Edition 37 – A New Era

After 21 years at Redmans, 17 of those as an owner, I have made the decision to venture out on my own.

Over those 21 years, I’ve had the great fortune to work with many staff, do interesting work with a wide variety of clients and be a part of a number of different business arrangements. I’ve never sat still for too long, which I believe is important advice for everyone to heed.

For Trent White, he will continue to take the Redmans name forward and continue to build on the work that we have done together for 6 years as joint owners of the business, and 17 years as colleagues.

For me, this is all about commencing a new phase in my life. I don’t want to get bored in what I’m doing. To keep the excitement percolating in my professional life, I needed to think through what drove me. Not going through life wondering “what could have been” was one of those thought bubbles. Spending more time with my own family was another. To that end, I will be focussing on providing strategic family business advice to a select number of clients.

There are many people that I would like to thank. I can’t mention them all, but some stand out for particular attention.

Alan Redman was my mentor from 1995 to 2005, including 6 years as my business partner. He was a pioneer in the fields of Financial Planning and Business Consulting at a time when accountants weren’t interested in either. He took me under his wing and introduced me to new concepts, new people and a whole new way of life. I believe we have a number of pivotal moments in life and commencing with Alan in May 1995 stands as one of those.

Trent White has been my business partner for 6 years and a loyal lieutenant and friend for all of his time at Redmans. I still remember looking through the window of our former office in Camden, wondering if this candidate walking to the door might be the one. 17 years later, he’s still here. He too doesn’t sit still, thinking of new ideas, challenging the normal and daring to consider a different life. He’s been a fantastic business partner and I have the fullest confidence in him and his future with Redmans.

Finally, I’d like to thank my wife Trish and our sons, Callum & Fraser. In February 2017, we will have been married 25 years. Callum turns 21 in April 2017 and Fraser 18 in October 2017. It’s going to be a big year! They have been my support base and my reason for being for so long. I could not have come this far without them. As we venture into the future, each of them will be joining me professionally as we forge our new family business identity.

To all of them and to everyone else that I’ve had the good fortune of spending time with over the past 21 years, thank you.

This Week’s Tip

Old eras end, and new ones commence. What are you doing to stay fresh, remain relevant and challenge yourself to achieving new goals?