Getting Quicken

Like Justin, I’ve used Quicken for Home and Business to do the accounts for Reinvented for the past 5 or 6 years. It’s basically regular old Quicken with some businessy things like Accounts Receivable and Invoices added on for not-too-complex businesses like mine.

None of my accountants like Quicken, mostly, it seems, because it’s not a classical double entry bookkeeping system. Accountants like double entry bookkeeping systems because in Accountant World the Holy Grail is “adding up.” Everything must add up — accounts must balance — reconciliation is key. Apparently double entry bookkeeping is a system designed to prevent things from being able to not add up, which I suppose was a good idea when accounting computers were powered by steam. But I’ve never understood quite why the metaphor had to be carried into the digital accounting world where presumably, at least on some level, the “double” part of “double entry” is a conceit that could be done away with through clever programming.

To date I’ve staved off a switch from Quicken to something more traditional (like QuickBooks, or Simply Accounting) despite accountant protests.

Which is all to say that Justin’s musings about his own finances, especially his contracting with a consultant who will take Quicken files and advise clients on their setup, is fascinating, and perhaps the first financial writing I’ve ever encountered that bears any relation whatsoever to my own life.

Pick up any of the “personal finance” magazines these days, or read the weekend business section of the newspaper, and the unceasing mantra is completely retirement-centric — it’s all about RRSPs, RESPs, mutual funds, tax deductions, the stock market. None of this has anything to do with the price of celery, and although I can understand the need to set up nest eggs, the obsession with money in the future has always seemed absurd, especially when the obsession with money in the future becomes so pervasive as to interfere with the enjoyment of the present.

This means (a) that I will die penniless and (b) that Oliver will have to pay for his own college. I hope it also means that (c) we’ll have more fun, less stressfully, along the road to death. All of us.

My favourite part of Justin’s missive is his concluding paragraph:

Once I’ve got a month of better Quicken use under my belt, and I’ve combed over 2003’s transactions, I’ll consult with a CPA. My short term goal is to begin paying quarterly income taxes! And from there I want to reduce my five-figure credit card debt. So much of Quicken is designed to urge you to invest and track your investments. For now, my investment is me, and I need some investment tracking.

Comments

Submitted by Rob Paterson on

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2 years ago we made the very difficult shift from Quicken to Simply Accounting. Robin, thanks mainly to Kelly Burke (now the mother of the lost boys at silverorange)has persevered and things like year end now take an hour. I no longer understand how to do this but the gang do.

I mss the convenience of Quicken but not the hours of trying to find our mistakes. That I think Peter is the issue. With double entry you can find the errors

By the way Kelly, if you read this, I am applying to the Vatican to have you made a saint. To Dan and Steve - you have won the lotto!

Submitted by Kelly Burke on

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Thanks so much for the kind words Rob, it was my pleasure.

And yes Will, I do this sort of thing one-to-one for a number of small businesses in Ch’twn area, however I am weaning away from it for favour of dedicating my time totally to silverorange. Simply Accounting, in my opinion, the best package out there for a non-financial person to do their own books. Plus, at year end you can easily present the backup to any CA firm to prepare bank-ready financails

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