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Busy season is brutal. The pay never feels like enough for the hours. The work gets repetitive. Most accountants accept this as the cost of the profession.

Blake Oliver doesn't buy it.

In this episode of Canopy Practice Success, Blake Oliver, CPA and founder of Earmark, makes the case that virtually every problem plaguing the accounting profession is self-inflicted. From arbitrary tax deadlines to billable hours models that punish the people they're supposed to reward, Blake argues that the profession built its own cage, and that the way out is simpler than most people think.

The conversation also covers the three types of data every accountant is missing, why bookkeeping is the most underrated foundation in the profession, and how Blake built a fully remote firm that evaluated people on output rather than hours — before that was common practice.

Whether you're grinding through your tenth busy season or quietly wondering if there's a better way to run a firm, this episode gives you a framework and the permission to think differently.

What You'll Learn

• Why Blake Oliver believes all the major problems in accounting are self-inflicted, including busy season
• How the billable hours model creates a direct incentive for firms to overwork their staff
• The three types of data every accountant needs to forecast a business: accounting, operational, and people data
• Why advisory services aren't a product you sell, but a regular meeting you get paid to show up to
• How to build a fully remote accounting firm that measures output, not hours
• Why bookkeeping is the strongest foundation for high-value accounting work
• How arbitrary deadlines like April 15th create workload crunches that firms can manage around
• What it actually takes to leave the traditional firm model and build something better

Connect With Blake

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/blaketoliver

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