--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: You have to know accounting. It's the…" description: "\"You have to know accounting. It's the language of practical business life. It was a very useful thing to deliver to civilization. I've heard it came to..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bff/charlie-munger-458_accountants_you-have-to-know-accounting-it-s-the-lan_3093259.jpg" --- # You have to know accounting. It's the language of… ![“You have to know accounting. It's the language of practical business life. It was a very useful thing to deliver to civilization. I've heard it came to civilization through Venice which of course was once the great commercial power in the Mediterranean. However, double entry bookkeeping was a hell…” quote by Charlie Munger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bff/charlie-munger-458_accountants_you-have-to-know-accounting-it-s-the-lan_3093259.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bff/charlie-munger-458_accountants_you-have-to-know-accounting-it-s-the-lan_3093259.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bff/charlie-munger-458_accountants_you-have-to-know-accounting-it-s-the-lan_3093259.jpg) > “You have to know accounting. It's the language of practical business life. It was a very useful thing to deliver to civilization. I've heard it came to civilization through Venice which of course was once the great commercial power in the Mediterranean. However, double entry bookkeeping was a hell of an invention.” [Charlie Munger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlie-munger/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Accounting is a practical language essential for business, with double‑entry bookkeeping being a pivotal invention from Venice. **In simple terms:** Accounting is business language; double‑entry is vital. Key Takeaway Learn accounting to understand business. Themes business education history finance Mood analytical educational Type informative historical When to use this quote - entrepreneurship - financial analysis - academic curricula - historical studies Key Concepts double‑entry Venetian trade civilizational development Questions to Reflect On - Why is double‑entry considered revolutionary? - How does accounting shape societal progress? A Different Perspective Complex accounting concepts can be daunting for beginners. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Bookkeeping](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bookkeeping/) [Business](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/business/) [Business life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/business-life/) [Civilization](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/civilization/) [Commerce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/commerce/) [Customer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/customer/) [Hell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hell/) [Invention](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/invention/) [Language](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/language/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Power](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/power/) [Useful things](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/useful-things/) [Venice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/venice/) ## Related quotes > [Accounting is the language of business.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/warren-buffett/accounting-is-the-language-of-business/) [Warren Buffett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/warren-buffett/) > [I don't know technology and engineering. I don't know accounting.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernard-ebbers/i-don-t-know-technology-and-engineering-i-don-t-know-accounting/) [Bernard Ebbers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernard-ebbers/) > [I have some classes in accounting, but I don't know anything about accounting. I - you know, when my accountant tells me all the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-romano/i-have-some-classes-in-accounting-but-i-don-t-know-anything-about/) [Ray Romano](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-romano/) > [Economists get very uncomfortable when you talk about virtue and vice. It doesn't lend itself to a lot of columns with numbers. But I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlie-munger/economists-get-very-uncomfortable-when-you-talk-about-virtue-and-vice/) [Charlie Munger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlie-munger/) > [Creative accounting is an absolute curse to a civilization. One could argue that double-entry bookkeeping was one of history's great advances. Using accounting for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlie-munger/creative-accounting-is-an-absolute-curse-to-a-civilization-one-could/) [Charlie Munger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlie-munger/) > [Basic income is not a utopia, it's a practical business plan for the next step of the human journey.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeremy-rifkin/basic-income-is-not-a-utopia-it-s-a-practical-business-plan-for-the/) [Jeremy Rifkin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeremy-rifkin/) > [All young people can benefit from practical business knowledge but especially those from the poorest parts of the country.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-jones/all-young-people-can-benefit-from-practical-business-knowledge-but/) [Peter Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-jones/) > [You of the West are practical in business, practical in great inventions, but we of the East are practical in religion. You make commerce…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/swami-vivekananda/you-of-the-west-are-practical-in-business-practical-in-great/) [Swami Vivekananda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/swami-vivekananda/) > [I'm trying to do the best job that I can. It's just that I'm pragmatic and practical about the business. It is a business,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ken-wahl/i-m-trying-to-do-the-best-job-that-i-can-it-s-just-that-i-m-pragmatic/) [Ken Wahl](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ken-wahl/) > [Everybody engaged in complex work needs colleagues. Just the discipline of having to put your thoughts in order with somebody else is a very…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlie-munger/everybody-engaged-in-complex-work-needs-colleagues-just-the/) [Charlie Munger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlie-munger/) > [To devise an information processing system capable of getting along on its own - it must handle its own problems of programming, bookkeeping, communication…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cliff-shaw/to-devise-an-information-processing-system-capable-of-getting-along/) [Cliff Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cliff-shaw/) > [Don't try to become a teacher overnight with psychological bookkeeping in your heart and educational theory in your head.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/janusz-korczak/don-t-try-to-become-a-teacher-overnight-with-psychological/) [Janusz Korczak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/janusz-korczak/) > [I get so tired of moral bookkeeping.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katherine-anne-porter/i-get-so-tired-of-moral-bookkeeping/) [Katherine Anne Porter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katherine-anne-porter/) > [“Lottie did everything the old fashioned way, including the bookkeeping, which was fine with me since I knew nothing about accounting software anyway. To…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kate-collins/lottie-did-everything-the-old-fashioned-way-including-the-bookkeeping/) Kate Collins > [“The fact that she had no bookkeeping experience bothered me not at all. I knew she would master the technical routines quickly. So I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-kroc/the-fact-that-she-had-no-bookkeeping-experience-bothered-me-not-at/) [Ray Kroc](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-kroc/) ## More by Charlie Munger > [Almost all good businesses engage in 'pain today, gain tomorrow' activities.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlie-munger/almost-all-good-businesses-engage-in-pain-today-gain-tomorrow/) [Charlie Munger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlie-munger/) > [If you want good behavior, don't pay on a commission basis. Our judges aren't paid so much a case. We keep them pretty well…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlie-munger/if-you-want-good-behavior-don-t-pay-on-a-commission-basis-our-judges/) [Charlie Munger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlie-munger/) > [Acquire worldly wisdom and adjust your behavior accordingly. If your new behavior gives you a little temporary unpopularity with your peer group then to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlie-munger/acquire-worldly-wisdom-and-adjust-your-behavior-accordingly-if-your/) [Charlie Munger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlie-munger/) > [I think time and time again, in reality, psychological notions and economic notions interplay, and the man who doesn't understand both is a damned…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlie-munger/i-think-time-and-time-again-in-reality-psychological-notions-and/) [Charlie Munger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlie-munger/) > [I have what I call an iron prescription that helps me keep sane when I naturally drift toward preferring one ideology over another and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlie-munger/i-have-what-i-call-an-iron-prescription-that-helps-me-keep-sane-when/) [Charlie Munger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlie-munger/) > [The tax code gives you an enormous advantage if you can find some things you can just sit with.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlie-munger/the-tax-code-gives-you-an-enormous-advantage-if-you-can-find-some/) [Charlie Munger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlie-munger/) > [The great lesson in microeconomics is to discriminate between when technology is going to help you and when it's going to kill you. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlie-munger/the-great-lesson-in-microeconomics-is-to-discriminate-between-when/) [Charlie Munger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlie-munger/) > [Some years ago one oil company bought a fertilizer company, and every other major oil company practically ran out and bought a fertilizer company.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlie-munger/some-years-ago-one-oil-company-bought-a-fertilizer-company-and-every/) [Charlie Munger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlie-munger/) > [ They \[Mc Donalds\] take people and give them a first job, which enables them to get a second job. They do a very good… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlie-munger/they-mc-donalds-take-people-and-give-them-a-first-job-which-enables/) [Charlie Munger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlie-munger/) > [What good is envy? It’s the one sin you can’t have any fun at.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlie-munger/what-good-is-envy-it-s-the-one-sin-you-can-t-have-any-fun-at/) [Charlie Munger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlie-munger/) > [We believe that almost all really good investment records will involve relatively little diversification. The basic idea that it was hard to find good…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlie-munger/we-believe-that-almost-all-really-good-investment-records-will/) [Charlie Munger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlie-munger/) > [It is way less certain to be a wonderful business in the future. The threat is alternative mediums of information. Every newspaper is scrambling…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlie-munger/it-is-way-less-certain-to-be-a-wonderful-business-in-the-future-the/) [Charlie Munger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlie-munger/) > [In the corporate world, if you have analysts, due diligence, and no horse sense, you've just described hell.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlie-munger/in-the-corporate-world-if-you-have-analysts-due-diligence-and-no/) [Charlie Munger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlie-munger/) > [We have to have a special insight, or we'll put it in the 'too tough' basket. All of you have to look for a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlie-munger/we-have-to-have-a-special-insight-or-we-ll-put-it-in-the-too-tough/) [Charlie Munger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlie-munger/) > [I've heard that one-half of the students at elite schools want to go into private equity or hedge funds. They want to keep up…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlie-munger/i-ve-heard-that-one-half-of-the-students-at-elite-schools-want-to-go/) [Charlie Munger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlie-munger/) [Explore all 544 Charlie Munger quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlie-munger/) ## More Accountants quotes > [Once we allow ourselves to be disobedient to the test of an accountant's profit, we have begun to change our civilization.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-maynard-keynes/once-we-allow-ourselves-to-be-disobedient-to-the-test-of-an/) [John Maynard Keynes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-maynard-keynes/) > [I deliberately look for colorful people. They're very right for theatre. Theatre has to be theatrical. If you can get color into the accountant,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lanford-wilson/i-deliberately-look-for-colorful-people-they-re-very-right-for/) [Lanford Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lanford-wilson/) > [I could never have been an accountant. I got a D in math.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rob-marshall/i-could-never-have-been-an-accountant-i-got-a-d-in-math/) [Rob Marshall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rob-marshall/) > [My greatest reward is knowing for certain, as I do with many other acts and artistes, that without Jonathan King being alive and involved,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-king/my-greatest-reward-is-knowing-for-certain-as-i-do-with-many-other/) [Jonathan King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-king/) > [It is a maxim of cryptology that what one man can devise, another can unravel. This principle keeps armies of tax lawyers and accountants…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-wriston/it-is-a-maxim-of-cryptology-that-what-one-man-can-devise-another-can/) [Walter Wriston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-wriston/) > [Fact is, the work place to a great extent is "where we live." We need star accountants. Boffo saleswomen. Over-the-top creatives in marketing and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-peters/fact-is-the-work-place-to-a-great-extent-is-where-we-live-we-need/) [Tom Peters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-peters/) > [Films are now made by accountants. They pick a pretty young female or male face out of the air and give them a part…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-lee/films-are-now-made-by-accountants-they-pick-a-pretty-young-female-or/) [Christopher Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-lee/) > [She was my accountant, so I just believed her.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-howard/she-was-my-accountant-so-i-just-believed-her/) [John Howard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-howard/) > [The rich hire lawyers and accountants for a reason - to pass the tax bill on to you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-w-bush/the-rich-hire-lawyers-and-accountants-for-a-reason-to-pass-the-tax/) [George W. Bush](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-w-bush/) > [A lot of labels are hiring a lot more accountants than people that know music.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/taylor-hanson/a-lot-of-labels-are-hiring-a-lot-more-accountants-than-people-that/) [Taylor Hanson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/taylor-hanson/) > [We're living in a time period where if a kid is on a plastic scooter that's one inch off the ground, mom and dad…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ramin-bahrani/we-re-living-in-a-time-period-where-if-a-kid-is-on-a-plastic-scooter/) [Ramin Bahrani](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ramin-bahrani/) > [And it does no harm to repeat, as often as you can, 'Without me the literary industry would not exist: the publishers, the agents,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/doris-lessing/and-it-does-no-harm-to-repeat-as-often-as-you-can-without-me-the/) [Doris Lessing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/doris-lessing/) > [I didn't do anything differently than what my father was doing. It's a really hard family to rebel in. I could have become an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/justin-townes-earle/i-didn-t-do-anything-differently-than-what-my-father-was-doing-it-s-a/) [Justin Townes Earle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/justin-townes-earle/) > [While Donald Trump was busy with his accountants trying to figure out how to keep living like a billionaire, and all the while he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hillary-clinton/while-donald-trump-was-busy-with-his-accountants-trying-to-figure-out/) [Hillary Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hillary-clinton/) > [Property is my major investment. My accountant has put money into various long-term savings arrangements. To be honest, I am a bit vague about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-robinson/property-is-my-major-investment-my-accountant-has-put-money-into/) [Anne Robinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-robinson/) Browse all 226 Accountants quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "You have to know accounting. It's the language of practical business life. It was a very useful thing to deliver to civilization. I've heard it came to civilization through Venice which of course was once the great commercial power in the Mediterranean. 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