If one makes a statement, there is content in the lines and sometimes also in-between the lines. And so it is in business. We work in the lines, different lines of business, and so we generate a statement, the P&L statement.
The two outer lines are: the top and the bottom line.
Google says: Revenue is the total money earned from sales or services before taking out any costs. Profit, also known as net profit or the bottom line, is what's left after subtracting all the expenses from the revenue.
Tripple
Another smart source says that there is a triple bottom line: People, Planet & Profit. And we shall deliver on all three.
Basics
Now, back to our P&L statement. The top line – whichever way you generate it – is the starting point. Before you get to the bottom line, you have to serve all kind of accounts, interests, lines, etc. And by doing so, you determine what is left. What is here to have, to use, to celebrate, to be proud of: the bottom line.
The top line is the first line in the P&L of a company. No wonder, it is the one, we work on first. It gives the meaning to the rest and it has to eventually filled with good money. It has to be painted thick and solid. We can agree on that one, I guess.
Yet, while doing so, we need a base. Hovering in the air is not what humans can really do. We need a solid ground to stand on. Well, it is the bottom of the P&L, it is the bottom line.
Both lines are connected. Both lines represent the reality of a company. And one cannot move far on the top without taking care of the bottom.
THERE IS NO PROFIT & LOSS STATEMENT. THERE IS ONLY PROFIT OR LOSS STATEMENT.
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