Bryce Welker doesn’t want you to just pass the CPA Exam; he wants you to crush it.

Despite passing all four sections of the exam himself on his first attempt, the San Diego CPA still felt the need to develop his own study guide, “Crush the CPA Exam,” to help candidates study smarter and pass with flying colors.

“I knew there had to be an easier way, and then something hit me: I had been studying the way my CPA review course tells everyone to study, instead of focusing on the ways that I learn best,” he recalls. Once he realized that, he started cutting out the sections of his review course that weren’t helping him and tailored his study habits to his own learning style — and passed the exam on his first try.

We recently sat down with Welker to discuss his experience preparing for the CPA Exam, and how the modern definition of a CPA is shifting towards producing more “fluid and dynamic accountants.”

What made you first want to become an accountant?

I was inspired to become an accountant by Phil Knight, CEO and founder of Nike and my favorite all-time entrepreneur. He was a CPA who used his skills to start a business, and I always knew I wanted to start a business, so I really admired him.

What was your inspiration behind creating “Crush the CPA Exam?”

Like many students, I struggled to find information online about how to navigate the convoluted CPA Exam process. While this was frustrating, it also opened my eyes to an untapped market in the world of accounting.

I created Crush the CPA Exam to provide students with all the pertinent info – from signing up, studying, and test-taking – to pass the CPA Exam, without losing their minds or sacrificing their relationships and happiness.

I made a lot of mistakes during my first half of studying, but after adjusting my approach, the whole process became significantly more manageable. It just made sense for me to share those tools and insights with others going through the CPA Exam process.

A big part of “Crush” is promising candidates to pass the exam on their first try – why do you think students have trouble with that? What sections, in your experience, do they find the most difficult?

I’m a mediocre accountant at best, but I was able to pass all four sections on the first try because I had a system and a process. But beyond that, I also had a lot of determination. On the foot of my bed was a big piece of paper that listed my goals, which were to get a $5,000 raise, get a promotion, and to eventually start my own business.

I think many students struggle to pass the exam on their first try because they forget their “why.” Why are you studying so hard for this? Why are you pouring all your money and time into it? Why do you want to be a CPA, essentially?

I get emails all the time from kids who [say], “I’m not motivated anymore. I’ve passed one test and failed another; I don’t know what to do.” From my experience, loss of motivation is the biggest killer of people’s success, and that Simon Sinek book, “Find Your Why,” was instrumental for me, as I believe it could be for other students.

As far as which sections are the most difficult, that completely depends on the person. For me, I knew I had a good handle on auditing, so I took that section first and did great. For others it might be FAR or REG. We all have relative strengths and weaknesses, but what’s important is how you recognize those aspects of yourself and react accordingly.

How do you feel about the exam today? What sections would you tweak and why?

The AICPA just updated the exam this year for the first time in a while, and they changed it to focus less on memorization and more on practical application. They now have a lot more case studies, where you read a problem that has a lot of data and it asks you 10 questions based on that data, which are applicable to a real-world situation or job that you would actually have. So I think they’ve done a great job with the new CPA Exam that came out this year and I honestly wouldn’t tweak a thing.

What do you look for in the accountant of tomorrow? What traits should tomorrow’s professional have (and start to work on now?)

For the longest time, accountants have been known as pencil-pushers and bean counters, very simple-minded and tied to the spreadsheet. But the world of accounting is very different now, and it requires real life problem-solving skills beyond what you can learn in a textbook or study guide.

I was recently using the Google keyword planner, which keeps track of how much a certain term is searched during specific time periods. As it turns out, the term “freelancer accountant jobs” has tripled in search volume over the last two years. So it’s clear the job definition is changing to breed more fluid and dynamic accountants, and that’s not even taking into account the way blockchain technology is bound to flip the whole profession on its head.

To be a valuable accountant in today’s marketplace, you need to maintain all the traditional CPA skills while also being a phenomenal problem-solver and critical thinker. Long gone are the days of relying on spreadsheets and calculations to do your job proficiently.

For more on “Crush the CPA Exam,” head to its site here.

“Accountants to Watch” highlights standout members of the profession who are striving to push accounting forward. If you or someone you know would like to be considered, send a submission to AcToday@sourcemedia.com with the subject line “Accountants to Watch.”

See these recent installments:

• Leadership expert Bridget Kaigler
• Incoming chair of the AICPA PCPS Technical Issues Committee Danielle Supkis Cheek
• Tax associate and blog author Darryl Ucheya
• Professor and accounting tech advocate Dr. Sean Stein Smith