Failed any ACA/Accounting Exams? Read this.

If at first you don't succeed, try, try again"

There's nothing positive in the immediate aftermath of finding out you failed an exam. Everyone I've spoken to over the years says the same thing - It's an awful experience.

All sorts of emotions take hold: Embarrassment, anger, dismay, frustration, sadness, guilt, and disappointment. Feeling like a failure, you've let yourself, your family, and (for some) your firm or company down. 

All these emotions are valid and understandable. But don't let them define you. These emotions, thoughts, and feelings are only temporary.

They will pass

Before going into sharing some guidance/pointers on what to do next, there are five things you must try and hold onto at this time:

• You are not alone. It may look that way, esp if you are on LinkedIn or speaking to some of your friends/peers, you train with.
• This will be exacerbated if you happen to read your LinkedIn feed and see some of your peers postng about thier success
• Being good at your job vs being good at passing exams are NOT the same thing
• Anyone can fail an exam. Anyone can have a bad day in an exam setting.
• What you do in an exam, pass or fail, won't define how you work and do your job.
• Comparison is a thief of joy - don't compare to your peers. Esp ones who have passed.
• Some of the best FDs/CFOs, Directors, Partners in finance also failed exams during their qualification journey!

I've failed my exam, now what?

The first thing to do is to take some time out; focus on your well-being.

As hard as it is, try to put aside your disappointment and focus on spending the festive break to rest, recharge and spend time with family, and friends.

(Or taking a break if this happened any time of the year).

The time out will do you good.

If you're reading this at another time of the year, you should prioritise some time to rest and focus on self-care.

Not only will it give you breathing space and time to think; you'll end up coming up with a much better action plan.

Next comes the reflection/actions part

This is the time where you need to be (brutally) honest with yourself. To understand what went wrong, so you can do better next time. Ask lots of questions:

• Could you have done more? Did my revision plan/schedule thorough enough? Did I balance my time between revision and work? Did I maintain positive sleep, diet, health & wellbeing routines in the weeks leading up to the exams.
• Are you in the right firm/company? The right service line? Are the demands put on you by your firm/team realistic?
• Resit at the very next opportunity or wait?
• If your firm allows it, and you feel the extra time out will help, then take the extra time.

Note: It's never been a race to how quickly you finish. Time taken to finish is never selection criteria by FDs/CFOs and hiring managers in finance 

• You may feel to get back on the saddle and resit it asap. Once you commit to that, it's time to go all in.
• Either way, once you have your exam date, then it's the time to work backwards and devise a plan.

Remember these:

• Using failure and channelling these negative feelings as a motivational tool is a potent to add to your armoury.
• If you have ambitious career aspirations, remember that many before you have gone through the pain of failing an exam (or more). Once they passed it, they continued moving up the career ladder quite rapidly.
• Not passed the first time? Or it took you 4, 5 or more years to qualify? Honestly, it's no big deal and will not adversely affect your career.
• In the long run, no one will ask how long it took you to qualify or if you passed the first time. You'll bjudged against your ability to do the job you're interviewing for, as well as your potential.

And most importantly:

• Comparison is a thief of joy - don't compare to your peers. Be happy for them, and know everyone is in their own lane and on their own journey.

I'm seriously considering my position

Don't knee-jerk to any decision. Give yourself the time/breathing space to decide the next action.

If your exam result has made you think twice about your current role, that's understandable. However, like the decision to retake the exam straight away or wait, don't rush about any decision.

If the worse happens, your hand has been contractually forced and you've been let go, it will fell like your world is being turned upside down. But honestly don't worry, you will find something else.

You have my word, having supported accountants for nearly 20 years, that help is at hand and you will have options.

If you need advice on any of the above, give me a call not only to come up with a plan of what to do next but to receive impartial and trusted advice and explore all options.

The ACA/Accounting qualification journey is not an easy one. Your hard work and persistence will pay off.

You got this.

"Fialure makes you stronger"