How easy do you make it for your accountant?

Do you share your plans, dreams and ambitions with your accountant? Or do you only tell him about things after you've done them?

I am a member of The Magic Circle so I could excuse anyone who might think I was a mind-reader too. Your accountant however is unlikely to know what you're thinking. This means you have to tell him/her what you're planning to do before you finalise your plans. If you don't do this he/she cannot give you advice to keep the tax consequences to a minimum.

One unfair criticism of some accountants comes when they are unable to give constructive advice AFTER a transaction has taken place - or even after things have moved too far towards a conclusion.

It's very hard for anyone to plan AFTER the event. It's like looking at a map to find the shortest route after you arrive at your destination. You might have found it by luck or you might have gone a really long way round. Either way you can't put the petrol back in the car.

So - if you want to get good advice from your accountant, make sure you share your plans, dreams and ambitions. If he/she isn't interested you may want to find someone who is.

A good accountant will encourage you to do share relevant ideas and plans anyway so as to avoid being in the embarrassing position of having to say 'yes' when you ask: "Oh, by the way, I did [this]; does it matter?"