Managing one's finances is a essential skill if one ever hopes to achieve financial freedom. But this core skill is rarely thought in formal education. Therefore, It is up to us to venture into the unknown and learn the secrets ourselves.
There are millions of finance and investing books out there. Some of them are pretty good, some of them are actually advertising materials in disguise (the authors want you to buy their seminars and other products). But only a rare few are ever considered life-changing.
#1 The Intelligent Investor by Benjamin Graham
Graham was one of the greatest investors of all time and the father of value investing. Graham uses his book to map out and advocate for his preferred value approach to investing. And you know what, when he was alive, he was the legendary Warren Buffet's investing mentor. Warren Buffett is often regarded the best investor of our time and is currently the 2nd richest man in the world, behind Bill Gates. If you had to read one chapter, read chapter 8. You won't find a better book on investing. Link to book
#2 The Total Money Makeover By Dave Ramsey
Dave Ramsey's no bullshit approach shows you how to management your finances in a straightfoward manner. This book is for people who wants to cut through the noise and just want the full solution without more "seminars" or "online courses" to buy. It is recommended by many financial consultants including Virtus Associates.
Link to book
#3 I Will Teach You to Be Rich by Ramit Sethi
Ignore the gimmicky title and judge the book based on the actual content itself. Ramit Sethi is a hilarious author and puts an entertaining spin to his practical advice on boring yet important topics like budgeting, saving & automated long-term investing.
He is also a master in negotiating for getting cheaper rates & better deals.
This book is my personal favourite.
#4 The Richest Man in Babylon by George Samuel Clason
This book is a bit different from the rest as it is not non-fiction. It is a parable story with important financial lessons hidden inside. This book is probably the easiest to read and I highly recommend it to individuals who find reading personal finance or non-fiction books "boring".
#5 The Millionaire Next Door by Thomas J. Stanley and William D. Danko
We all know of the flashy millionaires who got rich suddenly after achieving a ridiculous goal (e.g. selling a company, got lucky on the stock market etc). This book was an instant classic when it first came out because it revealed a different breed of millionaires in America that was rarely presented in the media. This book reveals the stories and common strategies of a group of humble millionaires hiding among the general public. What's so special about this book is that it shares strategies that everyone could use to achieve financial success. It doesn't matter what is your job, your family income or education level. Link to book
Written in collaboration with our financial advisory partners at Virtus Associates.
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