Elite Tax Strategist: Making Taxes Strategic, Fun, and Profitable

Summary

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Podcast Summary: Living Your Legacy

Episode: Elite Tax Strategist: Making Taxes Strategic, Fun, and Profitable

Host: Rudy Mawer (with co-host Riga Tierrez)
Guest: Kimberly Brake
Date: January 12, 2026

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Episode Overview

This episode of "Living Your Legacy" dives into the world of tax strategy with guest Kimberly Brake, an empowering and purpose-driven tax strategist. Kimberly shares her expertise on making taxes strategic, accessible, and even fun. The conversation uncovers how business owners can leverage everyday expenses to maximize returns, the secrets behind “the golden path” in tax, behind-the-scenes stories from her career, and candid insights into balancing entrepreneurship with parenting a child with special needs. The episode is both educational and genuinely uplifting, with a tone that balances motivation, real-life grit, and plenty of humor.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The Purpose and Power of the Tax Code

• Tax code is designed as a guide for businesses, not a trap for taxpayers
  • “I don’t think people really realize that tax code is made for businesses and it’s literally your guide on how not to pay taxes.” – Kimberly Brake (00:10, 03:18)
  • Kimberly demystifies the idea that taxes are inherently punitive, explaining instead that they are tools for those willing to learn the system.

2. Making Taxes Engaging and Accessible

• Personalized strategies turn taxes from scary to fun
  • “If you make it into something that they’re like, oh, shit, I can do these things and it’s fun — then the limits are endless.” – Kimberly Brake (00:41, 07:18)
  • She encourages people to view tax strategy as customizable to their lifestyles, flipping expenses into business deductions.

3. Real-World Examples of Tax Strategy

• Creative deductions and case stories
  • Example: A UFC fighter deducting a boat as a business endurance vehicle, creatively backed up with documentation and a clear business purpose.
    • “As long as you have a story to tell and there’s a reason for it, that’s how you’re able to write it off.” – Kimberly Brake (06:23)
• Business expenses can be surprisingly broad
  • “Stop overpaying the government and using, you know, strategies for keeping your kids or hiring them and using Louis Vuitton bags in your business, like, who wouldn’t want to do that?” – Kimberly Brake (03:18)

4. The Path to Becoming a Tax Strategist

• Origin story rooted in resilience
  • Kimberly started her firm as a single mom, from a hospital room while caring for her daughter.
  • “I was like, screw it, I’m just going to learn the tax code and I’m going to teach all these people how to outdo the government.” – Kimberly Brake (04:21)

5. The Difference: CPA vs. Tax Strategist

• Specialization matters
  • “A CPA actually goes to school not just for tax... They’re not specific tax strategist. I literally went to school for tax and tax only.” – Kimberly Brake (07:42)
  • Kimberly underscores her advanced credentials: law school, LLM in taxation, Enrolled Agent status.

6. The Business of Tax – From OnlyFans to Hollywood

• Diverse clients, from entertainers to everyday business owners
  • She shares stories working with everyone from OnlyFans creators to those investing in Hollywood movies for tax advantage purposes (04:03–04:07, 08:32–08:51).
  • The American tax code has unique opportunities, especially for entrepreneurs and entertainers.

7. Building a Team and Scaling Impact

• Challenges of hiring and building a reliable team
  • “You hire fast or you fire fast... thankfully right now I have an amazing assistant, I have an amazing two bookkeepers... It has been phenomenal so far.” – Kimberly Brake (09:54)
• Commitment to education
  • Kimberly develops courses for both tax professionals and business owners (08:24).

8. Purpose-Driven Entrepreneurship

• Nonprofit work parallel to business success
  • Kimberly runs a nonprofit assisting low-income families with medical expenses for special needs children (11:05).

9. Behind the Scenes: The Mompreneur Journey

• Juggling caregiving and entrepreneurship
  • “It’s a very lonely thing because not very many people understand you... she has 24 hour care. I’m not allowed to just get up and go to the grocery store... if I’m not happy, how can I be a good parent? Right.” – Kimberly Brake (11:26)
• Advice for other entrepreneur moms
  • “Just keep going. The grind is exhausting. But if you keep at it, it will pay off.” – Kimberly Brake (12:12)

10. Womanhood, Power, and Legacy

• Embracing womanhood as strength
  • “I have been told no my whole life... Now I’m starting to really love [being a woman]. And then the power is coming.” – Kimberly Brake (12:25)
• Humor and honesty about gendered experiences
  • The conversation veers into light-hearted territory about gender roles and everyday experiences, closing with laughter and authenticity (13:11–13:36).

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On the design of the tax code:
  “Tax code is made for businesses and it's literally your guide on how not to pay taxes.” – Kimberly Brake (00:10)
• On making tax fun:
  “If you make it into something that they're like, oh, shit, I can do these things and it's fun. Then the limits are endless.” – Kimberly Brake (00:41, 07:18)
• On creative tax deductions:
  “As long as you have a story to tell and there's a reason for it, that's how you're able to write it off.” – Kimberly Brake (06:23)
• On perseverance for mompreneurs:
  “Just keep going. The grind is exhausting. But if you keep at it, it will pay off.” – Kimberly Brake (12:12)
• On womanhood and overcoming barriers:
  “I have been told no my whole life... Now I’m starting to really love [being a woman]. And then the power is coming.” – Kimberly Brake (12:25)

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Key Timestamps for Important Segments

• 00:10 – Tax code as a guide for business owners
• 00:41 / 07:18 – Making taxes fun and empowering clients
• 03:18 – Using lifestyle choices and purchases as part of a tax strategy
• 06:23 – Real-world tax deduction example (UFC fighter and the boat)
• 07:42 – CPA vs. Tax Strategist explained
• 08:24 – Kimberly’s educational initiatives
• 11:05 – Nonprofit work for families with special medical needs
• 11:26 – Personal story of balancing business and special needs parenting
• 12:12 – Advice to fellow “mompreneurs”
• 12:25 – Embracing womanhood as source of power

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How to Connect with Kimberly Brake

“Come follow me on Instagram @octaxbreak.” – Kimberly Brake (13:47)

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Tone and Takeaways

The conversation is candid, uplifting, and often humorous, breaking the stereotype that taxes must be dull or intimidating. Kimberly's message is clear: with the right mindset and guidance, the tax code becomes a tool for legacy-building—not a burden. The practical, real-world advice shared is both inspiring and actionable for entrepreneurs at all stages.

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Transcript

[A]

Taxes are actually designed for you to succeed and they're actually designed for you to scare out the wrong people. But there's a way to this path. What? Talk to us about the golden path as a strategist.

[B]

Well, I don't think people really realize that tax code is made for businesses and it's literally your guide on how not to pay taxes. Right.

[C]

Like Kimberly Brake is a resilient, empowering, and purpose driven tax strategist who turned hardship into a platform for impact. After building her firm from a hospital room as a single mom, she now serves over 1200 clients nationwide, helping business owners use the tax code to keep more of what they earn and build generational wealth.

[A]

How did you make tax so fun?

[B]

If you make it into something that they're like, oh, shit, I can do these things and it's fun.

[A]

Oh, yeah.

[B]

Then the limits are endless.

[A]

Do you have any words of wisdom for mompreneurs that are also, you know.

[B]

Taking care, Just keep going. Like, the grind is exhausting. But if you keep, keep at will pay off.

[A]

It spans the globe like a super high cold Internet Elvis Presley. Today, Apple is going to reinvent the phone. It's not over until I win the Living your Legacy podcast for those who live to leave a legacy that's extraordinary. The impossible has been. Oh, that is sensational. Jord, Open Chicago with the lead. You said Paul is the fastest man on the planet. You can live your dream. Welcome back to another amazing episode of the Living youg Legacy podcast. For Inside Success, I am Riga Tierrez. Joining me today is another powerful, amazing woman, Kimberly Brake. And Kimberly doesn't fix your brakes in your car. She's actually an amazing tax strategist and she's here to give you the ultimate tax break.

[B]

Absolutely.

[A]

Out of Orange County.

[B]

Out of Orange County, California.

[A]

I got to ask, what are you doing here?

[B]

I actually love traveling. I just started traveling. I came here specifically for this. And.

[A]

Yes, how does one feel coming specifically for their Inside Success Women in Power episode?

[B]

I was so nervous today. I was sick to my stomach all night last night. But this has been the easiest and most comforting process I've ever had.

[A]

Right on. Make sure you write a Google review for us.

[B]

I will. Yes. Review.

[A]

You're welcome, Rudy. So tell us, what are we going to learn?

[B]

So you're going to learn how to use your everyday expense that you're already freaking using in your life and how to use that as a tax strategy to write off your business and keep more money in your pocket.

[A]

It's as simple as that. And that's what blows my mind.

[B]

Yeah, literally, it's as simple as that.

[A]

Folks hear tax and like, oh, they're scared. They're. They just need like a right wizard, a right leader to go. Taxes are actually designed for you to succeed and they're actually designed for you to scare out the wrong people. But there's a way to this path. What? Talk to us about the golden path as a strategist.

[B]

Well, I don't think people really realize that tax code is made for businesses. And it's literally your guide on how the fuck not to pay taxes. Right. Like, that is what it is. And if we can use that code to our advantage, stop overpaying the government and using, you know, strategies for keeping your kids or hiring them for and using Louis Vuitton bags in your business, like, who wouldn't want to do that?

[A]

Yeah, there's all sorts of fun wiggle rooms, loopholes, all sorts of zings and zags. I'm like, wait, what word? Yeah, dude. Yeah. Most movies that are in Hollywood get funded because of tax breaks. Tax strategists. Or one movie doesn't do well, liquidates that film, which will actually publish, will actually fund that project.

[B]

Well, that's actually a strategy for some of my clients is investing in movies.

[A]

This is why we'll never see the Catwoman movie, because it was liquidated. It was a tax break.

[B]

Yes, exactly. They had a very good strategist.

[A]

So talk about how one becomes a strategist. Did you just wake up one day and go, strategy, tax, how does this happen?

[B]

No, I took a class in college. I absolutely loved it. And then I was like, you know what, I'm bored. I'm at the hospital all the time with my daughter and I'm going to go to law school. And I was like, screw it, I'm just going to learn the tax code and I'm going to teach all these people how to outdo the government.

[A]

It's actually quite the familiar origin story with a lot of folks in your field that are just there. That's their origin story. They were either bored or they're doing something repetitive. They just want to learn and ascend. What have we learned and has, have we evolved much when it comes to tax?

[B]

Our system is a very screwed up system, that is for sure. But again, if you can use it to make sure that you are building a great, you know, company and if you can use it to your advantage and keep more money in your pocket.

[A]

Especially if you're trying to try to sell it off eventually.

[B]

Exactly.

[A]

Every. I mean, everything needs to be perfect or you're useless in a cell. It's got to be primitive.

[B]

Yes. And that's again, that's just what that strategy is for, is to be able to build that legacy for you and your family and then be able to do whatever the heck you want to do with it.

[A]

Right on. So I, I heard Orange county, but you have about what, 1200, 1400 clients?

[B]

I. Hundred clients. They are not all in Orange County. Not all in Orange county. They're all over 50 states. I have them.

[A]

So, yeah, you've got a new one right here.

[B]

The UK have a couple clients. And yeah, so they're everywhere.

[A]

Yeah. That's a big reason why I have even LLC or done anything. I'm like, I just would need a strategist to go, all right, your first dollar is going to help you make that first million in X amount of time.

[B]

So let me ask you, what do you spend most of your money on personally?

[A]

Equipment and video games. Stuff that I can write off for my company. It's all entertainment research. I need to talk about this. Trust me. But this, actually, that vertical, that question is. Can apply to anything.

[B]

Yes. And that's why I love tax strategy, because it's so customizable. Whatever you are using, let's flip the script. And how can we use that in your company?

[A]

Even to the temperature of the room, right?

[B]

Yes.

[A]

Ridiculous.

[B]

Can I, Can I tell you a story? So I, I worked for a UFC fighter and he was audited, he bought a boat, and the IRS is like, what does a UFC fighter need a moat for? Well, we took videos, we took him out and dropped him off in the middle of the ocean so he can swim back. And it was an endurance vehicle.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

As long as you have a story to tell and there's a reason for it, that's how you're able to write it off.

[A]

And then the dark side of that story is look at the amount of people that had to stop to eat to prove this. And people that are eating and getting a tax breaks because this man is on the boat. Let him have the boat.

[B]

Just give him the boat. Let him give him the thing.

[A]

Because look at all these, all the.

[B]

People paying all this tax because he's got the boat. Yes. Duh.

[A]

Duh. Business 101.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

That's why billionaires don't pay tax. 100% quiet silence for that fact. So how do you. How did you make tax so fun? Clearly, I'm a fan.

[B]

I. Because it is so damn boring and people hate it. Like, that's the only way you can get people to listen. Right. If you make it into something that they're like, oh, I can do these things and it's fun, then the limits are endless.

[A]

Yeah. Can you really, like explain to a five year old, even though. I know, but this is a rhetorical question, the difference between a CPA and a strategist?

[B]

So a CPA actually goes to school not just for tax. So they take classes for auditing, they take classes for bookkeeping, like accounting stuff. They don't. They're not specific. Tax strategist. Some of them are absolutely fantastic, but some of them have no idea how to do taxes. I literally went to school for tax and tax only.

[A]

I mean, you get a doctorate in this.

[B]

Yeah, I have an LLM is what it is. Right on.

[A]

Hell yeah.

[B]

I went to law school for it and I'm an enrolled agent, which is you're certified in tax and tax only. So it's like a double whammy right there.

[A]

Hell yeah.

[B]

Yes.

[A]

So are you teaching? Are you leading? What's your day to day hustle today?

[B]

So I'm creating some courses right now for tax professionals and for business owners. So I'm doing a little bit of everything.

[A]

Yeah, that. I mean, that is the it. Like, because folks that understand, like one of my clients, we made our tax strategist specifically just for OnlyFan members or not members. I mean, OnlyFan creators.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

Just because they became millionaires overnight. Like Covid hit and then all these traders became millionaires and they're not even llc.

[B]

I know.

[A]

Years later, my buddy, now my friend is literally taking calls from like, you know, a client is on a cruise ship. I just got gifted a Ferrari from a client in Switzerland. What do I do with it? Oh, it's a gift.

[B]

Where's my friend? I need a friend. Like that.

[A]

It's really lavish, but it's really like eccentric lifestyles. But as long as you live among the code that is designed for you to succeed, which is the American dream.

[B]

It absolutely is.

[A]

Then you're going to be in God's. In God's trust. Like, this is the way it works. Now talk about what's really the things that we don't see, like the energies, the frequencies, the things that are downloading into your. Into your pineal gland and you're exporting into this reality.

[B]

My brain never stops. So it's like I'm always doing all the things, but honestly, like, my favorite thing is I love listening to random people talk. And then I'm just like, oh my God, can I help you? Like that is, I know that sounds crazy, but I'm like, let me help you because your problem sounds like something I can fix.

[A]

That's awesome.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

How do you like find folks with that same conviction like yours? And how do you hire that first employee or first team member?

[B]

Hiring is very hard. You definitely need to find the right person. And it's trial and error. You hire fast or you fire fast is what you do. And then you take your time in hiring. And thankfully right now I have an amazing assistant, I have an amazing two bookkeepers right now and then another tax gal who helps me and knock on wood or couch. It has been phenomenal so far.

[A]

Yeah. Talk about, about what are your beginnings? I, I, I hear, I see O.C. orange County. I want to just dive into the, the difference between west coast versus east coast tax strategist.

[B]

It's very different because every state has such different rules. Some states, so you're in Florida. I mean you don't even have state right taxes. So I'm like, let me, let me move here. So you just have to get well acclimated in those states that you have most of your clients in and make sure that you're in compliance with them. And it's trial and error, let me tell you.

[A]

Right on.

[B]

Yes.

[A]

Besides, besides your coaching and your, and your classes, are you on board? Are you, are you on committees? Are you helping CEOs elevate their, their transparencies when it comes to tax strategies?

[B]

So that's what I'm trying to do right now is reach out to businesses, getting them on board for it. I run a non profit that I also do as well that helps low income families and pay for medical for their kids who have special needs or surgeries. And yeah, that's, I, that's one of my favorite things to do.

[A]

Do you mind if we talk about your daughter?

[B]

No, not at all.

[A]

Can we talk about what it's like, you know, having this grand vision but your heart, your daughter's a special needs daughter and talk about that fluctuation.

[B]

It's a very lonely thing because not very many people understand you. You're very, very isolated. For my daughter, she can't be left alone. So she has 24 hour care. I'm not allowed to just get up and go to the grocery store and it's hard. It's really hard. And I think in the last two years that I've really started to put my needs A little bit more above hers. And what makes me happy. Because if I'm not happy, how can I be a good parent? Right. And it took me a long time to figure that out.

[A]

Do you have any words of wisdom for mompreneurs that are also taking care?

[B]

Just keep going. The grind is exhausting. But if you keep at will pay.

[A]

Off, what do you feel like your power as a woman comes from? Is the woman first or is the power first? Give me your philosophy there.

[B]

I think it's definitely woman first. I have been told no my whole life. And I remember even when I. This is going to sound crazy. When I was in third grade, I was like, I want to be a boy. And I didn't really want to be a boy. But I noticed at a very young age the advantages that they got. My guy friends could walk at home at 9 o' clock at night. We weren't allowed to do that. And I was like, this is not fair. And being a woman, I'm now starting to really love it. And then the power is coming. Now I'm like, okay, I had to be comfortable in who I was and now I can use that on a different level.

[A]

Yeah. For a man that enjoys wearing skirts, I feel like women have it so much more fun. I gotta be over here all broody all the time. Boring.

[B]

I just want to one time know what it's like to stand and pee. Like, that is like.

[A]

It'S quite a process. You're looking at this thing like, what are you, like a tentacle? Like, this is actually mathematically the second time I've talked about male genitalia on this podcast.

[B]

I'm like, I just. That's it.

[A]

That's.

[B]

I'm like, one day all I want to do is to be able to know, like, how easy would it be to not stand in a line for 20 minutes at a concert and just go in there and pee really fast.

[A]

I'm kind of curious if we should end the podcast on that note or not.

[B]

I'm okay with that, actually.

[A]

Let's end it on a self plug. How can folks find you? Follow your journey and keep making Tax so fun.

[B]

Come follow me on Instagram @oc tax break.

[A]

Right on. Octax break. Gosh. Thank you so much for such a lovely morning and such a lovely chat.

[B]

Thank you so much for having me.

[A]

Yeah, right on. Our pleasure for Inside Success. Happy Friday.