with me. I'm just happy that I was able to get over myself and my pity party. I believe that this journey is making me a better Woman and really showing me what it takes to be successful.

(p.s. I promise to start updating frequently).