Life is full of unexpected turns. In my case, I reluctantly gave up my professional accounting career after a brief stint as staff auditor at one of the premier auditing firms in the Philippines in obedience to my parent’s wishes. It would be a twenty-year wait before I would return to the corporate world as an accountant in 2009. I believe God had planned all this for me after all.
2009 was the year when my CMA journey actually started. Though I had then often observed with envy that young professionals nowadays have multiple credentials in the form of acronyms annexed to their names, such as CPA, CMA, CFA, CFE, among others, I just wished hard that I could return to my younger days to add at least one of these prestigious credentials to my name but sadly I did not take the necessary steps to pursue that desire.
It was only in December 2013 when I was blessed enough to become connected via LinkedIn with Mr. Angel Secerio Jr., to whom I had communicated my not-so-wholehearted decision to take the CMA exam by September/October 2014. The reason for setting a long time frame for my exam preparation was because I actually wanted to take my review at a very leisurely pace. However, like a true angel who happens to be a CMA, Angel seems gifted in forecasting. His email response expressed concern over the long time frame I have set for myself and encouraged me to take the exam earlier, otherwise (reading between the lines) I might lose interest.
Fast forward four months, my review was so inconsistent that by then I had only finished reading less than 15 percent of the two-part reviewer I borrowed from a friend. It was about this time, March 20, 2014 to be exact, that Angel wrote me asking how my review was going and introduced me to the Wiley CMAexcel study material. I was very reluctant to buy the Wiley CMAexcel Learning System as it was quite expensive that it took me a full month to decide to purchase the material.
With the newly-bought Wiley material and with Angel’s vote of confidence, I resolved to push myself harder to be more consistent with my review. To achieve this, I registered for part 1 and part 2 exams on June 24, 2014. Registration for both exams on the same day created a lot of doubts in my mind. What if I am not ready by exam day? I also have to consider my work, which requires my full attention six days a week. Backing out should never be an option.
For the next eight weeks until exam date, I devoted an average of 2 ½ hours daily to the study of the Wiley CMA materials including answering all multiple choice questions, reading the electronic textbook and doing a few practice exams. Wiley is indeed well-worth its price as it has a more organized and comprehensive text with in-depth and clear explanations of all the terms and concepts I needed to learn, plus a test bank of over 2,000 MCQs. Furthermore, Wiley’s practice exams gave me a feel of what the actual exam experience will be like.
The exam day, June 24, 2014, arrived so fast; my two months of intensive study including taking the two-part exams itself seemed like a complete blur. Incidentally, the first person I informed after taking the CMA exams was Angel. Not surprisingly, when the result came out in August 12, 2014 the first to congratulate me for passing the exams was no other than Angel.
With this newly-obtained CMA designation, opportunities are literally opening before my very eyes despite my age. I guess there’s truth in the saying “where there is life, there is hope” and the expression “better late than never”. I could have regretted not taking that critical first step earlier.
(Image source: http://www.insightsfinancialreview.com/a-journey-blessed-by-god/)
Everything works out in God’s perfect time even though the unexpected turns may initially appear to be a complete deviation from one’s well-laid plans. When God appoints that it is time, He blesses us abundantly of even things that we do not ask for. The picture is testament to God’s faithfulness insofar as my CMA exams experience is concerned.
To God be the glory. Now the journey continues on.