The Bucket List Accountant
Business advisory for established business owners

You built a business.What’s it building for you?

Nobody’s asked you that in a while.
Not your accountant. Probably not even yourself.

A 60-minute Business Baseline Session that connects where your business is today with the life you want it to fund.

33 years in accounting Life-first approach Personalised plan
Trusted by business owners at
BRND Group Tap LAN STUDIOS NUNN CONSULTING
Featured in
Financial Review SmartCompany

Most accountants start with your profit and loss.

David starts with your bucket list.

The trip you keep pushing back. The people who’ll still be there when you finally look up. The version of you you lost touch with while you were building this.

He works backward: what you want your life to look like, then what the business needs to produce to get you there.

Start here • one-off session

The Business Baseline Session

$299 incl. GST, one-off
Generally tax-deductible for eligible businesses

In 60 minutes we connect your current numbers to the life you want the business to fund. You’ll see the gap, the key levers available to you and the priorities to address first.

Book your Business Baseline

Tax invoice provided. The session stands alone; ongoing support is optional. Prefer to talk first?

Book a free 15-minute call
What you receive
  • A 60-minute session with David, one to one
  • A review of where your business stands today
  • Your written Business Baseline, connecting your numbers to the life you want to fund
  • The gap, the key levers available to you and the priorities to address first
Not included

The custom plan and the monthly partnership are separate, optional next steps. Nothing to decide on the day.

Samantha Tait

I’d spent more than 15 years building BRND Group and realised I’d stopped planning my own life. At 47, I was starting to worry that I hadn’t thought far enough ahead. I’d lost a few friends to illness, my kids were now teenagers, and life suddenly felt like it was moving very quickly.

David helped me get clear on what I wanted from the next five years, what it would cost, and how the business could support it. He turned it into a clear, practical plan, and our monthly catch-ups keep me accountable.

For the first time, I feel like I’m building the business around the life I want, and making real progress towards both.

Samantha Tait
CEO & Founder, BRND Group
BRND Group
Anthea Cook

“I kept putting off the trip with my family. Told myself next year, next year, and then a year just went. Working with David changed that. He didn’t let me hide behind the business as an excuse anymore. Now I plan the life first and build the business around it, not the other way round.”

Anthea Cook · LAN Studios
Simon Nunn

“I’d set myself a $600k target and thought that was the ceiling. David pushed me to ask why I’d stopped there. I’m tracking closer to $680 to $690k now. Turns out the number I thought was ambitious was just safe.”

Simon Nunn · Nunn Consulting

How it works

01
Start here • one-off session

Your Business Baseline Session

60 minutes with David, then your written Baseline. See exactly what is included.

Optional next step • custom plan

Build your custom plan

Optional, and separate from the first session.

We turn your goals into clear financial targets and milestones, then compare them to your Baseline and finalise the plan together.

Personalised plan
David Patterson smiling by the beach
03
Optional ongoing support • monthly partnership

The Partnership

We meet regularly to close the gap and work through your list, adjusting as life and the business change. Your Baseline gets re-run at set milestones, so you always know exactly how close you are.

Monthly, ongoing

Pick one below to see what we explore. Your plan will focus on the areas that help get you closer to your bucket list.

Pricing

The fastest lever there is, and the one owners are most nervous about.

What I’ll ask you

“When did you last raise your prices, and what happened?”

Margin

What you keep out of every dollar that comes through the door.

What I’ll ask you

“Which jobs make you money, and which ones just keep you busy?”

Sales volume

More of the same work, which usually means more capacity first.

What I’ll ask you

“Could the business take on more without you working more?”

Fixed costs

What the business pays whether it sells anything that month or not.

What I’ll ask you

“What are you still paying for that you no longer use?”

Owner’s wage

What you take out, and whether it reflects the job you do.

What I’ll ask you

“Are you paying yourself properly, or paying yourself last?”

Staff and capacity

Who does the work, and what genuinely only you can do.

What I’ll ask you

“What is still on your plate that should not be?”

Hours you work

The lever most accountants never raise with a business owner.

What I’ll ask you

“What would have to be true for you to work four days a week?”

Debt and cash

What the business owes, and what it needs on hand to sleep at night.

What I’ll ask you

“How much of last year’s profit went out as interest?”

Tax structure

How the business is set up, and who earns what inside it.

What I’ll ask you

“Is the structure still right for where the business is now?”

Exit value

What someone would pay for it, and whether that is part of the plan.

What I’ll ask you

“Is the business worth anything without you in it?”

What happens if the next five years look like the last?

The discovery call

Fifteen minutes. No cost.

You talk, I listen. A straightforward 15-minute fit call, with no obligation.

Here’s what we’ll cover.

01
What you want the next five to ten years to look like
02
Where the business sits today, in plain terms
03
What stands between where you are now and where you want to be
04
Whether working together could help close that gap

I only work with a few businesses at a time.

This is hands-on work. Your business stays with me, and I spend real time on it every month.

That means I keep my client list small by design. Enough time to understand what is really going on, challenge you when needed, and be genuinely useful.

Before you book

What is complimentary?

Your first 15-minute discovery call. We’ll talk about what you’re looking for, answer your questions and see whether the Business Baseline Session is right for you.

If it feels like the right next step, the full session is $299. There’s no obligation to continue.

What will I receive?

60 minutes with David, financial diagnostics on your business, and a written Baseline showing where you stand against what you want your life and business to look like. No product recommendations, just clarity on the gap and what it would take to close it.

Is the session tax-deductible?

For eligible business owners, the Business Baseline Session is generally tax-deductible when purchased for business purposes. We’ll provide a tax invoice for your records. Your circumstances may vary, so check with your accountant if you’re unsure.

Do I need to change accountants?

No. The Business Baseline Session works alongside your existing accounting and compliance services. Your accountant can continue handling your tax, BAS and returns.

Is this financial advice?

No. I don’t recommend investments, insurance or superannuation products. This session focuses on what you want your business to make possible, what it would need to produce and what may need to change inside the business.

What if my goals and the numbers don’t line up?

Then we identify the gap now, while you still have time to act. We’ll look at what would need to change in the business, the timing or the plan, and give you a realistic place to begin.

The discovery call

Choose a time for your free 15-minute call.

Pick a time that suits. You’ll get a confirmation and a calendar invite straight away, and I’ll ask my questions on the call.

Book a free 15-minute call →