Before a client calls you, before a recruiter emails you, and often before a referral decides to trust you, they look you up online. In most cases, LinkedIn is the first place they land. Your profile has become part of your professional reputation, whether you actively manage it or not. For accountants and business professionals, this matters deeply, because trust and credibility are at the core of what you do. A clear, professional LinkedIn presence is no longer about marketing yourself. It is about making sure your first digital impression reflects the standard of work and professionalism you already uphold.

Every December, accountants across South Africa make the same deadly mistake: we shred files we think are “old enough.” But in a world ruled by POPIA, SARS audits, seven-year rules and indefinite retention laws, one wrong destruction decision can cost you clients, credibility, up to R10 million, or even significant jail time based on the seriousness of the violation. The danger isn’t what you keep. It’s what you delete too soon. Before you touch a single box this year-end, read this. It might save your practice.

December feels like freedom… until SARS drops a letter, a client panics, or a “quick favour” lands in your WhatsApp while you’re trying to breathe. Every CBAP knows the truth we don’t say out loud: the moment you go on leave, the risk in your practice spikes. Deadlines don’t care that you’re exhausted. POPIA doesn’t pause. And one missed step can cost you credibility you’ve spent years fighting for. If you’re taking festive-season leave this year, read this first, it might save your practice, your reputation, and your hard-earned rest.