I’d love to be able to say that I managed to get my financial life in order before my twenties were over, but that just didn’t happen. Sure, I was in a much better situation at 29 than what I was at 21 but we also didn’t have access to the same information at 21 as what we do now. It’s amazing. There’s finance blog posts, personal finance books, everything you could imagine is now online and available at your fingertips.
I’ve been a bit obsessed with personal finance books lately, especially ones that are targeted towards empowering women. These are the top of the list that have been rocking on my Kindle lately:
1 – Get Rich Lucky Bitch – Denise Duffield Thomas
This would have to be the book that kicked off my obsession with personal finance. More about money mindset (which, let me tell you, mine was horrendous prior to working on changing it) rather than set in stone financial advice, this book is a great starting point to get your head around why your relationship with money is so important.
Seriously, I cannot recommend this book highly enough. When I read it, something just clicked and I realised I needed to change the way I was approaching my finances and my life. Since then I’ve read it about 10 times (at least) and find a new gem each and every time.
2 – I Will Teach You To Be Rich – Ramit Sethi
I’m quite a big Ramit fan and would often pour over his blog, reading everything he had to offer. Surprisingly, reading his book didn’t feel like I was just reading a bunch of blog posts strung together. Sure, some of the information doubled up but sometimes having it delivered in a different way just hits a different point in your mind.
This book focuses on the four ‘pillars’ of personal finance – banking, saving, budgeting and investing. Really interesting points of view.
3 – Prince Charming Isn’t Coming – Barbara Stanny
This is, after all, a post for personal finance books for women and this book definitely hits the mark. Again, this book isn’t as much of a ‘how to’ of finance as it is of a financial mindset. Helping women realise it’s okay to take control of their finances, become more financially savvy and realise there are some things they just don’t need a man to do.
4 – The 4 Hour Work Week – Tim Ferris
While this isn’t exactly a ‘personal finance’ book, it still hits a lot of personal finance notes because it talks so much about how we earn and spend our money.
One of the key points in this book that made me totally change the way I think about my income is when Tim talks about how traditionally we would work our butts off to save for retirement, hoping to do all of our ‘living’ then… but then not being guaranteed that we will be in a position to enjoy it. Amazing.
This book has changed how my husband and I both approach our finances and in particular, the budget we give to ‘living’.
5 – Total Money Makeover – Dave Ramsay
You’d be hard pressed to have a conversation with anyone about personal finance and not hear Dave’s name come up at least once. He is the guru of personal finance and has a loyal tribe of followers – and for a good reason. While I don’t agree with everything (and that’s the wonderful thing about personal finance, it’s personal – so you don’t have to agree with everyone) we still use his ‘envelope method’ of keeping track of our weekly spending.
Dave’s books and philosophy are good reminders that budgets aren’t just for people with low incomes and that personal wealth starts with knowing your own financial situation.
I no longer recommend Dave Ramsay – there are so many amazing finance influencers out there who are far more positive, encourage you to enjoy money, and still help you to achieve your financial goals. I do not align myself with Dave’s teachings in any way nor do I support his philosophies.
6 – You Are a Badass at Making Money – Jen Sincero
7 – Think and Grow Rich – Napoleon Hill
The bestsellers are bestsellers for a reason because they resonate and hit the right points with people. I personally believe this book should be on the reading list of every high school class around the world because it really reinforces that wealth is more than the things we hold in our hands. Keep in mind this book was first published in the 1930’s – so while it’s not really targeted at women as such, the lessons are still there and the philosophies are the same.
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