Of the books i have read, this one is the one, that i have gifted the most people with. It is really good at getting one to change their relationship with money.
Instead of making a budget, which rarely works, the book has you keep track of all your spending. And then, at the end of the month looking at the areas you spend money, and then deciding if you are getting your money's worth. Are you happy with the expenditures? Are you sad? In this way you find your optimal level of spending in a certain area.
In this way, you become more conscious of what you are doing with your money. And through feedback, your spending become more stable. And you restrain yourself in such a way that will power would never do. And, you become more happy.
Given a certain item, buying some makes you happy, buy a little more, and a little more happy, until… at a certain point, buying more doesn't make you happier. And further expenditure actually makes you sad. And thus, you can find the optimal point.
Now that you have an idea of how much money you need to be optimally happy
You have this monetary point you want to achieve, and now a goal to reach that. With this goal most people find the will to find that better paying job, or starting that side hustle.
So, you find yourself earning the amount of money you need to be most happy.
Now, everything past this point can be saved and invested.
This book recommended investing in government bonds. And at the time, it was the safest, most stable investment. (If the govern-cement bonds go away, you are in much worse problems) Of course, i would just invest in bitcoin today.
But the idea was sound. For every govern-cement bond you buy, you receive a quarterly payment. And so, you keep buying govern-cement bonds until the amount they pay you is larger than your quarterly expenses. (and you know what those are, because of the first part of the book) At the point your passive income exceeds your expenditures, you are free.
You can now do whatever you want with your life. You are now financial independent. You can stop working if you want.
I found this book to be great.
Unfortunately, its advice is not quite relevant any more. Nothing is as stable as things were back in the 70s and 80s. Govern-cement bonds will go bust any time now. And food prices, your cost of living is increasing faster than any normal investment.
The most important part of this book is the part about understanding what you are spending money on, and adjusting that to get to your optimal happiness.
Image is from amazon, copyright Penguin Books. Links to the book:
Old book. Really cheap, used.
https://www.amazon.com/Your-Money-Life-Transforming-Relationship/dp/0140167153
New updated book
https://www.amazon.com/Your-Money-Life-Transforming-Relationship/dp/0143115766