Firm Management
Your Firm’s Business Resolutions for the New Year
You’ve probably made a New Year’s resolution a time or two in your life, and, because you are an accountant, you might even have the mindset required to follow through and get your resolution(s) accomplished. But sometimes the list of life changes we ...
Dec. 14, 2018
You’ve probably made a New Year’s resolution a time or two in your life, and, because you are an accountant, you might even have the mindset required to follow through and get your resolution(s) accomplished. But sometimes the list of life changes we would like to make gets a bit unwieldy, and even the most task-oriented practitioner can reach a point where the list of things you want to do becomes overwhelming.
Based on the chatter in the accounting profession that I hear/read/see in blogs, articles, conference presentations, podcasts, webinars, and so on, I’ve been able to draw the following astute conclusions:
- Accountants are really busy.
- Accountants would love to take better advantage of technology but it’s all pretty overwhelming and seems potentially time consuming.
- Accountants have staffing issues: attracting, training, retaining.
- The laws and regulations keep changing and that’s annoying.
- There are good clients and there are bad clients and most accountants have plenty of each type.
- Accountants can never retire or die because they haven’t figured out their succession plans.
- Work/Life/What?
With all of that in mind, I’ve compiled a list of resolutions and related follow-through suggestions that might help you begin to tackle at least some of these issues in your firm. And please try to start small. Don’t take on so much that you’ll never be able to get it all done.
- Resolve to do one item on your (seemingly neverending) list of items you would like to change. Visualize what that change will actually look like. Lay out the blueprint for making the change, set up a timetable, break it down into small steps, decide who is going to do what and when, add the steps to everyone’s calendars, and hold all involved parties accountable. Revisit your timetable monthly until the item is completed.
- Go public with your resolution. If you let others know what you are planning to accomplish, you not only will feel more responsible for getting it done, you’ll have a built-in cheering section as the pieces of the goal come into place. If you keep your goal secret, it’s easier to ignore the goal or procrastinate.
- Try goal sharing. If you team up with someone else who is attempting to achieve a goal, you can help each other, encourage each other, monitor each other’s progress, and even make the process of meeting your respective goals more enjoyable.
- Offer yourself a reward for achieving your goal. If the completion of the goal is a long way off, then create a reward program to honor each part of the goal as it is finished.
One more thing – don’t beat yourself up if you don’t accomplish everything you set out to change in 2019. Instead, keep in mind anything that’s not working the way you planned, and realign your goals for the following year to ensure success.