Has it really been 10 years?

This week I have been feeling in kind of a reflective mood. Next Wednesday marks 10 years since I got the kick up the bum that gave me the courage to start my own practice. In 2014, I had been happily working  for one of the big miners, with a fabulous team of inspiring women, and in another endless organisational shake-up that happens in those behemoth businesses every couple of years, I was made redundant. I won’t lie, I was devastated. I had never been fired before. Logically, I knew it was not really a firing and it was not based on performance, but it was a kick to my ego and rejection was really hard to swallow. Especially when I looked at the gender make-up of the other redundancies around me. That made me damn angry. I have moved on, but I still hold a small grudge. It was a tough time, but what that experience gave me was the desire to be in charge of my own destiny. I no longer wanted my financial security to be based on the whim of someone else.

Hence the birth of Appy Books. With the germ of an idea and a fire in my belly, I hung up my shingle and I have not looked back. As my lovely hubby says, “Best career thing that’s ever happened to you.” Now, the thought of going back to a corporate career fills my belly with cement. It just is not an option.

As a part of reflecting on the last ten years, I have been taking an unemotional and logical look at our business progress. Taking away emotion from something you have built from your heart is a tricky thing to do, but putting on my data analysis hat has helped. I have focused just on the facts to plan our next growth steps and I am excited for the future. Every success or failure has come from an idea out of my head ,and I am damn proud of that. It has not by any means been perfect. I have made numerous mistakes, but learnt from them, righted the ship, and kept powering on. Paul Kelly said, “from little things, big things grow” and I am using that song as inspiration for our next ten years.

This process has also made me examine my message delivery to clients. I better understand their reluctance to look at their ups and downs. But whether it is a client in growth or a client struggling, they need calm, straight-forward advice to make plans for their next steps and I still believe that their bookkeeper is the best person to deliver that message, so I am working to improve that skill.

All that is left to say is cheers to ten years in practice. It is a milestone that I did not contemplate when I opened the doors but one, I am incredibly happy to have achieved. Thanks to all our lovely clients for trusting us and making our days fun. Thanks to all the app partners for the software that allows us to thrive and their webinars to inform us how to be better. Thanks to Tyrone and Sami for always being such a great support. And thanks to J for never complaining during July when my only conversation is about EOFY.

Stay ‘Appy! Pass the bubbles it’s time to party.