One thing I've noticed after years of working as a professional bookkeeper is that beginners can sometimes focus too heavily on learning the software.

QuickBooks Online, Xero and Zoho Books are tools. The important part is understanding **what you're actually doing inside the software and why**.

If you're starting bookkeeping from scratch, I would focus on learning these areas:

* Debits and credits
* Chart of Accounts
* Accounts Payable
* Accounts Receivable
* Bank reconciliations
* Credit card reconciliations
* Invoices and bills
* Payments and receipts
* Month-end procedures
* Profit & Loss and Balance Sheet
* Finding and correcting errors

Then take those concepts into the software and **practice them**.

That's where things start to make sense.

I'm a full-time bookkeeper working with businesses in the UK, USA and South Africa, and one thing I really believe in is **learning bookkeeping by doing bookkeeping**.

For anyone here who is a beginner, accounting student, adult learner or considering bookkeeping as a career:

**Don't just watch someone click through QuickBooks or Xero. Get your hands on the software and work through realistic bookkeeping scenarios.**

Start here: join TutorVerse for free as a student to connect with me [https://www.tutorverse.co.za/tutors/16f4391e-73ce-4004-ae6d-12f6eb2598a4](https://www.tutorverse.co.za/tutors/16f4391e-73ce-4004-ae6d-12f6eb2598a4)

I'd be interested to know:

**What are you finding hardest to understand while learning bookkeeping — the accounting concepts, the software, or actually knowing what to do with a client's transactions?**

If you're learning bookkeeping, don't learn the software before you understand the books