Latest / The Diary of a CFO / The #1 Mistake Keeping Controllers from Becoming CFOs

Transcript

The #1 Mistake Keeping Controllers from Becoming CFOs · The Diary of a CFO

0:00
Hello and welcome to season two of the Diary
0:03
of a CFO podcast. This is a podcast where finance
0:07
leaders get to share the lessons, the wins, the
0:10
challenges that shape their careers as well as
0:12
their organizations. I'm your host, Waseea Kamon,
0:15
and I'm so delighted to have you with me today
0:17
as we're going to talk about highlights of season
0:20
one, what to expect in season two. But first,
0:23
here's my professional bio. This is Wasiyah Kaman.
0:27
Wasiyah is a CPA, CMA, and holds MBA. She is
0:30
the CFO of Access to Capital for Entrepreneurs,
0:33
a Georgia -leading community development financial
0:35
institution, and has spent the past 15 years
0:38
working across the manufacturing, technology,
0:41
pharmaceutical, and nonprofit sectors in various
0:44
accounting and FP &A leadership roles. Recognized
0:48
twice as a 40 under 40 honoree by CPA practice
0:51
advisor, Wasia is also a keynote speaker and
0:54
a guest faculty of the Wharton Online FPA Certificate
0:57
Program. Her insights on leadership and strategic
1:00
influence have been featured in publications
1:02
such as The Wall Street Journal, Accounting Today,
1:06
and Strategic Finance Magazine. She actively
1:09
contributes to the accounting profession as a
1:11
member of the AICPA Women's Initiatives Executive
1:13
Committee. and the Future of Finance Leadership
1:16
Advisory Group. She also serves as a board member
1:18
and treasurer for Hope Incorporated, a nonprofit
1:21
organization supporting low income single parents
1:24
and pursuing higher education. She recently launched
1:27
a podcast titled The Diary of a CFO, a podcast
1:30
where finance leaders share the lessons, challenges
1:33
and wins that shape their careers as well as
1:35
their organizations. Wow, the first time I saw
1:40
that by I was like. Is that me? So I'm incredibly
1:44
grateful for the GHA marketing team, as well
1:48
as my amazing sound editor who has been with
1:51
me from day one, DB sound, recording over 30
1:54
episodes together for season one. Now, season
1:58
one was audio only. But what you may not know
2:01
is that I was actually recorded the full video
2:03
for every episode. So as we kick off in season
2:06
two, I want to take a moment and share with you
2:08
some of the highlights of those early conversations.
2:11
Check this out. Regardless of your company size,
2:18
executives account for no more than 1 % of all
2:21
employees, which means if you want to be part
2:23
of the 1%, you cannot think and act. like the
2:27
99%. I know that could be some harsh truth here,
2:31
but it's true. If you want to be part of 1%,
2:34
I like to say that your career is almost like
2:36
a venture or startup. You often have to put your
2:39
money first before other investors show up. So
2:41
there's a lot of things that you have to be willing
2:44
to do differently. And the earlier you know about
2:48
it, the easier it gets. Because as we go through
2:51
our career, We usually think about four keys,
2:55
right? What is going to open doors for us in
2:57
our career? Key number one, education. Number
3:00
two, technical skills. Number three, soft skills,
3:03
or other would say human skills. Number four,
3:07
experience. And we could even add a fifth key,
3:10
which is hard work. Okay? Let's say this first
3:14
door here. You probably opened it with the key
3:18
of education. And then maybe the other door.
3:20
You are able to open because of your technical
3:23
skills. Maybe it was because you were the best
3:26
person in using Excel, the one who better understood
3:28
the ERP system or any other things that really
3:33
helped you be that technical go -to person. And
3:36
then as you grow, you get experience, you get
3:39
soft skills, you realize, oh, leadership, this
3:42
is all good. And then you get to that yellow
3:45
door, you get to that executive door and you
3:47
try all your keys. And that's where I was stuck
3:49
a couple of years ago. I was a controller for
3:51
about five years and at some point our CFO left
3:56
and I was like, Oh, I'm controller. I'm a CPA.
4:00
They're definitely going to pick me to be the
4:01
next CFO. No. Okay. So I was like, okay. I went
4:05
back to my education key, right? I went back
4:07
and I went for my CMA. Even though I was already
4:10
a CPA, I'm going to do this and it's going to
4:13
help me open that door. Didn't work out. It's
4:16
the number one mistake we do when trying to get
4:20
into executive leadership. It is that when you
4:24
want to reach a higher level, that door may look
4:27
the same, but the locking system has changed.
4:32
You actually need a pin code, a three -digit
4:35
code to get you through presence, influence,
4:38
and networking. You need executive presence,
4:41
which is how you show up. You need influence
4:44
to go from one idea all the way to the execution
4:47
and you need networking. So the first clip I
4:50
want to share is from episode 10. That was a
4:53
recap of recording of a webinar I did back in
4:57
December, 2024. The title of the webinar was
5:01
the number one mistake keeping you from executive
5:04
roles and how to fix it. Now onto episode 25.
5:08
Secrets of Rockstar CFO Jack McAulough on developing
5:12
the next generation of CFOs. Now this clip is
5:16
where he shared very insightful advice for accountants,
5:21
specifically controllers who want to become CFOs.
5:24
I was a controller myself before becoming a CFO.
5:28
And on someone's resume, it may seem like a...
5:32
Very short, easy bridge to cross from controllers
5:37
to CFO, right? You, you start as staff accountant,
5:40
senior accountant, accounting manager, controller,
5:43
and the natural next step is CFOs. But that transition
5:47
isn't as straightforward. Check this out. I reached
5:53
out to CFO customer, and by that I mean CEOs,
5:58
investors. board members and other members of
6:02
the C -suite. And I asked, what do you value
6:05
in a CFO? And it actually led itself to a nice
6:08
little acronym. But what was interesting, almost
6:11
nobody said finance or accounting skills and,
6:14
you know, maybe mistakes, but it lent itself
6:17
to an acronym. It's pretty easy to remember.
6:20
So folks write this down, create. And these were
6:23
the sort of the formula for a good CFO. It's
6:26
collaboration, resiliency, empathy. A is agility,
6:31
agility, the ability to react quickly to things.
6:34
Transparency and empowerment. They said a good
6:36
leader of their team, someone who can develop
6:38
a world -class finance team. A few people mentioned
6:41
digital mastery because that relationship with
6:44
the CIO and, you know, you can't be a good CFO
6:46
without some digital expertise, right? But you
6:49
need a lot of skills. It's a very complex job
6:52
today. When I was it, it was best accountant.
6:55
Yes, yes. So what would you say? Controllers
6:59
now because I came also from a controller ship
7:01
background But I had a chance to work full -time
7:03
in FPNA for a couple years which helped me expand
7:07
into you know business partnering modeling understanding
7:11
scenario becoming more strategic but I I feel
7:14
the pain for a lot of controllers when they're
7:16
told you're not strategic enough and So that
7:19
next step is not guaranteed if I can say what
7:22
would be your advice to them? Yeah, first. I
7:25
don't know that that they're not strategic enough
7:28
as much as they're in a role that doesn't allow
7:31
them to be strategic enough? Yes. Because people
7:34
who aren't controllers don't respect and appreciate
7:38
how hard that job is. Oh gosh. And to lead a
7:43
team, and if it's a complex business, to produce
7:45
accurate and timely financial statements, to
7:48
make the trains run on time, that's so hard.
7:52
The role is demanding, and if you're faced with
7:54
a decision, you spend some time learning some
7:56
strategic stuff, or you're a public company and
7:59
the books have to be closed by the fifth day
8:01
of the following month, which you're gonna do,
8:02
right? Yes. So yeah, it's not that, but... There
8:07
are ways you can expose yourself to some things.
8:09
You know, find a CFO who wants to be a good mentor
8:11
to you, your boss. And also, I recommend, and
8:15
this is one of the things I love about you, is
8:17
you and I have taken this commitment seriously.
8:19
I think once you get to the CFO role, you owe
8:22
it to be a mentor to the next generation of leaders.
8:25
And I know that you take that very seriously.
8:27
And so, you know, find a CFO or somebody who's
8:30
a mentor that you don't work for. You know, it's
8:34
just find a CFO in a different but similar company
8:37
The other thing is when I wrote my first book
8:39
one of the woman I interviewed she was a controller
8:41
and Her mentor was a VP of sales She was like
8:47
29 30 at the time and kind of savvy, you know,
8:50
I we were both in our 50s Mm -hmm when I interviewed
8:54
her, but you know looking back I'm like I was
8:57
kind of you know, you're a little bit ahead of
8:58
the curve But what was the thinking and she said?
9:01
You know, not in an arrogant way, but she said,
9:03
I knew the debits and credits better than my
9:05
bosses did. She worked, she was a divisional
9:07
controller. She aspired to be a divisional CFO
9:10
and, you know, today she's a CFO, DCFO. But she
9:15
said, I wasn't going to get better at debits
9:17
and credits and even some finance. That wasn't
9:20
going to get me the job and it wasn't going to
9:21
make me better in the job when I got it. So she
9:23
thought if she could understand the business
9:25
from the perspective of a customer, why the customer
9:29
is interested in this company. you know, what
9:31
it means to be a customer, what we can do to
9:33
support sales growth. I thought that would make
9:36
me a better CFO when the time came. Now, these
9:40
were all great clips of how to get into the role
9:45
of CFO or executive leader. Now, assuming you
9:49
follow the advice. You probably wonder, okay,
9:53
now I got the role. What do I do from now? Glad
9:56
you ask. So here are a few more clips from Matt
9:58
Ziegler, Jessica McLean, and Matthew Harlan on
10:02
how to navigate the role and optimize your finance
10:05
function. Having the FP &A background, I've been
10:11
very quickly digesting business models and what
10:14
they need. That's not my clue here, so I think
10:16
I'm pretty good at it. But in some cases that
10:19
might be the second, you know, hurdle is if you
10:22
don't understand and you can't articulate, if
10:25
you couldn't stand up at a customer conference
10:27
as a CFO and talk about the business and talk
10:31
about the value and talk about the products,
10:33
then you shouldn't be the CFO. You need not be
10:37
able to speak for an hour, but you should be
10:39
able to speak for at least 10 minutes on why
10:42
this company drives value, what it means, why
10:46
the customers come back, and why do they like
10:49
them. what business, you know, what they get
10:51
out of it. So I've been trying to go to customer
10:53
conferences and events. And again, I'm lucky
10:56
in that this company has those kinds of things.
10:59
Not every, obviously not every customer, every
11:01
company does. You might have to get on sales
11:03
calls and maybe you don't even announce yourself
11:06
as the CFO, right? Cause that sends a whole different,
11:09
you know, tone of the conversation, of course,
11:11
if you're on a customer call, right? But you
11:14
have to listen to the... what the customers are
11:16
saying and hear what the challenges that they're
11:18
trying to face are. So you fully understand what
11:22
this business's purpose is, right? Achieve more
11:25
of that thing, right? Or question, are we achieving
11:28
what we thought we were achieving, right? So
11:31
that sort of business understanding and hearing
11:34
from the customers and what they want, I think
11:36
is really important. And every business is different
11:39
in how you would accomplish that, that you got
11:41
to find a way to do it. Jessica McLean. When
11:47
you're able to let go, if you're able to empower
11:51
your staff, they're engaged. That gives you the
11:54
space and the opportunity to do the higher level
11:57
thinking, the higher level work. You know what?
12:00
This is why you're here. This is why we hired
12:02
you. So let it go. That's something being in
12:05
leadership is you have to be flexible and adaptable.
12:08
and understand your staff, understand who's working
12:11
for you and how they operate. You have some staff,
12:13
you can give them and tell them this needs to
12:15
be done by Friday, and by Thursday it's done.
12:19
And it's done almost perfectly. Others do need
12:21
some more help, some need guidance, and there's
12:23
nothing wrong with that. But it is up to you
12:25
as a leader to understand. that additional guidance,
12:30
that additional coaching, that additional support
12:32
is needed. So you can kind of pull that out of
12:35
them. And so that's when you take the time to
12:37
get to know the staff that work for you, when
12:40
you take the time to get to know what drives
12:42
them, what motivates them, what agitates them,
12:46
what fuels them and what drains them, then you're
12:49
able to... give the work that, you know, empowers
12:52
them and fills them up and gives them a sense
12:55
of fulfillment and purpose in the work that they're
12:57
doing. But I'm going to put that on leadership.
12:58
That's where it starts. Matthew Harlan. I think
13:05
Treasury kind of gave me a springboard to think
13:08
about, wow, I'm more diverse as a leader. I have
13:11
a more diverse skill set. It's more than just
13:13
interpreting the P &L and financial statements
13:15
or giving a presentation on free cash flow. I
13:18
can understand go -to -market strategy. I can
13:20
understand sales. I can understand partnerships.
13:21
And so I think that gave me a view or maybe even
13:26
a mirror to say, I can do a lot more. And I think
13:29
sometimes us finance people, we don't give ourselves
13:32
enough credit to kind of expand our wings. You
13:35
just want to follow these like very strong trench
13:38
marks of, okay, I'm going to go from GL account,
13:42
it's a controller. controller to chief accounting
13:44
officer. And that's like all I can do that we
13:46
get stuck at some point where we can't see anything
13:50
beyond the ceiling that we've created for ourselves.
13:53
And so I think continuous learning is one something
13:55
that's helped me is like not putting myself in
13:58
a box of I'm just an X, but allowing myself to
14:01
develop as a leader, as a professional, and then
14:03
also taking risks, right? Treasury is really
14:07
known for taking risks with measure. We're prudent.
14:09
We're not hedge funds. We want preservation of
14:12
capital, but also we want to increase utilization
14:15
of cash. And so that requires some level, not
14:19
a lot, some level of risk taking. And so I think
14:22
I just learned like taking risk is good as long
14:25
as you kind of measure your range of possibilities
14:27
and outcomes and just do it, right? Like everyone,
14:30
we all have one life to live. We don't have a
14:32
lot of time here. And so you have to decide who
14:35
you want to be, how you want to shape the world,
14:37
and what skills you need to get there and just
14:39
go for it. Yeah, I think it's so dynamic. No
14:42
day is the same. There's a lot of context switching,
14:45
which I think kind of has helped maybe create
14:47
a stronger business athlete where you need to,
14:50
you know, one conversation you're talking about,
14:52
you know, strategic vision of the company or
14:54
another conversation you're talking about product.
14:57
Well, another conversation. You're talking about,
14:59
you know, go to market strategy and content,
15:02
another conversation, you're talking about the
15:03
sales process. And so I think being able to be
15:07
versatile across many different mediums of a
15:09
company has allowed me to have a greater appreciation
15:13
for how companies work. I think a lot of times
15:16
within finance, you always hear this like, why
15:18
can't they do X and why can't we get this number
15:20
to be where we want it to be? And sometimes we
15:22
don't have appreciation for what the sales team
15:24
is doing, right? We don't have an appreciation.
15:27
marketing is doing. And so I think being able
15:29
to see it from this view has allowed me not only
15:32
to deepen my understanding, but also to have
15:34
a greater appreciation. Like some of this stuff
15:36
is hard, right? And it can't just be solved.
15:38
Like we can't just go chase the numbers, but
15:41
finding ways to maybe get more collaborative
15:43
with teams in order for us to get the output
15:45
that we desire. If you think about the concept
15:47
of an athlete, you're always kind of working
15:50
on your craft. And if you're playing a sport,
15:53
You're not always doing the same thing, right?
15:55
Let's just use basketball for an example. There's
15:57
offense, defense. There's team collaboration
16:00
in terms of running plays. There's the coach
16:02
on the sideline giving the plays. There's the
16:05
distraction of the audience. And so there's so
16:07
many things that need to be taken into account
16:09
and still you are required and you are looked
16:12
at to work within a system or a player. And so
16:17
if everyone on the court was trying to score
16:19
a bucket at the same time, there'd be chaos.
16:21
And so the reason why I like kind of the use
16:24
of the word athlete is you have to understand
16:26
your place in time, right? What is my role in
16:28
this company? And then doing that to the best
16:31
of your ability. So for example, if you are a
16:32
rebounder and you're not necessarily going to
16:35
be the best score on the team, go out and be
16:37
the best freaking rebounder that you can be.
16:40
That's going to help your team win. And I think
16:42
when we think about ourselves that way, we don't
16:44
have to be all things, right? We don't have to
16:46
do all things. We can just execute really well
16:48
on the tasks that we've been given. It's going
16:51
to help the broader context of the team when.
16:54
And so I think a lot of times you have people
16:57
that want to be heroes of every function and
16:58
they start to bleed over because ultimately maybe
17:01
they want to be, you know, like you one day in
17:03
a CFO and they think the way to get there is
17:04
to just take the ball and ball haul, but it actually
17:08
team. And so new ways to deepen in your, in your
17:12
expertise, I think allows you to be called upon
17:15
for other areas. Right. I think thinking sometimes
17:17
of yourself and your profession. in a sense of
17:20
athletics really helps you understand what's
17:22
going on and understand how to be successful.
17:25
Of course, I couldn't include every single clip
17:28
from every single episode. So if you hadn't had
17:31
a chance to catch up on the past episodes, I'd
17:33
definitely encourage you to do so. They are absolutely
17:36
worth revisiting. Now, episode one, I do encourage
17:39
you to check it out because it shares a story
17:42
about my journey to the CFO seat and why I started.
17:46
this podcast, The Diary of a CFO. Now on to season
17:50
two. You will get full video episodes and I'm
17:54
also opening the doors, The Diary of a CFO off
17:58
the record. This is a new interactive newsletter
18:00
that will be on Substack. I'll drop the link
18:03
below and It's where I'll answer the questions
18:06
we don't always get to answer on LinkedIn. The
18:09
behind the scenes decisions, the in -between
18:11
moments, it doesn't always fit the podcast. I
18:14
tested the idea a little back in episode 23 and
18:18
the response was incredible. Here's a quick snippet.
18:24
Do you have work -life balance? I get that one
18:28
a lot, especially because I'm still active on
18:31
LinkedIn. I'm doing this podcast. We know that
18:34
CFRL is no joke. You've probably read some job
18:36
descriptions and yes, what's on the job description
18:40
is real. Now for me, I don't believe in work
18:44
-life balance. I believe in work -life harmony.
18:49
Where your work and your life come together for
18:52
you to have a rewarding and fulfilling life.
18:55
For example, what I learn on the job allows me
18:58
to do other things that fulfill me because I
19:01
don't believe that fulfillment all come from
19:04
one place I also understand and came to realize
19:08
that really corporate America was not built for
19:10
you to be fulfilled it was built to maximize
19:13
shareholders wealth and so trying to get all
19:18
your accomplishments all your fulfillment out
19:20
of your work to me is a recipe for burnout and
19:24
disillusion at some point in disappointment so
19:28
For me, it's that work -life harmony that allow
19:31
me to be my best self. So when I learned more
19:34
about accounting finance, for example, I volunteered
19:37
with the SBA as a score volunteer, and that is
19:40
to provide free mentoring to small business owners.
19:43
And one of the business owners I was able to
19:46
mentor had a lash salon. She was doing lashes
19:50
and I was able to give her advice for free. We're
19:54
meeting one hour a week or even sometimes 30
19:57
minutes every other week just to check on her
20:00
and give them and allow her to grow her business.
20:03
That provided me with, it just feels great to
20:07
be able to help in that way. Similarly, now I'm
20:10
on the board of HOPE, an organization that helps
20:13
single parents complete their education degree.
20:16
And I've been a treasurer for almost three years.
20:18
And I work on the budget, the strategic plan
20:21
with the COO. I do it free because I'm able to
20:25
have a job that pays me so I can do other things
20:28
with that knowledge to really drive things that
20:32
gives me again energy and fulfillment. And so
20:35
I'm able to learn from what I do at Hope, bring
20:38
it to ACE because both are not for profit organization.
20:42
And I'm able to also learn from ACE and bring
20:44
it to Hope and in return make things better.
20:48
um, both at work and in the lives of people,
20:51
because really at Hope, for example, we have
20:54
participants that come in, sometimes is former
20:57
stay at home mom that divorced and now need to
21:01
go back and get an education. We had one that
21:04
graduated not too long ago and shared her beautiful
21:07
story at our gala we did, yeah, this month in,
21:11
in March. And she said that she went to the grocery
21:15
store. and her daughter wanted carrots. And she
21:19
said, I didn't have the $1 to buy her carrots.
21:22
Now granted, she was living in the servers in
21:25
the Atlanta area in Buford. And so if you know
21:29
this area, you know it's a very nice area, but
21:32
she had to let go because she had been to stay
21:35
at home for 10 years. She had to start over.
21:38
Now fast forward. She's a registered nurse. She
21:41
has an own place and she's able to afford all
21:44
the carrots. But hope was there in that bridge
21:47
to provide assistance for rent, assistance for
21:51
child care. and also with groceries and other
21:54
programs we have wrapped around services. And
21:57
to see that growth, I mean, it's so rewarding,
22:00
so fulfilling to do that. And to me, that's what
22:03
part of work -life harmony is about. Because
22:08
I don't think that you can completely turn off
22:10
work. and just spending time with your family
22:14
or turn off what you're going on in your family
22:16
and do work. Like, you're not a switch. To me,
22:19
you're a human being. So to me, I try to have
22:23
my life optimized so I don't show up grumpy at
22:26
work and I try to have my work optimized so I
22:29
don't show up grumpy when I'm having dinner with
22:31
my family because those things will spill over.
22:34
If you listen to the episode I had with Cindy
22:37
Wilson, the former CFO of Kickstarter, she said
22:40
it's so beautiful. is a lifestyle. And so to
22:43
me, it's about being disciplined with the choices
22:46
that I make in my life balance, if I can say,
22:51
and my work balance. And that means having and
22:54
maintaining the right standards and the right
22:57
boundaries. Yes, I'm incredibly disciplined with
22:59
all these things. The only thing I think in mana
23:01
that I'm not disciplined with is fitness and
23:04
food. But everything else, I'm good. So for example,
23:09
I think the choice of your spouse is important.
23:12
I Was willing to stay single my parents were
23:16
divorced and I was like if I don't find the right
23:18
guy I'm gonna say single because I have I was
23:20
always driven I was always ambitious and I knew
23:24
if I was going to marry will have to be with
23:27
someone that's secure with themselves That can
23:29
be a true partner when we're raising kids Because
23:32
I'm not gonna shrink or dim my light to make
23:35
somebody else feel better And so when I met my
23:37
husband, we'll be married now 15 years, he was
23:39
like, yes, I can do this. And so he's my best
23:43
friends, my supporter, love him so much. He supports
23:46
me. Whatever I'm doing, whatever ventures I'm
23:50
getting or troubles I'm getting myself into.
23:53
I cook, he cleans. I drop off the kids in the
23:56
morning. He helps with the homework when they
23:58
come in the afternoon. So we are a true team
24:01
because again, that concept of work -life harmony,
24:06
because sometimes we think of work -life balance
24:07
and we think, oh, I can work. 40 hours 20 hours,
24:12
then I'll be fine because I have all these time
24:14
for other things, but you could work 20 hours
24:17
a week But if you have the wrong spouse, you
24:21
will still feel miserable If you have so much
24:24
chaos in your home, you will still feel miserable
24:26
even if you were 20 hours a week so to me it's
24:29
really that idea of work life harmony and so
24:34
just like at life I was disciplined and thank
24:37
God for my husband at work I know I cannot do
24:41
80 hours a week. And so I block my time. I let
24:45
people know ahead of time. I'm going to be off
24:48
when I'm off. I, even if I see a text or a notification,
24:51
I do not respond because the reality is you train
24:57
people to treat you a certain way. Because I've
25:01
seen people who are not director, don't even
25:04
get the CFO and they, they work so many hours.
25:08
Now it is fine the first years of your career
25:11
when you young and you don't have much responsibilities
25:14
I did that I did that our long hours when I was
25:18
like 22 23 24 25 26, but then You have to be
25:23
careful not to make it a habit. Otherwise you
25:27
will always feel burnout, overworked and underpaid
25:30
regardless of the company you work for, regardless
25:33
of the boss you have, regardless of your title,
25:37
whether you are analyst or CFO, you will always
25:40
feel that way if you don't know how to set boundaries
25:42
because unconsciously you are training people
25:44
to treat you that way. And so again, This has
25:48
worked for me for quite some years now. I block
25:52
my time in the morning. Now I'm starting to block
25:54
my time in the evening because sometimes I'm
25:56
in so many meetings. I'm like, okay, let me call
25:59
that time to do it. And I oftentimes show offline.
26:04
I actually turn my status on Teams as offline,
26:08
even though I'm still working, but I don't want
26:10
to be disturbed, right? And I want to show also
26:13
the right signal. I don't do it all the time,
26:15
but... You know, sometimes you have, we in finance
26:18
and accounting, we know how we can get. So back
26:20
to the questions, Waseea, do you have work -life
26:23
balance? My answer is this is not applicable.
26:26
I do have work -life harmony. I have a job I
26:30
love, the people I truly enjoy working with,
26:33
where I feel I'm actually... operating within
26:36
my full potential, it allows me to do this podcast.
26:40
And that tells you I'm not working 100 hours
26:42
a week, right? Because I have time to do this,
26:44
to do speaking, to coach, and also most importantly,
26:47
to enjoy my kids and spend quality time with
26:51
my whole family. As you can tell, season two
26:54
will be amazing. Full video, episode, audio,
26:57
so you can listen on the go and... of course,
27:01
a new space for deeper conversations over on
27:03
Substack. As always, you will get the honest
27:05
real word insight from CFOs and strategic business
27:08
partners because I'm so picky about the people
27:10
I bring on because I want people who have been
27:13
in the seat, people who have worked closely with
27:15
CFOs, people who work closely with CFOs right
27:18
now, whether it's auditors or... funders who
27:21
are actually creating new tools to make the life
27:24
of CFOs and financing easier. So if you're new
27:28
here, go ahead and subscribe. And if you want
27:30
to be part of the off the record newsletter,
27:33
the link is below. Now, that's it for today's
27:37
episode of the Diary of a CFO. Thank you so much
27:39
for tuning in. If you enjoyed the show, don't
27:41
forget to like, review, subscribe and share with
27:44
others. The official website of this podcast
27:46
is thediaryofacfo .com. That's where you'll find
27:49
all the episodes, all the bios and social media
27:53
links of the guests I'm bringing on. And if there's
27:57
any topic you'd like me to cover, simply email
28:00
me at ask at thediaryofacfo .com. Thanks again
28:03
for being here. I'm super super excited for what's
28:06
coming next. I'll see you soon.