My mom says even before I knew how to read, perhaps when I was about three years old, I used to carry a big book around everywhere I went.
Whenever I was asked what I wanted as a gift, my reply always was a book. When I was in the primary school I'd ask mom to buy me three books if I were first in class, 2 if I were 2nd and only one if I came third.
I would go to the school library and choose the biggest book available, so I can read longer. Of course I would read it in a couple of hours and go back for another one.
As a child my favorites were The Famous Five, The Secret Seven and Nancy Drew and I was hooked on mysteries after I read Conon Doyle's The Hound of Baskerville. Now I have all Sherlock Holmes books and a complete collection of Agatha Christie's books. Recently I have been reading Patricia Wentworth. I love cozy British mysteries.
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| My Agatha Christie Collection |
Among thousands of books I've read, there are several that really changed the way I live.
Your Money or Your Life by Joe Dominguez and Vicki Robin, and The Automatic Millionaire by David Bach are the ones that really helped me to organize my finances. I read both books in 2011, just after I started my career. The first book helped me to identify the true cost of things I buy. If we really look at the taxes we pay, the cost of transportation, the cost of work clothes and the value of our time, how many hours do I really have to work to buy a certain item? What is the true cost of the item? This concept of looking at the true cost really helped me to prioritize what's important in my life and weed out many materialistic possessions.
And after reading The Automatic Millionaire I set up savings and investment accounts with automatic deposits. Each month I pay myself first by saving a portion of my salary and by contributing to my retirement accounts. As this happens automatically, it saves time and eliminates any procrastination. I keep several online savings accounts, each one for a specific purpose such as emergency fund, house expenses and taxes & insurance. Setting individual accounts has several advantages for me. It makes me think of my short term and long term financial goals. For example, before buying my home, saving for a down payment was a long term goal, while I wanted to have an emergency fund as soon as possible. Once I decided how much I was willing to pay for a house, or how much I needed as an emergency fund , then I broke it into monthly chunks depending on the allocated time frame. If the amount was too large, either I had to lengthen the time period, or cut back other expenses. Then the amount was directly deposited into the specific savings account.
When saving for specific goals, it's important to cut back unnecessary expenses. Of course what's necessary and unnecessary depends on the person. For me the latest model smartphone, frequent restaurant meals, an overflowing closet of clothes and shoes are not necessary for my happiness. I like traveling, so I plan for travel expenses by being frugal. I have read many books on saving money, and after a while I realized that most tend to repeat the same thing. One book I have in my library is The Complete Tightwad Gazette by Amy Dacyczyn. Because it was written in 1990s some information is outdated, but I still find useful tips there. I like her thinking out of the box attitude. She made so many things at home , reused or repurposed without running to the store. I have been able to save a lot by buying used, and secondhand bookstores and thrift stores are my favorite places to shop. I reuse and upcycle a lot of things at home.
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I like to think that I live a simple life. At my home, you wouldn't find many expensive state of the art gadgets. I prefer to buy good quality furniture at a yard sale or a thrift store and bring it back to life than buying brand new ones from a store. I like home cooked meals, bread and jams with no preservatives. You would see curtains, tablecloths, cushion covers, rugs and decorations made by me, which bring me more satisfaction than mass produced items from the store.
I've read many books on simple living, and one of the best I've read and the only one that I own is Down to Earth by Rhonda Hetzel. I first learned about Rhonda when I was searching for videos about simple living on YouTube. I watched a short video in which she mentioned her blog and forum. I was hooked when I read her blog and quickly became a member of her now defunct forum. Then I borrowed Down to Earth ebook from the library and after reading it decided that I must have it. When I say that her book spoke to me it is not an exaggeration. I was already living simply but her book taught me a lot of new skills. Now I make bread, jam, cordial and laundry liquid at home. Soon I like to learn knitting and soap making as well.
I've read all the books that you mentioned. It's funny, I almost wrote a blog post on reading today, too. It's such a wonderful hobby. I loved the book The Millionaire Next Door, and The Millionaire Mind. He also wrote a book called Stop Acting Rich. I think the author's name is Thomas Stanley. The Total Money Makeover by Dave Ramsey helped me get out of debt. I also love anything by Napolean Hill. Congratulations on your financial discipline. That's fantastic!
ReplyDeleteI've read Napolean Hill's Think and Grow Rich. I didn't know he had written more books. I'm going to add his books to my to-read list. I liked The Millionaire Next door as well. I didn't enjoy Thomas J. Stanley's later books because I thought they were more or less a repetition of The Millionaire Next Door.
DeleteIt's great you got out of your debt. It's such a relief to not have debts, isn't it?
I always remember the Little Golden books when I was little. I loved them and Mum would surprise me with one every so often, I also really liked The Giving Tree.
ReplyDeleteI borrowed Down to Earth that many times from the library I just knew I had to buy it. That and The Simple Home would have to be the two books I use frequently and they have their very on spot on display in our kitchen.
Sounds like great books! I would like to get "Down To Earth" , it sounds like the type of book I would like. Thank you for your visit and comment! Have a wonderful weekend.
ReplyDeleteI still haven't read Rhonda's books. I really need to get them, unfortunately my library doesn't have them. I love reading too. I tend to alternate between fiction and nonfiction, although I haven't read much in the finance category. I will add your suggestions to my reading list. Most of my nonfiction reading is about science. Some of my favorites have been The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot, Lab Girl by Hope Jahren and The Hidden Life of Trees by Peter Wohlleben. I also tend to read books about learning and habits, Smarter Faster Better by Charles Duhigg was a good one. Oh and then there are gardening books, too many to name!
ReplyDeleteI loved Lab Girl.
DeleteThe next book that I want to read is Susan Cain's Quiet and am waiting until my library gets an ebook :)