Tarryn Sampson - The Bold Maven™️

Tarryn Sampson’s journey in tax and accounting began unexpectedly in 1996 with a part-time role at a major tax company. After six years there and a nudge from a tax software company, Tarryn took a leap of faith to start preparing taxes for friends and family while balancing a full-time accounting job. In 2014, feeling unfulfilled in her corporate role, Tarryn made the bold decision to resign, soon realizing her calling to build a tax and accounting firm with integrity and purpose. In 2015, Tarryn opened her own tax business, TS Tax Services ATL, creating a welcoming space where clients receive not only tax assistance but inspiration for their own entrepreneurial journeys. Tarryn has officially discovered her voice both as a businesswoman and a mentor. Today, Tarryn not only helps clients save thousands, but also shares insights on estate planning and audit prevention. Tarryn’s story has led her to inspire others to step out in faith, and she’s now developing a coaching program to guide women looking to transition from corporate careers to business ownership.

Q: What does it mean to you to be a Black woman working in the tax industry?

A: It means a lot and I think it’s important because we’re starting to see a lot of other faces getting really big in the tax world. Of course, Caucasian people have been in it. A lot of them are my mentors and I’ve learned a lot from them, but I think it’s important to have faces and people that you know you can trust. I’m a big advocate for small business owners in general, but specifically Black-owned businesses. A lot of times we’re the first in our family to own a business so we don’t always have the training or the education on how to run a business. We’re often figuring it out as we go along. The average business lasts a max of five years because they can’t sustain the roller coaster ride that comes with being in this industry. My goal is that I want us to be able to see us and know that there’s one of us that they could trust. I think it’s important to be able to build with us so that’s why I bring a level of relatability to other Black-owned business owners. We’re just a little bit more familiar with our own struggles.

Q: What is the biggest lesson that you’ve learned about yourself since either starting a business or doing this type of work?

A: I’ve learned a lot. When I first started, I had a sense of imposter syndrome, which sometimes comes with being an entrepreneur, especially with social media amplifying everybody doing great things. What you don’t see a lot of times is the struggle before you get to a certain point. As I was going through my journey when I first started a lot of people felt like I needed a CPA. I always felt like people needed somebody that knows what they’re doing. So I was concerned. The tax side of my business was doing well. Even though I went from working at home in my basement to having an office, I was not doing the big jump that I needed to in order to sustain so I went through really tough times.

I’ve done a lot over the years, and I’ve progressed. I’ve learned how to be strong and really believe in myself. I know what I bring to the table. I had to be okay with letting certain clients go in order to open my hand up to receive who is supposed to be for me. It was a learning curve but once you get through the bumpy moments then you’ll start getting your avatar client. You’ll start getting your people…your village. So after my 10 years of being a full time entrepreneur, I’ve learned a lot. Now, I’m able to understand why God wants me to take this road to get to what I truly want to do, which is help small business owners. I got all the intel during the process, and now I’m building out my community that will help small business owners on a grander scale.

Q: What is the biggest dream you have for your career?

A: I’ll say it’s multi-layered. I have a great passion for wanting to help the person who wants to start their business, like mentorship and guidance. A lot of times, small business owners don’t have someone come in and ask the important questions about how to make money and whether to start an S-Corp. So my goal is to help small business owners survive. Nobody starts a business to close a business. I want to be that trusted resource and business coach that helps entrepreneurs build and grow their business to whatever level they want for their business.

Q: Who or what is your biggest motivator?

A: My biggest motivator is my sister. Taisha. She passed away in 2021 but she always believed in me. She’s always believed in me even when I didn’t believe in myself. She was my battery pack and fed me what I needed. She always told me ‘you’re the one, you got this.’ Dealing with that loss is a continuous process.

Q: What would you say is your superpower?

A: Over the years what people appreciate about me is my listening skills and being able to explain to them the technical things in layman’s terms so that they can understand. When I was in the corporate world, my supervisor used to get upset with me for not speaking in accounting technical terminology. I would tell him all the time that I’m not speaking to accountants, so they’re not going to understand certain things. When I meet people, I have an ability to get them to understand, even when it’s just a consultation. Being able to take the time to be relatable with small business owners is my superpower.

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