FICPA CEO Shelly Weir says the profession survived its most serious deregulation fight yet. The threat isn’t confined to Florida. Full show notes here

Gear Up for Growth
With Jean Caragher
For CPA Trendlines

Florida CPAs came closer than many realized to losing the regulatory structure behind the CPA license, as a sweeping deregulation drive threatened the state Board of Accountancy and raised the possibility of a credential weakened to the point that “anybody could put those letters behind their name,” according to Shelly Weir, president and CEO of the Florida Institute of CPAs.

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“The elimination of the CPA license altogether – or having a license so degraded and devalued that anybody could put those letters behind their name – I don’t know what terrifies me more,” Weir tells Jean Caragher in this episode of Gear Up for Growth.

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PwC consultant and CPA exam coach says success depends less on being the smartest person in the room and more on managing time, building effective habits, and continuing after setbacks.

Accounting Conversations
With Chayton Farlee
Center for Accounting Transformation

The greatest obstacle standing between most CPA candidates and their licenses is not intelligence. It is time. That distinction matters, says Blake Carroll, CPA, a deployment consultant with PwC who helps aspiring CPAs develop the plans, habits, and mindsets they need to pass the exam.

“I truly believe anyone can pass it,” Carroll tells host Chayton Farlee on the Accounting Conversations podcast. “It’s not a test of intelligence. It is a test of endurance.”

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In the episode, Carroll and Farlee, an assurance associate at CliftonLarsonAllen, explore what makes the exam so difficult — and why the skills candidates develop while preparing for it can continue serving them long after they earn their licenses.

Carroll knows candidates must master a large volume of technical material, often while working full time, attending school, or managing family responsibilities. They must sustain that effort for months and sometimes longer, without the frequent deadlines and feedback that help structure a college course. The resulting pressure can lead candidates to question whether they are smart enough, moving quickly enough, or studying the right way.

“Anxiety can kill more CPA dreams than the difficulty of the material,” Carroll says.

Solo 401(k)s let you think beyond retirement.
Full show notes here.

The Concierge CPA
With Jackie Meyer

In this episode of The Concierge CPA, Dr. Jackie Meyer welcomes back David Podell, founder of Business Benefits Consultants, to unravel the evolving world of retirement planning and its strategic value for business owners.

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Podell explains the solo 401(k)’s advantages over simpler plans like SEPs or SIMPLEs, dives into common mistakes business owners make, and shares how smart structuring — including leveraging Roth contributions and defined benefit add-ons — can elevate retirement planning from compliance to strategy.

“Putting money in these retirement plans pulls money out of the business and creates a personal net worth," Podell says.

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