I have always enjoyed numbers. I liked all of my math classes in school and typically got A's in them. Learning math always seemed to come easier to me than other classes like English (Ugh), History (Ugh), or the Sciences (2xUgh).
When I got into the business world, it was the same way. I enjoyed looking at financial statements. Calculating financial ratios. Looking at charts and graphs. Using spreadsheets.
I also noticed when I got older that not everyone seemed to enjoy nor understand numbers as much as I did. Particularly many of my small business owner clients. Their eyes would often glaze over whenever we examined their financial statements. It was almost painful for them to translate their numbers into something that made sense to them.
Bestselling author Chip Heath's new book, Making Numbers Count, is all about helping people both communicate and understand numbers better. This book could not have come soon enough for many small business owners and their constituents.