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Accounting is not merely compliance or “dry and boring” paperwork; it is the language through which economic reality is translated into decisions, incentives, and valuation—from the discipline of double-entry bookkeeping and the non-negotiable logic that debits must equal credits, to the practical demand that leaders “know the numbers—cold.” The voices assembled here treat accounting as an information system that aggregates facts for decision-making, a measurement regime that predictably shapes behavior, and the starting point—though only a crude approximation—for business valuation and the idea of capital itself. They also underscore that financial information must be communicated not only to investors and lenders but to employees, and that competence in quantitative thinking supports judgment in the ambiguous, qualitative terrain where real financial choices are made. Above all, these quotes confront the stakes of integrity: transparency can reveal volatility rather than create it, but when accounting is bent toward appearance, gimmickry, or “creative” fraud, public trust in corporate records is jeopardized—and with it, confidence in markets and institutions.
 
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== Accounting as the language of business ==
 
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| text = Double-entry bookkeeping… =is Theone wordof accountingthe comesfinest frominventions of the wordhuman accountability.mind, Ifand youevery areprudent goingmaster toof bea rich, you needhouse toshould beintroduce accountableit forinto yourhis moneyeconomy. <ref>{{cite web |title=AccountsSecond PayableLuca Quotes: Advice, Sayings, and Accounting Knowledge from thePacioli ExpertsLecture |url=https://www.netsuiteecb.comeuropa.eu/portalpress/resourcekey/articlesdate/accounting2007/accounts-payable-quoteshtml/sp071114.shtmlen.html |website=NetSuiteEuropean Central Bank |publisher=OracleEuropean Corp.Central Bank |date=2020-11-20 |author=Bridget McCrea2007 |access-date=2025-12-2630}}</ref>
| author = Robert{{Johann Kiyosaki,Wolfgang author of ''Rich Dad Poor Dad'' {{Robertvon KiyosakiGoethe/attribution}}
}}
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| text = Accounting is the preparation and generation of information and the aggregation of that information in a way that’s useful in decision-making.<ref>{{cite web |title=Learning to Use Financial Accounting Numbers Strategically |url=https://globalyouth.wharton.upenn.edu/articles/business/learning-to-use-financial-accounting-numbers-strategically/ |website=Wharton Global Youth Program |publisher=Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania |date=2014 |access-date=2025-12-30}}</ref>
| text = Accounting is not just about compliance; it’s about upholding the ethical fabric of financial systems. <ref>no primary/credible source found (appears only on aggregator sites)</ref>
| author = Samantha Wilson {{SamanthaCatherine WilsonSchrand/attribution}}
}}
}}
 
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| text = If you’re =interested in business, I havedefinitely nothink useyou forought bodyguards,to butlearn Iall havethe veryaccounting specificyou usecan forby twothe highlytime trainedyou’re certifiedin publicyour accountantsearly 20s. Accounting is the language of business.<ref>{{cite web |title=Elvis,1998 Taxes,Berkshire andHathaway the CPA Dilemma: Why Your Bodyguard Should BeAnnual anMeeting AccountantTranscript |url=https://www.jsmorlucnbc.com/ceo-corner1998/elvis05/04/berkshire-hathaway-annual-taxmeeting-cpa/1998.html |authorwebsite=JohnCNBC S.Buffett Morlu IIArchive |datepublisher=2025-12-01 |website=JS Morlu BlogCNBC |access-date=2025-12-2630}}</ref>
| author = Elvis Presley, American singer and actor {{ElvisWarren PresleyBuffett/attribution}}
}}
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| text = YouPeople haveare to understand accounting and you haveaccustomed to understand the nuancesthinking of accounting. It’sas the language of businessdry and it’s an imperfect languageboring, buta unlessnecessary youevil areused willingprimarily to putprepare infinancial thereports effortand tosurvive learnaudits, accountingbut –that howis tobecause readaccounting andis interpretsomething financialthat statementshas –become youtaken reallyfor shouldn’t select stocks yourselfgranted. <ref>{{cite book |last=BuffettRies |first=MaryEric |title=Warren Buffett and the Interpretation of Financial Statements: The Search for the Company with a Durable CompetitiveStartup AdvantageWay |publisher=ScribnerCrown |date=20082017}}</ref>
| author = Warren Buffett, CEO of Berkshire Hathaway {{WarrenEric BuffettRies/attribution}}
}}
}}
 
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| text = I have no use for bodyguards, but I have very specific use for two highly trained certified public accountants.<ref>{{cite web |title=Elvis, Taxes, and the CPA Dilemma: Why Your Bodyguard Should Be an Accountant |url=https://www.jsmorlu.com/ceo-corner/elvis-tax-cpa/ |author=John S. Morlu II |date=2025-12-01 |website=JS Morlu Blog |access-date=2025-12-26}}</ref>
| text = Accounting excellence is not just a skill; it’s a mindset of financial mastery. <ref>...</ref>
| author = Richard Turner {{RichardElvis TurnerPresley/attribution}}
}}
}}
 
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| text = We think a lot about how to communicate financial information to our investors and lenders… We should think more about how we communicate it to our employees so that they understand it.<ref>{{cite web |title=Employees Care About Organization Finances—but Do They Understand Them? |url=https://www.gsb.stanford.edu/insights/employees-care-about-organization-finances-do-they-understand-them |website=Stanford Graduate School of Business |publisher=Stanford University |date=2020 |access-date=2025-12-30}}</ref>
| text = Accounting greatness is not just about what you calculate; it’s about the financial stories you unfold. <ref>...</ref>
| author = Christopher Miller {{ChristopherEd MillerdeHaan/attribution}}
}}
}}
 
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| text = To be good at your business, you have to know the numbers—cold.<ref>{{cite book |author=Donald E. Kieso; Jerry J. Weygandt; Paul D. Kimmel |title=Financial Accounting |publisher=Wiley |edition=6th |date=2005 |pages=Preface}}</ref>
| text = Creativity is great but not in accounting. <ref>...</ref>
| author = Charles Scott {{CharlesHarold ScottGeneen/attribution}}
}}
}}
 
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| text = It’s wild that we are not teaching all of our middle schoolers and high schoolers how to manage household finance, understanding things like credit and interest and risk… You need to go in recognizing the house always wins on average… We must learn to speak the language of business.<ref>{{cite web |title=Financial Literacy Starts Young |url=https://www.gsb.stanford.edu/insights/financial-literacy-starts-young |website=Stanford Graduate School of Business |publisher=Stanford University |date=2021 |access-date=2025-12-30}}</ref>
| text = Never call an accountant a credit to his profession; a good accountant is a debit to his profession. <ref>{{cite web |title=Get to Know Conductor. We Think You’ll Like (and Trust) It. |url=https://harmonate.com/get-to-know-conductor-we-think-youll-like-and-trust-it/ |date=2021-04-23 |website=Harmonate Blog |access-date=2025-12-26}}</ref>
| author = Charles Lyell, Scottish geologist {{CharlesEd LyelldeHaan/attribution}}
}}
}}
 
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| text = Obviously, you =have Capitalto know accounting. isn’tIt’s thisthe pilelanguage of moneypractical sittingbusiness somewhere;life. it’sIt was a very useful thing to deliver to civilization… double-entry bookkeeping was a hell of an invention… although accounting construct.is the starting place, it’s only a crude approximation.<ref>{{cite newsweb |title=WhyA WarrenLesson Buffetton IsElementary, HidingWorldly $61 Billion in Plain SightWisdom |url=https://www.foolritholtz.com/investing/general/2014/0709/20/accordingcharles-tomungers-warrenspeech-buffettat-accountingusc-numbersbusiness-are.aspxschool-1994/ |workwebsite=The MotleyBig FoolPicture |datepublisher=2014-07-20Ritholtz Wealth Management |authordate=John Maxfield1994 |access-date=2025-12-2630}}</ref>
| author = Bethany McLean, American journalist {{BethanyCharlie McLeanMunger/attribution}}
}}
}}
 
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| text = The books cannot be closed unless the debits equal the credits; when the debit and credit have been separately summed, the two sums shall be equal.<ref>{{cite book |author=Luca Pacioli |title=Paciolo on Accounting |translator=W. W. Cooper and Yuji Ijiri |publisher=Richard D. Irwin |date=1963 |pages=175}}</ref>
| text = Proper accounting is like engineering. You need a margin of safety. Thank God we don’t design bridges and airplanes the way we do accounting. <ref>{{cite web |title=Charlie Munger's Quotes On Academia, Accounting And More |url=https://hedgefundalpha.com/education/charlie-mungers-quotes-on-academia-accounting-and-more/ |author=HFA Staff |date=2015-06-07 |website=Hedge Fund Alpha |access-date=2025-12-26}}</ref>
| author = Charlie Munger, vice chairman of Berkshire Hathaway {{CharlieLuca MungerPacioli/attribution}}
}}
}}
 
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== Measurement, incentives, and valuation ==
 
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| text = The word accounting comes from the word accountability. If you are going to be rich, you need to be accountable for your money.<ref>{{cite web |title=Accounts Payable Quotes: Advice, Sayings, and Accounting Knowledge from the Experts |url=https://www.netsuite.com/portal/resource/articles/accounting/accounts-payable-quotes.shtml |website=NetSuite |publisher=Oracle Corp. |date=2020-11-20 |author=Bridget McCrea |access-date=2025-12-26}}</ref>
| text = Life is like accounting, everything must be balanced. <ref>no primary source; widely attributed to Gail Godwin on quotes sites</ref>
| author = Gail Godwin {{GailRobert GodwinKiyosaki/attribution}}
}}
}}
 
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| text = Tell me how you will measure me, and I will tell you how I behave. If you measure me in an illogical way… do not complain about illogical behavior.<ref>{{cite book |author=Eliyahu M. Goldratt |title=The Haystack Syndrome: Sifting Information Out of the Data Ocean |publisher=North River Press |date=1990 |pages=Chapter 8}}</ref>
| 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. However, double entry bookkeeping was a hell of an invention.” <ref>{{cite web |title=The Investments Blog: Munger on Accounting |url=http://theinvestmentsblog.blogspot.com/2009/07/munger-on-accounting.html |author=Adam |date=2009-07-24 |website=Blogger |access-date=2025-12-26}}</ref>
| author = Charlie Munger, vice chairman of Berkshire Hathaway {{CharlieEliyahu MungerGoldratt/attribution}}
}}
}}
 
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| text = Capital isn’t this pile of money sitting somewhere; it’s an accounting construct.<ref>{{cite news |title=Why Warren Buffett Is Hiding $61 Billion in Plain Sight |url=https://www.fool.com/investing/general/2014/07/20/according-to-warren-buffett-accounting-numbers-are.aspx |work=The Motley Fool |date=2014-07-20 |author=John Maxfield |access-date=2025-12-26}}</ref>
| text = “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 fraud and folly is a disgrace. In a democracy, it often takes a scandal to trigger reform. Enron was the most obvious example of a business culture gone wrong in a long, long time.” <ref>{{cite web |title=68 Inspirational Quotes on Accounting |url=https://graciousquotes.com/accounting/ |access-date=2025-12-26}}</ref>
| author = Charlie Munger, vice chairman of Berkshire Hathaway {{CharlieBethany MungerMcLean/attribution}}
}}
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Line 106 ⟶ 116:
| image = warren-buffett.jpg
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| text = Managers and investors alike must understandrecognize that accounting numbers are the beginning, not the end, of business valuation. <ref>{{cite newsweb |title=WhyBerkshire WarrenHathaway BuffettInc. Is1982 HidingAnnual $61Shareholder Billion in Plain SightLetter |url=https://www.foolberkshirehathaway.com/investingletters/general/2014/07/20/according-to-warren-buffett-accounting-numbers-are1982.aspxhtml |workwebsite=TheBerkshireHathaway.com Motley|publisher=Berkshire FoolHathaway |date=2014-07-20 |author=John Maxfield1983 |access-date=2025-12-2630}}</ref>
| author = Warren Buffett, CEO of Berkshire Hathaway {{Warren Buffett/attribution}}
}}
}}
 
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| text = Companies run by engineers don’t make money, but companies run by accountants don’t make anything at all.<ref>{{cite web |title=Accounts Payable Quotes: Advice, Sayings, and Accounting Knowledge from the Experts |url=https://www.netsuite.com/portal/resource/articles/accounting/accounts-payable-quotes.shtml |website=NetSuite |publisher=Oracle Corp. |date=2020-11-20 |author=Bridget McCrea |access-date=2025-12-26}}</ref>
| author = {{Peter Krueger/attribution}}
}}
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Line 114 ⟶ 132:
| image = warren-buffett.jpg
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| text = You have to understand accounting and you have to understand the nuances of accounting. It’s the language of business and it’s an imperfect language, but unless you are willing to put in the effort to learn accounting – how to read and interpret financial statements – you really shouldn’t select stocks yourself.<ref>{{cite book |last=Buffett |first=Mary |title=Warren Buffett and the Interpretation of Financial Statements: The Search for the Company with a Durable Competitive Advantage |publisher=Scribner |date=2008}}</ref>
| text = Managers thinking about accounting issues should never forget one of Abraham Lincoln's favorite riddles: How many legs does a dog have, if you call a tail a leg? The answer: Four, because calling a tail a leg doesn’t make it a leg. <ref>{{cite web |title=Warren Buffett Says This 1 Simple Habit Is the Key to Success. Here Are 19 Times He Did It in Public |url=https://www.inc.com/bill-murphy-jr/warren-buffett-says-this-1-simple-habit-is-key-to-success-here-are-19-times-he-did-it-in-public.html |author=Bill Murphy Jr. |date=2020-02-14 |website=Inc. |access-date=2025-12-26}}</ref>
| author = Warren Buffett, CEO of Berkshire Hathaway {{Warren Buffett/attribution}}
}}
}}
 
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| text = Carl Braun did not know how to read a profit-and-loss statement or a balance sheet to save his life. He would say, ‘Our standard accounting method is asinine. We’re building oil refineries, for God’s sake. Accounting costs for all our corrosion costs as if they were an ordinary cost like office supplies. That’s crazy. We must integrate corrosion costs right into the balance sheet.’<ref>{{cite web |title=A Lesson on Elementary, Worldly Wisdom |url=https://ritholtz.com/2014/09/charles-mungers-speech-at-usc-business-school-1994/ |website=The Big Picture |publisher=Ritholtz Wealth Management |date=1994 |access-date=2025-12-30}}</ref>
| text = Companies run by engineers don’t make money, but companies run by accountants don’t make anything at all. <ref>{{cite web |title=Accounts Payable Quotes: Advice, Sayings, and Accounting Knowledge from the Experts |url=https://www.netsuite.com/portal/resource/articles/accounting/accounts-payable-quotes.shtml |website=NetSuite |publisher=Oracle Corp. |date=2020-11-20 |author=Bridget McCrea |access-date=2025-12-26}}</ref>
| author = Peter Krueger {{PeterCharlie KruegerMunger/attribution}}
}}
}}
Line 130 ⟶ 148:
| image = warren-buffett.jpg
| {{Quote
| text = To be =successful, Theyou reactionshould ofconcentrate weakon managementthe toworld weak operationsof iscompanies, oftennot weakarcane accounting. mathematics.<ref>{{cite web |title=68The world’s best investors offer Inspirationala Quotessecret on Accountinghow to outperform the market in the long-run |url=https://graciousquoteswww.valens-research.com/accountinginvestor-essentials-daily/upld-upland-software-worlds-best-investors-offer-secret-outperform-market-long-run/ |website=Valens Research |date=2021-10-26 |access-date=2025-12-26}}</ref>
| author = Warren Buffett, CEO of Berkshire Hathaway {{Warren Buffett/attribution}}
}}
}}
 
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== Risk, volatility, and managerial judgment ==
 
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| text = Accounting does not make corporate earnings or balance sheets more volatile. Accounting just increases the transparency of volatility in earnings. <ref>{{cite webnews |title=The End of Mark-to-Market QuotesAccounting? |url=https://www.calculatedriskblogtheatlantic.com/business/archive/2008/09/the-end-of-mark-to-market-quotes.htmlaccounting/8790/ |work=The Atlantic |websiteauthor=CalculatedMegan RiskMcArdle |date=2008-09-30 |access-date=2025-12-2630}}</ref>
| author = Diane Garnick, Chief Income Strategist at TIAA {{Diane Garnick/attribution}}
}}
}}
 
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| text = Proper accounting is like engineering. You need a margin of safety. Thank God we don’t design bridges and airplanes the way we do accounting.<ref>{{cite web |title=Chatting With Charlie: The Mark Twain of Finance |url=https://law.stanford.edu/stanford-lawyer/articles/chatting-with-charlie-the-mark-twain-of-finance/ |website=Stanford Lawyer |publisher=Stanford Law School |date=2003 |access-date=2025-12-30}}</ref>
| author = {{Charlie Munger/attribution}}
}}
}}
 
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| text = It has been my experience that competency in mathematics, both in numerical manipulation and in understanding its conceptual foundations, enhances a person’s ability to handle the more ambiguous and qualitative relationships that dominate our day-to-day financial decision-making.<ref>{{cite web |title=Financial education |url=https://www.federalreserve.gov/boarddocs/speeches/2003/20030403/default.htm |website=Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System |publisher=Federal Reserve |date=2003-04-03 |author=Alan Greenspan |access-date=2025-12-26}}</ref>
| author = {{Alan Greenspan/attribution}}
}}
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| text = I thought I could start over, you see. But now I know you can never start over. Not really. You think you have control, but you are like a fly in somebody else's web. Sometimes I think that's why I like accounting. All day, you are only dealing with numbers. You add them, multiply them, and if you are careful, you will always have a solution. There's a sequence there. An order. With numbers, you can have control.<ref>{{cite book |last=Obama |first=Barack |title=Dreams from My Father: A Story of Race and Inheritance |publisher=Times Books |date=1995}}</ref>
| author = {{Barack Obama/attribution}}
}}
}}
 
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| text = Life is like accounting, everything must be balanced.<ref>no primary source; widely attributed to Gail Godwin on quotes sites</ref>
| author = {{Gail Godwin/attribution}}
}}
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Line 146 ⟶ 200:
| image = warren-buffett.jpg
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| text = Managers thinking =about Toaccounting beissues successfulshould never forget one of Abraham Lincoln's favorite riddles: How many legs does a dog have, if you shouldcall concentratea ontail thea worldleg? ofThe answer: companiesFour, notbecause arcanecalling accountinga mathematics.tail a leg doesn't make it a leg.<ref>{{cite web |title=TheWarren world’sBuffett bestSays investorsThis offer1 aSimple secretHabit onIs howthe Key to outperformSuccess. theHere marketAre in19 theTimes long-runHe Did It in Public |url=https://www.valens-researchinc.com/investorbill-essentialsmurphy-dailyjr/upldwarren-uplandbuffett-softwaresays-worldsthis-best1-investorssimple-offerhabit-secretis-outperformkey-marketto-longsuccess-run/here-are-19-times-he-did-it-in-public.html |websiteauthor=ValensBill ResearchMurphy Jr. |date=20212020-1002-2614 |website=Inc. |access-date=2025-12-26}}</ref>
| author = Warren Buffett, CEO of Berkshire Hathaway {{Warren Buffett/attribution}}
}}
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== Integrity, transparency, and public trust ==
 
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| text = We must not let pressures to satisfy Wall Street expectations or unrealistic demands to deliver a certain quarterly earnings result lead us to compromise the quality of our accounting and financial reporting. We must adhere to the highest quality standards.<ref>{{cite web |title=A Partnership for the Public Trust |url=https://www.sec.gov/news/speech/1998/1998-89 |website=U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission |publisher=SEC |date=1998-09-28 |access-date=2025-12-30}}</ref>
| author = {{Arthur Levitt/attribution}}
}}
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| text = In the long run, management stressing accounting appearance over economic substance usually achieves little of either. <ref>{{cite web |title=68Chairman's InspirationalLetter Quotes on- Accounting1981 |url=https://graciousquoteswww.berkshirehathaway.com/accountingletters/1981.html |publisher=Berkshire Hathaway Inc. |date=1982-02-26 |access-date=2025-12-2631}}</ref>
| author = Warren Buffett, CEO of Berkshire Hathaway {{Warren Buffett/attribution}}
}}
}}
 
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| text = When any cunning man keeps two books, one with honest entries and the other with false, he hides the truth, and you cannot rely on it; therefore be careful to keep your books with truth and integrity.<ref>{{cite book |author=Luca Pacioli |title=Paciolo on Accounting |translator=W. W. Cooper and Yuji Ijiri |publisher=Richard D. Irwin |date=1963 |pages=12}}</ref>
| text = It sounds extraordinary, but it’s a fact that balance sheets can make fascinating reading. <ref>{{cite web |title=10 Funny and Inspirational Quotes for Accountants |url=https://www.btpartners.com/technology-blogs/10-funny-and-inspirational-quotes-for-accountants |website=BT Partners |date=2020-05-05 |access-date=2025-12-26}}</ref>
| author = Mary Archer, British scientist {{MaryLuca ArcherPacioli/attribution}}
}}
}}
 
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| text = When accounting =practices Peopleare don’tdefined paymore attention.by Andgimmickry thenthan oneby daytheir there’srepresentation anof accounting. Andunderlying afterbusiness thatconditions, nothingpublic trust is the samejeopardized.<ref>{{cite bookweb |lasttitle=McCarthyA Partnership for the Public Trust |firsturl=Cormachttps://www.sec.gov/news/speech/1998/1998-89 |titlewebsite=NoU.S. CountrySecurities forand OldExchange MenCommission |publisher=AlfredSEC A. Knopf|date=1998-09-28 |access-date=20052025-12-30}}</ref>
| author = Cormac McCarthy, American novelist {{CormacArthur McCarthyLevitt/attribution}}
}}
}}
 
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| text = 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 fraud and folly is a disgrace. In a democracy, it often takes a scandal to trigger reform. Enron was the most obvious example of a business culture gone wrong in a long, long time.<ref>{{cite book |last=Munger |first=Charles T. |title=Poor Charlie's Almanack: The Wit and Wisdom of Charles T. Munger |publisher=Donning Company Pub. |date=2008}}</ref>
| text = It has been my experience that competency in mathematics, both in numerical manipulation and in understanding its conceptual foundations, enhances a person’s ability to handle the more ambiguous and qualitative relationships that dominate our day-to-day financial decision-making.<ref>{{cite web |title=Financial education |url=https://www.federalreserve.gov/boarddocs/speeches/2003/20030403/default.htm |website=Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System |publisher=Federal Reserve |date=2003-04-03 |author=Alan Greenspan |access-date=2025-12-26}}</ref>
| author = Alan Greenspan, former Chairman of the U.S. Federal Reserve {{AlanCharlie GreenspanMunger/attribution}}
}}
}}
 
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| text = Never call an accountant a credit to his profession; a good accountant is a debit to his profession.<ref>{{cite web |title=Get to Know Conductor. We Think You’ll Like (and Trust) It. |url=https://harmonate.com/get-to-know-conductor-we-think-youll-like-and-trust-it/ |date=2021-04-23 |website=Harmonate Blog |access-date=2025-12-26}}</ref>
| text = People are accustomed to thinking of accounting as dry and boring, a necessary evil used primarily to prepare financial reports and survive audits, but that is because accounting is something that has become taken for granted.<ref>{{cite book |last=Ries |first=Eric |title=The Startup Way |publisher=Crown |date=2017}}</ref>
| author = Eric Ries, Author {{EricCharles RiesLyell/attribution}}
}}
}}
 
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| text = We must guard the integrity of the process. In doing so we will strengthen investor confidence, achieve a higher quality of financial reporting and serve the best interests of our Nation.<ref>{{cite web |title=A Partnership for the Public Trust |url=https://www.sec.gov/news/speech/1998/1998-89 |website=U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission |publisher=SEC |date=1998-09-28 |access-date=2025-12-30}}</ref>
| text = The accountant is the unsung hero of today’s business. But how do you remember them? They count the beans and crunch the numbers. <ref>no primary source; common saying in industry</ref>
| author = Mary E. Jones {{Mary E.Arthur JonesLevitt/attribution}}
}}
}}
 
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| {{Quote
| text = I think Enron is the first shoe to drop. There’s a kind of Gresham’s law, where bad conduct drives out good conduct.<ref>{{cite web |title=Chatting With Charlie: The Mark Twain of Finance |url=https://law.stanford.edu/stanford-lawyer/articles/chatting-with-charlie-the-mark-twain-of-finance/ |website=Stanford Lawyer |publisher=Stanford Law School |date=2003 |access-date=2025-12-30}}</ref>
| text = I thought I could start over, you see. But now I know you can never start over. Not really. You think you have control, but you are like a fly in somebody else's web. Sometimes I think that's why I like accounting. All day, you are only dealing with numbers. You add them, multiply them, and if you are careful, you will always have a solution. There's a sequence there. An order. With numbers, you can have control. <ref>{{cite book |last=Obama |first=Barack |title=Dreams from My Father: A Story of Race and Inheritance |publisher=Times Books |date=1995}}</ref>
| author = Barack Obama, 44th President of the United States {{BarackCharlie ObamaMunger/attribution}}
}}
}}
 
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| text = In insurance, as elsewhere, the reaction of weak managements to weak operations is often weak accounting.<ref>{{cite web |title=Berkshire Hathaway Inc. 1982 Annual Shareholder Letter |url=https://www.berkshirehathaway.com/letters/1982.html |website=BerkshireHathaway.com |publisher=Berkshire Hathaway |date=1983 |access-date=2025-12-30}}</ref>
| text = Managers thinking about accounting issues should never forget one of Abraham Lincoln's favorite riddles: How many legs does a dog have, if you call a tail a leg? The answer: Four, because calling a tail a leg doesn't make it a leg. <ref>{{cite web |title=Warren Buffett Says This 1 Simple Habit Is the Key to Success. Here Are 19 Times He Did It in Public |url=https://www.inc.com/bill-murphy-jr/warren-buffett-says-this-1-simple-habit-is-key-to-success-here-are-19-times-he-did-it-in-public.html |author=Bill Murphy Jr. |date=2020-02-14 |website=Inc. |access-date=2025-12-26}}</ref>
| author = Warren Buffett, CEO of Berkshire Hathaway {{Warren Buffett/attribution}}
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| text = INo wouldCEO argueexamining thatbooks atoday majorityunderstands ofwhat the horrorshell weis facegoing wouldon… notAccounting havehas happenedsteadily ifdegraded over the accountingpast profession30 developedyears, and enforcedaccounting firms have sold out time betterafter accountingtime. <ref>{{cite newsweb |title=MungerChatting onWith theCharlie: 'Asininities'The ofMark Today'sTwain Regulators and Businessof LeadersFinance |url=https://wwwlaw.theatlanticstanford.comedu/businessstanford-lawyer/archivearticles/2009/05/mungerchatting-onwith-charlie-the-asininitiesmark-twain-of-todays-regulators-and-business-leaders/17894finance/ |workwebsite=TheStanford AtlanticLawyer |datepublisher=2009-05-20Stanford Law School |authordate=J.J. Gould2003 |access-date=2025-12-2630}}</ref>
| author = Charlie Munger, vice chairman of Berkshire Hathaway {{Charlie Munger/attribution}}
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| text = Creativity is great but not in accounting.<ref>{{cite web |title=Rule 34: Be a brown rat if you want to succeed |url=https://www.davidsonwp.com/blog/2016/03/rule-34-be-a-brown-rat-if-you-want-to-succeed |website=Davidson WP |publisher=Davidson WP |access-date=2025-12-31 |date=March 2016 |author=Andrew Davidson}}</ref>
| author = {{Charles Scott/attribution}}
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| text = I would argue that a majority of the horrors we face would not have happened if the accounting profession developed and enforced better accounting.<ref>{{cite news |title=Munger on the 'Asininities' of Today's Regulators and Business Leaders |url=https://www.theatlantic.com/business/archive/2009/05/munger-on-the-asininities-of-todays-regulators-and-business-leaders/17894/ |work=The Atlantic |date=2009-05-20 |author=J.J. Gould |access-date=2025-12-26}}</ref>
| author = {{Charlie Munger/attribution}}
}}
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