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Follow the Money with Albert Butler | Ship's Log #24

Project Candor: Ordinary People. Unexpected Stories

Chapters
0:00
Introduction
2:05
Meet Albert Butler: Beyond Accounting
5:10
Accounting as the Heartbeat of Business
8:20
Treating Life Like a Balance Sheet
12:15
The Framework: Plan, Act, Review and Train
16:40
Practice, Work, Repeat: Building Discipline
20:05
Why Discipline Beats Motivation
23:30
Scaling Yourself Before Scaling Anything Else
27:10
The Space Where Most People Get Stuck
31:00
“I Can Because I Will”: A Father’s Influence
35:20
Writing a Book for His Children
39:10
Being Whole on the Inside First
43:25
Lessons from 25 Years in Business and Life
47:40
Two Truths and a Lie Begins
52:30
The ICU Story Revealed
56:45
A Tribute That Stays With You
59:30
Closing Thoughts and Takeaways
Project Candor: Ordinary People. Unexpected Stories
Follow the Money with Albert Butler | Ship's Log #24
Jun 11, 2026 Season 1 Episode 24
Jeanne Andersen

"Accounting is the heartbeat of business and the key to personal finance success."  — Albert Butler 

Episode Summary 

Albert Butler is a CPA, MBA, and Resident Partner-in-Charge of a national accounting firm — but the conversation in Ship's Log #24 isn't really about accounting. It's about what happens when you treat your own life like a balance sheet. Albert walks Jeanne through the frameworks he's lived by for 25 years — Plan, Act, Review and Train, Practice, Work — and lands on a deceptively simple idea: you have to scale yourself before you can scale anything else. 

From there the conversation opens up. Albert shares the origin of his personal mantra — "I can because I will" — born from a back-porch conversation with his father two decades ago, and now the spine of the book he's written for his four children. He talks about being whole on the inside before the world starts pushing on the outside, about why discipline beats motivation every time, and about why most people get stuck in the in-between — that space right before a breakthrough where everything feels hardest. 

The episode closes with one of the most quietly powerful Two Truths and a Lie reveals of the show so far. The ICU headline turns out to be a twisted truth — and the story behind it is a tribute to Albert's mother that will sit with you long after the episode ends. 

  Guest Bio 

Albert Butler, CPA, MBA, is the Resident Partner-in-Charge of a national accounting firm, where he has led with integrity, strategy, and purpose for over 25 years. He's a father of four, a youth coach, and the author of LIFE: Truth, Love, Loss, Success & Failure — a book written for fathers, families, and anyone navigating their financial and personal journey. He lives by two principles: accounting is the heartbeat of business, and if you follow the money, you'll find the answers. 

Guest Links 

Website:  https://albertbutler.com/about/ 

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

YouTube:  https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCx6-wOn2tbc7Pkv0bc58NSQ 

Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61577977890720 

Instagram:  https://www.instagram.com/albertbutlercpa/ 

Twitter / X:  https://x.com/albertbutlercpa 

Book on Amazon:  https://bit.ly/46prpmZ  (LIFE: Truth, Love, Loss, Success & Failure) 

Who do you know who'd make a great guest for the show? Please let us know.
Email: info@projectcandor.com

Website:   https://www.projectcandor.com

Social Media

Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/ProjectCandor/
LinkedIn:     https://www.linkedin.com/company/projectcandor/
Instagram:  https://www.instagram.com/project.candor/
YouTube:    https://www.youtube.com/@ProjectCandorPodcast