PiggyBank小豬銀行

A: Have you meet Anna Wong, the new accountant?

B: Yes, I meet her yesterday. She seems to be really on the ball. I think she’s a good choice.

A: I agree. The previous guy, Andy, was nice, but he liked to shoot the breeze. I don’t think he got much done.

B: I think Andy pulled strings to get this job. His brother-in law is the CFO.

A: I heard he was fired for taking kickbacks from one of our customers. Is that true?

B: I don’t know for sure, but that’s what I heard. The new person, Anna, seems very conservative. She goes by the book.

A: She’s also really on her toes. I asked her to help me with a cost estimate. She just eyeballed it and was able to give me a figure right then and there. When I went back to redo the figures, it all worked out.

B: I hope that sales for the new product will put us in the black.

A: Me, too. I know that it’s common for a start-up to be in the red in the begging, but I’ll feel better when we reach our sales goals.

1. Be on the ball 能幹

   I’m really glad you hired her because she’s got a lot on the ball.

    

2. Shoot the breeze 閒聊

   I like to shoot the breeze with my friends.

    

3. Pull strings 在幕後牽線, 運用關係

   She pulls strings whenever she wants something. Her brother is the CEO of the company, so she has influence.

    

4. Kickbacks 回扣

   The company was fines for giving a kickback to the politicians to get contract.

    

5. Go by the book 照章行事

   I want you to go strictly by the book at first. you can get creative later, after you learn the process.

    

6. On one’s toes 保持警覺, 準備行動

   If you work in Silicon Valley, you have to stay on your toes because things are changing very fast.

    

7. Eyeball it 目測

   I don’t have her measurements, and I want to buy her a dress, so I’ll have to eyeball it.

    

8. In the black/ In the red 營利/ 虧損

   If it’s profitable, we’ll end up in the black. If we lose money, we could end up in the red.