Book: Personal Finance for Dummies
Author: Eric Tyson
Take Aways:
Second reading spaced probably 10 years apart. Couldn’t tell you, what the changes were from the previous edition read. The biggest strength is he tries to stay as unbiased as possible. This book covers the basics and is a great introductory book to personal finance. I don’t think I really took anything away from this book on a second read, which I was surprised about. Probably a great book for someone trying to learn the fundamentals of personal finance. It’s not really changing any strategies that I have, but it was reassuring because I feel like we have most of the content covered. There’s three options to personal finance – do nothing (wrong), do it yourself, and hire it out. The concern he has is about the inherit bias for additional financial products based on commission so Mr. Tyson is an advocate for DIY financial planning. I continue to see the parallels between personal finance and health. The vast majority of it should be individually handled, however it’s nice to run some specific questions by an unbiased professional at major life intersections.
Worth the Read: if you’re a personal finance novice
Book: Be Useful
Author: Arnold Schwarzenegger
Take Aways:
I’m a fan of Arnold. The key message was likely to take ownership of your life and give back to others. The message was great. It was entertaining to work through. Uncertain there was any ground breaking information presented – but maybe that’s the point. Most people know what they need to do, they just are unwilling to put in the effort. The most impactful section was the discussion about time managment and the trade offs we make. Our false perceptions about being “busy.” Had I not seen his Netflix documentary this may have been more valuable. I think they were both released around the same time for marketing purposes. The message he presents is excellent. I’m just uncertain if someone will pick up this book and make radical life changes after reading it. To me it was a weaker version of Jordan Peterson’s 12 Rules for Life.
Worth the Read: If you like learning about Arnold
Seeking Progress 