I have lost count of how many times I have heard stories about accountants who failed to make the most of a speaking...
Confidence Articles
4 surprising business lessons accountants can learn from dentists
I know that drawing lessons from dentists might seem odd for someone who supports sole practitioner accountants as I...
You left a large firm and started your own accounting practice. What next?
If you're a large firm refugee and you've been running your own accounting practice for a year or two, this might feel familiar.... The excitement of starting your own firm has passed. The first clients arrived, many through relationships you'd built over many...
Ten lessons sole practitioner accountants tell me they learned too late
After hundreds of conversations with sole practitioners over the years, I've noticed something unexpected about the mistakes they admit to having made. I'm thinking specifically about the accountants who guest on my podcast. My co-host and I always ask them to...
What can you do to stop sounding like a generic accountant (just like everyone else)
One of the more damaging assumptions people have about accountants is that you are largely interchangeable. To some extent we all understand why this belief persists; most accountants produce variations of the same outputs: accounts, tax returns, VAT work,...
25 ways accountants can answer “How much do you charge?” without losing control of the conversation
It's probably happened to you, just as it's happened to hundreds of other accountants. A prospective new client's first question is about your fees. Plenty of experienced accountants will see this as a huge red-flag. We might all assume that the question implies...
Why many sole practitioners feel overwhelmed (and it’s not about workload)
Some of the accountants who contact me do so because they’ve reached a point where the pressure feels relentless. They often say they feel overwhelmed by constant deadlines, client expectations and a lack of time to think, take a break or relax properly. Family and...
How to feel more confident in your accountancy services (and how you promote them)
Some people might assume that anyone who’s set up their own accountancy practice would be brimming with confidence. And yet, from countless conversations I’ve had with accountants over the years, I know that’s often far from the case. In fact, many accountants...
How to build confidence in your accountancy services (and stop hiding your brilliance)
One of the many things I've learnt from countless conversations with accountants over the years is that self-confidence isn't a given. It’s often missing, even after years of running their own practice. "More through luck than judgment" they might say. Or, "I'm...
How to Beat Imposter Syndrome: Tips for Sole Practitioners
You are experienced, good at what you do and yet, you sometimes feel you need validation as to your value as an accountant - especially if you are a sole practitioner, running your own practice. Perhaps, like so many others, you resort to over-preparing,...
Silencing the inner critic: How to conquer imposter syndrome and bring on more new clients for your practice
I hope this post will be of general interest even though it is intended primarily for those accountants in practice who have a degree of imposter syndrome or who struggle with low self-worth or low self-esteem. Such struggles invariably impact self confidence and...
How’s your self confidence and experience?
In my experience many accountants have more potential to succeed than they themselves believe. They are better accountants than they are prepared to admit. And they deserve to be more successful than they have so far managed to be. Could this be true of you too?...
How confident can you afford to be?
Not all accountants are full of confidence. And some of those who come across as confident are not - or should not be. There's an understandable desire to come across as confident in our profession. After all, who would want an accountant who seems unable to give...