The Benefits of Staying on Top of Things

I have a friend in the mortgage industry and lately he’s been “complaining” that there is not much to do at work. Complaining is probably not the right word for it, except that it’s becoming increasingly difficult for him to pretend he’s working now that he’s started to bring his guitar to work and is showing off his handstand abilities to his co-workers. Last year at this time, he was complaining because of how much work there was to do. He had to stay late and even work a couple Saturdays to stay on top of the workload. There was no guitar playing or handstanding that year. All joking aside, he had a meeting today that laid out the stats for his department.

Here is the important information to know because it will validate my point:

That’s right, only 3% less volume of work being done by 25% less people. And yet 2018 is the year their department feels like there is nothing to do.

“What made the difference?” you ask…well, that’s what I asked.

“Staying on top of things,” he replied. He then went on to explain that in 2017 his department was perpetually 3 days behind. A loan would be ready and it would take 3 days before it was processed. In 2018, their department decided it was time to get caught up. They began working to ensure that loans were processed as soon as they were ready. That changed everything.

Even when the amount of employees working went down, and work volume stayed virtually the same (which actually increased the amount of loans each employee processed if you do the math), they were able to stay ahead of the game. *Cue the guitars and handstands.* The difference came because there were no longer complaint emails and phone calls. And everyone’s stress level went down because they didn’t feel behind. The volume of actual work done increased, but customer service improved and suddenly work became easier. They went from “putting out fires” on last day loans to providing excellent customer service and enjoying their work day more when they forged ahead and stayed ahead.

What does this have to do with bookkeeping? Good question. This is, after all, a blog for a bookkeeping company.

First of all, it’s a good reminder to us all to stay on top of our bookkeeping. Work has this funny tendency of not going away when you ignore it, and even getting more difficult as time goes on. When you stay on top of your bookkeeping, it’s a lot easier to solve the financial problems that come because you are aware of them. Work doesn’t pile up and finances are easier to interpret when it’s not just a guessing game.

Secondly, this is just one more reason to hire Backyard Bookkeeper. I can’t tell you how many phone calls I’ve had with potential clients saying the same basic things: I can’t keep up anymore. I need to take something off my plate. I’m not doing what I love because I’m stuck trying to figure out QuickBooks/CosmoLex/Billy/Xero. When you delegate responsibilities to people who love to do the work, everyone stays on top of things better. We get to enter the numbers and you get to focus on the parts of your business that you love, the things you started your business for. And when you stay on top of business, it does better. Not only that, but you will have more time to play guitar, do handstands, be with your family, or do whatever other hobbies you choose to pick up.

So here’s to getting things done efficiently and in a timely manner. Let us know if we can help.