Fire your Accountant & Hire a Partner

What is Your Most Valuable Asset in Business?

Posted on 27 August 2010

As an accountant, I look at financial statements all the time. My clients consistently ask me to help them improve their businesses. It is a driving force and even when I am not asked, I owe it to them to help them. I just love to help and it is this love that has helped me to realize what every business “Most Valuable Asset” happens to be and it is this: the “PEOPLE” behind the numbers. I really don’t care what asset(s) are on your balance sheet as they are worthless without your most precious commodity, “Your PEOPLE”. It seems that a lot of us place more value on things and assets than we do on “PEOPLE”. You know the golden rule, “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you”. A lot of business people interpret this as “Get them before they get you” and this includes their “PEOPLE”. Why??????

Without “PEOPLE”, things and assets will be worthless and I mean WORTHLESS! Imagine a world with very few people in it. Better still, how about “NO PEOPLE AT ALL”. As you visualize this, now tell me how much you really think your home would be worth? How about the goods and services your company is now offering? How will anything that was manufactured be bought and sold, you know, with NO PEOPLE? Everything will loose its value just as if lots of people left town for good. Your community would now be a “ghost town”. Now, let me ask you, how much FUN is your Accounting? NO FUN AT ALL!

To help your business grow, the first step, in my humble opinion, is for you to change your thinking. You don’t have to be the business owner and/or manager to do this, although I highly recommend it if you are. Anyone and everyone can, if they really want to. If you work your way through this first step right to the result, you should realize that all results can be traced back to your thinking. And what if you actually started caring for those in your company? What kind of results would you actually achieve? How would your numbers this year be against your numbers from last year? How much FUN would your workplace all of a sudden be? My experience has shown me that when I am treated as someone who is valued, there is nothing I wouldn’t do. I have asked many others this same question and the consensus is the same:

• Treat me nice and I will treat you nice
• Take care of me and I will take care of you
• Help me and I will help you

Notice you are first in the above three sayings. Go ahead, DARE to go FIRST and watch your world change right before your very eyes. Now imagine how much FUN your Accounting would be!

Yah you say, but not everybody will respond as you have just said. That’s true. It doesn’t work 100% of the time. Have patience with your PEOPLE as some of the naysayers may actually surprise you. If not, in time, this could mean that some people in your company will resist and they will not be there forever. This too is their choice. At the end of the day, you want to be with those who want to be there with you. Start today and watch your numbers and PEOPLE go through the roof. You won’t regret it!

On your team,

Vince Schembri