Looking around the room, he can tell by the smiles that everyone in the class remembers that time in their lives. 'Now, can you imagine how well a company could run if they had no idea where their money went? I feel safe in predicting that the majority of companies out there would be in ruins and so would the entire economy. In order to even have a hope of success, a company has to know where their money is coming from and where it's going out. That's the importance of accounting and of the financial statements.'