The ability to read correctly is like it is near relative; the ability to listen is one of the most critical skills to acquire. If you know how to read skillfully, absolutely nothing can stop you.
While on the surface, finance and accounting are a numbers game, I see it slightly differently. I think it is at least 50% reading. Let's face it if I were good at maths; I would have studied engineering or informatics. Back in school, I was always outstanding in reading and languages and semi-ok in maths, so I thought I would go for finance and accounting later. After all, most calculations in finance involve either addition, subtraction, multiplication, or division, sometimes all four together. If you can master these basic mathematical skills, you are already in the game. However, this does not make you a superstar immediately. What really sets you apart is the ability to read in a laser-like fashion, and by that, I mean CRITICALLY INTERPRET & ASSESS what you read.
Accounting and Finance is also about skillful story-telling. I am grateful for the talented engineers I work with, so I see it as my duty not to make their lives any more complicated or tedious by throwing raw and meaningful numbers at them. Only recently, when I sat with my financial auditor, it dawned on me how helpful it is when finance guys possess some wit and humor; otherwise, chewing through the numbers becomes a real drag!
Hence, it is essential to present numbers in an easy-to-read way and, afterward, tell an informative and entertaining story! For that, you need to read your audience.
If you know such a finance and accounting person consider yourself lucky!
What you can expect
In this section of the website that is rightly called financial literacy, I would like to lift the curtain behind some of the basic ideas of financial statements.
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I want to show you how to read and interpret the 3 basic financial statements (there are actually 4, but sometimes it's necessary to take short cuts)
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I want to give you ideas on what to look out for when reading and reviewing these financial statements!
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Last but not least I would like to give you an idea of what I think makes for the perfect set of financial statements
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The preparation of financial statements is not a secret recipe I am intending to withhold from you; however, unless you want to become a beancounter like me, it is not a show-stopper to gain financial knowledge and certainly will not hold back from becoming a connoisseur (a fancy French word for expert judge) of financial information.