The Budget Savvy Lesson Plan
April 28, 2009 by Smart Spending · Leave a Comment
The step-by-step guide to enjoying your life with the money you are making right now. The Budget Savvy Lesson Plan guides you through managing your money in six different areas of your life, helping you prioritize your spending on the things that are most important to you while saving money in the areas that are not as important to you.
The Budget Savvy Lesson Plan
April 28, 2009 by Smart Spending · Leave a Comment
The step-by-step guide to enjoying your life with the money you are making right now. The Budget Savvy Lesson Plan guides you through managing your money in six different areas of your life, helping you prioritize your spending on the things that are most important to you while saving money in the areas that are not as important to you.
Living Rich for Less Create the Lifestyle You Want by Giving Saving and Spending Smart
April 28, 2009 by Smart Spending · Leave a Comment
Living Rich for Less Create the Lifestyle You Want by Giving Saving and Spending Smart
“Suze Orman, you’ve got a powerhouse who just moved in next door! Ellie Kay is a financial expert whose time has come. Her advice is for Mr. and Mrs. America and not just Wall Street. If you live on Main Street, you need to meet your new neighbor, Ellie Kay, who’s spiked the Koolaid with the wakeup juice that mainstream America needs in order to survive today’s money woes and tomorrow’s future challenges. I love this book more than a bowl of fat grams.”
– Dr. Kevin Leman, best-selling author of Have a New Kid by Friday
“Ellie Kay makes complicated financial concepts understandable. Heeding her advice will give you an extraordinary quality of life as you learn the secrets of living and giving in a way that multiples your resources.”
–Carol Kent, best-selling author A New Kind of Normal and president of Speak Up Speaker Services
“We feel richer already! Ellie Kay gives a billfold full of ideas to help place more money back into your pockets! With three kids in college, and retirement on the horizon, Ellie’s wisdom is a wealth of encouragement, comfort, and practical proven helps.”
–Pam and Bill Farrel, international speakers, best-selling authors of Men are like Waffles, Women are like Spaghetti, and Ten Best Decisions a Couple Can Make
“Ellie work, helping us be better stewards, is one of the great services to families across our nation.”
–Dennis Rainey, executive director and radio host of Family Life
“Ellie is amazing! I don’t think she ever sleeps! She provides great information and is always a fun guest on the show.”
–Bill Griffith, host of CNBC’s Power Lunch
“Ellie is the gateway to mainstream America.”
–Marc Myers, money columnist, Reader’s Digest
“A splen…
User Ratings and Reviews
4 Stars A common-sense book
In a common-sense book, Ellie Kay provides many tips on saving money, investing money, paying for college, and more. Kay is a popular columnist and speaker about family financial matters and has written several other books on the subject as well. Living Rich for Less is timely, easy to read, or browse. The book is organized into three sections–Giving 10%, Saving 10%, and Spending Smart the other 80% (her 10/10/80 Rule). There are several trademarked slogans (which gets annoying after a while) to keep you paying attention (the Cha Ching Factor ™ for example.) While some of the advice may just not be useful (or obtainable– refinancing your house, for example) for everyone, you would be hard-pressed not find at least several hundred dollars in annual savings from your current budget. And that isn’t a bad return on a $16.99 investment.
1 Star Not worth a read
Since the recession is hitting most of us, I went to the library looking for books that would help and offer some sound advice. I loved the title of this book so I picked it up along with a few others.
This was by far the least helpful. The author provides almost no tips on how to spend smart. She tells us to save 10% of our income, donate 10%, and spend 80%. I already donate to charity, I already save, I wanted advice on how best to save and how best to spend the remainder of my income. This book offered no advice for that.
I admire the fact that Kay dug herself out of $40,000 in debt, but while reading the book you discover part of the reason why is that she was a winning contestant on the Price is Right and took home thousands!
Books like Frugal Living for Dummies are much more helpful.
1 Star Waste of Time
This book gives almost no information on how to live rich for less. In fact, it reads like an infomercial complete with customer testimonials. The book is filled with cute little stories that offer no practical advice.
The entire book can be summed up with Kay’s 10/10/80 principle - donate 10% of your money, save 10%, spend the other 80% wisely. That’s it. Her advice for spending the other 80% wisely is essentially use the Internet to find good deals, use coupons, buy on sale, and negotiate. There are many other books that cover these same topics but in much greater detail.
I was also turned off by Kay’s product placement. She has been a paid spokesperson for Proctor & Gamble and others and it shows. She tells consumers to buy Dawn dish soap because it is ultra concentrated so it lasts longer, but most stores have generic versions of ultra concentrated soap that works just as well and lasts just as long (and is much cheaper). She also pitches another PG product, Bounty paper towels, and I’ve used other less expensive brands that were just as good. But Kay never recommends buying the generics of these products. I do not think a paid spokesperson should offer supposed unbiased advice.
If the book offered other great tips or advice I could have overlooked the product pitches, but unfortunately it didn’t.
4 Stars A Spoonful of Sugar with this Medicine. Can Money be Funny?
I’m not going to lie. I hate financial stuff. Not that I don’t have reason. On paper I’ve BEEN worth a million…unfortunately, paper doesn’t actually mean much, especially in light of our economy. Foreclosure of rental properties and the crashing and burning of the asset of equity have been companions over the past couple of years. Money savvy and natural money sense are terms that don’t define me.
Another reason to be queasy when dealing with finances… I have a “legal” first name that is used to bind me to contracts. When I sign it, hear it or see it, well, let’s just say that life often feels like a trip to the principal’s office.
That said, Ellie Kay made financial details amusing and almost painless. She shares stories and experiences from her financial growth curve that are down to earth and full of humor.
Living Rich for Less is geared more for folks who haven’t made many financial or budgeting changes or haven’t considered how they can cut back on expenses over those who’ve already begun the basic process of scaling back. However, Kay offers a great overview of insurance needs, different savings options, and the value of giving, saving and smart spending.
5 Stars Upbeat Financial Planning For Families
Ellie Kay’s “Living Rich For Less: Create the Lifestyle You Want by Giving, Saving and Spending Smart” offers useful tips written in a friendly style.
You can pick up this book, skim the chapter titles, and skip to any topic that most interests you. Her book is in no way a dry, scientific tome, but is full of lively ideas, with chapters like “Shopping to save: shop till you drop savings in groceries, on clothing and online” and chapter 8 “The new cool: slashing insurance costs and room-by-room cash savings.”
“Living Rich for Less” is also peppered with Ellie Kay’s Cha Ching money saving tips, like how to dramatically increase miles per gallon for your vehicles, with big cash savings on what you spend on gasoline. She includes a chapter on “Giving green: eco-friendly savings for energy, the environment and eggplant.” Yes, eggplant.
This book is a useful tool for all who need help with financial planning at the beginning and intermediate levels.
Living Rich by Spending Smart
April 28, 2009 by Smart Spending · Leave a Comment
“Gregory Karp delivers the goods - by telling you exactly how to get those goods for less - in this supremely practical guide to smart spending. From reducing your cable bill to the cost of your casket, this book is a gold mine of money saving advice.”
–Jeff Yeager, Author, The Ultimate Cheapskate’s Road Map to True Riches
User Ratings and Reviews
4 Stars Living Rich by Spending Smart
I’ve read numerous books that offer financial advice and money-saving tips, however this is one of the best I’ve read in a long time. Although some things mentioned are obvious, there are still a lot of great tips and techniques everyone can, and should use, the book is definitely worth the price. Additionally, this is a great book to help teach teens and young newlyweds money-saving techniques. I sure wish I had this book thirty years ago.
4 Stars Must read for those on a budget
If you and your spouse make only earned income (ie wage earners) this is a must read to live below your means.
2 Stars Disappointed
After reading the reviews for this book I was excited to read it. I didn’t find it very useful though. Most of the ideas in the book I’ve read online for free.
5 Stars Play Financial Defense
I believe that we play both offense and defense in our personal finances. Offense is the amount of money we earn through income, investments, businesses, and odd jobs. Defense is how much we save through being debt free, coupon clipping, getting great deals on cars or houses and saving. This book does an excellent job showing how to play good financial defense through really looking at our spending habits in all areas of our lives and then showing how to think differently and spend more intelligently. Whether it is food, insurance, telecommunications, cars, houses, weddings, funerals, this book covers it all and the suggestions should save you thousands easily in all areas. Whether it is stock piling sale items at the grocery store or using term life instead of whole life insurance this book has it all.
“The point of reading this book, assuming you accepted the spending smart philosophy, is to spend less money on things you don’t care about so you can spend more on things you do care about”.
“Positive life experiences contribute to happiness more than things do”.
More reading suggestions for financial defense:
Dave Ramsey’s “Total money makeover”
Joe Dominguez “Your money or your life”
Amy Dacyczyn “The Tightwad Gazette”
4 Stars Good book
This tiny little book packs quite a surprising amount of wisdom. Yes, it tells you to control spending (including lattes), but you can find coupons and other money saving tips on various items online. However, what I found most useful was the chapter on how to check one’s emotional urge (call it being “shopoholic”) when it comes to spending money. The author gives some excellent advice on how to have a goal and use that goal as an objective not to spend money on other impulsive purchases. Overall, a quick, crisp read (it took me all but 2 hrs to finish) that made me really think about my long term spending strategy.
1 2 3 Money Plan The The Three Most Important Steps to Saving and Spending Smart
April 28, 2009 by Smart Spending · Leave a Comment
1 2 3 Money Plan The The Three Most Important Steps to Saving and Spending Smart
This is the eBook version of the printed book. If the print book includes a CD-ROM, this content is not included within the eBook version.
100% Practical, 100% Specific Financial Advice Everyone Can Use: Exactly What to Do and Exactly How to Do It
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Specific steps to follow, Web sites to visit, top-value products to choose!
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Spend less painlessly, by slashing expenses you really don-t care about
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Three-step action plans for everything from college and retirement savings to cellphone service
This book delivers the fast, straight-to-the-point help you need to be smart about every dime you spend and every dime you save!
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We-re not talking dumpster diving here–or complicated financial strategies that require a Ph.D. to use. Greg Karp gives you simple three-step plans for everything from buying food to cutting debt: exactly what to do and how to do it, including specific numbers to call and specific Web sites to visit. You-ll learn how you can stop wasting money on things you don-t care about, so there-s more left for what you do care about!
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Other books try to help you make -perfect- financial decisions–but they-re so complicated you-ll never use them. This one shows how to make -good enough- choices right now. You-ll actually use it–and it will transform your financial life!
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Today, frugal is the name of the game. But you don-t have to take a vow of poverty: You just have to be smarter about how you spend, save, and invest. Sound hard? Not anymore. In The 1-2-3 Plan, top personal finance columnist Greg Karp offers 100% practical, 100% specific financial advice everyone can use…organized into simple three-step plans that tell you exactly what to do and how and where to do it!
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Discover how to save money by putting your bills on autopilot…which specific brand names to buy in everything from index funds to cellphones…how to improve your credit rating…how to get the right insurance, without wasting money on unnecessary coverage…easier ways to save for college and plan for retirement…and a whole lot more. Finally: simple, reliable financial advice you can act on, from an award-winning expert you can trust!
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Don-t be paralyzed by perfection: Be -good enough-
Better a -good- decision now than a -perfect- decision -someday- -
Just set it and forget it
Make the financial decisions you only need to make once and can then ignore for years -
Stop wasting money on things you don-t care about
Plug wasteful spending leaks, so you can redirect cash to things you truly care about -
Easy step-by-step techniques, specific recommendations
What to buy, in everything from mutual funds to cellphone service
Smart Economics Commonsense Answers to 50 Questions about Government Taxes Business and Households
April 28, 2009 by Smart Spending · Leave a Comment
Smart Economics Commonsense Answers to 50 Questions about Government Taxes Business and Households
“Walden uses basic economic concepts and logic to examine the meaning, implications, and possible solutions to 50 current economic issues. Aimed squarely at the general reader, the book is organized as a series of questions with each two- to five-page chapter laying out the basic facts surrounding the issue and applying mainstream economic reasoning to explain those facts….Specific issues include budget deficits and the national debt, Social Security, outsourcing, the trade deficit, gasoline prices, sports franchises, immigration, poverty, and health care….Recommended. General readers; all levels of undergraduates.”–
“For readers with no background in economics or mathematics, Walden addresses some of the major economic questions in the news, not so much answering them as explaining the underlying issues and the criteria for making a decision. Among them are whether war helps the economy, whether Americans pay 60-80% of their income in taxes, whether low-paying jobs are replacing high-paying ones, and whether women earn less than men.”–
“[A]n entertaining and informative introduction to economic principles and their influence on our behavior.”–
“Smart Economics will be a terrific book with wide appeal to educators at all levels, journalists, business executives, investors and interested general readers. It should be especially useful for MBA students who need drilling on the basics.”–
“Professor Walden in this short book throws an unusual amount of light in answering 50 important economic questions. In his ‘Smart Economics’ approach, he shows why the seemingly obvious answers quite often are incorrect. Pitched to the non-economist, economists too can gain from this book. As one example, I found his discussion of the effect of importing drugs from Canada on U.S. drug prices to be particularly insightful.”–
The Budget Savvy Lesson Plan
April 28, 2009 by Smart Spending · Leave a Comment
The step-by-step guide to enjoying your life with the money you are making right now. The Budget Savvy Lesson Plan guides you through managing your money in six different areas of your life, helping you prioritize your spending on the things that are most important to you while saving money in the areas that are not as important to you.
