Personal Finance for Dummies by Eric Tyson

I highly recommend everyone to go to the library and check this book out. I really think it would be a great help to anyone just starting to take control of their finances. I also think it is a good review for anyone who is more financially stable. And they may be able to find more information that they never knew about before.

This book is very user friendly, with thoughts, ideas, and facts that are very easy to understand.

I am going to include the Table of Contents so you can see what it covers.

Part I: Why You Can’t Manage Your Finances
Chapter 1: You’re Not Dumb, but You May Be Financially Illiterate
Chapter 2: Measuring Your Financial Health
Chapter 3: Hiring Financial “Help”

Part II: Saving More of What You Earn
Chapter 4: Where Did It Go?
Chapter 5: Getting Out of Debt
Chapter 6: Putting Your Spending on a Diet
Chapter 7: Taxes, Taxes, and More Taxes
Chapter 8: Financial Independence (Retirement)**
Chapter 9: The Mortgage: Debt with a Lot of Zeros Behind It

Part III: Investing What You Save
Chapter 10: Investments Basics
Chapter 11: Mutual Funds
Chapter 12: Investing Money Outside Retirement Accounts
Chapter 13: Investing Money Inside Retirement Accounts
Chapter 14: Investing for Educational Expenses
Chapter 15: Real Estate 101

Part IV: Protecting What You’ve Got
Chapter 16: Insurance Basics
Chapter 17: Insurance on You
Chapter 18: Insurance for Your Assets

Part V: The Part of Tens
Chapter 19: Ten Most Common Financial Mistakes
Chapter 20: Ten Questions to Ask Financial Planners Before you Hire Them
Chapter 21: Ten Costly Financial Planning and Tax Mistakes
Chapter 22: Ten Great Financial Software Packages

**If you want to be Financially Independent before you retire, read Your Money or Your Life. Spryos and I have just started this program and are very excited and can already see positive changes.

The Ten Most Common Financial Mistakes are:
1. Not Planning
2. Overspending
3. Buying on Credit
4. Not saving (early) enough for retirement (and overpaying taxes)
5. Falling prey to financial sales pitches
6. Not doing your homework
7. Making decisions based on emotion
8. Not separating the wheat from the chaff
9. Exposure to catastrophic risk
10. Focusing too much on money

To read more about these mistakes, and to gather more information that will help you with your money and your life; Check this book out (from your library.) And don’t forget to return it on time to save yourself the late charges.