When I tell people I'm going on a road trip with pretty much two strangers, and we're going to be interviewing auditors, they think, why would you do that to yourself, but I'm actually really excited to embark on this trip with the Da'rell and Sobia.

>> 21 days across country in an RV that I'm going to have to learn how to drive and interviewing elite professionals.

The trip is going to be quite an experience.

>> We're all transitioning out of college and we all have doubts and fears about what's coming next.

My hopes for the road trip are that we'llwalk away knowing that we picked the right thing, that we are on the right track.

[MUSIC] >> Did you have a good day?

>> Yes.

>> You had fun?

>> You had fun?

>> I want stickers.

>> You gotta buckle up.

We are all good.

[MUSIC] My life right now is pretty hectic.

But it's a choice that I made.

[MUSIC] Being a dad Is one of those things where you're never really ready for it, but it's one of the most fulfilling things that somebody could ever do.

It's not really about you anymore at that point.

You kind of have to live your life for them.

By the time I graduated high school,I had a plan of what I wanted to do, but life happens so you kind of adjust as you grow and mature.

Right now I go to the Prairie View A&M University.

It is a HBCU about 30 minutes outside of Houston.

There you go.

Go in the house.

Go in the house.

Going into college I majored in sports marketing.

I realized I kinda have to network and know people to get into that.

And I didn't really have the resources so accounting for me it was a perfect fit, because it knocked off all of my checks.

>> A juice please!

>> For me, having Hayden, and having a family, choosing accounting was what can I do for 30, 40, 50 years, give me opportunity to grow, and actually take care of a family is bigger than me.

That's always my mentality.

Hayden.

>> Yeah.

>> Do you remember what I told you I was gonna do?

>> No.

>> Daddy has to go on a trip.

I'll call you from every state I touch, does that work for you?

>> Okay.

>> Okay, [LAUGH] there you go.

>> I get to mom.

>> Me and Da'rell started off as friends.

I told my friends I think he's reallycute and he always smells good.

He had a baby, Hayden his freshman year.

The fact that he's actually a dad makes him think that his dad's jokes are like 20 times funnier.

He's very protective, he's like, he wants to be my Superman.

I let him you know cuz who doesn't want one of those?

[MUSIC] >> Putting on a suit, for me, is like a superpower.

When I put a suit on, I feel like I can take over the world if I wanted to.

I can literally do anything that's set in front of me.

Being black in this industry, I'm already gonna stand out anyway, so why not look good while I stand out?

This summer is my first auditing internship with one of the biggest four accounting firms.

A lot of times, I don't really get off until like 10:30, 10:45 maybe, and that's a good day.

For me, this road trip is going to I hope answer a lot of questions that I have just about not even just accounting and auditing, but just life in general.

I'm really excited to get some kind of blueprint that I can use to further me and my family.

>> [SOUND] What's up?

>> [FOREIGN] >> [FOREIGN] >> So for like the trip, the road trip that I told you about.

The actual road trip starts in August sometime.

>> So what are you guys doing?

The trip is about accountants and auditors.

We're going to be interviewing other accountants and auditors to see what it takes to become successful.

And we're actually going to be going from Texas and we're going to be going up the East Coast.

>> Does your mother know about it?

>> Yeah, I told her.

>> Okay.

>> So when I switched to accounting, my dad was pretty supportive but my mom not so much because she always had this dream for me to become a doctor.

So she's still kinda upset at me.

>> Love you, take care.

Get back home.

>> Bye.

>> [FOREIGN] >> [FOREIGN] >> My culture is very closed off in general, especially women.

We don't express our feelings out to our families.

We never really said like I love you or shared our emotions openly.

When I was younger my mom actually had me cook because my parents are very old school.

They were like, you're the girl like you should know how to cook, blah, blah, blah.

I came here from a really small town.

We had one traffic light, and I just was really tired of the small town life.

And so I decided that, I wanted to get out and explore the big city.

I got into a school called Georgia Tech.

And, my parents were pushing me to do medicine.

Lasted two years before I realized I'm failing.

[LAUGH] And so I switched to business and I switched to accounting because it was what I was good at.

And I loved it ever since.

[MUSIC] I graduated recently from Tech with accounting and but I have to take CPA exams.

So studying is kind of my life right now.

[LAUGH] My expectations that my parents had for me was to become a doctor.

Because if you're Indian, it's kind of a given.

When I switched to accounting, I knew I was going into corporate America.

And my mom was very upset.

She was like I told you to do medicine, I told you to do nursing because it is connected to our culture.

And people know that we do well in that.

She has this mentality that women only progressed if they were pretty, if they had light skin blonde hair and blue eyes, and my mom straight up told me that.

She was like you don't have any of that.

How are you going to make it?

And I was terrified.

My fear is that I won't be successful, especially for me being a first gen student I really wanna make my parents proud, and make my mom proud and make her think, just cuz she didn't become a doctor at least she did something good in her life.

I really hope that this road trip kind of proves that my career in auditing and accounting will be a successful path.

>> [INAUDIBLE] >> Hello.

>> How are you?

[LAUGH] >> Phone, phone, wallet, keys.

Okay, let's roll.

>> [SOUND] >> So, have you thought about whether or not you wanna do the busy season internship of KPMG?

>> I'm still nervous about it, but also moreso excited.

I'm dreading the hours but also my main goal is to move the family out here.

>> The adulting is real right now.

>> I know, I know.

>> Whenever I talk to like non accounting majors and I tell them the demanding hours that- >> They don't believe.

>> Public accounting.

>> They are like, what?

>> Yeah.

>> 60, 70 hours, I'm like, that's a little bit for a busy season [LAUGH].

>> That's what we're getting ourselves into.

There's a lot of opportunities with audit, but do you wanna stay in public accounting forever?

>> I don't know, I really don't know.

>> What drew you to accounting, what made you like it?

>> I like the fact that it's stable, and you can probably get a job right away.

>> Yeah.

>> The whole goal is to move my family out here so the quickest way I could get a job that's what I'm gonna do probably.

I may or may not like it, I don't know,I've only done one internship.

>> Yeah, >> But that's what I'm hoping this road trip is gonna show me.

Back home they're six hours behind, but the we try to call each other every day.

[SOUND] Aah!

>> Hi.

>> Hi, sis.

>> I'm originally from the island of Guam, I have a little sister back home.

I'm really close to my family.

>> Hi.

>> Where's mom and dad, why are they not with you?

>> Hi.

>> Hi mom, how are you?

I chose to leave Guam because there's only one university on the island, there's one community college.

So I knew there was more out there for me to pursue.

When I FaceTime you on the road, it'll be like you are there.

Just like we've been doing the past five years, nothing's changed [LAUGH].

I wish I could be there side-by-side with you and see you grow, Mia.

>> She'll be there soon enough, maybe high school.

>> Yeah, hopefully, I'll have our house ready by then.

>> Hey, I can retire, maybe.

>> I am an intern, you know that, right [LAUGH]?

My mom's the sweetest woman ever.

When she says things like that, my shoulders get so heavy like there's boulders on me.

I just feel like I haven't really had the time to step back and reflect on, wait a minute, is this what I even really wanna do with my life?

>> I'm proud of you, Lei.

>> You're gonna make Dad cry.

>> Don't cry.

>> You went above and beyond.

>> You have come a long way.

>> You've always make us proud of you, honey, you know that.

>> I know.

>> You're getting there, honey.

>> I don't know where there is yet [LAUGH].

>> Okay, you'll find it.

>> [SOUND] >> And we will do a 22 point turn to.

>> [SOUND] >> How's it going?

>> Me and my other two teammates, which I love them already, I can't wait to meet them.

I can't wait to just have the team bonding moment.

Where we're like hey, you're the person I've been talking to for the past like couple weeks, now we're friends, now we're roommates.

>> Okay.

>> We're close though, we got what, two weeks left?

>> Seven days, perfect [LAUGH].

We're gonna be doing 12 interviews and so me, Leilani and Da'rell have been researching people and places.

We recently finished our route.

Philadelphia, Manhattan, New York and then crazy when it comes to RV driving.

>> Good thing we got training, I guess.

>> Yeah.

>> [LAUGH] I think we still have some work to do but we'll get there.

>> It's okay, we are a team.

>> Da'rell, Leilani, and I are going to be starting at Big Four accounting firms.

There's a lot of common misconceptions about being an auditor.

That auditing is not really a career to be proud of, that there isn't really a progression and it's a lonely cubicle lifestyle.

There's a lot of stereotypes that we're wanting to debunk before we start that journey.

>> See you in Austin.

>> I'll see you guys in Austin.

>> Bye.

>> Oh my God, it's happening.

>> [LAUGH] >> So, we just got off the flight and we're in Austin.

[SOUND] >> Da'rell's flight got delayed once.

>> Then again, you think he'll show up in a suit?

>> It is way too hot for that.

NyQuil, Pepto-Bismol, Neosporin.

>> I brought family photos for when we get all mushy.

>> I also brought this book.

>> I brought mine too.

>> Did you?

>> We're book buddies!

>> It is essential to our career.

>> We have to study [LAUGH].

[MUSIC] >> My hope is that I learn from people that we interview what made them tick, what made them successful.

>> What I'm hoping to gain out of this trip is to meet former auditors, maybe current auditors that have been working at these big firms.

And now they have their own startup or they're a baker, they own their own restaurant.

>> Friends.

>> Hello!

>> Whats up, dude?

>> Welcome home.

This is where we're gonna be living for three weeks.

>> Oh my God, are these keys?

>> They're actual RV keys.

>> We're official RV drivers now.

>> Going on a road trip and interviewing people that we look up to as professionals.

I can learn more about the industry that I wanna commit the rest of my professional life to.

Especially all three of us being minorities, how did you navigate being the only person of your kind in a room?

How can I be the best professional I can be, but also be the best family person I could be?

But those are the questions that I will really wanna know the answer to.

>> How are you guys feeling about our very first interview?

>> [LAUGH] I'll tell you when I'm done.

>> [LAUGH] >> [LAUGH] >> [SOUND] There we go.

There we go [SOUND].

It's our first time being on the road.

[MUSIC] I'm really nervous to make really tight turns at a short moment's notice.

>> [SOUND] This is real.

It's not training anymore, I'm excited.

This is the first one, we get to talk to Sarah Elliot.

She is the co-founder and principal of Intend2Lead.

She also worked as a CPA for 14 years, she worked with a Big Four firm for 10 years.

Then she also did 4 years with a smaller regional firm.

>> Hello and welcome.

>> Hi >> Hi.

>> Great to meet you, come on in.

So I am a co-founder and principle of our leadership developement firm that coaches accountants called Intend2Lead.

But I started out in the profession so I am a CPA myself.

So I practiced for 14 years and then chose to take that leap of faith to serve the profession because it's changing, it's evolving quickly.

And so I'm exited to help be a part of that by shaping the future through our future leaders.

>> You were partner, right?

What made you wanna do that?

>> I was a partner for about a year and a half before I left.

My second year as a partner, it would have been time for me to buy in and become an equity partner.

And so I was evaluating at that time, is this what I wanna commit to?

I loved my firm, I was very happy where I was.

So it wasn't easy to walk away from this career I had built for 14 years.

>> Right.

>> And it was great money, right, I'd finally gotten there.

But it would have been harder to stay because there was something in me that I knew I needed to do.

For me it's always been about connecting with people and really seeing potential in other people and believing in that and helping them cultivate that.

>> Was wondering if there's any advice you can give us that can hopefully open our eyes and you know, kind of not really think about the burnout and all the hard times and the hours and all that.

Kind of reaffirm that it's going to be okay.

>> Well, I will tell you it is going to be okay.

I will tell you that.

>> [LAUGH] >> Don't answer that no.

>> [LAUGH] >> But that's just part of the journey, right, is figuring out what does light me up.

But even when I came into this profession I thought well, it makes sense, it's logical, I like the balance, I like the order.

But it wasn't like I had this lifelong dream of being an accountant, but I found it.

And the people, right, the people that I have gotten to work with are super smart, caring, kind, fun.

So whatever it is for you right, like find that.

>> It was probably the reason what drew me into accounting, I found that people are just so much nicer.

>> [LAUGH] >> We're so cool, aren't we, like we get a bad rap.

>> [LAUGH] >> At Intend2Lead we believe that your future depends on your capacity to love.

And sometimes when we say that word people are like, what this is accounting, why are we talking about love?

>> [LAUGH] >> Right?

Most of us live in this world of limitation and fear and scarcity.

And the thing is, when we live in that place, we live small.

Accountants for sure have big hearts when we come together and we collaborate and we tap into our why and what lights us up and our potential.

We transform the profession and the profession supports businesses right and the country and the world and we have this ripple effect that's really pretty powerful when you think about it.

>> What advice would you give to us and anyone else going forward in this profession?

>> There are so many possibilities out there, truly and you do not have to have it figured out.

I mean, if there's one thing I'd be willing to bet money on, it's that 20 years from now, you're probably not going to be where you thought you were going to be.

So to be open to learning along the way.

To getting messy sometimes and that actually being some of the best parts is when it gets messy and to give yourself that grace and that space, to lean into it, to grow into it, to see what happens.

And to not have to get it all right.

>> At Roadtrip Nation we have this tradition where we invite the leader back to our RV so you can like leave a little nugget of advice.

>> I would be honored to leave a little love for you guys.

Exciting.

[MUSIC] >> Everything that Sarah told us applies to everybody.

Persevering through things even though you're not really knowing what you're doing.

Being able to have confidence in yourself to take leaps.

Everything she told us, I think is really, really dope.

>> Create your own dimension of possible.

With love, from me.

>> Aw.

>> Thank you.

>> There's hugs.

>> You guys are so amazing.

So excited for you.

>> I just loved the fact that she spoke out of love for love in the workplace.

I think a lot of us, we have these set paths or we have to have our stuff figured out cuz we graduated but she really affirms that it is okay to not have all that.

>> I think she was the best first person possible.

>> Yeah.

Really amped me up for the upcoming one.

I was a little nervous but now I'm not so much.

[LAUGH] [MUSIC] >> It's super hot in Texas, and so we found a great swimming hole.

[MUSIC] >> The swimming hole was definitely our first real just have fun time.

[MUSIC] >> I felt like that was actually our first time really bonding as a team and just like having a good time outside of talking about interviews and all that kind of stuff.

[MUSIC] We have an eight hour trek to New Orleans.

[MUSIC] >> We're gonna interview Brian Ford.

>> He's an accountant, turned baker and I kinda want to do that as well.

[MUSIC] Hey, while I have you here, Dad, I love the fish that you cook.

Can you just walk me through how to marinate it?

[MUSIC] Is this supposed to be half and half though?

I left the island because I want to provide something more substantial for my family, but maybe this is not something that I wanna do.

I'm just doing it to further my family.

Sheila, and Mal, and Oasis are almost here, so I'm gonna get dinner ready.

>> Love you babe.

>> Love you.

I have this dream of owning my own food related business.

I know that what I'm doing now will benefit me, but at the same time kinda sucks knowing that there's something out there more for me that I wanna do, but it's too risky.

I'm here for a reason.

The vision that keeps me going is the house and my sister in it.

And she wants shutters and a garden to play and that's what keeps me going just to be able to provide that dream for her.

[MUSIC] >> And then you can pour some sugar into the bowl however much you want.

Yeah, yeah, no, don't be afraid [CROSSTALK] yeah, straight up, four of those, that's good and that, that's perfect.

It's like if you think about it in audit terms, there's like a materiality threshold, all right?

>> [LAUGH] >> This is great.

>> I like how you're being gentle, but I need you to be a little more.

[CROSSTALK] >> Okay.

>> Yeah, there you go, good, good, good, good, good.

Right now I'm a baker, and I think that that's the last stop on the train.

Actually, I don't think so because I think when I'm 40 I'll get into like pottery or something.

And I'm actually planning on releasing like a hip hop album already.

But anyway, I am a baker.

You know, I'm a child of immigrants and I used to dream of being a professional soccer player.

But in the critical moments, we couldn't afford to get me up state at the camps.

I felt crushed, I was like, wow I guess that's it.

What do I do?

My mom is an accountant, right?

So I didn't really think about anything else.

I was like, this is what I'm gonna do.

I kept taking the CPA exam, I failed it 13 times in a row, and then.

>> [LAUGH] >> Don't feel bad for laughing, it was insane.

Then one day I passed man, yo, you know, I was happy man, I felt good.

And less than a year after passing, I quit accounting for good.

I literally, I called my brother, I was like, dude, I'm opening a bakery, I like to cook, I like to bake.

Then you start to understand how that degree becomes so useful.

These terms come back, you know, like basic costs accounting, do it from home, no overhead.

I'm not gonna rent a kitchen, just raw materials.

And one day I was baking, I was like, man, let me make some Pan de Coco, I haven't made that in a long time.

I made it with sourdough, I posted a video of it, and it just like exploded.

And so, I've since been able to use that platform and turn it into a business.

Which is crazy.

That's when I had fun with it.

I was like, I've never been so happy to open an Excel spreadsheet.

>> [LAUGH] >> Cuz it's like, this is my business now.

The skill set that you have is gonna help no matter which way you go, right?

The bare bones of being an entrepreneur is accounting.

[MUSIC] Cultivate your craft.

>> Brian was such a genuine dude.

Like, I appreciate it that something that he said in his interview really stuck with me about how like, accounting definitely is the language of business.

And how like, if you could recommend one thing for people to study it would be accounting.

Because you could just do so much with it.

You can own your own business, you can go do it, this, this, this, this.

And we're gonna start to see that with all these other people that we're interviewing.

Just like so many different avenues you could take just from one degree.

Hearing that kind of stuff just is so, that just feels so good.

[MUSIC] >> New Orleans is big for their beignets.

It's like one of their staple foods.

So me having roots in New Orleans, I was like, we cannot leave this city without eating beignets.

>> I'm so excited.

>> I've never had beignets before so I didn't even know what they looked like.

And then I see this just pillowy, warm, glowing, square doughnuts with powdered sugar all over it.

>> My first beignet.

That first bite.

I miss it!

>> As soon as I bit into it, I nearly went back to when I was like, eight, nine, with my grandmother.

>> Into the coffee- >> [LAUGH] >> You haven't had them in seven years, you said?

>> That was our welcome to New Orleans, and goodbye from New Orleans.

Legit, I almost cried.

Killing it.

[INAUDIBLE] >> Yes.

>> I'm so glad that we're like, this solid team.

I love them!

[LAUGH].

[MUSIC] >> We're in Birmingham, Alabama, and it is super woodsy.

>> We decided to take a hike.

For me that was definitely a first being from the city.

>> It's a tree house, cool.

>> I see some birdies.

>> Oh my goodness.

>> Okay.

Making a right.

>> Although it has an ugly bear skin face, the turkey vulture is beautiful on the wing.

[MUSIC] >> Do you see it?

>> Mm-hm.

>> Uh-uh, I don't like vultures.

>> [LAUGH] I'm glad we came up.

>> I'm literally regretting it.

>> [LAUGH] >> Mm-mm.

>> [LAUGH] [MUSIC] >> At first I was like, I'm not gonna have fun here at all.

I was like, yeah, I'm just staying in the RV.

I'm not doing anything.

I'm not going anywhere but I'm glad I took that step.

[MUSIC] >> When we were coming back we held a meditation session.

And it was my first time ever doing that, but I kind of channeled my instructor.

And if your mind wanders to another thought, just gently bring it back to your focus point.

>> I think my favorite part of the entire trail was we meditated as a team.

I think so many times we get so preoccupied with work and life, school, whatever and we don't take a time to just stop.

For me personally, being a dad, being one of the first people of my family to really get this far into the higher education.

There's a lot of pressure, I'll admit, there's a lot of pressure on me to succeed.

And that's a really scary position.

[MUSIC] I'm still kinda in the beginning process of learning how to play.

[MUSIC] At the time when I picked up the guitar, I was going through like a mental health spell.

So I was trying to find positive outlets for me to destress.

I was going through counseling at the time, and my counselor suggested that I find outlets that bring me joy.

And music, for me is, always has been an outlet.

Personally, mental health prior to this year wasn't really, it was important, but it didn't really hit home until this year cuz I was really depressed.

I missed like two weeks of school, I didn't shower, I wasn't eating.

I was just, it was a really rough time.

[SOUND] Growing up, my mentality was always, don't let them tell you that you're weak kind of thing.

I can't really do what I need to do if I'm not in my best shape.

And that's mentally, spiritually, emotionally, physically, the whole nine.

[MUSIC] I'm really excited because today we get to speak to Michael Horsey.

He began his career in public accounting and he has over 40 years of experience in the industry.

Two years ago, him and his partners created Horsey, Buckner & Heffler.

He actually runs the business as the chairman and CEO.

Knowing that we're gonna talk to Michael, it's like I'm getting butterflies in my stomach.

Everything that I wanna do, he's doing or has done.

[MUSIC] As a freshman, I took accounting classes and I fell in love with accounting, but I realized that there's not a lot of accountants look like me out there.

All of us represent some kind of minority.

So a lot of times we are like the only one of us in the room.

How did you maneuver that through your career, having that mindset like, okay, I belong?

>> That's an interesting question.

First of all, you have to really be strong in your goal setting and commitments to yourself.

When you do that, you don't let that obstacle go be an impediment.

I used to be the only one in my class.

I sat in front, I raised my hand, you know, cuz there's certain things I wanted to get out of it.

You know what's stressful?

Sitting down on the corner with a pot in your hand asking for a couple dollars, that's stress.

Being the only African American in a class, that ain't no stress.

I decided I wanted to have my own little practice, because I've always been entrpreneurish, if you will.

But at the end of the day, you can see those moves were through adequate advice and counsel.

So, I've been blessed to have mentors.

And so that's why I try to do that now.

Born and raised in North Philadelphia, back in the day was gang infested crime and all that.

You know, most of our guys, my guys, they're dead now, guys I hung with.

So I knew I didn't want that to be the end result.

>> Is that what you, that's the mindset that you had when you started creating this company?

>> Right, I wanted to be an option.

I wanted to be a change agent in our industry.

We're gonna open up the doors for a lot of folks.

You know, cuz when you bring diverse minds together, you have great solutions.

So we bring a lot to the table we just haven't been able to eat at the table.

When you enter these professions, particularly public accounting, you gotta pay your dues, you know, stuff gets hard.

You might not get the great assignments, but you hang in there, because you're going to leave with a curriculum vitae that's strong, that's going to give you more opportunities.

Being a CPA is not an easy thing to do.

But once you get your letters, it provides you more flexibility in the marketplace and more choices.

But you gotta take your own action.

You can't sit back and let things fall into your lap.

[MUSIC] But I wanna just show you all something.

>> What?

>> What?

It's cute.

>> It's cute, yeah.

>> I ain't gonna tell you where that used to wind up.

>> [LAUGH] >> You made that?

>> I know.

>> [LAUGH] Never lose your roots.

>> Yeah, yeah.

>> All right.

[MUSIC] People do better if they knew better.

>> [LAUGH] >> Mike, CPA.

>> [LAUGH] [MUSIC] >> Meeting Michael, that was like a eureka moment for me.

I've never seen anybody in accounting get to that higher level of CEO and they look like me.

That for me was like watching someone make fire for the first time.

[MUSIC] It's different having a dream to do something than when you actually see it in person and you can sense it and feel it.

It hits you a little bit different.

[MUSIC] Checked every box off.

Doing stuff for the community, check.

Being a successful black man in an industry where only 4% of black people are CPAs, check.

[MUSIC] Life-changing conversation.

>> Yeah.

>> Yeah, life-altering.

>> Do you think you're gonna try to make him your mentor?

>> Yeah, definitely, I'm gonna reach out.

[MUSIC] >> I really feel like we've become the best of friends.

>> We just click, I got you, you got me.

It was like putting the puzzle together.

>> Just being open with each other has been really helpful.

After every interview, I think we just get stronger together as a team.

Because we're finding out more things about each other that we're like, you went through that too?

[MUSIC] >> We have a lot more in common than we thought we did.

[MUSIC] >> Cathy Engelbert.

>> So excited.

>> She is former CEO of Deloitte and she's going to work as the first Commissioner for WNBA.

She started off as an audit associate, she worked her way up.

Her career path is what I want my career path to be.

[MUSIC] This is a special opportunity.

[MUSIC] I was so nervous, I was up to 2 AM reading every article I can find on this lady.

Then we were in the room.

[LAUGH] And I could not contain myself.

>> She was so excited.

>> In the room, she was bouncing from wall to wall, I was just like, that's not normal.

We're family at this point, so I'm like, I don't want her to ruin this moment because she's so focused on trying to be the best she could possibly be.

And I was like, we need to meditate, I wanna meditate.

>> I was so nervous, I was shaking, I was sweating, breathe, breathe woman, breathe.

>> Hello, how are you?

>> Hi.

>> Hello.

>> Hello, how are you doing?

>> [LAUGH] >> Good to see you too.

>> Subia Bahati.

>> Hi, so nice to meet you guys.

>> Nice to meet you.

>> We're gonna have some fun, right?

>> I was just reminding myself, it's just another person, it's just another person.

Yeah, I blacked out.

>> If you would like to tell us a little bit about yourself?

>> Yes, I just finished a very long and great career with Deloitte after 33 years.

And I retired from Deloitte as my CEO term was ending and I got an opportunity to become the first ever WNBA Commissioner.

I also played sports, I played college basketball and lacrosse.

So you would say kinda ending up at the WNBA after a long career in accounting and audit was natural because of basketball.

My father was a very accomplished basketball player back in the 1950s and actually got drafted by the NBA Detroit Pistons.

My father died when I was a first year at Deloitte, literally, two weeks before I was sitting for the CPA exam.

And you talk about giving the pride to your parents as to what you'll end up doing.

Well, for me after my father died, this was about, I'm gonna work really hard.

My dad worked three jobs to put eight children through college.

Make my mother proud, make my father proud.

And I always said, work hard play hard kinda thing, but always round myself out.

>> My parents are immigrants, they came here to make a better life for us and they worked a lot of hours as well.

How do you balance that with your children?

>> A lot of people say, can you have it all and the have been defined by somebody else?

And I always have defined it as, can I do it all as defined by me?

And this profession, the accounting and auditing profession really allowed me to do it all.

I had two children, I had five different careers within Deloitte.

I got to meet with C-suite executives from hundreds of companies.

But then I had my second child and I said, I'd like a little more stability in my travel schedule.

And so I went back to audit and served a very large company in New Jersey.

And that was great because then I literally was two miles from my house.

My son was a newborn, I could really balance it all.

And so at different points of my home and family life, I found different roles in the firm.

But some of these I did raise my hand for.

>> You've grown a lot in your career and now you're in WNBA.

What's your finish line or is there one?

>> Never aspire to a box or a title.

I never did, never aspired to be CEO, never aspired to be WMBA commissioner.

I actually want to be an ESPN sportscaster by the way.

[LAUGH] That's what I've always wanted to do, getting a little closer.

Now I'm just so pleased to be bringing all my experience that I had in this profession into kind of a new world.

And really, they're not that much different.

Yeah, I always talk about the James Patterson quote where you're juggling four balls.

And as you're juggling these balls, you find out the work ball when you drop it, that ball is rubber, it bounces back, you will recover.

And then there's other balls.

Those balls are glass, family, integrity, health, they will shatter if you drop those balls.

So if you always keep that in mind, I think you'll be served well whatever career you end up in, career or careers.

[MUSIC] >> Hi fives, let's go.

>> She had worked her way to CEO level during a time when it was male-dominated and made it to the highest platform you can go, crazy.

This lady is a powerhouse.

Just unafraid, unabashedly her and making her way through all of her career, just going for it.

>> All right, so here you are, NBA.

>> [LAUGH] >> I still can't - I still can't believe that happened.

[MUSIC] >> Aspire to lead.

I like what Cathy had to say about juggling the four balls of life.

That's something that I'm gonna hold dear to my heart and try to remember so that I'm not jeopardizing the relationships that are most important to me just sothat I can make it in a career.

>> Our next interview is with Karmen Ward.

She's a managing director at KPMG, and she's been with them for about 12 years now.

So, not quite sure this is something that I wanna do long term as far as me feeling fulfilled.

I don't wanna be just a number at a big firm, so what were some of your priorities when you were evaluating whether you should even consider going into the big four?

>> When I started in college, accounting wasn't on my radar.

And my mom made the suggestion, take an introductory class, and I did just that.

And I did well, and I heard about this big four thing.

And so what is the big four?

How do I get involved with that?

So I started making connections to all the different firms and asking questions.

What do I prioritize in my life?

What do I want to get out of my life?

And if I'm grounded in who I am, then the next step is can the profession, can the big four, can the firm help me along in fulfilling the priorities that I have in my life.

So I took a shot and what was important to me was interaction with people and my family and I've not been disappointed.

>> It's nice to hear that in a profession like this where the stereotype is like [SOUND], you're so busy, you don't have time for your family.

>> Right.

>> Us coming into this profession, basically fresh out of school, a lot of times we get overwhelmed and really fadged.

Because like how you said that our profession is very demanding as far as work and all that.

>> Yeah.

>> Do you have any advice for us of how to keep that balance?

>> I think it's not always rosy and bright colors and what we do in the audit profession and accounting, it's a lot of work.

And I tell my family, there's certain times of the year where it's just very busy, but it's only a short period of time, there are pockets of time.

I'll join the barbecues in the summertime and the travel to this and to that.

A lot of times you hear, work life balance, I thinks as I've continued on, it has become more of an integration.

What are your priorities?

I'm providing for my family.

I have a three-year-old daughter now and there are times when okay, I'm gonna have to stay a little bit later to do this but we're going to the playground on Saturday.

And during these hours, I'm not doing work because that takes priority.

It's that balancing that can be an challenge.

Well, I always get it 100% right.

No, I think that's part of the adventure too, right?

So it's learning how to integrate that together.

Being at at the firm and in this profession has allowed me to be true to who I am and experience so many different things in so many different places is an exciting journey that it wasn't expected.

I'm not just a number.

[MUSIC] >> When we first started, I thought this was gonna be long.

But now we're here at the end and boom, it's gone.

>> It is a challenge.

Did you have that in your pocket the whole time?

I'm home sick so bad.

[MUSIC] Talking on the phone or texting, you can only do it so long before it's like, I wanna go home.

[MUSIC] >> Every day is different.

You're driving to a different location, you're gonna meet all new people.

Of course, that's exciting but it can be pretty mentally draining.

[MUSIC] >> I feel like I've gotten one set of answers to my questions but honestly I just, I'm not, I don't know, I feel like I'm limiting myself for something that shouldn't hold me back.

Telling your parents that you're leaving them to try and pursue something greater even though they might not understand it until later on [MUSIC] It's really hard.

I really hope that one day my mom finally gets it and she's like I'm really glad you did that.

[MUSIC] We're interviewing Dawn Brolin.

She is the CEO of her own company called Powerful Accounting.

Basically it's forensics and fraud accounting.

>> Hello.

>> Hi.

>> Sobia.

>> Sobia?

>> Yes ma'am.

>> Pleasure to meet you.

>> Welcome to my house and to my office- >> It's beautiful.

>> And my life.

>> When did you really know that forensic and tax was your niche?

>> It was around April 4th of 2011, not to be exact or anything, right?

>> [LAUGH] >> Yeah, so I had done bookkeeping but it just got to the point where I wanted to do things different and I wanted to do things my way.

A good friend of mine who's a tax attorney called me and said hey, I gotta a case for you.

And I'm like a suitcase or a briefcase, what kind of case, and he's like I have a client who need her books reconstructed because they're under a civil audit.

I knew when I was 16 I wanted to be an accountant and what I can do for her and do something that I love.

That combination, that was it.

My hair will stand on its end because I get so pumped up.

I got to put on my bullet proof vest, my badge, it's like I have my own a little FBI situation going on.

That's really what it is and so that was like it for me.

Then I got into fraud work, I went and got my certified fraud examiner license because I'm like, there's more being a CPA.

And that's just all I wanna do.

>> When I switched to accounting, my parents were very disappointed.

And when your own mom tells you that, it makes you second guess yourself.

So my whole point for this road trip was to figure out for myself, do I really wanna do accounting or am I just shooting another dart at a board.

And also maybe prove to my mom a little that I am making the right choice that accounting will lead me and set me up for a good career.

>> I'm so sorry that your parents feel that way because I hope they understand that CPA, that is a profession.

We're not doing robotic work like punching keys, we're analyzing and thinking.

And I think this is another thing that people don't realize.

In accounting, it's not just preparing tax returns, doing bookkeeping, there's so much more than just what people think accounting is.

You guys probably hear this all the time.

So you like math?

>> I hate math.

>> Or do my tax.

>> Or do my taxes and I look at them and I'm like, I thought you're smarter than that, man.

I can't do math, the computer does that for me.

They're like you're the math whiz.

I'm like no, no I'm not.

What we get to do in our profession, we can analyze.

We can justify, we can put numbers into words that most people can't.

So open your mind to what your passion is, whatever it is, and you'll find it in accounting.

In a smaller firm like us, we can consult with small businesses lacking internal controls right now, which is why there's so much fraud.

And so for our small firm we want to do really the expert witness testifying in court.

I have a deposition next week.

I mean that stuff's fun.

I wanted to be a cop should have been.

And so I said, you know what, I'm gonna make myself an accounting cop.

Cuz I have, I'm a psycho but I'm all in.

And I'm gonna help my clients and we're gonna take people down who are not doing the right thing.

>> Is that your bullet proof vest?

>> That's my accounting cop, my vest.

Yeah, I have another one, it says accounting pathologist.

Am I trying to really dig in deep or am I just going to take someone out?

>> I'm telling you right now.

>> I need to get one of those.

>> If you love accounting and you want to defend the public from bad people, you can be an accounting cop all day.

>> [LAUGH] We work tax season like a bunch of animals, right?

Although I did coach softball this past tax season because I wanted to have work-life balance.

I wanted to say, okay, I'm working really hard but I get to go to practice at 3.

I had to do it right and I had to do it my way.

No matter where you are, in whatever industry, you could be an engineer, I don't care what you do.

You're gonna have people, and it's unfortunate but it's just some human nature, that people wanna knock you down to build themselves up.

And I'm not gonna pick on your parents at all because they love you and they care about you.

And same with you, I mean, even with having a little sister and with you having a baby.

You got your own kid, man, right?

You have responsibilities and you love them and you want to make them proud.

But you also at the same time have to do what's best for you.

Take into consideration what they're saying, you've got to be open minded, but at the end of the day it's your life.

You gotta do right by you.

>> Yeah, I feel like that's the part where I'm struggling.

It's hard for me to keep that with my parents because they kinda gave up on supporting me when I told them about all of that and it's just been super hard.

I didn't want to do this.

>> It's okay, I'm a therapist too.

You're also a therapist in accounting, if you didn't know that.

>> It's good to hear that from someone.

>> It is, and you know what?

You got a whole awesome life ahead of you.

You do your life, right?

>> Thank you, that means a lot.

>> Yeah, I mean it.

Don't have any regrets.

[MUSIC] >> I don't know if I want you to see this.

>> Uh-oh, this is history.

>> There it is right here.

>> Don't tell us.

>> Okay.

>> Bam!

>> Yep.

>> [LAUGH] >> Dawn is so passionate and open.

>> Let's go, Sobia!

>> [LAUGH] [MUSIC] >> I was definitely feeling all the emotions, and throughout the entire experience she would just keep patting my back and just making me feel so welcome.

>> Believe in yourself, even if others do not.

I've never experienced this before in my life from anyone.

>> This is awesome.

Do you guys want to stay for the weekend?

>> I'm definitely gonna keep in touch with Dawn.

We've already been texting back and forth.

I'm ready to tell her all my things.

Oh my God.

[MUSIC] >> I think that's good.

[MUSIC] >> Looking back, we talked to a lot of dope people who debunked a lot of myths and their careers took so many different turns.

>> Before this trip, I didn't realize how many different places this profession could take us.

The best advice I would give you going into big four is to understand that every staff person coming in like yourself is just as intimidated, right?

On every team you're gonna have seniors, managers, and partners to guide you.

Do not be afraid to ask the questions and you will be successful.

It was very intimidating, it was a lot of work, but it pays off.

>> Just the day-to-day auditing, it's cool.

[LAUGH] Despite what people may say, auditing is cool in the way that you really just get to learn about different businesses.

Years later, I'm still here because it's been a really dynamic, interesting place to be.

I wanted to try something different.

I thought about, do I leave?

And there was always a place for me to explore something else.

>> Yeah.

>> Some of these leaders are in hijabs or not wearing makeup, don't care, just doing them, and that has changed my perspective.

Now I realize that I don't need to let other people limit me.

The only person that I need approval from is myself.

>> The anxiety comes from self-doubt, but this trip taught me that I can be a family man and a good professional without having to sacrifice my health.

>> I'll literally just write down everything, like these are things that are bothering me right now.

Sometimes the act of just getting it out there, okay, this is something that's reasonable to be upset about or anxious about but I can figure out a way to handle this.

>> It's definitely a life-changing experience for me >> At the end of the day, I'm glad I chose accounting because I do have aspirations of opening up my own business.

Going into a big four, that's scary, and I'm looking forward to the knowledge that I'm gonna be gaining from it.

>> I'm doing a lot of what I do now formy family as well.

I can't go back with nothing.

I can't go back empty-handed, so failure was not an option for me.

I knew I could not give up.

My mentor, he told me to get comfortable being uncomfortable.

It definitely was a challenge, but when I felt uncomfortable I knew I was going to a place where I was gonna be better at the end of it all.

[SOUND] >> [LAUGH] That was awesome.

>> I'm sure that this is the way to go.

This is what's gonna get me that house with the red shutters.

I am, in fact, on the right path.

[MUSIC] >> Wondering what to do with your life?

Well we've been there and we're here to help.

Our website has some awesome tools to help you find your path and you can check out all our docuentaries interviews and more And you can check out all of our documentaries, interviews and more.

Start exploring at Roadtripnation.com