Bad with Money: The Imperfect Art of Getting Your Financial Sh*t Together


Gaby Dunn - 2019
    In the first episode of her “Bad With Money” podcast, Gaby Dunn asked random people at a coffee shop two questions: First, what’s your favorite sex position? Everyone was game to answer, even the barista. No holds barred. Then, she asked them how much money was in their bank accounts. Deathly silence. People were aghast. “That’s a very personal question!” they cried. And therein lies the problem.Gaby argues that our inability to speak honestly about money is our #1 barrier to understanding it, nurturing a stigma that leads to our shame, embarrassment, and anxiety, which in turn prevents us from taking ownership over this important part of our lives. She wants you to know that there are real reasons to feel helpless when it comes to managing your money, and that the patronizing know-it-alls on TV who blow air horns in your face and charge you up the wazoo for their self-help seminars do not have the answers.But despair not, there is a light at the end of this dark, moneyless tunnel. Through her own journey toward “financial literacy,” Gaby uncovers the real reasons that we feel so disempowered when it comes to finance—deeply rooted habits we inherited from our families, systemic imbalances, and intentionally-complicated terminology that makes it impossible for regular people to feel competent. Bad With Money isn’t going to tell you how to get rich or erase your debt, nor will it offer up a litany of humiliating confessions about horrible financial decisions that Gaby has made (okay, maybe some): it is an invitation from a friend who is just as clueless as you are. Equal parts memoir and journalistic investigation, Gaby covers topics like the financial dynamics of dating, the costs of mental health, and how to maintain your self-respect as a freelancer. In addition to debunking the “entitled millennial” stereotype, Gaby reveals essential truths like how “401K” is not the name of a sci-fi movie, why it feels like your bank teller is speaking a foreign language, and how to decide whether to take an unpaid internship.Weaving her own stories with the perspectives of various researchers, artists, students, her parents, a financial psychologist, her exes, and more, she reveals the ways that money makes us feel confused, hopeless, and terrified, and what it might look like to start taking control of our financial futures.

Miserly Moms: Living on One Income in a Two-Income Economy


Jonni McCoy - 1996
    The McCoys made a successful transition from two incomes to one while living in one of the most expensive parts of America: the San Francisco Bay Area. Her Miserly Guidelines will help you save thousands of dollars a year on everything from groceries to electricity to insurance and household cleaners--as well as reveal the hidden costs of holding a job and common money wasters. Her practical, proven cost-saving techniques, strategies, tips, and recipes will help you live frugally without feeling deprived.

Basic Economics: A Citizen's Guide to the Economy


Thomas Sowell - 2000
    Sowell reveals the general principles behind any kind of economy-capitalist, socialist, feudal, and so on. In readable language, he shows how to critique economic policies in terms of the incentives they create, rather than the goals they proclaim. With clear explanations of the entire field, from rent control and the rise and fall of businesses to the international balance of payments, this is the first book for anyone who wishes to understand how the economy functions.

Smart and Simple Financial Strategies for Busy People


Jane Bryant Quinn - 2006
    Her classic bestseller, Making the Most of Your Money, guided a generation toward smart and sensible financial choices. Here she strips away the extras, choosing the best financial ideas and products available today. They're all you need to create a successful and long-lasting financial plan. It's money management the No Worry way. To start with, she tells you to forget all the complicated stuff the financial industry sells. You don't need it, it costs too much, and some of it is downright bad. It's designed to make the banks, brokers, and insurance companies rich, not you. The best ideas (a super-short list!) are simple, low in cost, and easy to use. They're also sophisticated and smart. The strategies shown here are followed by some of the most successful planners and money managers around today, yet they're something everyone can understand. They'll give you what you need from your money -- regular savings, financial security, long-term investment growth, personal control, and best of all, peace of mind. Once you've set up a No Worry plan, you won't have to pay much attention to it. The choices you'll find here are all good ones. All you have to do is arrange for automatic payments and contributions and then get on with the rest of your busy life. You can focus your energies on your job, family, leisure, and friends, secure in the knowledge that your finances are okay. Here's what you'll do on the No Worry plan: Save more money without feeling pinchedGet rid of debt the automatic wayKeep yourself safe, with the right amount of insurance at the lowest costZero in on the right mortgage, every timePick the best college savings plan for your kidsUnderstand your finances, in ways you never did beforeFind the smartest and simplest ways of investing money, to earn superior returns over the long run The investment ideas alone will open your eyes to the newest strategies for accumulating wealth (without making big mistakes!). Jane Bryant Quinn will change the way you think about money. She has the answers busy people need.

The Way to Wealth


Benjamin Franklin - 1757
    It is a collection of adages and advice presented in Poor Richard's Almanac during its first 25 years of publication, organized into a speech given by "Father Abraham" to a group of people. Many of the phrases Father Abraham quotes continue to be familiar today. The essay's advice is based on the themes of work ethic and frugality. Some phrases from the almanac quoted in "The Way to Wealth" include: "There are no gains, without pains" "One today is worth two tomorrows" "A life of leisure and a life of laziness are two things" "Get what you can, and what you get hold" "Sloth, like rust, consumes faster than labor wears, while the used key is always bright" "Have you somewhat to do tomorrow, do it today" "The eye of a master will do more work than both his hands" "Early to bed, and early to rise, makes a man healthy, wealthy and wise" "For want of a nail..."

The Truth About Retirement Plans and IRAs


Ric Edelman - 2014
    Yet only half of all eligible Americans contribute to a retirement plan. That’s because all plans—including the 401(k), 403(b), 457, and even the IRA—are complicated, confusing, and costly. New York Times bestselling author and acclaimed financial advisor Ric Edelman has counseled thousands of savers and retirees and has accumulated his advice in this book. Edelman has created a step-by-step guide. With illuminating prose and simple explanations, he shares everything you need to know as a plan participant: how to contribute even when you think you can’t afford to, how to make wise choices among your investment options, and how to convert your 401(k) into income so you can provide yourself with the lifestyle you want in retirement. Along the way, he debunks the myths and clears up the confusion.

Profit First: Transform Your Business from a Cash-Eating Monster to a Money-Making Machine


Mike Michalowicz - 2014
    The problem is, businesses are run by humans, and humans aren't always logical. Serial entrepreneur Mike Michalowicz has developed a behavioral approach to accounting to flip the formula: Sales - Profit = Expenses. Just as the most effective weight loss strategy is to limit portions by using smaller plates, Michalowicz shows that by taking profit first and apportioning only what remains for expenses, entrepreneurs will transform their businesses from cash-eating monsters to profitable cash cows. Using Michalowicz's Profit First system, readers will learn that:- Following 4 simple principles can simplify accounting and make it easier to manage a profitable business by looking at bank account balances.- A small, profitable business can be worth much more than a large business surviving on its top line.- Businesses that attain early and sustained profitability have a better shot at achieving long-term growth.With dozens of case studies, practical, step-by-step advice, and his signature sense of humor, Michalowicz has the game-changing roadmap for any entrepreneur to make money they always dreamed of.

Refinery29 Money Diaries: Everything You've Ever Wanted To Know About Your Finances... And Everyone Else's


Lindsey Stanberry - 2018
    Featuring all-new Money Diaries, valuable advice on how to get rich (and afford life in the meantime) from a handpicked team of female financial advisers, and money challenges that will save you up to $500, Refinery29 Money Diaries will empower you to take immediate control of your own money, including: • Why budgets are bulls&!t and what to do instead • How to make repaying your loans as painless as possible • How to start an emergency fund even if you’re living paycheck to paycheck • How to effectively ask for a raise and make sure you’re being paid fairly • How to have fun without going broke • The joy of saving for future you With a vision of what your dream bank account balance looks like, some expert advice to help you achieve it, and the support of a powerful community with the same goal, you’ll be a step closer to taking control of not just your wallet, but your life.

Get Money: Live the Life You Want, Not Just the Life You Can Afford


Kristin Wong - 2018
    Nobody wants to do it, but at some point, it's inevitable: you need to clean your teeth, renew your license, and manage your personal finances like a grown-up. Whether you're struggling to pay off student loan debt, ready to stop living paycheck to paycheck, or have finally accepted that your Beanie Baby collection will never pay off, tackling your finances may seem immensely intimidating. But it doesn't have to be. By approaching personal finance as a game--something that requires you to set clear goals, as well as face challenges you must "beat"--personal finance can not only be easy to understand, but it can also be fun!In Get Money, personal finance expert Kristin Wong shows you the exact steps to getting more money in your pocket without letting it rule your life. Through a series of challenges designed to boost your personal finance I.Q., interviews with other leading financial experts, and exercises tailored to help you achieve even your biggest goals, you'll learn valuable skills such as: Building a budget that (gasp) actually worksSuper-charging a debt payoff planHow to strategically hack your credit scoreNegotiating like a shark (or at least a piranha)Side-hustling to speed up your money goalsStarting a lazy investment portfolio...and many more!Simply put, with this gamified guide to personal finance, you'll no longer stress about understanding how your finances work--you'll finally "get" money.

A Random Walk Down Wall Street: The Time-Tested Strategy for Successful Investing


Burton G. Malkiel - 1973
    At a time of frightening volatility, what is the average investor to do?The answer: turn to Burton G. Malkiel’s advice in his reassuring, authoritative, gimmick-free, and perennially best-selling guide to investing. Long established as the first book to purchase before starting a portfolio or 401(k), A Random Walk Down Wall Street now features new material on “tax-loss harvesting,” the crown jewel of tax management; the current bitcoin bubble; and automated investment advisers; as well as a brand-new chapter on factor investing and risk parity. And as always, Malkiel’s core insights—on stocks and bonds, as well as real estate investment trusts, home ownership, and tangible assets like gold and collectibles— along with the book’s classic life-cycle guide to investing, will help restore confidence and composure to anyone seeking a calm route through today’s financial markets.

Living Well, Spending Less: 12 Secrets of the Good Life


Ruth Soukup - 2014
    She gives her readers even more of what they love about the blog: lots of creative, helpful ideas and advice for moms on a budget along with stories from her own journey to discovering what the Good Life is really all about.

The Lazy Investor


Derek Foster - 2008
    A strategy simple enough for anyone to understand and one that runs on "autopilot" once it's set up.

Be Thrifty: How to Live Better with Less


Pia Catton - 2009
    Book by

The Coupon Mom's Guide to Cutting Your Grocery Bills in Half: The Strategic Shopping Method Proven to Slash Food and Drugstore Costs


Stephanie Nelson - 2009
    Taking the nation by storm, with appearances ranging from The Oprah Winfrey Show Stephanie Nelson has shown countless women and men how to save thousands of dollars by becoming savvy coupon clippers-without sacrificing nutrition or quality. Now, in The Coupon Mom's Guide to Cutting Your Grocery Bills in Half, Nelson demonstrates all of the tricks of the trade-beyond coupons and tailor-made for a variety of shopper lifestyles. Whether you're a "busy" shopper and have only a small amount of time each week to devote to finding the best deal; a "rookie" shopper who is ready to put more effort into cutting bills; or a seasoned "varsity" shopper who is looking for new ways to get the deepest discounts possible, this book offers techniques thatw ill make it easy to save money at any level and on any timetable. Extending her Strategic Shopping protocols to mass merchandisers, wholesale clubs, natural-food stores, drugstores, and other retailers, Nelson proves that value and variety can go hand in hand. With meal- planning tips, recipes, and cost-comparison guides, as well as inspiring real-life stories from the phenomenal Coupon Mom movement, this is a priceless guide to turning the checkout lane into a road of riches.

Money: A User’s Guide


Laura Whateley - 2018
    It will teach you how to get a great credit score, how to save hundreds on bills, and offer practical advice on every difficult conversation you’ve been avoiding including:Housing (for renters and buyers)Student LoansPensionsPaying off debtStocks and sharesEthical investmentsMoney and Mental healthMoney and LoveThis essential book will give you the confidence and clarity to take back control of your bank account, enabling you to thrive in all areas of your life.