Why We Need To Stop Downplaying The Difference We Make

I’ve been a little quiet on the procrastination email series lately, and not because I was procrastinating! 🤣

Two weeks ago, I was at ICNZB’s annual Bookkeepcon, and it was amazing - a whirlwind of connections, re-connections, and a big dose of inspiration.

And I wore a lot of hats while I was there:

• Delegate – soaking up all the sessions and connecting with exhibitors
• Exhibitor – sharing a stand with my cousin, Di Crawford-Errington, and her Small Business Training Hub.
• Coach – catching up with many of my clients in-real-life and gathering with the From Bookkeeper to Business Owner group for a collective dinner on the Thursday night.
• ICNZB Vice-President – collaborating behind the scenes to help the event succeed.
• Award Finalist – I’d submitted my application for Community Contributor of the Year and been announced a finalist.
• Award Winner – yes, I was over the moon to take home Community Contributor of the Year (more on that in a moment!)
• And, just to round it off, dinner guest of the lovely MYOB team on Friday night.

All of this came after a couple of bouts of being unwell in the month prior, plus being a judge for the NZ VA Awards before I went away.

It was a lot, and not just during the event, but in the lead-up as well. Preparing ICNZB work, my business work, and myself for a 2-day conference and a string of evening commitments took more energy than I realised.

So perhaps it’s no surprise (though it did surprise me!) that the week after, I could barely keep my eyes open by 5pm. And because I didn’t have a lot of appointments or coaching sessions in my calendar that week, I leaned into that and took a “light duties” approach for the week… which turned into two.

And now, three weeks post-conference, I’m back baby!

And I'm back with a couple of important reminders for you.

The first reminder I want to give you is...

Listen to your body.

I know, it sounds obvious. But how often do we actually do it? We push through tiredness. We work “just one more hour” instead of stopping for the night. We say yes to one more client request, one more meeting, one more favour for someone else, while quietly promising ourselves we’ll rest later.

The problem is, “later” often never comes until our body decides for us. That might be in the form of getting sick, feeling burnt out, or simply hitting a wall where even the smallest task feels exhausting.

I’ve learned that taking time to recover is not a sign of weakness or laziness, and it's certainly not procrastination, it's a strategic business decision. Your energy is arguably your most important business asset. When it’s depleted, your thinking gets fuzzy, your patience runs thin, and your creativity shrinks.

Rest is how we refill the tank.

Sometimes that looks like taking a proper holiday. Sometimes it’s a light-duties week where you only do what’s essential. And sometimes it’s simply an afternoon nap, a walk in the sun, or stepping away from your desk early.

The key is recognising that rest is not the reward for finishing everything on your list, it’s the fuel that makes finishing possible.

And here’s the thing… the very same reason we need to protect our energy is also the reason we need to own and acknowledge the contributions we make. When you give your time, knowledge, and skills to help others - whether that’s a not-for-profit board, a professional association, or your own business community - it costs energy. It’s valuable work that deserves recognition, not just from others but from yourself.

Which brings me to my second reminder for you:

Own the impact you make.

One of the biggest patterns I see in bookkeepers, and I even noticed myself doing it at Bookkeepcon, is that we tend to downplay our contributions.

When I asked my co-finalist for Community Contributor of the Year, Kelly Thomsen from Bookkeepers NZ, about her community work, she kind of brushed it off as “you know, just the ordinary stuff - treasurer of this and treasurer of that."  

But there was nothing "ordinary stuff" about it. Kelly gives huge amounts of time and expertise to her communities, just as so many of you do too. Listening to everything she does, I thought she'd be a shoo-in for winning the Award.

But then I realised I was doing exactly the same thing. Even as I was hearing her list, my own mind was busy discounting my own contributions, telling myself they were “just part of the role” or “not a big deal”. 

But they are a big deal.

This is not about ego or boasting. It’s about giving the work you do the respect it deserves, and that respect has got to start with you.

By acknowledging the value you bring, you:

• Strengthen your sense of purpose – reminding you why you show up.
• Model healthy recognition for others – so they feel encouraged to value themselves too.
• Inspire future volunteers – showing them what’s possible when skilled, generous people step in.

Sometimes owning your impact means entering an award, even if you think you won’t win. Sometimes it’s sharing your contributions in a LinkedIn post or telling the story in a blog. Sometimes it’s simply saying out loud to yourself, “That mattered.”

Because when you stop brushing off your own contributions, you give others permission to see the difference you’re making, and to step up in their own ways too.

So here’s to you and to all of us, the quiet achievers, the community-minded bookkeepers, the people keeping organisations (literally) in the black. It’s a big deal, and it’s time we all started recognising it as one.

Stephanie