Intelligent Fact of the Day: The Bottom Line

Have you ever been in the middle of trying to ease into asking someone a favor, when they interrupt to say, "Just tell me, what's the bottom line?"


Of course you knew that they were really trying to say, Let's not beat around the bush, what do you want?  But did you know where the term, the bottom line, comes from?  Probably not.  Or maybe you do.  I just learned of its origin today, while reading Financial & Managerial Accounting (which, I will assure you, is not my idea of leisure reading - I'm taking two online courses).  The term, the bottom line, actually refers to Net Income, which is the bottom line of the Income Statement.  This figure, along with Gross Profit, are two of the most important figures to determining the health of a company.  Asking for the bottom line is like asking someone, "What's the situation when it's all said and done?"

...And now you can tell your friends 

that this blog has been an enjoyable, 

educational experience :)