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Business. Finance. Self-Improvement. Nonfiction. HTML:A fully revised edition of one of the most influential books ever written on personal finance with more than a million copies sold �??The best book on money. Period.�?� �??Grant Sabatier, founder of �??Millennial Money,�?� on CNBC Make It"This is a wonderful book. It can really change your life." -Oprah For more than twenty-five years, Your Money or Your Life has been considered the go-to book for taking back your life by changing your relationship with money. Hundreds of thousands of people have followed this nine-step program, learning to live more deliberately and meaningfully with Vicki Robin�??s guidance. This fully revised and updated edition with a foreword by "the Frugal Guru" (New Yorker) Mr. Money Mustache is the ultimate makeover of this bestselling classic, ensuring that its time-tested wisdom applies to people of all ages and covers modern topics like investing in index funds, managing revenue streams like side hustles and freelancing, tracking your finances online, and having difficult conversations about money. Whether you�??re just beginning your financial life or heading towards retirement, this book will show you how to: �?� Get out of debt and develop savings �?� Save money through mindfulness and good habits, rather than strict budgeting �?� Declutter your life and live well for less �?� Invest your savings and begin creating wealth �?� Save the planet while saving money �?� �?�and so much more! "The seminal guide to the new morality of personal mon… (more)
User reviews
So why did it take me so long to finish the book? Quite honestly, I believe I had to digest it. A lot. I had to really examine my life and decide just what I want and that process has taken me years. I don't believe it was until I lost my job that it came more into focus. As I begin to attempt to figure out what I really want in a job, it has forced me to really evaluate what I liked and disliked in my previous jobs. It also has caused me to look at how I do spend money. Has it been a life changing moment, forever to be frugal? Probably not. I'm human after all and there isn't a tool made I wouldn't like to get to know. But it definitely is helping me make sure I don't make some of the same mistakes again.
The authors do espouse certain beliefs and occasionally get a little quasi-religious in their zeal, but for the most part the concepts are sound and important. I have to admit I had found it impossible to believe that someone could be financially independent in this age without the wealth of Bill Gates, but after getting to the last couple chapters, I am beginning to believe that it is not only possible, but probable for anyone who really wants to accomplish the feat. Denise is reading the book now and then we will discuss what we want to do and how it will effect our lives. Interesting book. Highly recommended only if you are fed up with the world and wonder if there is more.
First, I should mention that I opted to read this cover-to-cover with the intention of doing the exercises
Overall, I really liked this book and found it gave real hope for designing a life of one's choosing rather than having to fit into the mold of paid employment. I especially like the anecdotes about various individual sprinkled throughout the book. I also really liked some of the tips, like to track your expenses, you just adopt a 2-step process: 1. start doing it; 2. keep doing it (ha ha!).
As for my criticism of the "real hourly wage"process, it's not that I object to it on principle. I actually think it's rather a good idea. And while I also don't object to the instruction to be honest about it, what I do object to is the one-sided approach to honesty that is proposed. For example, while the authors suggest that if you spend extra time in line at coffee shops during breaks, you add that to the time you spend on work. That makes sense, as long as you actually are spending extra time on it, in addition to your scheduled time at work, as opposed to taking longer breaks that just get subsumed into your workday. So the authors assume if you work an 8-hr day, you start with 8-hrs and then add to that all the extra time and money you spend on your job, like commuting and even decompressing from work, whether it be with a cocktail after every work day or with a two-week vacation to a sun destination in the winter. But what about the amount of time you spend at work not working (i.e. taking breaks, surfing the internet, talking to your spouse, talking to your kid's child-care provider, socializing by the water cooler, etc.)? The authors don't postulate that you might actually need to subtract some time from the initial 8-hr work day you start from. And are those cocktails and vacations really expenses you would not incur (and would not want to incur) if you didn't have that job? Or do you enjoy the cocktails and want to get away from a cold climate, regardless of your job? As for calculating your wage, the authors do not remind readers of all the possible benefits readers might be able to throw in, in addition to actual wage (pension, employers' contributions to retirement plans, use of a company car, stock options, discount on public transportation, etc.). All to say, the way it's written is very one-sided and entices readers to under-estimate their "real hourly wage" by omitting economic benefits linked to jobs and exaggerating expenses linked to their jobs. If readers simply follow the instruction to be totally honest, this may have no impact but it's difficult not to be influenced by the suggestions made by the author with regard to all possible job costs, like "costuming" for work, decompressing, unwinding and vacationing.
The financial principles of “Your Money or Your Life” are relatively simple. Dominguez is not a budgeter. Rather, he emphasizes tracking earnings and spending and calculating how much of your life is spent earning money and how much of your life is spent on everything you buy. This is the key to the book. Once you begin seeing your purchases in terms of the amount of life energy you’ve spent acquiring the money to make those purchases, your spending habits are bound to change.
There are a lot of subjects covered here and it would be impossible to do justice to them all, but there are two that seem particularly worthy of discussion. First, there is a list of 101 frugality tips which focus on saving both time and money. Some are obvious (don’t bounce checks), some not so obvious (eat a proper diet and get proper exercise), and none are as banal as the ultra-frugal tips you usually see today (make sure your tires are inflated and use less laundry detergent). It is a list worth perusing mostly because the tips are meant to save time as well as money.
The one aspect of real criticism comes simply from the datedness of the book, first published in 1992. Dominguez’s only means of investment is long-term US treasuries which, twenty years ago were averaging a better than seven percent return and were completely risk-free investments. In 2010, US treasuries are only yielding three to four percent and are not adequate investment vehicles as their yield is unlikely to greatly outpace inflation. This one criticism aside, “Your Money or Your Life” is a fantastic book and is worth reading if only for its unique take on the way earning and spending money affects our lives.
I found the "preachiness" of the book very irritating. I am all in favor of examining how to live a more value-driven life, but the authors spend too much time proselytizing THEIR values and THEIR definition of how to live a financially independent life. I found myself skimming whole sections that had nothing to do with the steps and everything to do with their personal views. I should note, too, that I am a committed environmentalist, so if I found it went overboard, I can only imagine how off-putting it would be to someone less focused on those issues.
In spite of the preachy tone, I am glad I read the book and will edit my review after I am able to assess the effectiveness of the steps.
It requires a bit of homework so be prepared. My approach has been to read it once for the general idea and then to re-read if I believe in the approach enough to invest the time in the exercises. I'm about to read it for the second time in a week or so (and doing the work). I've already asked my wife and a couple of friends to read it and I'll encourage others as well.
My only beef (no pun intended) is that the book gets a bit heavy on "green" living/treehugging at times. I suppose this is closely bound to simplification being the core of the book. While I don't consider myself numb to the world around me, I'm not drumming up donations for Greenpeace either. It's this component of the book that keeps this one at 4.5 stars instead of 5.
HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.
At times a bit dry to read, but stick with it. If I had to suggest but one single book re.: personal
Aaron
I'd like to try it again sometime, though.
Earning and spending are forever interwoven with our actions, and I appreciate this book's healthy attitude toward thinking conscientiously about the function of money in our everyday lives. There's lots of filler here too, mostly in the form of real-life examples and moralizing, but this isn't necessarily a bad thing if you're seeking a narrative context.
The most useful advice for me is the section on assigning values to spending (relevant self-assessment is good practice no matter what your situation), but this presumes a good handle on the basics of budgeting, which is fundamentally the most important. The section on investing seems dated and carelessly limiting even though I understand the author's intention to want to simplify the process. The goal should be to pursue the smartest option, and that doesn't always mean the simplest.
Overall, a helpful book that I found less helpful with each successive re-read.
I'd give it 5 stars, if not for some of the writing being a little cliche, with repetition of the importance of "the program." Still, I appreciate the "try it and decide for yourself" attitude throughout most of the book, and I got a few great book recommendations, as well. I'm currently halfway through Man's Search for Meaning by Viktor Frankl, and I'm riveted.
I am a frugal person by nature, but have changed my perspective and approaches to reach my goals sooner. Not everything may work for everyone. Each has to find their own path and figure what works for them, but this book is a good start and should be a recommended read.
The main premise of the book is the idea of looking at money that you spend as
The book presents a ten step process for being FI (financially independent). This process involves doing a lot of things that I already do as part of my finances, but might be eye opening to those who like to turn a blind eye or ignore their finances. It involves things like calculating your net worth and figuring how much dollars->life energy you are actually spending on day to day items.
I really like this idea and it did make me reconsider the way I spend money. I was able to look at our personal finances more closely and target trouble areas (like the amount we spend on eating out). I also really enjoyed some of the stats and historical discussion about American life and economy and the innate problems American society has.
I did think their final step of being able to live off of interest from bonds to become completely FI was a bit unrealistic. The book is updated to mention that in more current times it may be more practical to diversify that strategy. It is also mentioned that any investing comes with risk and adopting this style of life can be risky.
In the end I think I pulled enough useful information from this book to impact my life and finances in a positive way. Will I adopt this type of lifestyle completely? Probably not, I will take a more moderate approach and modify trouble areas of my life.
Overall I would definitely recommend to those who are interested in becoming financially independent and really want to take a look at how money affects their lives. This is also a good book for those who want to get a head start on ridding themselves of debt and planning a solid retirement.
skimmed through (lots of anecdotal stories from other retirees and info I already know). this has been updated to include all of the language from Mr. Money Mustache and all those other trendy millennial retirees.
I was hoping for a more fiscally conservative take on the FIRE
If you need convincing that you can retire earlier if you decrease your spending and increase your saving, then this is for you. The line graphs were the best part in showing how mathematically feasible it can be.