Business Money Books

I just graduated college and started a new job, and this book is helping me know exactly to handle my money!

Great book for everyone. It's written to the 25-30 year old, but it's great advise to all.

Farnoosh Torabi writes an easy reader with clever ideas and a fresh view. You should pick up this book for yourself, especially if you're a young adult or have teenagers entering college.

You're So Money is a great read if you are looking for inspiration to straighten out your personal finances, get rid of personal debt and restructure your spending habits. The book hits many areas in advice on how to shop for our everyday needs and wants as well as how to look for opportunities of making money outside our 8 to 5 jobs to achieve our 'good life' equation. Definite recommended buy! I enjoyed every chapter and its written for those of various ages struggling to have all aspects of their personal finances fall in place.

This book has some good tips and ideas, my favorite being to figure out what's important to you before you figure out how to budget your money. Sounds simple, but sometimes we get so caught up in paying off debts, saving and investing, that we forget to live in the moment. I've already made some changes based on her advice, by drastically cutting back on eating out and putting that money towards a trip to Europe next year (so much more rewarding than a few sushi dinners).
One annoyance - she says that renters are wasting their money and that everyone should be a homeowner. Then she proceeds to say that her parents paid for her condo. Who should I ask to help me, my deceased father or my mother who lives off $10,000 in Social security checks per year? Some of us have to do it on our own, and that means paying rent instead of drowning in mortgage payments. I think it's a huge mistake for young people to buy homes too soon. Rent isn't "wasting money", it's paying for a place to live.

I happened to read excerpts of the book and I think this is one gutsy woman we are talking about -- but with a caveat: Reality is not an illusion. Let me state that in terms that Christine would understand, seeing as how she knows Bill Gates. Reality is the Operating System. Our lives are the Programs running under its control. (And programs have been known to ABEND - Abnormal(ly) End). To say this differenly, each individual life is a "program" or an instant of existence in Reality. One cannot push against Reality. Every time one pushes, Reality recoils and in doig so gathers strength. And when it can't recoil any more, it will spring back with a force that can destroy you. But if you use Reality as a sounding board or a point of reference, it will never let you down.

Contrary to the Merkin-class quality of promotion which serves to promote 'Rules for Renegades' by way of its jacket blurb and associated websites, it is actually commendably sober in its breeziness. Team America: World Police - Unrated (Widescreen Special Collector's Edition)

It is full of good humour and was not particularly salacious, as some other commentators have suggested. I very much liked the criticism of the Underpants Gnomes' school of entrepreneurship, since it is so often the downfall of many a good idea which fails to achieve a profit. 'I hate people like that, they remind of me' (Body Heat, William Hurt :-)Body Heat

The book can be gotten through pretty quickly as a read, is straightforwardly laid out, has exercises to work through at the end of each chapter including URLs to download examples, worksheets, etc.

Although 'Rules for Renegades' does not dwell especially on such details, it does allude to the collegiality and bottom up management advocated as good management practice in Kenneth and William Hopper's 'The Puritan Gift', for example. The Puritan Gift: Triumph, Collapse and Revival of an American Dream

That said, this is definitely one of the strangest business books I've read in a long time - and this is the genre I read about 95% of the time. About half way through the book I was saying to my friends "can you believe she's writing about sleeping with Bill Gates in this book?" - but you know what? I was talking about it, I was creating buzz for the book and I certainly couldn't put it down. I don't know if you'd describe the author Christine as likeable, nor would I say she's trying to be: she's flawed, but she knows it (and aren't we all), she's a character (wait a minute, she's a monk, a geisha, a burnout, a tech-head, an investor, an entrepreneur - make that she's multiple characters), but by the end of the book I really connected with the message that she was trying to put out. Interesting and slightly shocking reading, definitely not predictable.

Kirsty Dunphey, Author - Retired at 27, If I can do it anyone can

I used to review business books for a management magazine, so I've read a ton of books like this -- the "secrets" to getting ahead. Unfortunately, this book reads like more of a kiss-and-tell than a business how-to guide to success (the author lost all credibility when she started name-dropping about her affairs with Bill Gates and Larry Ellison).

I was eager to read this slim volume because the author -- a model-turned-monk-turned-programmer-turned-millionaire -- seemed to have a heck of a background to draw from. But instead of this being a concise instruction manual, it's a catch-as-catch-can recounting of various "rules" the author learned over her somewhat schizophrenic life. I wasn't sure if it was "do as I did" or "don't do as I did." Nothing was presented in any sort of cohesive fashion, so I found it nearly impossible to follow. Also, often major pieces of the story seemed to be missing (what was up with her guru-turned-criminal??).

I would skip this book unless you want a bit of an insider's look at how Bill Gates' mom used to plan his life (via whiteboard).

TD's review was absolutely correct. This book is not a business resource book, but rather a self-serving, ridiculous recount of this author's affairs with wealthy businessmen. I bought this book because it was recommended in a trade magazine that I believed had credibility. No more! Ms. Comaford-Lynch's only business advice seems to be to promise to deliver on a business venture you know nothing about, start a company to provide that service, and - gosh darn it! - hope for the best. If you fail, you fail. Sleeping her way to the top seems to be the only surefire recommendation she has to offer.

I am the author. Natch, it's five stars! But this is hardly an objective review.

PLB

The word Mr. Studwell adopts for his title, "godfathers," has of course acquired its relevant connotations from a classic novel by Mario Puzo and the subsequent motion-picture trilogy directed by Francis Ford Coppola.

Messrs. Puzo and Coppola were self consciously creating a myth, romanticizing the ugly reality of mob violence. Mr. Studwell thinks of himself as the debunker of a myth, and he employs the Puzo-Coppola language to reverse its effect.

The myth about Southeast Asia is a matter of Sinocentric cultural determinism. Chinese ethnic groups have scattered about the region and wherever they have gone--so runs a common contention--they have brought with them a Confucian ethos, a dedication to hard work and entrepreneurialism, which has sparked growth and turned the beneficiary nations into "tigers" of productivity.

Those whom Mr. Studwell calls Asia's "godfathers"--the Chearavanont family in Thailand and the Hartonos family of Indonesia are two examples--have taken advantage of this myth to legitimize their own wealth and privilege. He associates them with the Corleones of Sicily and New York, then, in an effort at deflation.

The class at issue isn't, furthermore, as thoroughly Chinese as it portrays itself or as its outside admirers imagine. A few, such as the two families just mentioned, surely are. Many others are partially ethnic Chinese, and in such cases "the non-Chinese bloodline is sometimes seen as a source of embarrassment and played down, particularly in a Chinese setting." Still others aren't Chinese at all. Ananda Krishnan, of Malaysia, surely belongs in any list of the region's godfathers, though he's a Sri Lankan Tamil.

In general, Mr. Studwell contends that the godfather class throughout the region has been a retardant to growth, not the accelerant that its quite successfully promulgated self-image would have one believe. Southeast Asia hasn't shared the successes of Northeast Asia--Japan, South Korea and Taiwan--for three reasons. The northeastern countries have a successful history of land reform behind them. They have seen the development and political encouragement of branded businesses (not merely outsourcing operations for western brands) that compete globally. They've learned the tricky politics of stable multi-party competition. That is the direction forward for their southern brethren.

I learned a good deal from this book. Still, I think that Studwell rather overdoes it, and allows deromanticization to spill over into distortion. I suspect that Confucian values do have something to do with developments in the region, just as Calvinism has had a good deal to do with economic developments in the north of Europe for the last few centuries.

As a student with an MA in Southeast Asian Studies, I can attest that this book does a great job summarizing the economic and political landscape of Southeast Asia. The book focuses on the role of the region's elite businessmen and how they take advantage of corruption, weak anti-monopoly laws, and political connections to build their empires. These elites dominate the domestic sectors of the economy, so they generally do not compete with multinational firms in the export sector.

Unlike other books I have read on Southeast Asia, this one not only provides examples but identifies larger trends and patterns that are useful in understanding the problems Southeast Asia currently faces. There is a lot of information, and it can be a pretty dense read for readers not already attuned to the region, but it's definitely worth it, even if just to get an idea of how politics and business really don't mix well in the region.

The book was well written and obviously well researched, but I guess I was looking for more of an action packed, backstabbing account 'Mafia Style.'
Very informative nonetheless.

Solid reporting with a sense of history about many of the people behind Asia's economies. Good background of why and how but the "who" is what is compelling. Had hoped for even more gossip, but lawyers must have counseled care. But there is more than enough to be worth reading if you are involved in Asia or even just interested.

This book makes a very interesting read and offers a different approach to understanding the economy of a region: the author looks at these economies mainly through the business sector and avoids overloading the book with graphs, charts, tables, etc. It is an interesting story (although heavily studded with Chinese names). This may result in an incomplete picture, and the book is not quite academic, but this does not avoid it providing a relatively objective look on an important sector of this region's economy.
Studwell is very critical of the corporate sector of the SE Asian countries, including those of Hong Kong and Singapore. He traces the origins of the mostly ethnic Chinese businessmen and their companies from the colonial days to the present. He dismisses any notion of "Asian values" as the foundation for the success of these businesses and their owners, but rather attributes their rise to license-peddling, concessions, monopolistic practises, lots of graft, etc. One is reminded of Balzac's words: "every great fortune, of onknown origin, is usually the result of a crime". His comments on the banking sector are particulary scathing. The author explains that these businessmen are not the cause of this situation, but have merely adapted to a region-wide system of patronage and corruption held in place by the local politicos for hundreds of years to the present (much of it inherited from their colonial masters). The business leaders have saving graces: personally charming, they lead flamboyant lives and they obviously do contribute to their local economies (through employment and investment).
In spite of this, and the crisis of 1997-98 the SE Asian economies have sustained high levels of growth over the past two decades, which Studwell attributes mostly to multinationals, and the export prowess of small local firms, plus the hard-work of the average Asian.
The author's critique goes beyond mere anecdotes and history , as he affirms that the SE Asian corporate sector does not have the efficiency and productivity of the typical world-class company. The origins of these businesses leads to a focus on trading and short-term wheeling-dealing, without a clear strategy, technological strength and branded products. The companies are very much tied to the personality and/or the family of the main owners. Worst of all, they are lacking in transparency, corporate governance and their stock market practises are less than ethical.
Studwell's observations seem vindicated by the markets: since the 1994-97 peak the stock markets of these countries have not fully recovered, and the Hong Kong and Singapore indices are barely above their levels of 10 years ago.
As SE Asia acquires more economic stability it is logical to assume that per-capita income will rise and lead to stronger domestic economies, with less dependence on export-led growth. In this context Studwell is correct in insisting the the corporate sector of these countries clean up their act and become serious and sustainable contributors to their economies.

Yes, this is a must have. Written by S&P auther, it is the definitive guide, no question should be asked. cause they are credit king.

Many details on how to measure risk, quantitative methods in detail. Ideas and industry practice all in great detail. I could imagine some quants will use it as a cook book for their project.

overall, well written for easy read. both good for a glance at credit risk and for in depth learning of industry standard.

In Measuring and Managing Credit Risk, the authors provided a robust, complete and comprehensive treatment of several aspects of modern credit risk measurement and management. Written by two high talented practitioners, this book will become certainly a reference both for academics and practitioners thanks to its careful treatment of several not so known empirical issues which practitioners have to face everyday. At the same time, do not consider the book as a new recipes book for managing credit risk. Both authors already proved their deep knowledges of financial theory and establish once again, through this book, how advanced knowledges of theory combined with significant practical experience make leading researches. As a PhD candidate in Finance, actually writing on credit risk, I definitively adopted this book and higly recommend it for anyone dealing with credit risk issues either through a practical experience or through a theoritical work.

If you are Banker/Banking Consultant then this book is the closest you will get to understanding Credit Risk from a Basel II perspective. Its clear & lucid style helped me understand the gamut of techniques used in Credit Risk Measurement. Unfortunately the Book does not get into the details of bulinding models so if your looking for a model building cookbook, look elsewhere.

This book is written in laymens terms and easily understandable. If your pupose is to have a few ideas about how to handle sudden wealth I reccommend this book, but the buck should not stop here, do your research and gather further information rather than use friends and family. You have to know you and how you handle money. Investing for Dummies might be another great resource if your looking to quickly grasp ideas which you can apply to real world life and finances. One of the key features is learing how to manage your emotions, which I think is perhaps the most important tool. For further reccomendations one should probably see a psychologist or psychiatrist with expertise. The ideas here are not groundbreaking but insightful.

Found the book to be extremely useful and informative. Would highly recommend it for anyone finding themselves the recipient of a windfall of cash.

Sudden Money is very helpful and easy to read. Everyone should read this book!

I am a fee-only Certified Financial Planner that has heard Susan Bradley and read her book. Susan's book provides a good introductory overview of the issue that seems to be quite useful for those receiving smaller inheritances (<$3-4 million). So many people receive inheritances of $500K to $1 million and think they are rich. Susan's book helps them put things in perspective. Unfortunately many come to me after they have the money and have already started making the mistakes she discusses.

She does not have an axe to grind nor pushes any particular method of settlement--as each situation determines the method.

I like her approach of (1) don't do anything initially- Decision Free Zone(2) understand the emotions--a huge item(3) get some professional advice (3) lay out a plan (4)move deliberately. Consequently, I recommend or give a copy of her book to those getting or have just gotten an inheritance or a large sudden influx of money.

Great book from a nice person.

This book is nothing more than a piece of self-promotional fluff --a marketing tool for the author's seminars and speaking gigs.

It offers little of substance either in the way of managing your finances or handling the emotional reactions to a windfall. It has all the depth of a sound bite. My sense is that Bradley is the type of person who believes her own PR.

If the author does as poor a job managing her clients' money as she did in writing this book, I suspect they'll experience 'sudden poverty'.

Leverage. Imagine "turbocharging" your finances.

You can do this in the commodity markets, the currency markets, stock options and real estate. And as long as the market goes up (or down, if you are selling the market short) you win. BIG. This is fast money, managed responsibly.

Investing in something and ignoring it is a good way for your money to walk away. Putting your money in the bank or depending on a money manager to mind the store for you is the equivalent of having Colonel Sanders watch your chickens. This, is slow money.

It's your money, and it's best you learn how to manage it. Great. So, how DO you manage your money?? Hmmmmmmm we still don't know.

I understand Robert's argument on this: He avoids specifics because there are 10000 ways to manage your money. Unfortunately, I think most of them are the WRONG way! So who's going to show you the right way? It depends. The hard part is, which way is the right way for you? (now there I go, being vague!)

Are you aggressive or passive, by nature. Are you creative, or diciplined?? What is your definition of risk, and how much risk are you willing to take on? The answers to these questions, combined with some strong financial training will give you the answer to these questions, but you won't find the quick answer here.

You will, however find some great insights; clues on where to look for good investments, and concepts on being a great investor. Clues, that's all. You still have to do the research and legwork. Nobody here is going to tell you what to do with your money.

If you don't know what is a good investment, hire a financial consultant...one who doesn't sell investments on the side. Let them research your investment opportunities for you.

Unfortunately, this book could have been written in less than 100 pages. My copy had 242 pages.

I loved this book! It was recomended by a close friend that is like my rich dad, I've read his others, but this one is great as far as people needing to know where their money is going. I also recommend all of his other books as well. It is a must buy for people willing to financially free themselves!

Same thing gets repeated over and over without a real insight of any thing. Waste of time.

The book spends first half of it explaining why people is so critic with the marvellous principles of investment criteria that are going to be explained.

The second half explains why other criterias of personal saving-investment are not appropiate.

Appart from some unchained and undetailed principles of inevestment such as "move your money fast from one investment to another" that do not have any link with a more general theory all of it is useless.

I bought it on third party advice and it is my opinion.
Regards,
Enrique.

I cant believe Kiyosaki is getting rich writing this garbage.

In the book,he laughs at the general advice of "have a diversified portfolio,invest for the long term,buy and hold".He says plenty of times how wrong that advice is.He also repeats over and over how millions of people lost billions of dollars during the Bear Market of 2000-2002.
What Kiyosaki forgets to say is that the people who LOST money,were the ones who SOLD their equity investments during or just after the technology bubble.He also forgets to say that,in fact,the people who followed the:have a diversified portfolio,buy and hold,and didnt SELL,not only those people didnt lose a single penny,but now,in 2007,those people have earned lots of money.

If you want to know how REAL rich people invest,you should read "The Millionaire Next Door" and "The Millionaire Mind",by Thomas Stanley.A serious study about how real millionaires invest.Millionaires that followed the buy and hold strategy.
Also,if you want to know how stocks work for the long term,read"Stocks For The Long Run",by Jeremy Siegel: a great work,showing empirical data with historical study on how the stocks work for the long term.


Avoid Kiyosaky,he is a charlatan who gets richer and richer selling his books.

This is really an excellent book for those coaches who are serious about building their business. If you are a coach or new to coaching you soon find out that being a great coach is irrelevant if you don't have people to coach and you won't have people to coach if you don't know how to marketing your business and retain clients. This book is really a step by step guide to setting up a coaching business and it is presented logically. If you are looking for coaching theory or new ways to really help clients this book isn't for you. If you think coaching is an effortless way to make a living, this book is a reality check. If you are committed to taking the required actions to make you a financially successful coach, this is a must read.

There are plenty of casual guides on the market on how to coach various sports; but few take the more detailed approach of showing how to build a thriving coaching business, even though some 30,000 coaches have entered the profession in the past five years. There's lots of competition in coaching and so few find themselves able to earn a living wage: that's where The Business And Practice Of Coaching: Finding Your Niche, Making Money, And Attracting Ideal Clients comes in. Chapters are written by two veteran business coaches which provide exercises, tips, and plans to help coaches succeed, from drawing links between community needs and coaching to refining skills to attract public attention and targeting a profitable niche market. Any who desire to coach professionally must have The Business And Practice Of Coaching at hand.

There are plenty of casual guides on the market on how to coach various sports; but few take the more detailed approach of showing how to build a thriving coaching business, even though some 30,000 coaches have entered the profession in the past five years. There's lots of competition in coaching and so few find themselves able to earn a living wage: that's where The Business And Practice Of Coaching: Finding Your Niche, Making Money, And Attracting Ideal Clients comes in. Chapters are written by two veteran business coaches which provide exercises, tips, and plans to help coaches succeed, from drawing links between community needs and coaching to refining skills to attract public attention and targeting a profitable niche market. Any who desire to coach professionally must have The Business And Practice Of Coaching at hand.

I liked this book. I'm glad I purchased it. There really are not that many books available at present on "the business" of coaching. The other one I have, that I'm about to review, is Four Steps to Building a Profitable Coaching Practice (ISBN: 0595296602) which was written in 2003.

I'd say the instant book does a good job of describing the coaching field outside of the sports realm. It talks about whether many of its participants make a reasonable living (they don't), and it talks about the various fields or backgrounds coaches come from (therapy practitioners and consultants). It tries to be helpful in explaining how to be a successful coach from both a coaching perspective and from a business perspective. There are 17 chapters included:

1. Coaching: Trend or Fad?
2. The Differences Among Coaching, Therapy, and Consulting
3. Becoming a Great Coach
4. Four Questions to Your Perfect Fit
5. From Specialty to Niche
6. Attracting Ideal Clients
7. The Coach as Entrepreneur
8. Business and Your Emotional Intelligence
9. Why Good Coaches Go Broke
10. Staying Safe and Legal
11. Executive and Leadership Coaching
12. Business Coaching
13. Skills Coaching
14. Career Coaching
15. Life Coaching
16. Wellness Coaching
17. Creativity, Relationship, and Spiritual Coaching

My favorite chapters were 2, 5, 12, and 13. I am in the process of putting together a business plan for an online coaching business that will compete directly with many law firms, accounting firms, and fiduciary departments in banks. As a result, Chapter 2 was of particular interest to me because it compared coaching to counseling (legal counseling). Coaching that crosses the line into legal counseling can be construed as the unauthorized practice of law which is regulated on a state by state basis. I can't say that I thought the book did a particularly good job of explaining the difference, but it was better than most articles on the subject I have read.

The book explains that only about 10% of professional coaches gross six figures in a given year. That is not a very good statistic. But I suspect the success rate is so low because most coaches are not very knowledgeable about starting and running a business so it is profitable. The authors in this book attempt to explain how the 90% could make more money by including chapters 5, 6, 7, and 9. And I thought these four chapters had some good content. But I think the reader would have benefited more if the book had instead covered in detail the importance of having a sound written business plan, and how to go about writing a sound business plan. The book did not do this. At least I didn't see it.

If you are looking for a book to tell you how to be successful as a professional coach, then I don't think this book is for you. However, if you are looking for a book that will cover many of the issues you need to consider if you want to have your own coaching business, then you'll get a lot from this book. 4 stars!

There are plenty of casual guides on the market on how to coach various sports; but few take the more detailed approach of showing how to build a thriving coaching business, even though some 30,000 coaches have entered the profession in the past five years. There's lots of competition in coaching and so few find themselves able to earn a living wage: that's where The Business And Practice Of Coaching: Finding Your Niche, Making Money, And Attracting Ideal Clients comes in. Chapters are written by two veteran business coaches which provide exercises, tips, and plans to help coaches succeed, from drawing links between community needs and coaching to refining skills to attract public attention and targeting a profitable niche market. Any who desire to coach professionally must have The Business And Practice Of Coaching at hand.

Very informative and easy to read information. Good job on research and the materials revieled.

I thought it would be very difficult to understand real estate investing. But after I found this book I can understand the steps to get started.

Making Big Money Investing in Real Estate written by Peter Conti is a straight forward guide into the competitive market of real estate. Peter Conti explores innovative solutions that are financially astute and enterprising.

This book is an up- to-date and insightful collection of information that is truthful and discerning for the real estate investor!!!

I have read lot's of books and information throughout the years about real estate investing,most of what i read is just words filling up spaces on pages just so someone can make a buck off of you.my situation:last year i thought i was a real estate investor of something because i bought a brand new house to rent out with 100%financing,the market went down but my mortgage payments as you know stayed the same.i rented the house for $1,750 a month.a year later the house right next to mine rented for $1,400 a month,my renter moved out.my mortgage is $2,050 a month.WHAT A NEG!of cash out of my pocket and now i must lower my rent even more to be competitive?I THOUGHT I WAS STUCK.i found Peters book,read it and did it.now i get $2,075 a month rent with $5,000 in my pocket.all said and done,it was a $70,000 DOLLAR DEAL for me.i love to read how some say these things won't work "IN THE REAL WORLD"i'm on my third deal now.by the way if you need a house sold or leased even if you have no equity i'm sure i can help you so you can GET ON WITH YOUR LIFE.email me kelly at:newideas@skopeocorporation.com

I really, liked this book and I've read dozens and dozens of real estate investing book. Conti and Finkel cover strategies, negotiating techniques, and selling for top dollar. I especially liked the fact that there are ample real-world examples of successful deals that were put together using the strategies and techniques being taught. I would rate this as one of the top-ten books on lease-option investing available.

In the spirit of full disclosure, I should say that I am an attorney, real estate broker, investor, trainer, and author of another unique and highly readable book on the topic that can also be found here on Amazon -- The WealthLoop Series Beginner's Guide to Building Wealth Buying Houses: The Foolproof Roadmap to Real Estate Riches Without the Risks and Hassles of Landlording. Unlike many real estate investing books, it is written to be a genuine "How To" book that "takes you by the hand" and walks you through a step-by-step process for getting started in real estate investing -- investors across the country are giving it rave reviews. The book also includes sample leases, forms, and checklists, so that you can actually go out and implement the investing strategy it teaches as soon as you're done reading. You might want to check out the companion CD too -- The WealthLoop Series Beginner's Guide to Building Wealth Buying Houses (Combo Audio/Data CD): Author's Audio Commentary Plus Downloadable 32-page Marketing Manual, Checklists, Spreadsheets, and Forms.

A related program that's well worth checking out is:

The WealthLoop Series Beginner's Guide to Personal Wealth Creation (Combo Audio/Data CD): Audio Seminar With Downloadable 40-Page Action Manual and Active Link Library.

I believe that Conti & Finkel have written an informative book that's worthy of your time. Buy it if you are serious about making a success of lease-option real estate investing.

Have questions about money, finances, wealth (or the absence of it!!) This is the book you'll wish you read a long time ago. I went from not even knowing I didn't know, through to moving in an excellent direction in comparatively no time at all (especially considering the years it took me to get as far wrong as I was!!) The Authors use of conversational writing coupled with enough humor to keep us non-financial types interested is nothing short of amazing. This book is not only an easy read but also an excellent gift. Again, THANK YOU Mr. Rubin

This book has helped clear up all the mystery that seems to surround the world of finance. Finally I completely understand stocks and the stock market. Of all the finance books I've read this one is the keeper.

Other books may be good to spur you on towards saving and investing - this one educates you.

'Beyond Paycheck to Paycheck' is going to be my gift of choice to highschool and college graduates, and maybe even to new parents so they will start saving, even a little bit, for their child's future education.

I'm a 29 y/o -- I point that out because while I did not really take anything away from this book, someone 21/22 years old straight out of college may get a thing or two from it. It covers the basics of saving money, retirement plans, etc...

Having read both Dave Ramsey's "Total Money Makeover" and this book, I must highly recommend "Beyond Paycheck to Paycheck" to you.

It covers, in detail, many different aspects of personal finance (insurance, taxes, paychecks and 401(k) considerations, investing, debt, etc.) while maintaining a sense of humor throughout. Although "Total Money Makeover" does get one motivated to get out of debt, it does not supply the thorough education and background, which "Beyond Paycheck to Paycheck" does so well.

If you are looking for a basic/intermediate personal finance education- this is the book to start with. It is very practical and no-nonsense, without angrily clubbing you over the head with words like "stupid" and "idiotic" (as Mr. Ramsey likes to do in "Total Money Makeover"). Also, this book has a useful appendix with helpful websites and a glossary of terms.

A great read! Thank you Mr. Rubin!

This is one of the greatest books I have read regarding finances! I really enjoyed that the author engaged the reader. It's just as the book says: "A CONVERSATION about income, wealth, and the steps in between." You really feel as if you are there talking to the author (not to mention the pushy sales guy: Gary). I really enjoyed the book and it was very helpful and informative for me. I am now saving money, working towards paying off my credit cards, and am working on some investing. This is surely a must have for anyone that wants to start living BEYOND paycheck to paycheck!