The Income Statement and Business Numbers Handbook
Finance · Nº 55
The Income Statement and Business Numbers Handbook
Understand What Your Accountant Sends You and Decide by the Numbers, without Becoming an Accountant
Your accountant sends four PDFs a month. You open one.
24 tools, a spreadsheet that does the math, and a two-store shoe business followed report by report, so you can read what your accountant sends and ask the right questions.
You get 24 tools to read the trial balance, income statement, balance sheet, and cash flow statement, calculate the ratios that matter, check your accountant's report, and run a monthly meeting. Plus a spreadsheet with 10 tabs, filled in with the example.
A book explains the method. This handbook puts it to work: the tool, a worked example, and a spreadsheet with your numbers.
One-time payment of $29.00. The order form shows the final amount, with any taxes for your country, before you pay.
Digital delivery: PDF handbook, spreadsheet and access on the Consylion platform.
14-day money-back guarantee: if it isn't what you expected, request a full refund within 14 days of purchase.
Your order is processed by Digistore24, our authorized reseller. By purchasing, you accept the terms of use and purchase · refund policy.
On the 20th, the email arrives. Three or four attachments. You pay the bills and file the rest. Your accountant says the business made a profit. The bank balance says otherwise, and your own spreadsheet has a third number. Then you apply for a loan, the loan officer opens the balance sheet and starts asking questions, and you realize you've never actually read it.
THE SPREADSHEET
Balance sheet and income statement spreadsheet
Use the completed example as a reference and enter your business data in the marked fields. Check the instructions and the calculations before you make a decision.
SOUND FAMILIAR?
Three situations this handbook solves
The day the package lands
You open the reports in the order the handbook sets, starting with your accountant's notes. On the trial balance, you read only the accounts that changed, write down the ones you can't explain, and you're done in about an hour.
The bank asks for your balance sheet
You send your accountant's signed version with one extra page: the ratios and a short explanation of what changed. When the loan officer asks about inventory or short-term debt, you already know the answer.
The monthly meeting with your accountant
45 minutes, a fixed agenda, and your questions sent ahead of time. You walk out with three decisions, each with an owner and a deadline, instead of a vague promise to look into it.
INSIDE
What you'll find in each tool
Five parts, in the order the reports arrive. Learn what's in your accountant's package and why profit doesn't match the bank. Read the income statement line by line. Read the balance sheet on one page and the cash flow statement in three sections. Calculate the ratios that matter. Then compare periods, check the report, and run a 45-minute monthly meeting. Every tool has a step by step, a worked example, and an exercise.
WHAT YOU GET
Everything included in your purchase
- The Income Statement and Business Numbers Handbook in PDF: 24 tools, each with a step by step, a worked example, and an exercise
- The Balance sheet and income statement spreadsheet in Excel and Google Sheets, with 10 tabs, filled in with the example company
- The Template kit: 13 ready-to-adapt texts, including the 12 questions for your accountant, the monthly meeting agenda, and the three-decision minutes
- 2 worksheets to fill in (monthly reading and accountant meeting) and a 30-day plan, one week per stage
- Access to your handbook on the Consylion platform
Full table of contents
The 24 tools, in the order you'll use them
Part 1 · Part 1 · What your accountant sends you
- 01The accountant's packageThe reports that arrive every month, what each one answers, and the order to read them in
- 02Double-entry bookkeeping made simpleDebits, credits, and why every entry has two sides, in plain English
- 03Accrual basis and cash basisWhy your accountant's profit doesn't match your bank statement, and why both are right
- 04The monthly trial balanceOpening balance, debits, credits, and closing balance: spot what changed in minutes
Part 2 · Part 2 · Your accountant's income statement
- 05The income statement, line by lineFrom gross revenue to net profit, in the order that shows where your sales leak away
- 06Accounting and management income statementsThe bridge between your accountant's report and your own one-page P&L
- 07COGS and the inventory countWhy, in retail, your profit depends on counting what's on the shelf
- 08DepreciationThe expense that doesn't leave your bank this month and still lowers your profit
- 09ProvisionsVacation pay, bonuses, and customers who won't pay, booked before they happen
Part 3 · Part 3 · The balance sheet
- 10The balance sheet on one pageWhat the business owns, what it owes, and what belongs to the owners, on a given date
- 11Equity and retained earningsWhere the year's profit ends up and what your draws do to it
- 12Accounts that raise questionsA cash balance too big to be true, inventory that keeps growing, and other warning signs
- 13The cash flow statementWhere the year's money came from and where it went, in three sections
Part 4 · Part 4 · The ratios that matter
- 14Current, quick, and cash ratiosWhether the business can pay this year's bills without counting on selling inventory
- 15Debt levelsHow much of what the business owns is financed by others, and how much comes due soon
- 16The three marginsGross, operating, and net, and what each drop is trying to tell you
- 17Collection, inventory, and payment daysHow long it takes to collect, sell inventory, and pay, from your accountant's numbers
- 18Return on capitalHow much the owners' money earns inside the business
Part 5 · Part 5 · Compare, ask, and decide
- 19Vertical analysisEach line as a share of revenue, so you see the real weight of every expense
- 20Horizontal analysisWhat grew faster than sales from one year to the next
- 21Same month last yearAugust against August, year to date, and the last 12 months, so the season doesn't fool you
- 22Checking your accountant's reportBank, cards, inventory, and cash checked against the trial balance
- 23The right questions for your accountantTwelve questions that turn the report into decisions
- 24The monthly meeting with your accountant45 minutes, a fixed agenda, and three decisions at the end
Who it's for
It's for you if
- Your accountant sends a trial balance, an income statement, and a balance sheet, and they go straight into a folder
- Your accountant says you made a profit, and you can't find that money in the bank
- You're about to apply for a loan or sit down with a partner, and you need to explain the numbers yourself
- You want your meetings with your accountant to end with decisions, not more questions
It's not for you if
- You don't track cash flow or have a one-page P&L yet. Start with The Cash Flow and Profit Handbook
- You want a weekly dashboard for the operation. That's The Metrics Handbook
- You want to keep your own books. This handbook teaches you to read the reports and ask the right questions, not to do the bookkeeping
- You need to renegotiate the business's loans. That's The Business Credit and Debt Handbook
Frequently asked questions
Do I need to know accounting?
No. It's written for beginners. Debits, credits, accrual basis, and depreciation are explained in plain English, and the spreadsheet does the math. The goal is to read the reports, not to keep the books. Your accountant still does that.
My business is very small and doesn't get a balance sheet. Does this apply?
Partly. Very small businesses often have simpler recordkeeping rules and don't receive a balance sheet. Tools 03, 06, and 21 work with your own spreadsheet. Check with your accountant what applies to your case.
My accountant only sends the bills to pay. Can I ask for the reports?
Yes. What the firm delivers depends on your contract. The Template kit has a request for the monthly package, and Tool 01 shows you how to agree on a deadline.
Can I just use my own spreadsheet instead?
Use both. Your spreadsheet guides day-to-day decisions; your accountant's report is the one the bank and your partners read. Tool 06 builds the bridge between them, line by line, so you know why the two numbers differ.
How much time does this take each month?
About an hour to read the package, half an hour to check the trial balance, and 45 minutes for the meeting (Tools 01, 22, and 24). The handbook itself takes about 2 hours and 24 minutes to read, or 6 minutes per tool.
What do I get, and in what formats?
Each handbook is a PDF of about 100 pages with 24 to 27 tools. Every tool has step-by-step instructions and a worked example. You also get the handbook's spreadsheet in Excel (.xlsx), which opens in Google Sheets too, with the example already filled in. The message, policy, and clause templates are in the Template Kit inside the PDF, ready to copy and adapt. Read it in the member area or download the files.
How do I know if it fits my business?
Each handbook's page shows the problem it solves, who it is for and who it is not for, the full table of contents, sample pages, and the company used in the examples. The examples come from small businesses in several industries, with illustrative numbers. If it is not a fit, you can ask for a full refund within 14 days of your purchase, as described in the Refund Policy.
What is the difference between a handbook, an area set, and the Series?
A handbook solves one problem. An area set brings together every handbook and spreadsheet in one of the 6 areas, for less than the price of 5 single handbooks. The Consylion Handbook Series brings together all 100 handbooks and 100 spreadsheets, for less than the price of 8 single handbooks, and includes the next handbooks in the Series. Products outside the Series, from Consylion Life or Consylion Business, have their own price. They are sold separately and are not part of an area set or the Series.
Do I need to read everything before I start?
No. Each tool works on its own. Open the table of contents, pick the tool for today's problem, and start there. You can also read it cover to cover.
Do I need to know Excel?
The basics are enough: open the file and fill in the marked fields. The formulas are already built, and the handbook's example is filled in for reference.
How do I pay, and when do I get access?
By card or bank transfer, as a one-time payment with no subscription. Once your payment is confirmed, you get access to the member area by email. Approved card payments are confirmed right away. Bank transfers are confirmed when the funds clear. If access does not arrive within 24 hours of confirmation, check your spam folder and write to team@consylion.org.
How long do I have access, and how can I use the files?
Access does not expire, and you can download the files for offline use. The license is individual. You may read the handbooks, print them for your own use, and fill in and adapt the spreadsheet and templates with your company's data. If you are a consultant, accountant, or manager, you may apply the tools with your clients and deliver the result of your work, not the files. You may not share, resell, or distribute the files or the access.
How do support and refunds work?
Support is by email at team@consylion.org, on business days, with a reply within 5 business days. It covers questions about access, files, and payment. It does not include consulting or advice on applying the material to your case. You can cancel within 14 days of your purchase, without giving a reason, and get the full amount back through the payment method you used. Send the request to the same email. The details are in the Refund Policy.
CONSYLION HANDBOOK SERIES
The 6 departments of your business, for less than the price of 8 single handbooks.
This handbook solves today's problem. The Series solves the next one, and the one after that, with nothing more to pay.
- 100 handbooks with 2,403 ready-made tools, to read on screen and download as PDFs
- 100 spreadsheets for Excel and Google Sheets
- 6 business areas
- Lifetime access, unlocked once payment is confirmed
One-time payment of $197.00. The order form shows the final amount, with any taxes for your country, before you pay.
Digital delivery: PDF handbook, spreadsheet and access on the Consylion platform.
14-day money-back guarantee: if it isn't what you expected, request a full refund within 14 days of purchase.
Your order is processed by Digistore24, our authorized reseller. By purchasing, you accept the terms of use and purchase · refund policy.
Finance · Nº 55
Read the reports you're already paying for
Those PDFs hold answers your bank statement can't give: what the business really earned, how much is tied up in inventory, and whether the year's money came from sales or from a loan. This handbook gives you the reading order, the calculations, and the questions. Your accountant keeps the books. You start reading them.
See all 100 handbooks · $197.00
One-time payment of $29.00. The order form shows the final amount, with any taxes for your country, before you pay.
Digital delivery: PDF handbook, spreadsheet and access on the Consylion platform.
14-day money-back guarantee: if it isn't what you expected, request a full refund within 14 days of purchase.
Your order is processed by Digistore24, our authorized reseller. By purchasing, you accept the terms of use and purchase · refund policy.