Dear All,
I am writing this post not just to give a moral boost to my beloved community and friends who did not clear this time, but also to get all of them present to certain facts which i came to realise when i was in their position and think it will help them in someway during this tough time.
CA is not an end but a means to an end......!! Its true. When i was doing CA, my whole life moved around it. Day and night i had only one thought in my mind. That i am not a CA and i have to clear it. As every one of you does, i also studied for hours, days, months and years ( 11 Years precisely), to get the so called charismatic, facinating and enigmatic degree of Chartered Accountancy.
When i look back, i have one thought in my mind.....Was it worth it...!!! Hell Yes...!!! it was...!!! it was worth all the pain and suffering i went through these years. It is a nobel degree and i will cherish it all my life.
But one thing i will always regret. During this escapade of mine, i missed many many of the simple life events which would have made me way much happier than my clearing CA would have done. CA was my life, and my life was CA. Nothing else mattered, nothing else made me happy. And the more i dreamt of it, the more elusive it became. Looking back, now i feel that i really missed many other opportunities in life, which if i would have persued, i would have been a different man. Not that i am not happy being a CA, but the time and efforts i invested in pursuing it, don't do proper justification.
So, what could i have done better in these 11 years..!! or what could all you guys do now....!!! well its a very subjective question and each one has his own perception. But what i will share with you all is what i should have done, or rather i did eventually to come out of this vicious cycle of 6 months. Please note that it is my individual view and it may not be correct, but neverthless helpfull.
Start something else beyond 5 attempts:-
During my CA final years, as i said i only had one thing in mind, clearing CA. So i ignored or rather shut my attention to everything else i could have done side by side alongwith CA like some other degree, course, certification, job, practice etc. The ill effect of it was that when i actually went to get a job in the market, i had no degree, no qualification and no experience and i was merely a CA inter. It becomes even more frustrating to see that you are seen worthless in market if you are not having any degree or qualification or experience.
So, i would advice you guys that set a bench mark of 3 and 5 attempts in your career, beyond which you have to start doing something else. 3 attempts if no group is cleared and 5 attempts if atleast one group is cleared. If you have not cleared CA within 5 attempts, that doesn't mean that you do not know anything. Its just a matter of time. You have studied everything and you just need to brush up and revise properly. Don't waste another 6 months hoping that you will clear next time. Believe me, its not worth it. There are much more things to do. I am not saying to quit CA. Just start looking at other options as backup.
I did my SAP certification eventually, and cleared my CA later. But now i have dual qualification, and its very valuable. I have seen guys just wasting there time in studying and waiting for the results and again studying, hoping that this time they will clear the exam and again they fail and get nothing in hand. Please don't do that. Start looking at the bigger picture. CA is not an end but means to an end...!!!
Don't make CA an ego issue:-
The biggest mistake i did and which stopped me from moving ahead was that i made CA as an ego issue. "All my friends are CA and i am not. I will prove them all that i am also worth something....!! ". I guess most of us would have this thought in mind. All of us who have been suffering till now have ego as the single most driving factor for their suffering. We all make CA as a tool of our ego satisfaction. We want to prove to the world that we are something, and only by doing CA we can prove our worth. Guys....!! its not like that..!! I came to realise it quite later. Its really amazing and satisfying to be a Chartered Accountant and being called by people that ohhh you are a CA.!! but the moment we make it a prestige point, we have lost the game. Please keep in mind that CA degree is because of you, you are not because of CA degree. It cannot define you. CA is not an end but means to an end...!!!
Pursue your hobby if you have one:-
My biggest frustration was that i didn't have any specific hobby which i could pursue, just to get out of the mess i was in. But if you guys have one, like reading books, writing, music, painting etc. pursue it seriously. You will be much more happier and content with life.
Family is both a boon and a bane :-
I may be disliked by many on this comment, but i am writing what i feel. Family is both a boon and a bane while doing CA. I was lucky that my family supported me throughout my tough time and never made me realize that i was lower than someone else. But many a times parents and relatives say certain things which hurt us to the core. They start comparing you with others.They do not do it intentionally. They are both concerned and frustrated seeing us like this and want us also to succeed like other children. Guys...!! parents will never stop comparing you with others, you just have to accept the fact and move on. All i can suggest is that if you are frustrated with the nagging of your family members, its better to move out of the house for sometime and live in a calm and peacefull enviornment where you can think positively. Or have a proper conversation with them about what you are going through and what do you expect from them. Believe me, they will understand.
Resistance causes persitance, acceptance causes disappearance:
Human beings resist themselves in accepting failures and thats where the problem lies. Its OK to fail....!! People fail all the time....!!! But how we deal with our failures define us. Its just like you have lost someone close to you. You can't do anything about it but only to accept it and move on. Sitting and whinning about it won't help either. The more you resist your failure, the more your frustration will persist. The moment you accept it, your frustration is gone. I accepted the fact that i was a failure and moved on trying other things. It didn't bother me again. I was ok with it. And now when i look back, i don't see myself as a failure anymore. It was a phase of life which went by. It all goes by. Nothing stays permanant.
Finally, not clearing CA is more of a psychological problem than a real one. People don't die of hunger if they are not CA. Find other ways to be happy. But don't quit as well.. I never quit. though everytime i had a thought of quitting, but i fought with myself for 11 years and here i am.
Guys...!!! CA is not an end but means to an end...!!!
All the best to you all for your happy and booming future...!! I hope i have contributed in someway to your life.
CAclubindia
