So you want to tackle accounting, but you aren’t sure what it entails? Don’t worry, you aren’t alone. Accounting is one of the most misunderstood fields out there, but it’s also one of the most rewarding. There’s a real sense of gratification in knowing that you, yes you, can save a business from impending doom. You can also save yourself from a life of debt. However, in order to reap these rewards, you should get familiar with the following items.

The Disciplines of Accounting: Financial and Managerial

Accounting isn’t just accounting. Contrary to what you see in the movies, accounting doesn’t surmount to one long sheet of paper chalked full of numbers and symbols. It’s all broken down into categories, then divided into two forms: financial and managerial. Managerial forms are used to log all things financial. The financial form is what outsiders like financial institutions will see. The managerial form is painfully long since it has to show the ins and outs of every penny, while the financial form summarizes this information for easy reading. To be a good accountant you definitely need to have a handle on creating detailed and easy to understand managerial forms. To be a great accountant, you should master both.

Accounting Is Based on Two Foundations: Assets & Liabilities

While managerial and financial are the two disciplines of accounting, assets and liabilities are the two foundations. In summary, an asset is what you or your client owns, a liability is what you owe. If your car is paid in full, it’s an asset. If you’re still paying the car loan, it’s a liability. Most loans are liabilities (even if you think of the money itself as an asset). However, some loans double as assets, like a house purchase. Houses can be revamped to increase in value, thus changing from a liability to an asset-liability.

A Ledger Is the Accounting Holy Grail

If you’ve never seen a ledger, you’ve never done accounting. A ledger is a kind of financial graph that contains 5 basic fields: amount deducted (debited), amount added (credited), description, date and balance. Understanding how to keep a ledger is crucial to accounting. There are three types of ledgers that any accountant should be familiar with: General Ledger (tracks liabilities, assets, income, etc.), Sales Ledger (people who made purchases that haven’t been paid in full) and Purchase Ledger (purchases that haven’t been paid).

The Accounting Process Isn’t Written in Stone

There are dozens of programs out there claiming to be “the only program you’ll ever need.” Many accountants fall for this statement and soon realize that ‘the only program’ differs from client to client. To be honest, there isn’t any fail-safe program that can guarantee accurate reports. The reason? Accounting isn’t an exact science. It involves actions that can’t be quantified, like knowing when to strike a customer from the accounts receivable list or ‘estimating’ a cost that wasn’t accurately reported. You’ll also come to know that the tax requirements for each of your clients will differ greatly — even if they’re in the same industry. If there’s room for guessing, there’s room for error — so a good eye for detail and exceptional critical thinking skills are crucial in accounting.

Accounting Software Makes Life Easier

Handwritten records are a must for any accountant, but accounting software is necessary for easy access and safe keeping. Instead of loading everything onto a Disc or flash drive, most accountants use cloud-accessible accounting software. This software allows you to access your books anytime, anywhere (as long as you have a PC and Wi-Fi connectivity). These programs are secure and can only be accessed by authorized individuals with verified login credentials.

Instead of carrying around a ledger book, cash flow records, balance sheets, income statements, etc., from each of your clients, they can log their information directly into these programs. They can also set up their financial accounts to automatically sync. This saves you from chasing down receipts and allows you to have more accuracy in your final report.

Conclusion

If you want to do accounting right, you have to understand that it isn’t as exact as it seems. There’s a lot of educated guesswork involved so you should have some background in business and math. With careful study, practice and of course patience, you’ll be well on your way to being the best accountant on the block.

– For this post, we would like to thank Parker Hansen.

Each week we review a resume in need of some help. Our comments are authentic, straightforward and 100% tailored to the particular document you will see. We aren’t necessarily re-writing the resume, rather marking it up and giving tips for improvement.

Considering the vast mix of cultures and backgrounds of the American population, global experience is an absolute advantage for professionals in any industry. Yet, day after day we see so many clients undervalue their international experience or bilingual abilities when it comes time to highlight them on a resume.

The marked-up document below is a prime example of this. This client is a senior manager in the hospitality industry, which by nature facilitates collaboration between diverse populations. Our client mentions the fact that he has global experience and can speak two languages, but he doesn’t explain why those attributes make him a must-hire!

It is vitally important that the client rewrite his opening summary to shine a spotlight on his ability to interact and converse with people of various backgrounds. Another aspect missing from the top third of page one – the most critical section of resume real estate – is any focus on guest relations. This is a major misstep considering his industry.

Yes, it is important to highlight your ability to cut costs, automate operations and lead teams to success, but not at the risk of downplaying the importance of guest satisfaction and your multicultural experience. We rewrote the document to this client’s delight, but below is our initial critique that helped shape the overhaul process.

Reading the in-document critique may leave you questioning the quality of your resume but please note we are not out to scare, but prepare you for future career success. A professional writer is ready to critique your resume today – FOR FREE.  Get started here.