Monday, August 18, 2008

Women And Money

I discovered Suze Orman by way of her tv show. I never know exactly when it comes on but if I see it, my remote will stop dead in it's tracks. If you are not familiar with Suze, she is the guru of money management, the czar of saving money, the president of punctual payments-she is one smart lady when it comes with financial advice.

Up until recently I was not very comfortable with all matters surrounding money, if someone would mention a 401 (k) my eyes would glaze over, the difference between good debt and bad debt would make my stomach churn, and trying to understand what  a FICO score meant made my head hurt. I was not money savvy and I didn't really care. (red flag!)

When I stumbled upon Suze's show I realized that I owed it to myself to be educated about my own money-after all it is my money! Even though I had her support, I was still scared to demystify the task that is figuring out my finances. Luckily, her advice takes a blame free approach; meaning that she let's our past money mistakes or naivete be a way to learn and become stronger in our future.

The book Women and Money discusses head on how women are making more money than they ever have in history and yet they know just as much about their personal finances as they did say, 50 years ago! Suze also discusses her personal mistakes with her own money as well as mistakes her friends have made. This part of the book not only soothes the readers anxiety but also shows the reader that they don't have to stay in the dark about money.

Suze includes the "5 month save yourself plan" which acts as a very encouraging and non threatening outline to getting your finances on track. At the beginning of the "save yourself" chapters, Suze discusses the stepping stones to financial security and get this, you feel like you can actually do it! None of the things she asks you to do feel as though they are out of line, un-attainable or far fetched because she gives you easy step by step instructions. 

To me, the idea of this book seemed like it is throwing a lot of information at you and boy howdy is that overwhelming-but here's the catch it isn't! The more I read of this book, the more I felt empowered and educated. 

And here is the best part, Suze gave away this book on Oprah's website because she doesn't want women to spend more money. The book has since been taken down from the site but I still have it saved on my desk top, that means if you want a copy all you have to do is e-mail me at SensiblySassy@gmail.com and I will send it to you.

I do not hesitate in recommending this book-it is a very valuable resource for women of all age!
Rating: WATERMELON

3 comments:

jularun7 said...

great new site sarah!!!! :) i'll be a regular

sarah marie p said...

Yay for the new site! How fun! I love all of your reviews. Ooh, this book sounds really good. It seems like this book would be really inspiring! I handle the bills and savings and stuff for me and John but even though I think I'm doing an OK job, sometimes I just get overwhelmed and I know I could be doing an even better job -- I bet this book could really come in handy! Maybe I'll have to take you up on the offer to email you to get my hands on that book! That's so cool she gave away the book so women wouldn't spend more $$ to buy the book. Very cool.

Katie said...

Good choice Sarah! I like Suze because she's not afraid to be harsh - because some people really need it when it comes to money. I haven't read this book in its entirety yet, but I did read Suze's "The Money Book for the Young, Fabulous and Broke."