The Psychology Of Money

Written in 2020 by Morgan Housel. One of my FAVORITE books on personal and behavioral finance! It has a very different feel than almost any other financial book I’ve read (in a good way). See the quotes page for some zingers from his book. I found this book, more than any other recent read, helped me gain confidence in my own personal views and strategies.

Recommended to: EVERYONE - seriously - anyone can learn something from this book: students, individuals/couples, and financial advisors!

A Random Walk Down Wall Street

One of my favorite books of all time and my top pick in the investments section! It is A LOT of detail - 400+ pages of fine print on history of the markets and how one should invest! For a lighter read and for more of the advice (and less of the technical detail), you can read Malkiel’s 200pg “guide to investing” (below) OR “Five Mistakes Every Investor Makes” (by Peter Mallouk).

Recommended to: finance students, DIY investors, all financial advisors, anyone interested in the history of the stock market and investing strategies.

Broke Millennial

In my opinion, this is the BEST entry level “DIY personal finance” book - especially for the young adult crowd. I’ve read through all the big name books and this one is, by far, my favorite! Erin is FUNNY AND ACCURATE - other similar books seem to be missing one of those components. Written in 2017, it does contain some slightly out-of-date info as she listed current year figures/thresholds for different items.

Recommended to: young adults and students. This would be a great college graduation or birthday gift for anyone in their 20s!

The Millionaire Next Door

Another one of my favorite books - it will open your eyes to who is a “millionaire” and who isn’t! This book was written in 1996 and has NOT been updated so you will need to do a lot of mental math to make relevant comparisons to today’s wealth numbers. This is NOT an advice book, it is a very factual book on who IS wealthy. You are left to draw your own conclusions and apply to your own life. I’d suggest reading a chapter (amazon preview) first before purchasing - most either love/hate this book. I love it but I also hear “it is too wordy and statistical…”

Recommended to: anyone with interest in “who is wealthy” or who wants to replicate those who are.

Tax-Free Wealth

So I wanted to find a good book on taxes… Yeah… crickets… There aren’t many books and most are out of date (thanks to the forever-changing tax code). THIS BOOK IS EXCELLENT. You’ll note I gave the book an 8/10 for “engaging” - do you realize for a book to be about taxes and actually be engaging is next to impossible??!? Tom Wheelwright does a tremendous job “painting a different picture” of our tax code and how to make the best use of it. NOTE - he is part of the “Rich Dad Poor Dad network” - I’m not a huge fan of that book (you’ll note it is NOT on my reading list) but there is only a small amount of content surrounding this affiliation in the book.

Recommended to: accounting and finance students. Anyone looking to start a business or that has their own small business. You will never view taxes the same again!

How to Make Your Money Last

In my opinion, there aren’t a lot of great books out there on retirement strategies that incorporate both tactical advice with overall planning confidence. Jane Bryant Quinn does an EXCELLENT job navigating through complex inter-related topics such as social security, investment strategy, distribution planning, taxes, etc…

Recommended to: Geared for a “DIY investor” who is in/entering retirement. Also suggested for students/advisors to broaden their knowledge on retirement planning and distribution strategies.

Little Book of Common Sense Investing

John Bogle is the “father of the index fund” and founder of Vanguard. This is an EXCELLENT book on investing. Why I’m not rating as high: 1) there is more detail in Burton Malkiel’s “A Random Walk Down Wall Street” and 2) the book focuses 90% of its energy describing why passive beats active management but then recognizes that only 10% of your performance will be driven by fund/stock selection (it is 90% based on your asset allocation) - but then doesn’t go into much detail on “what to do!” With that being said, this is a CLASSIC book that has been updated to be fairly timely/relevant and has some EXCELLENT advise from a pillar of our modern financial times (John Bogle). Also a plus - the book is short and can be read in a few hours!

Recommended to: finance students, DIY investors, advisors (for perspective). If you can hack the extra detail/complexity - read A Random Walk Down Wall Street instead.

Get Your Ducks in a Row

Similar to the income tax category, not a ton of relevant books out their on Estate Planning. Harry does a great job walking through planning and focuses on the 99% of the population who aren’t ultra-rich. This is helpful as much of the CFP/advisor training is focusing on nitty-gritty estate planning laws/rules/strategies that only affect the top 1% - gives a lot more color to the basic estate planning we ALL need to deal with (sooner rather than later!). Provides advice both for a DIYer and what to look for when working with an estate planning attorney.

Recommended to: Pre-retirees and retirees. Students that are pre-law or wealth management (CFP) focused. Also, a great read for advisors who need to brush up on common-sense estate planning!

The Random Walk Guide to Investing: Ten Rules for Financial Success

Meant to be a more practical “how to” or “what to do” book as a follow up to A Random Walk Down Wall Street, I find that while the book has great points, you might be better off with a more detailed view or a more colorful application depending on what you are looking for…

Recommended to: Beginner investors and young adults. Though I think if you are looking for more detail on investing - read A Random Walk Down Wall Street or Boglehead’s Guide to Investing or if you want a “getting started book” read Broke Millennial.

The Bogleheads' Guide to Investing

The Boglehead community created a book that puts together some great investment advice! With a nod towards John Bogle and the index/passive investing community, the book is a very detailed source on how to invest and understanding different types of accounts and vehicles.

Personally - I think a lot of us would “google” the info that is in this book. Since it is fairly factual, most of the info is readily available online (and more current with up-to-date laws/limits/etc…). But for those who want a good overall resource in print - this would be a great addition!

Recommended to: DIY investors and those looking for a go-to resource guide on basic principles and tactical details.

The 5 Mistakes Every Investor Makes and How To Avoid Them

Peter Mallouk has built an incredible firm and writes an even better book! Takes some of the factual details from A Random Walk Down Wall Street and the behavior finance concepts of Psychology of Money - a great read for all! He writes on five topics: market timing, active management, misunderstanding performance numbers, behavioral finance, and working with your advisor. The book was written in 2014 and had a timely update in 2021. I read the 2014 version but would encourage you to get the most up-to-date version as he includes GREAT examples from recent events. (I’ll also be ordering the new book!)

Recommended to: current and future advisors. All investors. YOU. WILL. LOVE. IT!

More to come soon!

Atomic Habits

James Clear writes an AMAZING book on habits. It is filled with science and stats - but with stories and practical application to help you IMPROVE. The book is incredibly fun to read, engaging, and a great book for individual growth or reading through with a significant other, business partner, mentor, or small group!

His advice is relatable for habits of ALL kinds: personal, spiritual, relational, business, physical, etc…

Recommended to: anyone looking to form better habits and improve their life!

Never Split the Difference

Chris Voss writes a COMPELLING book on negotiation - but it is really as much about behavioral psychology and human behavior. Each chapter starts with a gripping recap of a former real-life negotiation and the lessons to be learned from the mistakes or successes that resulted.

I HATE sales tactics and “high pressure” negotiating - this book is the OPPOSITE. It will teach you how to be relational and collaborative while at the same timing getting the results you desire. Also, a lot of the advice translates into personal relationships (with spouse, parents, kids, co-workers, etc…).

Recommended to: anyone in sales or service. If you love behavioral psychology or studying human nature- you’ll also find this book excellent!

Factfulness

Hans Rosling writes a unique book on world facts and how our worldview is likely based on out-of-date or wrong data. (he proves this in the first few pages) A great book to open up your eyes to what the world really looks like - and, as he says, “is better than you think…” It is FULL of FACTS - while some of his opinions trickle in (which you may or may not agree with) I found the book helpful in 1) understanding the world, 2) checking my own filters/views, 3) gaining wisdom on how to seek/understand facts/information better, 4) apply some of the book knowledge to how you might a) invest, b) make economic decisions, c) give charitably.

Recommended to: anyone that wants to better understand the world, their own worldview, and IMPROVE the way they receive/interpret information.

Nudge

A very interesting read on how, in many ways, we (the world) influence or “nudge” individuals or groups of people to certain decisions. Covers worldwide examples and also goes into their social implications.

Two examples from the book (to get a feel for the topics:): auto-enrollment in 401ks (nudging workers to save) or putting fruit at the front of school cafeteria lines (nudging students to eat healthy).

Recommended to: those interested in social well being and government/corporate responsibility. Also enlightening when considering how we parent, run our businesses, help volunteer organizations, etc…