Videos

SELL is a 4-letter word to accountants!

I get it. I don’t like sounding like a salesman either.

This is why I NEVER SELL…

…I do something else

What does a ladder…and a CRAZY toque

have to do with your…ACCOUNTING PRACTICE!?!?

Watch this week’s video to find out 🙂

Having to clean up my client’s messes used to drive me crazy!

I’m sure you can relate.

But I found a solution to this problem

…and that’s what I share in this video

WARNING: Prepare for some foul language!

Are price sensitive clients bringing you down? 

You’d be SHOCKED at the negative impact low priced clients have on your bottom line. 

I thought I’d give you a quick illustration of what I’m talking about…

We’ll call it the PIAC  🙂

Shot this quick video while at a conference in Phoenix Arizona.

It’s a quick tip to help you re-energize after a long week of work.

There are 3 client “phases” every accounting firm should be monitoring

…and given we ARE accountants

…and love our acronyms

I created an easy one to remember.

Why do people say no to buying your services?

I have a secret for you…it’s NEVER because of the price.

There are 3 underlying objections below the “price excuse”.

Price is never the real reason.

What is the #1 Key to Profit in your accounting practice?

• Right client mix?
• Right staffing levels?
• Right service offering?

All these are important…but they don’t take the #1 spot.

It took me a while to figure this out when I ran my own firm.

But when I did…my bottom line BLEW up!

Want to know how to build a really profitable accounting practice?

Sometimes…you need to look to businesses “outside” the profession to find great strategies

…just like the one at Q Cigar Room.

Want to know how to make your clients price $$$ sensitive?

It all starts with your first interaction.

Be sure to avoid this fatal mistake that my new gardener did so that you don’t set yourself up for price sensitivity.

Ever feel stressed about giving a big invoice $$$ to a client?

Most accountants do.

What you may NOT know is where the stress is coming from…

…and it’s an easy fix.

How much should you charge for special projects?

Follow the approach my coaching client did…and you’ll be amazed at how much you can command.

His prices are SOARING!!

Watch this video to see how he’s doing it.

Want to know an excellent sales strategy you can use when meeting with a potential new client?

It’s REALLY easy.

The best part is that it won’t make you feel “sleazy or salesy” as you do it.

Just pay attention to what they do in DutyFree!

You can charge WAY more for your services than you think you can.

The real trick is knowing HOW to do this.

Take a lesson from my experience buying pizza in Norway.

Yes…you heard me correctly – Norwegian Pizza!

I shot this video while travelling through Ibiza (Spain).

When we ordered lunch it reminded me of how accountants should price their services during busy tax season.

It’s a simple case of economics…supply and demand

No matter where I go in the world…business owners all want the same thing from their accountants.

…but they don’t realize their accountants can deliver it

…or that they even want to deliver it

…it’s NOT just getting their tax returns filed.

They all want more.

Every great song, performance and presentation is built between the two MOST important parts:

The OPEN and the CLOSE

Get this wrong in your accounting practice…

and it will dramatically effect how your clients view their experience with you.

We’ve all had one of those ANNOYING clients who complain about the smallest things

…they are a pain to deal with.

But…they teach us a valuable lesson on how to manage our CPA practices.

Ever look back on your life and ask yourself…

“If I only knew then…what I know now

…things would be different!”

I wish I had known about the Secret Power of MM back when I had my accounting practice.

Pricing your services is the most critical part of building a successful accounting practice.

But how much should you charge?

Use this strategy to insure you’re not leaving money on the table.

Ever get frustrated waiting…

worrying…

or wondering…

when someone is going to complete a task you’ve given them?

It used to drive me nuts…until I realized I was
missing 3 critical keys to ensuring the task got done.

As an accountant you want to have a successful career.

To be respected…to work with ideal clients

…to make a great income…to have freedom.

But there’s ONE thing that will hold you back on this Path to Freedom.

One thing that will hold you back from soaring…

Have you ever been late for a meeting?

We all have.

As professional accountants we care about our clients.

…but we should be always mindful of this ONE thing when interacting with them.

Congratulations…the 2018 Tax Season is now over.

What are YOU going to do to celebrate?

…be sure to watch this video to the end as I’ve
shared some awesome footage of the mayhem
experienced at a rock concert in Vancouver 🙂

We all have good days, bad days and ugly days in our accounting practices.

The real question is how to deal with those bad and ugly days to transform them into good days?

I ask myself these two simple questions first and then I take action…

The world today is all about instant access to information, instant gratification and instant results.

We accountants don’t fall for this “instant results world”.

We know building a successful career takes dedication, hard work and time.

But there’s ONE key to success that so many accountants miss…

I was just going on stage and I thought I’d shoot this quick video.

There was a phrase someone had just said that reminded me of accountants and I wanted to share it with you.

It’s a phrase that normally serves us well and allows us to be the #1 trusted advisor to our clients.

However…it’s also a HUGE blind spot for many of us.

As I was going on a hike, the Arizona heat was getting to my daughter.

She was complaining and it reminded me of accountants during this time of year.

It’s tax season and accountants everywhere are in “The Grind”.

…but it doesn’t have to be like this.

There is a WAY out to free yourself from this annual suffering.

Now this was a fun video to make. 

If you’ve never been to a rugby sevens tournament you should really watch to the end of this. 

It’s crazy what people will do…

…me included.

What’s even more crazy is what some people will pay.

Which got me to thinking about pricing your services for some of your clients.

Why do accountants feel so obligated ​to take care of clients…​​…forever?

​Is it a feeling of guilt that makes us keep clients that no longer fit?

​It doesn’t make any sense.

​In any other industry they would get rid of the ​dead weight quickly to ensure the ​health of their business.

Accountants should do the same.

I recently came across a great quote from 1776 that perfectly summarizes the state of mind of most accountants.

It perfectly explains why they initially react so negatively to the suggestion that there is a superior way to run their practices.

But there is.

And those you adopt it…reap the rewards.

It just takes a willingness to question your thinking.

To question the status quo.

If you want to have a successful accounting practice then pay attention to how other successful businesses operate.

Disneyland is one of those businesses.

The value you deliver is not just in the tax returns or the financial statements your prepare.

Chasing clients used to be a major pain for me.

I once heard someone say it’s like trying to herd cats.

So true.

We end up chasing clients:

• to get their year-end books into us
• to provide us with missing information
• to pay our outstanding invoices!

…but I found a solution to the “Herding Cats” problem.

It completely took away my stress.

I’m going to share that solution with you.

There’s been a ton of rain falling on the WestCoast this year which caused our basement to flood.

Luckily a friend of mine owns a company that specializes in perimeter drains and we were able to find the root cause of the problem.

It reminded me of the root cause of the accountant’s problem with their business model.

Both are self created.

Like digging yourself a hole.

There are 3 lies the profession has fed every accountant.

These lies keep us oppressed and chained down.

The longer you live with these lies…the more they feel normal.

The worst part is most accountants don’t even realize what these lies are.

So I’ve decided to do something about it.

Shot a quick video at the airport during a multiple city tour.

Got some incredible news from two different accounting firms.

Clearly I couldn’t keep this a secret for very long.

It’s interesting how the time of year can bring up certain memories.

Christmas is one of those times for me.

What’s equally interesting is how these triggered memories relate back to my career as an accountant and how we can learn from these memories to fix fundamental flaws in our profession.

Been speaking to a lot of accountants lately and all of them have been complaining about how price sensitive their clients are.

What most of us don’t realize is that we are partially to blame for this price sensitivity.

Ain’t that a kick in the pants!!!

Just got back from a business convention where I presented the Accountant Success Formula™ solution to 1,000 business owners.

Every person I spoke to afterwards asked me the same question…

…and it confirmed a new opportunity I had been thinking about for some time.

You won’t believe the conversation I had with the guy who cleaned my carpets.

But when you look at the underlying model you’ll see that many of us are guilty of the same thing to some extent.

It was just another example of why accountants need to stop focussing on efficiencies in their accounting practices.

My daughter LOVES playing in the pumpkin patch.

Got me to thinking about how the changing seasons make accountants feel.

More specifically…how they feel about the always upcoming TAX season.

There is a solution to the madness.  It just takes a willingness to question the status quo.

This is a quick video I shot in Durango Colorado.

I was attending a high level two day MasterMind with 12 other business owners from around the globe.

MasterMinds are incredibly powerful…and they are amazing for accountants as well.

The real Key is how you structure them…

If there’s one thing that drives me crazy, it’s playing telephone tag with clients.

They call you – you’re busy – you call them back – they’re busy….and on and on it goes…

It wastes time and is completely unnecessary.

Use the concept of your 3 choices (A,D or E) to solve the problem and free up your time so you can provide real value to your clients.

This is what happens when I try to do an impromptu video shoot while multi-tasking.

It’s only around 90 seconds long and I get the seasons slightly mixed up…

…but I’m sure you’ll get the gist of the message.

For centuries accountants have been fed ​the BIGGEST lie.

​​This lie is the root of what holds most accountants back from achieving a truly successful career and life. 

​​It’s time to stop believing everything our profession tells us.

This was a quick video I shot after receiving an exciting message from one of my Accountant Success Formula™ owners.

She had just closed a $6,000/month client and was ecstatic.  Had to share her WIN because I love seeing my clients get results.

Also, wanted to let you know how she did it…

Information is now readily available for FREE at the touch of our fingers.

What used to take days to research can now be found within a few seconds of searching the internet.

But all this information is useless without one very important ingredient…

Something that comes up regularly with many of my new coaching clients is the sheer amount of WIP they’re carrying in their accounting practices.

In this video I explore why WIP occurs in the first place and give you 5 questions to ask yourself about your WIP.

Ultimately, I think the REAL question is…

Why even have WIP?

Life as an accountant isn’t all about the work that we do or the value that we provide our clients.

It’s also about the freedom we can create for ourselves. To be able to spend time doing the things we love to do – outside of our practices.

This is a super quick quick video about what I love to do.

Please leave me a comment and let me know what you love to do in your time away from the office.

Summertime is here and accountants everywhere are starting to take well deserved holiday time.

But when you’re taking time away from the office are you really giving yourself a break…

…or are you just changing where you’re working from?

It took me awhile to figure it out.

When I did it changed who I was when I returned back to the office.

Accountants are always busy.   Busy busy busy.

Every time I ask, “How are you are?”  it’s always the same answer…”I’m soooooo busy!”

Have you ever stopped to analyze exactly what you’re doing that keeps you so busy?  If you’re like me you’re probably doing some (if not a lot) of things you shouldn’t be doing.

Here’s what I do about what I shouldn’t be doing.

It comes down to 3 choices – A D or E.

You get to choose.

How are you going to get to your revenue target in your accounting practice?

My wake up call happened after advising a client on her start-up business.

The answer was so simple I felt like kicking myself.

Crunch the numbers and then you can decide which route you want to take.

The choice is yours.

As an accountant, you have to study and read a lot to keep yourself up to speed with all the technical changes in the profession.

But when was the last time you read a book that had a massive impact on your accounting practice?

Here are 3 books I highly recommend you read…to do just that.

Isn’t it strange how you can love & hate something at the same time?

Life’s funny that way…

The real trick is to find out how to get the hate part to go away.

So you can just enjoy the love part.

Shot this quick video on the way back from a very productive day long client meeting.

Many of you may ask, “Who the hell has time to do coaching sessions in April?!”

Accountants who are building their practices purposefully…that’s who.

Having excess capacity goes against traditional “accounting firm” thinking.

But trying to run your practice at full capacity is NOT the way to success.

It’s exactly the opposite – it’s detrimental to your practice.

Excess Capacity is what you always want…and here’s 3 reasons why.

*****  WARNING: If coarse language easily offends you then don’t watch this video. 🙂  *****

I had to get something off my chest as I’m tired of seeing so many accountants living in hell for the months of January to April.

There are 3 glaring things that need to be said about this time of year….3 things that are going to sting a little bit.

Actually, they should sting a lot.

The good news is that you CAN do something about this if you’re seriously sick and tired of working this crazy way.

One of the biggest mistakes accountants can make is not leaving their desk to visit their clients’ businesses.

If you don’t, you’re not properly serving your clients AND you’re leaving money on the table.

I mean…Holy Cow…Get Out of the Office!

One of the secrets to success for all top performing individuals is they have a coach.

From sports legends to the most successful business people the answer is always the same.  They get coaching.

In this video I talk about 3 benefits, I experience with my own business coach.

Coaching & Success go hand in hand…

January is a time when people look forward to a New Year full of opportunities to change and to have new life experiences.

Sadly, accountants don’t have the same feelings about the beginning of a New Year like everyone else.  They are normally dreading the thought of the oncoming “busy season”.

What’s your New Year going to be like?

Will this be a Happy New Year for you…or an Unhappy Same Year?

Getting new clients is NOT always good for your practice. 

Often – not signing a new client is fantastic!  But when is that the case?

I have found there are normally 3 Great Reasons why…

Clients rely on us to be technically savvy and detail oriented.

But this “Asset” we possess actually works against us when we’re talking with our clients.

Use these two Key strategies when communicating with your clients and watch your prices soar.

What do Star Wars LEGO, Heavy Metal Music & Great Clients have in common?

More than you’d suspect.

In this video I talk about the best way to connect with your clients to maximize the value you provide.

Best part is you don’t have to learn anything new…you just need to be yourself.

In this quick tips video I share the most valuable concept you need to transform your practice and your success as a professional accountant.

The old school model of charging for our time is flawed and needs to be replaced.  Most other businesses already follow the model I’ll show you in this video as it’s basic economics.

But once you apply it in your own practice, you’ll never look back.

Here I share the strategy that allowed my CPA client to triple his fees and close a new client – with ease.

When you bill by the hour you are potentially leaving a lot of money on the table as you are treating everyone the same.

And they’re not the same.

This is where Value Pricing comes in.

In this post I share with you my experience with letting clients know me.  The Real Me.

I was surprised and learned a very valuable lesson.

Not only that, my client relationships improved and so did my profits.

Here’s why…….

In this Video I talk about a very important subject.  Celibacy…………..from the internet.

And what happens when you take a purposeful break from all screen time.

Try it and you’ll be surprised at the benefits……

The surprised look on one of my coaching clients when I shared this strategy with him.

If you’re taking on every client who walks through the door, you’re not doing yourself any favours.

You’re actually hurting your business.

Here’s why……….

As Accountants we’ve gone through thousands of hours of technical training, but very limited…..if any……sales training.

In this video I talk directly about this “taboo subject” for accountants to remind us we are in sales too.

Remember: Sale is NOT a Four Letter Word