You can call me Aunt Anna. I'm so happy you're here!

I never expected to go back to school at age 51.

By then, I had already built a career as a Certified Public Accountant, owned and operated my own CPA firm, worked with businesses and professionals for decades, and raised a family. But there was something I had always wanted to do: teach.

So, at 51 years old, I went back to school to earn my master’s degree, which I needed in order to pursue teaching at the collegiate level. For three years, that meant a 500-mile weekly commute between Jupiter, Florida and my alma mater, the University of Florida in Gainesville, while continuing to run my CPA practice and live my life.

It wasn't the easiest way to earn another degree, but it reinforced something I have believed throughout my life: you are never too old to pursue another goal.

My journey started much more simply. I am the daughter of Greek immigrants and grew up in a small house with my twin sister, older brother, and parakeets for pets. My parents worked in the kitchens of restaurants and private clubs, and they raised us with four principles that have stayed with me throughout my life: humility, good manners, a strong work ethic, and kindness.

Those lessons followed me when I began my own adult life. Like most young people starting out, I had to figure out how to turn an education into a career, earn and manage my own money, make good decisions, recover from mistakes, and become truly independent. I still remember my first apartment with its very fashionable-for-the-1980s mauve carpet, the used Chrysler LeBaron I bought, and the fancy suits I thought every young professional needed.

I didn't have everything figured out. Nobody does.

Now, looking back after more than three decades in the professional world, I realized how many things I eventually learned that no one had ever actually taught me. School prepared me academically for a career, but there was no class on how to navigate workplace relationships, earn the trust and respect of others, handle the inevitable mistakes, or understand all of the unwritten expectations that come with becoming a working adult.

And as I watched my own two sons make the transition from school into the workplace, I found myself thinking about those lessons all over again.

That's why I wrote The Graduate's Guide to Grace in the Workplace.

I wanted to give young people some of the lessons and insights I wish someone had shared with me when I was their age and just starting out. Not theories or lectures, but real-world examples, honest advice, and common sense that could make the beginning of their professional lives a little smoother and easier to navigate.

Those four principles I learned so many years ago became the foundation of the book: HMWK - Humility, Manners, Work Ethic, and Kindness. They may sound simple, but after decades in the workplace, I have come to believe they are among the most important qualities we can bring to our careers, our relationships, and our lives.

And that first book led to something bigger: The Graduate's Guide™.

Today, my mission is to provide young adults with practical, common-sense guidance in three areas that have an enormous impact on their independence and future: career, money, and life.

I'm not here to tell you how to live your life. I'm here to share what I've learned from more than three decades in the professional world, running a business, managing money, raising a family, making mistakes, changing course, and continuing to learn along the way.

Some of what I'll share is what I wish someone had told me when I was starting out. Some of it is what I've learned professionally. And some of it is simply the kind of practical advice you might get from an aunt who has been around a little longer and wants to help you avoid a few unnecessary bumps in the road.

I'll give you the information, perspective, and common sense. What you do with it is up to you.

Through books, free educational resources, videos, workshops, speaking engagements, and, I hope, the classroom, my goal is to make the transition into adulthood a little less intimidating and a lot easier to navigate.

I've been the young person just starting out, just like you are now. I've been the professional building a career and a business. I've been the parent watching children begin lives of their own. And at 51, I became the student again—and I loved every minute of it!

You don't have to know everything when you're starting out. Nobody does. But good, honest guidance can make the journey a whole lot easier.

That's why I created The Graduate's Guide™. Think of me as your Aunt Anna—the person you can come back to again and again when you have a question about your career, your money, or simply figuring out adult life. My goal is to give you advice you can trust, understand, and actually use.

So, when you're not quite sure what to do next, come back and visit. Aunt Anna will be here.

With love and adoration,

Aunt Anna
(aka Anna Pikounis Paine, M.Acc., CPA)

Author & Founder, The Graduate's Guide™