Chris Brooker, Director
It’s always this time of year that I remember the early mornings, late nights, windowless audit room and relentless nature of audit in busy season. The task ahead seems so vast and the deadline so soon as you ask again (and again) for deliverables and answers to your questions so that you can pull together enough evidence to complete your workpapers. There are many times that you question if you will ever get it finished, and just how are you going to survive?
Here are some of my top tips for getting to the other side of busy season:
1. Be prepared
• Get your washing and ironing done at the weekend so you don’t have to think about it during the week
• Meal prep – the last thing you want to do when you get in late is start cooking dinner and 3 months of takeaways won’t do you any favours! Here’s a tasty one to get you started https://www.riverford.co.uk/recipes/view/recipe/squash-chickpea-curry
• Mentally prepare yourself for what is coming
2. Plan
Plan the next day the night before, keep organised and take mini breaks to stay focused
3. Limit distractions
Distractions will slow you down and mean even later nights. Turn off all notifications on your phone and email, hide your social media apps and give yourself phone time only at specific times of the day
4. Look after yourself
• Eat healthily including regular snacks to keep energy levels high – here is one of my current favourites that you can batch prepare in advance https://deliciouslyella.com/recipes/cacao-almond-energy-ball/
• Make time for exercise, it will clear your mind and help you sleep better
• Sleep
• Avoid too much caffeine especially in the afternoons. Caffeine has a half-life of 6 hours and even if it doesn’t stop you falling asleep, it may be affecting the quality of your sleep meaning you start the next day fatigued.
5. Reward yourself at the weekend
Giving yourself something to look forward to will keep you going!
6. Laugh
Don’t forget to have some fun in the audit room. Morale is good for productivity!