Mark Farrar’s 5 lockdown tips

Here are five tips for making the most of the lockdown from AAT’s CEO Mark Farrar.

I’ve been recording video messages to our members and students this week. But before pressing the record button on my laptop, I wrote down five things that I’m planning to do whilst I’m spending more time at home

I suspect they could apply to all accountants and finance staff:

1 Understand the new digital accountancy revolution

Something new drops into my inbox every day whether it’s a software update, CRM, analytics tools or an app that tells me how I can monitor the business cashflow in real-time. So I’m really trying to get to grips with the best of thing and taking the time to see where is adds genuine to AAT or accounting professionals in general.

2 Use social media to keep up to date

Twitter is my channel of choice. It’s an easy way to see what other professional bodies, accounting practice and both education and industry commentators are talking about. It’s like a really good filter of the news, assuming you can follow the right people!

3 Embrace change and the new tools available to us

Had you heard of Zoom when you sat down for your Christmas lunch at the end of 2019? Of course, we’re using Zoom, Skype, House Party and other platforms to run meetings and keep in touch with family and friends. The chances are this style of working will stay with us in some form, so get used to it and get good at using it.

4 Talk to people

Alongside all of this it’s important to keep in touch with friends, colleagues and clients. Schedule regular calls and share ideas, advice and information. Clients, especially, will remember people who helped them and might show loyalty to you and your business in the future.

5 Record your CPD

Make a note of activity. We all know it’s easy to forget to record your learning. But now is a good time to keep a log of the things you’re doing because you will be learning new things and new ways of doing things every day. You just might not be doing it in a structured way through formal learning activities, but if you’re furthering your knowledge, it counts as CPD. We provide useful templates for professional members to help you record your CPD.

David Nunn is Content Manager at AAT.