Ben Simiskey, CFP and CPA/PFS of PLS Advisory was our guest on this week’s episode of Life In Accounting: The Where Accountants Go podcast.
Where the fun is…
As with most interviews, I asked Ben how he ended up pursuing accounting in the first place. His answer was a little different than we typically hear though. Ben started out as an electrical engineering major and it just didn’t seem like the right field for him. However, his college roommate was an accounting major and seemed to be getting many job interviews, along with being invited to several fun professional events. Accounting seemed to be more appealing based on what he was seeing, so he decided to change majors and go into accounting instead.
Diversifying his experience
Ben started out in a ‘typical’ accounting role – joining Deloitte in their Chicago office as an auditor. As his career progressed though, he realized he had an interest in financial planning. After leaving Deloitte and spending a few years with a consulting firm doing valuations and forensic work, he decided to pursue his interest and move into the financial planning world. Eventually he formed his own firm – PLS Advisory in Houston.
Volunteerism
A good part of the second half of the interview is dedicated to talking about the various areas where Ben donates his time. In addition to the ministries of his church, he also has served on many committees with the Texas Society of CPAs (TSCPA) as well as serving as being a Den Leader with the Boy Scouts. You will need to listen to the audio to hear the passion in his voice, but it is very apparent that he has structured his life in order to be able to make service a priority. As a side note for those that may be interested in helping out with the Scouts, Ben mentions that it doesn’t take much more than a couple hours per month. Not bad given the positive impact that you can have in that short a time.
I hope you enjoy this episode. I really enjoyed recording it with Ben. Make sure you listen all the way until the end as well – his ‘mistake’ question response is something you can’t miss. I wish we had more time to cover that in this episode. Looks like we will need a part 2!!!
Have a great week! There’s more to come…
Mark Goldman CPA
President – Where Accountants Go
www.WhereAccountantsGo.com
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