High growth earnings have always been a crucial factor for investors when it comes to selecting companies. However, they should pay equal heed to an acceleration in the rate of earnings growth year on year. An acceleration in earnings growth refers to an incremental rate of growth on a yearly basis. For instance, a company's growth rate in the previous year stood at 10 per cent, while this year, it is pegged at 13 per cent. Hence, there is an acceleration of 3 per cent year-on-year. But if the growth rate in the previous year was 20 per cent and this year, it is again 20 per cent, then there is zero acceleration in the company's earnings growth.