The same habits that help accountants succeed can eventually become the things holding them back.
Perfectionism, people-pleasing, long hours, and the constant pressure to achieve are often rewarded in public accounting. But what happens when those behaviors start affecting your ability to lead, grow, and enjoy your career?
In this episode of Qualified Opinions, Chris Vanover and new co-host Stephanie Silva sit down with Amber Setter, former CPA, executive leadership coach, and Chief Enlightenment Officer at Conscious Public Accountants, to examine the relationship between professional success, leadership, and burnout.
They explore why high-performing accountants struggle to set boundaries, how early career experiences shape leadership styles, and why burnout isn’t always something a vacation or a new job can fix. The discussion also turns to the profession itself, including billable hours, generational differences, firm culture, and whether the traditional public accounting business model needs to change.
Ultimately, it’s a conversation about building a successful career without sacrificing the things that matter outside of work.
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Episode Highlights:
0:00 – Intro
0:32 – Meet Stephanie Silva and Amber Setter
9:30 – When success stops working
13:50 – Breaking the achievement cycle
22:04 – The burnout problem
35:09 – Who owns leadership culture?
39:33 – How firms shape leaders
44:33 – Inside public accounting’s future
52:48 – What does success mean?
56:00 – Episode wrap-up
About Chris Vanover
Chris Vanover, CPA, blends expertise in public accounting, auditing, regulation, innovation and education to drive meaningful change in the profession. A two-time Accounting Today Top 100 Most Influential People honoree and founder of CPAClub, he is committed to advancing excellence and progress across the accounting profession.
Connect with Chris on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/chrisvcpa/
About Stephanie Silva
Stephanie Silva is an Associate Chief at CPAClub and co-host of Qualified Opinions. A former audit manager at KPMG, where she also worked in the firm’s audit technology organization, Stephanie now leads CPAClub’s Technology & Transformation efforts, helping firms and companies modernize their processes, adopt new technologies, and drive innovation. She brings a unique blend of audit experience and technology expertise to conversations about the evolving accounting profession.
About Our Guest | Amber Setter, CPA
Amber Setter, CPA, is an executive leadership coach and founder of Conscious Public Accountants, where she helps accounting professionals and firm leaders navigate the challenges of leadership, professional growth, and well-being. Through her coaching and thought leadership, Amber is helping reshape what it means to build a successful and sustainable career in public accounting.
Connect with Amber
Website: https://conscious.cpa/
Meet Amber: https://conscious.cpa/meet-the-team/amber-buck-setter/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ambersetter/
Email: [email protected]
Connect with CPAClub
More Resources: https://cpaclub.cpa/resources
Website: cpaclub.cpa
LinkedIn: linkedin.com/company/cpaclub
Instagram: instagram.com/cpaclubinc
Facebook: facebook.com/cpaclubinc
