11. A Summary of What You Have Learned

I believe in repetition. Presenting ideas several times in different contexts helps build understanding. (Just as repeating sales messages can help build sales.) So I will repeat the main ideas presented in this book.

Congratulations! You have arrived at the last chapter. Let’s review what you have learned.

Accounting is a method of keeping score in business. It uses dollars as the basic score, just as points are the score in football, goals are the score in hockey, and runs are the score in baseball.

The method of keeping score with dollars is what accounting is all about. Certain basic financial reports are used to present the score—the balance sheet, income statement, statement of retained earnings, and ...

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