I don’t think I’ve ever met an entrepreneur who actually likes the accounting aspect of running a business.  But it can’t be ignored.  Even if you don’t love it, you have to do it – or at least somebody in your organization has to do it for you.

But even if you don’t do your own bookkeeping yourself, you have an important responsibility to understand it.  If you don’t at least understand your accounting, you don’t have a prayer at understanding your company financials.  What’s worse, you are then at tremendous risk of becoming victimized by that somebody else because they know they can play with the numbers and you won’t catch it.  How many times have you read a news story about a long-time bookkeeper being arrested for embezzlement?  By taking responsibility to understand your own accounting practices and systems, you can eliminate the temptation and potential for crimes of opportunity.  It just makes sense.

Having said that, I spoke with new entrepreneur a few days ago who was confused and concerned about dealing with a new limited liability company that he had recently formed.  “How do I get money into it?”  “How do I get money out of it?”  “How do I pay my son?”  “How do I…?” Read More→