By Abdi Ali CPA, MAcc
Imagine five little bosses running around the house demanding attention while you try to focus on your assignments. In the following blog post, Abdi Ali tells us how he prioritized his growing family, work, and CPA PEP studies. Abdi successfully wrote the May 2021 CFE. He is an Auditor with the Government of Alberta’s Ministry of Treasury Board and Finance and owns an immigration consulting business.
CPA PEP can be overwhelming sometimes, especially when you are juggling multiple responsibilities such as studies, work, and family. However, I believe you can accomplish your goal of becoming a CPA (or any goal) if you put in the effort and have a positive attitude.
I am a father of five children under the age of six, and four of them were born while I was in CPA PEP. As you can imagine, ninety percent of them were in diapers and needed attention most of the time! To succeed in the program, I had to manage my time strategically.
To minimize distractions and fully focus on one activity at a time—whether it was working on assignments or spending time with my family—I decided to rent a dedicated study space downtown, which eventually became the office for my immigration consulting business. (Side note: While completing my CPA PEP modules, I was also taking part-time courses to become an immigration consultant. I wrote the national exam right after completing Capstone 1—which was two months before the CFE—and recently received my license.)
I also had two phones: a work phone, which I took with me when I went to study; and a personal phone, which I usually left at home. Only my family and clients had my work phone number. My clients knew my availability and could only reach me at specific times. My wife had the autonomy to make certain family decisions without consulting me and would only contact me if it was urgent. She took my schedule very seriously and would independently manage our household and family crises when I was studying.
I recall getting home after writing Day 1 of the CFE and finding out that my son had had an accident on the playground. I stayed up all night (on the eve of Day 2) to watch my other children while their sibling was in the hospital. My wife brought him home at 5:00 am and by 6:00 am, I was on my way to write Day 2 of the CFE. This was not easy for someone like me who needs at least eight hours of sleep to be at my best. However, I believe I passed the exam because I was well prepared and had a positive mindset. I told myself: “you’ve got this; no matter what happens, you will pass.”
I cannot emphasize enough how important it is to pay attention to your physical and mental well-being in the program; know when to take breaks and recharge so you can feel refreshed when you sit down to study.
I relaxed by going for walks and rewarding myself with a good meal, a latte, or anything that helped me feel rejuvenated. I still went for prayers, called my friends, and stayed engaged in my community; although I spent less time on these activities.
To be honest, I don’t consider myself to be smart. Everyone’s strategy for success is different. Mine was to focus on one thing at a time and do it well. The key is to identify what works for you and implement it early in CPA PEP. By doing this and managing my time to meet my personal, family, and study needs, I was able to succeed in the program.
The views expressed in this post are those of the guest writer, Abdi Ali CPA, MAcc. Please refer to cpawsb.ca for the latest guidelines from the CPA Western School of Business.
