Great Start to Year

By Patricia K. Krout, CPA

I’m pleased to report on the progress of our chapter for the first quarter, which included two successful events and many other discussion group meetings.

Many of our members, plus potential new members and nonprofit clients, were able to join John Valenzuela at the Form 990 update July 23. We had such good feedback that we are looking into bring John back next year. We would be happy to hear your thoughts and suggestions, so please let us know.

Wow, what a great evening we had Aug. 12 at the Coral Casino for our inaugural Attorneys, Bankers and CPAs (ABC) Night. A big thank you to Jason Janzen, who was instrumental in organizing this successful event. I would also like to thank our sponsors American Rivera Bank; Bank of Santa Barbara; Business First Bank; Mission Wealth Management; Anacapa Valuations, Inc.; Bartlett, Pringle & Wolf, LLP,; Mayer Hoffman McCann, PC; McGowan Guntermann; and Walpole & Co, LLP. I was able to meet many new contacts, as well as touch base with existing contacts—and the location couldn’t be beat.

There is still time to reserve your spot for our Sept. 29 annual golf tournament at the Sandpiper Golf Course. This is our chapter’s main scholarship fund-raiser. Even if you don’t play golf, you can show up for dinner or make a donation specifically for scholarships.

Summer has found me reading more and I wanted to share with you a quote and the seven Cs of success by Chris Widener: “Ultimately the people who win, who achieve victory in life are the people who are committed to it. They outlast everybody else. Because quite frankly all success in business, all success in relationships, all success in life comes at the end of the road of commitment!”

1. Caring: To be a true success in this world we must have a bigger vision than simply accomplishing a goal for ourselves or simply lining our own pockets. Successful people have a deep care for others.
2. Character: Becoming a success is more than increasing the digits in your bank account. Financial development is the easy part and character development is the hard part. Letting each and every experience shape and mold us as we experience them, always moving toward our goal and never allowing negative circumstances to destroy us, but make us better people. This is what true success is about.
3. Choice: Eisenhower reminded us that our histories are written by choice, not by chance. Every movement you make toward your ultimate success and destiny will be because you choose to move toward it. The actions that you choose each and every day will add up, over the long term, to your final destination. The power we have as humans to choose is one of the greatest gifts known to mankind.
4. Concentration: Often those who fail do so because they lose their concentration. Something else comes along and becomes their newfound fancy. They move from whim to whim, tossed to and from by the strong blowing winds. The successful person, however, stands firm, with their eyes transfixed on the goal.
5. Confidence: Success comes to those who have the confidence to try, and more than that, the confidence to win. Confidence is something that you can grow in your mind and heart. Each passing victory that you achieve builds more and more confidence in you to draw from the next time you go to fight another battle on your journey to success. Do what you can to build confidence inside of yourself so you will be able to dip deeply into that well when you need it.
6. Consistency: People who become a success realize that, to a great degree, success is a formula. At the very least it is sticking to doing the right things for a long enough period of time for them to create their destiny. This is consistency. They consistently do the things that will bring them their success.
7. Courage: Successful people are brave people. They know that even success has its challenges, yet they face them head on and move forward anyway. No mountain is too high, nor river too wide, nor foe too large for the person who will choose to live out their dreams. They are courageous people who continue on even when others have quit. And for that they receive their reward.

You will hear more about our awards night in the next Bulletin, but please reserve Nov. 16 to attend a special event where we will be awarding student scholarships and honoring 40-year members and past presidents.