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There is a distinct difference between bookkeeping and accounting and it's important to acknowledge that it's not one vs the other. Bookkeepers and accountants have a very synergistic relationship and, ideally, work well together for the benefit of their mutual client. 

Generally speaking, bookkeepers are the ones who are across the business accounts on a more regular basis, as their job is to process the day-to-day transactions. This may include bank reconciliations, payroll,...

I love networking but I've had to learn how to do it, and I've learned to love it.

I'm probably considered outgoing and approachable by most who meet me, but I can be a little introverted at times, and so networking was something that didn't come easily at first.

Fake it 'til you make it has long been a favourite of mine and it applies well to networking. I don't mean be fake. Quite the opposite in fact, you need to be authentic and genuine.

But if you think about who a person would...

Whenever I do a business review for my own business, one of the things I want to get a handle on is return on investment for the various networking groups I belong to.

The cost of belonging to these organisations is actually quite a lot, especially when you consider the time and travel investment as well (which you should).

I’ve always been a big proponent of networking. I really enjoy it and BNI was integral to the growth of my last business with a tangible financial return. Some of...

The discovery session checklist

I thought it would be helpful for me to create a checklist of things to ask when I was in sales conversations, or discovery meetings, with potential clients. I carefully created a list of things that I wanted to make sure that I didn't forget, and went along to a meeting duly prepared.

I was wrong. It wasn't helpful at all. What I found was that it was such a distraction, that I promptly discarded it and never went back to it again.

Having a...

When I joined BNI, over 10 years ago now, it started working well for me very quickly. And so I thought, this is great! I’ll find another group to join and I’ll get more referrals. But from the very first meeting I realised that that was going to be a problem.

Part of the reason that structured, consistent networking groups (like BNI, Venus, Pod, TNG etc.) work, is because you develop trusted relationships with the people in your group. You get to know, like and trust them, and...

When I owned my bookkeeping business I was once asked if I had a different rate for data entry work. The inference being that that particular task was worth less than the bookkeeping rate which I had quoted.

The thing is though, with bookkeeping it’s never just data entry, right? Every entry effects the system and we need to understand the cause and effect of what we're entering. That’s where a bookkeeper’s specialised knowledge comes into play.

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