[Jewelry making - Article 00297] - Re: [Orchid] Bookkeeping

[Suzanne Wade]

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    Sam, I wholeheartedly agree with what you say. If you don't
    understand basic bookkeeping, financial computer programs keep asking
    for stuff  and you don't know what they want. And it's hard to figure
    out what they're doing with your numbers! Once you do learn a little
    bit about bookkeeping and accounting, it makes SO much more sense!
    Sure, you can stumble through yourself, but taking a class is ever so
    much more efficient, and you have someone to explain stuff to you
    that you might not "get" from reading a textbook. 

    At one point in my career, I decided to pursue an MBA. I was
    associate publisher at AJM, and was dealing with the business aspects
    of running a magazine for the first time. Although I had plenty of
    support from MJSA's business staff, I decided it would help if I
    understood more about finance and management. My first course was a
    class in Financial Accounting -- and it was amazing how much more
    sense everything made after I took it! Just understanding the
    terminology was a huge help -- I could now speak the CFO's language.
    It's also helped me now that I'm out on my own: tax time is simple,
    because I understand WHY my accountant is looking for this or that,
    and I can normally anticipate those requests; and when my husband and
    I refinanced our mortgage, it was child's play to prepare a
    Profit/Loss statement for the bank. You don't have to pursue an MBA
    to gain this type of knowledge. In addition to classes like Sam's,
    local community colleges often offer basic bookkeeping and accounting
    for small businesses. (Community colleges are often a bargain when it
    comes to tuition, and most of the time you don't have to be on track
    for a degree to take courses.) You can also check with local business
    organizations, like the chamber of commerce for recommendations --
    local small businesspeople may well have taken a similar course that
    they'd gladly recommend. The Small Business Administration Web site
    (www.sba.gov) is another resource to explore, with lots of tutorials,
    explanations, and samples to help reinforce what you learn elsewhere. 

    BTW, I never did earn the MBA. In fact, that financial accounting
    course was the only one I took on that path -- I got pregnant with my
    son right after I took that class, and he turned my life upside down.
    (Kids have a way of doing that, don't they?)  But that one course has
    been tremendously valuable, and if I had it to do all over again, I
    would sign up for it without hesitation. One of these days, I may go
    back for the rest of the degree!  

Suzanne
Suzanne Wade
Writer/Editor
Phone: (508) 339-7366
Fax: (928) 563-8255
suzanne AT rswade.net
http://www.rswade.net


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