Financial Independence Book – Today’s Read

The Automatic Millionaire Book Review

On my reading list today is, The Automatic Millionaire by David Bach; the national bestselling author of books such as Smart Women Finish Rich, Smart Couples Finish Rich, and Start Late, Finish Rich. First published in 2004, I’m reading the newly revised version of The Automatic Millionaire, expanded and updated, December 2016.

Don’t buy the book! Implement “The Latte Factor” – borrow the book through your local library like I did (online), add the money you saved to your retirement account, and don’t spend a dime educating yourself on financial independence.

The author claims The Automatic Millionaire is unique in the following ways:

• You don’t need a budget
• You don’t need willpower
• You don’t need to make a lot of money
• You don’t need to be that interested in money
• You can set up the plan in an hour

Learn to Pay Yourself First

Does this book have the potential to help you secure your financial future? It definitely is a step in that direction for those that educate themselves on basic financial matters and implement the simple solution recommended in the book.

What is the simple solution to becoming financially independent, becoming an automatic millionaire? I encourage you to read the book, but in a nutshell it involves making your financial plan automatic.

Making your financial plan automatic is an important step and, when done right, practically guarantees that you won’t fail financially. Again, read the book, learn about “The Latte Factor” which is the simple idea that all you need to do to finish rich is to look at the small things you spend your money on every day and see whether you could redirect that spending to your savings (I haven’t been to a Starbucks in over a year).

Financial education sets you up for financial success. The book stresses the importance associated with the Pay Yourself First concept and automating the payment to yourself. Do so and you’ll build wealth automatically. It works and the book provides several inspiring examples of how it worked for others.

I agree, in general, with the author’s claim, “You don’t need to make a lot of money.” However, making more money will allow you to do the following:

• Pay down your debt sooner (if you have any)
• Live more comfortably while saving and building wealth
• Reach your net worth goals faster
• Retire early (financially independent)

Extreme frugal living isn’t for me. Once you realize it’s not all that hard to increase your income, you’ll do so and you’ll save more. We’ll cover simple ways to increase your income in future posts (subscribe here for updates).

It is paramount to understand one of the author’s claims, “what really matters is not what you earn but how much you spend.” My suggestion is get started by focusing on eliminating wasteful spending while looking for additional income opportunities.

Quickly eliminate your wasteful spending following the recommendations in the book. You’ll do so without thinking about it once you realize how rewarding it is to build wealth.

Yes, you too can become an Automatic Millionaire – sooner than you think. Just reading this post indicates you are already on the path to success; #FIDO – Financially Independent the Dream Oasis.