partner feature
Business is an exciting adventure into the unknown
I
ntrepid mountaineer accountant Gary Parker, of Parker & Co, says business should be an
adventure and urges his clients to enjoy the experience. Gary says: “I have often been
asked about my philosophy in business and how I try to reflect that in advice I give to clients. For my part I see a business as a means to an end in that it is meant to give you the freedom to enjoy life. “Sure you have to be passionate,
and with heart about it. It will never work if you’re not but it is meant to deliver the things you want out of life. Whether it is providing for your family or achieving lifetime ambitions. “I often
Extracting clients from their business and getting them to look at it from the point of view
have difficulty getting clients to be objective about their business – to take a day out every now and then to think about what they want from their business and develop a strategy to achieve it. It may take time and you may not get everything you want but some of it will work. “Extracting clients from their
business and getting them to look at it from the point of view of owner instead of manager or employee is sometimes difficult but can be rewarding. “I have taken days or just
afternoons out with clients to take them away from the everyday demands of the business and just sit and develop a strategic plan to
of owner instead of manager or employee is sometimes difficult but can be rewarding
“
achieve personal and subsequent business objectives. We break down the business into its components and prioritise what needs to change and how. It can be quite enlightening. “You also have to get satisfaction
out of your business, whether it’s getting a good sale, or achieving some budget or target that you have set. For my part I get huge satisfaction from solving client’s problems. It’s great when clients leave my office saying ‘I feel so much better after our meeting’. “My satisfaction comes from touching people’s lives. Some clients take their business far too seriously or too personally. They get down when something is going wrong. “Unfor-
into business, you’re going to have hurdles to overcome from time to time. You have to deal with them as the business’ problem and not yours. Take that day out and work out a solution.
“I see business as a true “
adventure for many, a venture into the unknown. It’s exciting and sometimes scary. All the same you should enjoy it. “Always look on the positive side
whatever happens. It is certainly not only about the money. “Business should give you the
opportunity to expand your life not to take it over!”
THEbusiness QUARTER 21
tunately, if you go
Enjoy business: Gary Parker mountaineer and accountant
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