We still await auditors at my office, as they are running behind schedule for some reason and are yet to visit. While the initial apprehension has died down, we are still very much involved in tidying our books and trying to put things in order. Admittedly some of us have gotten a bit impatient, but I think generally the focus still remains because of the obvious consequences attached to having a bad audit.
I wonder how we'd react if there was little or no consequences attached to having a good audit. We'd probably be relaxed and have moved on from the preparation stage. There probably will be little or no motivation to consistently tidy our books, at least not with the current zeal we make use of. If in doubt, we can simply look at other areas of our lives where there isn't as much pressure to deliver. Once you remove pressure, consequences and a sense of urgency, there is unfortunately always a tendency to become too relaxed.
I think consequences are a scary but necessary part of thinking that we all need to properly consider. Of course some consequences are well laid out, and act quite rapidly, while others are mostly long-term and hidden. While we take those for granted, they probably have the most significant consequences, or at least certainly the most in long term consequences.
I really don't like having to wait for an an inevitable outcome. I'd rather just get it over with and move on. Unfortunately, it seems this time around I have no choice. I certainly hope we have done enough to ensure a good outcome whenever they decide to show up.