This week’s guest JUST started his journey to begin his own firm.

Yuri is joined by Kendall Castro, who, as of a few months ago, recently became a business owner. Together, they break down Kendall’s path to starting his own business, the one critical moment that kicked everything off and most importantly:

What his experience has been so far.

From pricing, adding new business and making more money – to concerns, burnout and cost of entry. Yuri and Kendall cover every aspect of his launch and the months that have followed.

Additionally they discuss larger topics within the industry such as educating clients, burnout and more.

If you’re on the edge of beginning your own entrepreneurial journey, this is the perfect episode to get you pointed in the right direction.

Episode Highlights:

0:00 - Intro

0:37 - Episode open

0:51 - Kendall’s background + entry in the profession

3:22 - Kendall’s ‘itch’ to go out on his own

5:42 - After being let go / before launch

8:14 - Educating, “being a one man army”

11:32 - Getting started, bringing people in, pricing

16:00 - Cost of entry, collecting money and software

19:38 - Balancing year 1 w/ future scaling

21:39 - The firm’s trajectory, adjusting client volume

26:25 - What Kendall’s days look like

28:32 - Kendall’s advice to new business owners

30:10 - Getting clients, how Kendall plans to scale

31:59 - Wrap-up, where you can find Kendall

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ABOUT HOST YURI KAPILOVICH

Yuri, aka #thefuncpa, has been in the accounting profession for over 15 years and has seen, first hand, the challenges the profession brings. After seeing that no firm was fitting the bill, Yuri set out to do things his own way with his firm K&A and the journey began with LinkedIn posting at the front end.

Yuri is proud to bring you #thefuncpa podcast highlighting the fun and all the amazing opportunities our profession can bring us all.

CONNECT WITH YURI KAPILOVICH

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ykapilovich/

Website: https://www.thefuncpa.co/

CONNECT WITH KENDALL CASTRO

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kendall-castro-cpa-realtor/

Website: https://castrocpaadvisory.com/

Many guests on The Fun CPA have left their jobs, some of them at the ‘Big 4’ to begin their own business, or move to something tax and accounting adjacent.

This week’s guest is a little different! Blake Carroll works for a ‘Big 4’ firm, PwC, and has done so for the past 8 years.

As a Deployment Consultant for PwC, Blake is responsible for facilitating the development of high-performing teams by supporting workload balancing, enhancing team effectiveness, and fostering career growth opportunities for employees.

Blake joins Yuri to share his view on climbing the career ladder in one of the biggest and most competitive firms in the country – as well as what new CPAs can do to advance further and get paid more.

He also shares a sneak peek into how PwC is approaching the pipeline issue, his experience with scheduling, drawing boundaries, saying “no” at work, and much more!

For those of you looking to stay with a big firm for the start, or even majority of your career – this episode will give you a valuable look into what you can expect on an entry-level, all the way to senior roles.

Episode Highlights:

0:00 - Introduction

0:35 - Episode open

1:13 - Meet Blake

3:08 - Blake’s early career

6:49 - The process of being promoted (when you’re starting out)

11:34 - Scheduling, saying “no”

17:20 - Promotion and pay raises

20:14 - Are bigger firms concerned about pipeline?

23:01 - AI and Credentialling

25:45 - Coaching for the CPA exam

29:41 - Social media and comparisons

32:05 - “The sooner you can start the better”

35:01 - What has changed now (trackers and studying)

38:35 - Wrap up: Where you can find Blake

ABOUT HOST YURI KAPILOVICH

Yuri, aka #thefuncpa, has been in the accounting profession for over 15 years and has seen, first hand, the challenges the profession brings. After seeing that no firm was fitting the bill, Yuri set out to do things his own way with his firm K&A and the journey began with LinkedIn posting at the front end.

Yuri is proud to bring you #thefuncpa podcast highlighting the fun and all the amazing opportunities our profession can bring us all.

CONNECT WITH YURI KAPILOVICH

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ykapilovich/

Website: https://www.thefuncpa.co/

CONNECT WITH BLAKE CARROLL

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/blake-carroll-cpa-03690b98/

Website: https://www.blakecarrollcoaching.com/

Michael Eckstein isn’t like most accountants.

He doesn’t talk like most accountants. Or think like them.

And he certainly doesn’t approach building a business the same way as them, either.

In this episode, Yuri and Michael sit down to discuss topics big and small – from client horror stories and biggest tax “beefs” to how Michael started his firm and why he built it around one central thing.

Additionally, they tackle some hot topics that come up again and again in LinkedIn and elsewhere: minimum fees, taking on more (or less) clients and designing your business around your life (and not the other way around).

Episode Highlights:

0:00 - Intro

0:36 - Episode beginning

3:16 - Mike’s journey and background

9:14 - What made Mike a “travelling accountant”

11:02 - Taking on clients and protecting your time

15:39 - LinkedIn, tech and getting business

18:11 - LinkedIn cringe stories

21:20 - Minimum fees, setting it and increasing it

26:43 - Mike’s goal for LinkedIn

34:45 - A day in the life of Michael Eckstein

37:46 - Biggest ‘beef’ with taxes

43:35 - Perfectionism in the industry, value-pricing

51:41 - Network building, client horror stories

1:03:11 - Wrap-up

ABOUT HOST YURI KAPILOVICH

Yuri, aka #thefuncpa, has been in the accounting profession for over 15 years and has seen, first hand, the challenges the profession brings. After seeing that no firm was fitting the bill, Yuri set out to do things his own way with his firm K&A and the journey began with LinkedIn posting at the front end.

Yuri is proud to bring you #thefuncpa podcast highlighting the fun and all the amazing opportunities our profession can bring us all.

CONNECT WITH YURI KAPILOVICH

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ykapilovich/

Website: https://www.thefuncpa.co/

CONNECT WITH MICHAEL ECKSTEIN

LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/michael-eckstein

Website: https://restingbusinessface.com/about/#about