24Mar
By: Cherry Birch On: March 24, 2020

I was reflecting overnight that ‘unprecedented’ is on track to be the most used word in 2020! None of us have seen anything like this before and we are all impacted. Like many of you, our work at Financial Training Australia has been severely disrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic. However, we are determined to carry on – just in different ways.

We are converting client workshops to online delivery, continuing with writing eLearning, redesigning our Boardroom Excellence half day workshop to deliver it in a webinar, and coaching managers remotely. However, a lot of my time has been freed up!

While I am a chartered accountant, my business is built around my skills as a trainer, facilitator and coach. Admittedly, I am a big extrovert and I love engaging with people (for MBTI aficionados I am an ESFJ), so when I cannot spend time interacting and helping people, I feel unfulfilled.

So, I thought – how can I reach out and help others? Not for monetary gain but for support.

There are three areas for which I am offering my support and, in most cases, I am doing so for free:

Financial Smarts – Business

  • If this is something you could do with developing – start with our Financial Fitness Test to challenge yourself. It is 30 questions which I think you should be able to answer. Fill in your details on the contact us page when you have attempted the test and I will send you the answers.
  • We have some great eLearning which is very interactive and covers the basics. It will probably take you 2 hours to complete it. Normally it is $110 + GST but at this time, happy to offer it to you for $100 + GST and throw in a 1 hour one on one discussion with myself – at no extra cost. You can choose what we discuss – maybe it is your own management report or accounts. Fill in your details on the contact us page.
  • You will also find a Glossary of Accounting Terms on the website under Resources, which you might find helpful.
  • Business Cases is another area with which I may be able to help. This came out of my experience running Finance for Non-Finance Manager courses for the Australian Institute of Management (AIM), where this area was not adequately addressed. I have developed a very comprehensive template and there is a workbook to help guide you through it. Again, I am happy to throw in an hour of my time to discuss your specific situation.

Financial Smarts – Personal

  • Whilst we are not financial advisers, we have developed a workbook to help people with their personal finances. It is full of practical tips and tricks plus references to useful websites and apps. I cannot pretend to have all the answers, given the severity of the situation we are facing, but it might help. Happy to send it to you and spend an hour discussing the materials with you. Fill in your details on the contact us page.

Coaching and Mentoring Support

  • I have spent years as an executive coach – helping managers and executives with their leadership and management challenges. Of course, I have also coached people on their financial acumen skills – helping managers and even CEOs understand their financial reports. I have also helped people develop their career strategy. Is this something with which I could help you? Whilst I cannot offer to coach or mentor you for free for an unlimited period, I would be happy to offer approx. 60-90 minutes of my time to talk online. If you feel you want or need more, we could discuss how that might work commercially. Again, fill in your details on the contact us page.

We live in unprecedented times and if I can help you at all, then you will help me feel better. Who knows, you may be able to pass on the good karma!