ESL Podcast 232 - Business Bookkeeping

on the side - extra; in addition to one's regular job

Janice works as a science teacher at the high school, but she offers private classes for younger students on the side to make extra money.

accounting - the study or job of keeping correct records of money spent and received by a business or organization

Kareem is detail-oriented and he's very good at math. Has he considered a career in accounting?

bookkeeping - keeping correct records of money that a business or organization spends or receives

Shelly and her husband run a small business together. She is responsible for marketing and sales, and he is responsible for bookkeeping.

cash flow - having enough cash for a business to pay its bills

The company had a problem with cash flow last month, and the owners had to request a bank loan to pay their employees.

ledger - the book or computer file in which a business or organization records money that it spends and receives

Years ago, ledgers were written by hand, but today, they are usually computerized.

debit - money that is spent by a business or organization; money that should be subtracted or taken away; payments

These records don't look right. Did you remember to record the debit after we made that big product purchase?

credit - money that a business or organization receives; money that should be added

She was happy to see that there were more credits than debits in her account last month.

break-even point - the point where a business's revenues (money received) are equal to its total expenses (money spent)

When the business finally reached its break-even point, the owners had a party to celebrate their success.

asset - something that has value or is worth money and is owned by a business, organization, or person

Miyung doesn't have very much money in the bank, but he does have other assets: a big house, an expensive car, and a new boat.

liability - money that a business, organization, or person owes to someone else

The bills that a company needs to pay should be listed as liabilities on its financial statements.

administrative expense - cost of operating a business, such as telephone bills, secretary salaries, and paper for the printers and copiers

Every time we hire a secretary, our administrative expenses go up. Are you sure you need another assistant?

budget - a plan for how a business, organization, or person will spend money

When the price of gasoline increased, the bus company had to make changes to its budget.

accounts payable - money that a company owes; bills that a company has not yet paid

Bills are sent to the accounts payable department, where employees enter the information into a computer and print a check for payment.

balance sheet - a document that shows how much money and other assets (things that are worth money) a company has and how much money it has paid over a period of time

Before investing in a company, it is always a good idea to study the balance sheet to learn more about its financial position.

expense - money that is spent or will need to be spent in the future; cost

College students' expenses include tuition, books, housing, and food.

receipt - a piece of paper that is received when one pays for something; proof showing that a person has paid money for something

The landlord says that I still need to pay him $100 for last month's rent, but this receipt shows that I already paid the rent in full.

to audit - to look carefully at a business's financial records to determine if they are correct

When the company was audited last year, the auditors discovered that the accountant had been stealing money.

IRS - Internal Revenue Service; the agency that collects taxes in the U.S.

If you are honest about your finances and pay your taxes regularly, you don't have any reason to be afraid of the IRS.