To hate double entry bookkeeping?

[SunFlowerRose]

I’m really hoping you will be able to help me, because this is my last ditch attempt before I throw away 8 months worth of payments on a bookkeeping and accounting course which would cost even more in an early get out fee.

I work full time in finance for a small company, but they use an accounting software so most of it’s all done in the background.

I’m on the first model of the level 2 online course and I just cannot retain the information or make it sink in.

The double entry part and transactions just isn’t making sense and I’m about to lose all hope on it.

If anyone has any resources that helped them such as YouTube videos, links or books then please please do share them.

I’m off to WH Smith later to look at the books they have, in hopes to find one that may help. Along with A3 paper that I plan to right notes on and stick all over the house.

If any bookkeepers would be willing to inbox me and help me with this I’d be super grateful.

I’ve wasted 8 months on this so far and just feel incredibly stupid. And I want this so badly for my current career, it would help me progress so much.

Apologies for putting it in AIBU I was hoping more people would see it and maybe be able to help. Please be kind as I already feel crap enough.

I am a chartered accountant and understand book keeping which is the fundamental of accounting. What is it you have an issue with?

Double entry simply means you cannot book a single sided entry. So for example if you buy something it is DR expenses but you cannot have a single sided entry so something else must have happened, probably your cash decreased at the same time, so the other side is CR cash.

Are you doing AAT? I'm partway through AAT L2 as well and also work in Finance.

I found it hard to get on board with the debits and credits too.

Do you ever do accruals/prepayments at work? That helps me. Also, when it comes to the Trial Balance at the end of the book on that topic, I just learnt one side (credit or debit). I then just worked on all the others that I hadn't learnt being in the opposite column.

If it helps, I'd skip ahead to another unit and come back to this one in a month or so.
Try Elements of Costing. I found that much easier. Do that exam. Then come back to the first unit.

Sorry I forgot to add it is AAT Level 2.
I sort of understand the CR and DR, but then when doing examples in the T account is all goes horribly wrong.

For work I literally just reconcile everything automatically or create invoices to reconcile with payments. I have to select the right category such as Cost of goods sold or HR and so on, but compared to the module I’m trying to get on top of I keep going over the mock thing and get it wrong each time.

I can’t really move forward as I’ve been told if I need to understand this part as then everything else falls into place?

What exactly are you having trouble with? In my experience double entry needs to be taught in conjunction with how financial statements are made up.

Can you answer ‘what is a debit and what is a credit’?

I’m not being patronising - I ask people this when I interview and many can’t.

DM me if you’d like some help. I would be happy to go through some worked examples on Teams or Zoom if that would help.

Aprilx I think it confuses me that when you receive money into the bank it’s classes as a debit, and then whatever was paid is classed as a credit, so for example Cost of Goods Sold?

I think because I spend 8 hours a day at work staring at spreadsheets and invoices and dealing with stuff that takes concentration, by the time I get home and try and focus on learning this my poor brain is done.

Could you post a question you’re having trouble with?

Merry I think I understand some of it but not all. I know that money into the bank is a debit and money out is a credit. That if you sell goods then that account would be credited. If you pay a supplier the bank is credited but the supplier account is surely also credited?

If you by a pc for the company then bank account is debit and assets credited?

See I’m all confused again! Grrrr.

Think of the bank being the wrong way round. That really helped me.
It's from their point of view iyswim

Is your problem which way around the debits and credits go?
Have you come across DEAD CLIC to help with this?
Debit Expenses Assets Dividends
Credit Liabilities Income Capital

(To increase the balances)

This might be helpful.

No.

Credit cash and debit asset because it’s cash out and an increase in assets.

Get these definitions in your head

Debit:

1. Increase in cash
2. Increase in asset
3. Increase in expense

Credit

1. Decrease in cash
2. Increase in liability
3. Increase in income

I'm an Accountant and happy to help if you're stuck.
It does take a long time for it to come naturally especially if you don't think about the debits and credits as the computer does it for you.

Try to remember something like DEADCLIC
DEBIT
Expenses
Assets
Drawings
CREDIT
Liabilities
Income
Capital

Also remember your balance sheet is opposite the profit and loss.
Balance sheet debit = good - you have an asset held.
P&L debit = bad - you have a cost.

Once you nail down the basics it does get easier!

Look at the PEA RLS acronym online, have it on a piece of paper in front of you at work, when you post a transaction look at the DR and CR and write out the T account for it. Using software makes it easier in some ways and harder in others when you try to learn manual double entry! It will click eventually.

There will always be an element you can identify and it all starts from there.

Eg. I’m buying something. That’s money out. That’s cash out so that’s a credit to cash. So my debits will be the other side that match up and balance.

I’ve tried deadclic and other ways and it just isn’t sinking in.
I’m going to buy A3 paper and sharpies later and stick paper all over my house. So anything recommended by you lovely people I’ll be writing on them.
I really really want to get these and for work I remember at least 20 processes some of them really complicated. So I just don’t understand why I can’t get this one ☹️

Most people have passed the course by now and I can’t even think about booking my first exam. Even some of the invoice and credit stuff where you have to list the items and totals I get wrong as the rounding up the decimal point for vat and none vat I can’t retain.

I’ve been to uni in the past and managed to get really good grades. If it were essay writing I’d be fine but it’s all numbers and brain power.

I really do feel stupid.

@MartyHart

Think of the bank being the wrong way round. That really helped me. It's from their point of view iyswim

This.

It took me so long before finally realising the bank didn't make sense because I was viewing it from my POV.

You need to learn the PEARLS of wisdom!
images.app.goo.gl/7CrBGYyJyqaRzbCb6

It's one of those things where you have to learn the rules by rote then after you've chanted "credit creditors" enough times it seems to fall into place and in 10 years you'll struggle to understand why someone finds it confusing 😁

The bank is always a tricky one to start with as it's the other way round from the statement we're used to looking at. My tutor helped by explaining that the bank statement for your personal bank account is prepared from the banks perspective not yours, so by paying in money you increase the liability the bank has to repay you, hence it's a credit on your statement.

In your example buying a computer you debit to increase fixed assets as you now have a computer and credit the bank as you reduced your cash balance.

Yes DEADCLIC helps so much.

It does take a while to get it but once you’re there it makes sense and it’s the fundamental of everything you’ll do in bookkeeping/accountancy so you’re definitely doing the right thing putting the time and effort in to understand it.

Because there is always an opposite, when money comes into the bank, the actual bank account is credited, so in the books it's a debit.

What support are you getting from your tutors OP and how long have you been studying this module?

Ok so let’s look at another one.

If I purchase something on a 30 day credit account would it be…
Debit to the assets?
Credit to the purchase ledger?

Then once paid would it be..
Debit to purchase ledger
Credit to bank?

First Intuition are fab and have quite a few YouTube videos that may help! There are AAT Fb groups too where people ask questions when stuck so they may be useful :)

@SunFlowerRose

Merry I think I understand some of it but not all. I know that money into the bank is a debit and money out is a credit. That if you sell goods then that account would be credited. If you pay a supplier the bank is credited but the supplier account is surely also credited?

If you by a pc for the company then bank account is debit and assets credited?

See I’m all confused again! Grrrr.

Paying a creditor:

Credit the bank (decreasing your asset)
Debit the supplier account (decreasing your creditor/liability)

Merry I finally do have a tutor supporting me but haven’t spoken to him on the phone yet because I’m just so frustrated that I suspect it will end up in a big rant.

For the first 6 months I was assigned a different tutor and she ignored all my emails so I had no help at all!

So it’s all kind of snow balled to me getting frustrated and angry at myself and to a point where my brains just given up with it.