NGM Accountants :: Business Matters

Latest: HMRC targets Home Improvements traders

John Fairgrieve — Thu, 09 Feb 2012 10:52:00 +0000

HMRC has announced the focus of its campaigns to be implemented later this year.

Latest: HMRC targets Home Improvements traders

John Fairgrieve — Thu, 09 Feb 2012 10:52:00 +0000

HMRC has announced the focus of its campaigns to be implemented later this year.

Paper VAT returns deadline

John Fairgrieve — Thu, 02 Feb 2012 07:46:00 +0000

Businesses with a VAT exclusive turnover of under £100,000 that registered for VAT before 1 April 2010 will be required to file their VAT Returns online and make electronic payments for periods beginning after 31 March 2012.

mad!

John Fairgrieve — Thu, 08 Dec 2011 16:34:00 +0000

Just about everyone who knows me would say that I'm a bit unusual. My friends and family would go one stage further I think!

Entrepreneurs?

John Fairgrieve — Fri, 02 Dec 2011 21:33:00 +0000

Love is....

Half empty

John Fairgrieve — Fri, 25 Nov 2011 06:55:00 +0000

“Wilderness is where one feels oneself to be in a wild place” – Aldous Huxley.

We had seasons in the sun...

John Fairgrieve — Mon, 21 Nov 2011 05:30:00 +0000

Having spent a lot more time in the great outdoors this year than in every other year out of the last 50, I've become very conscious of the changes that take place in the world.

Permanent Way

John Fairgrieve — Sun, 13 Nov 2011 10:40:00 +0000

Blog posts cannot be written to order. Perhaps that's not entirely true but what is true is that the quality and relevance of them when forced may suffer a little without some real inspiration.

Simulator

John Fairgrieve — Mon, 10 Oct 2011 07:19:00 +0100

A very recent trip to Iona – on business I should add – made me appreciate another aspect of life and consequently of business. For those who’ve not been beyond the mainland in Scotland, you may appreciate less than others the real practical difficulties of running a business in Scotland’s islands. Practical difficulties like, generally speaking you have no control over how many customers reach your shop or how long they have to look around. These factors are controlled exclusively by two powerful forces – Caledonian Macbrayne Ferries and our Scottish weather, the former being at the mercy of the latter too. Ferries simply don’t run when the weather is too bad. The ferry company also dictates, by its timetables, when your customers must depart and how long they have to browse in your shop which of course may not be the reason they come to your particular island – that is certainly the case in Iona. In those circumstances you have to work even harder to attract their attention and their decision on how much to spend and on what. Margins too are under some pressure because distribution costs are significantly higher and in Scotland, of course the tourism season lasts only from April to October rather than the whole year.

Shut your mouth!

John Fairgrieve — Sun, 31 Jul 2011 21:19:00 +0100

Don't speak till you're spoken to!

Ravens and Writing Desks

John Fairgrieve — Sat, 16 Jul 2011 07:04:00 +0100

For those of you who have a great memory, I won't need to tell you the source of the inspiration for todays title. For those whose memory could be better, it comes from Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, during the tea party and in order to make conversation, the Hatter asks, "Why is a raven like a writing desk?"

Whitelees

John Fairgrieve — Thu, 07 Jul 2011 08:19:00 +0100

Most of my inspiration for the blog comes from odd sources: my mtb-ing; what happens to me during the day that strikes me in a particular way; something I've read that I think has wider application. Today it was what I saw while I was passing at 70mph coming back from Kilmarnock.

Arresto Momentum!

John Fairgrieve — Tue, 05 Jul 2011 07:46:00 +0100

Words spoken by Albus Dumbledore in the 3rd of the Potter films as Harry plunges from many thousands of feet in the clouds towards earth and certain death.

Talk to the hands

John Fairgrieve — Sun, 26 Jun 2011 08:45:00 +0100

I am constantly having to apologise to my team for talking to myself. It’s more of a speaking out loud what I’m thinking rather than having a conversation with some other part of my psyche. Some of them smile as if to say “Well, I always thought you were crazy but now I know you are” but actually say, “That’s OK”, and others confirm that “I always talk to my computer but I’ll only worry when it answers back”.

Siren Silence

John Fairgrieve — Sat, 25 Jun 2011 11:33:00 +0100

"In Greek mythology, the Sirens (Greek singular: Σειρήν Seirēn; Greek plural: Σειρῆνες Seirēnes) were three dangerous bird-women, portrayed as seductresses who lured nearby sailors with their enchanting music and voices to shipwreck on the rocky coast of their island."

Thanks to wikipaedia for that learned introduction and that deals with the first part of the title.

Toto, I've a feeling we're not in Kansas anymore....

John Fairgrieve — Sat, 18 Jun 2011 22:12:00 +0100

...we must be over the rainbow.

I'm not concerned that it is an often misquoted line. It is usually misquoted as "I don't think we're in Kansas..".

Injury Time

John Fairgrieve — Fri, 17 Jun 2011 07:02:00 +0100

It used to be called Injury Time in the olden days but now referred to as stoppage time I understand, perhaps because there are now more reasons to stop play than (mere) injuries.

Last

John Fairgrieve — Wed, 08 Jun 2011 21:32:00 +0100

Four small letters which convey such meaning. In English, it can mean the person who is at the end; a device that a cobbler might use for his purposes; to endure or continue, and there are many more idiomatic expressions containing the word.

The Edge of Reason

John Fairgrieve — Thu, 02 Jun 2011 13:00:00 +0100

Reputedly, it was Oscar Levant who said "There's a fine line between genius and insanity" and the lesser known punchline," and I have erased this line". I'm right there with you Oscar.

Small. Far Away.

John Fairgrieve — Wed, 01 Jun 2011 07:15:00 +0100

It's all just a matter of perspective isn't it? And of course it depends where you are standing.