Once upon a time, a husband and father entered into a business relationship with his neighbour.
His neighbour was a finance professional with experience in bookkeeping and accounts. The father had no experience in those areas, and he was on very good terms with the neighbour, so it seemed a sensible move to make.
The business is question was a lawncare business.
The father had a wife and two sons, one of which was just about to receive his student loan for university.
The father’s wife fell ill, needing treatment that was not available on the national health service and therefore required paying privately.
He went to draw money out of the company to pay for it, but there was no money there. The neighbour had stolen it to pay for a gambling addiction. The cupboard was bare.
The son came home one evening to find his father on the edge of the bed. For the first time in his 18 years, he saw his father cry. When he asked what was wrong, the father said “I’m broke. I can’t afford mum’s treatment.”
The son’s student loan was higher than the amount needed to pay for the treatment. The son signed all of it over immediately without being asked.
The neighbour never did pay the money back and the business quickly died.
All of this happened, not to me, but to someone on the street I grew up in, in the spring of 1989. I found out about it in the spring of 2025.
Good, honest but financially illiterate people start businesses every day. Some become successful despite themselves.
ALL of them need an accountant to hold their hand and lead them towards their ultimate professional and personal aspirations.
I hope that’s you.
To your success
Martin Bissett
