Bookkeeping: Occupations And Opportunities

History tells us that man is always engaged in some form of record keeping. Yes, even primitive man. Babylonians kept their records on moist clay tablets. The tablets were baked in the sun until hard and stored in a safe place. Now, the ancient Egyptians kept records on paper, or papyrus as it was known then. The wealth of Egypt was kept in numerous warehouses. It took an army of scribes to record the movement of goods in and out of these warehouses. The scribes turned in their reports to the Pharaoh's treasurer. A scribe's job depended on neatness and accuracy. A scribe's life depended on neatness and accuracy. Very much like present-day accountants, the treasurer prepared monthly reports which he presented to the pharaoh. Yes, it was the Romans who put an end to 4,000 years of fumbling around with clay tablets and clumsy scrolls. The Romans arranged parchment or papyrus sheets in book fashion to make what they called a codex. Well, this certainly was a boon to Roman accountants. Now a daily record of money paid out and taken in could be kept neatly in one place. And in case someone should ask, "How's business?" the accountant kept the book with him at all times. From this, of course, we get the term bookkeeping. At the decline of the Roman Empire, invading barbarians who specialized in sacking, pillaging, and being rude, immediately recognized the important role of accountants and gave them jobs. Well, it was during the 11th century that a marvelous thing happened. Yes, Marco Polo brought back spaghetti and firecrackers from China. He also brought back a lot of business to his home city, Venice. Soon trade with the Far East became very active. Everybody and his brother was going into business. After a few years of frantic foreign trade, the Venetian merchants found it necessary to modify their crude systems of bookkeeping. Different methods of bookkeeping led to frequent misunderstandings. So, in 1494, Lucas Pacioli, a friar, driven by the din of a thousand squabbling merchants, formalized a system of bookkeeping called the Venetian method. 500 years later, businessmen are using essentially the same system. Some, however, have developed their own highly individual methods, relying more on memory than method. The housewife can't afford to rely on her memory. It's important that she stay within her family budget. To do so, she must keep an accurate record of what she spends. The supermarket runs smoothly because it keeps a close check on everything it stocks and sells. How much bookkeeping is involved in the life of a rubber tire? The sale of one tire may be recorded in the books of several businesses. The manufacturer, the wholesaler, and the retailer. Then, quite often, that same tire is sold again as a retread. How about the customer? How much bookkeeping is involved in his life? Among other things, he has to keep tabs on house payments, insurance, property tax, income tax, and a dozen other payments. Just like a business, a family must know what it owes and what it owns. Through bookkeeping, he can budget his income so that there is enough money in reserve for emergencies. How long will it be until you will have to make financial decisions? All high schools provide the opportunity to learn the basics of bookkeeping. I think that's right. I think so. Thousands of different parts go into the building of a ship. Every rivet, steel beam, and plate must be accounted for. A shipyard employs hundreds of skilled workers. Records must be kept of the number of hours worked at every stage of building. Getting out the payroll is a big job in itself. Whether you're building ships or manufacturing simple fishing floats, you have to keep accurate records. It takes a lot of people to keep a big business running smoothly. The accounting department plays an important part in all businesses. Jobs in this department range from typist to accountant. Typing and the use of office machines is very important. Most accounting departments today use a wide variety of business machines. A knowledge of business machines and typing is very important, not only in bookkeeping, but in many phases of business. The airline industry, for example, employs many people with bookkeeping skills. It's a big job keeping track of the thousands of travelers who fly to all parts of the world every day. The airlines have a special problem. Two or three different airlines may split one fare when a passenger transfers from one airline to another. You can imagine the bookkeeping involved. Computers and other modern equipment help to handle the tremendous task. Computers are also used for the storage and retrieval of information. On the basis of this information, a company can plan its future activities. Funny thing about computers, though, they're only as accurate as the information fed into them. The business executive is constantly faced with making important decisions. He can only make decisions wisely if he has the correct information, facts, and figures. Business activities touch the lives of everyone. And in your day-to-day life, you'll be making financial decisions. Every well-run business depends on accurate record keeping. There is a wide range of jobs open to those with bookkeeping skills. A knowledge of bookkeeping will be an invaluable asset, whatever career you choose.