Book Review: The Barefoot Investor
Ah, the Barefoot investor, it’s a book I had read about for years, with reviews from some people saying it changed their life and that they highly recommended it - to others saying it conjured up nothing more than an eye roll and was nothing more than a marketing boost for ING.
But as my brother recommended it to me as we shared our love of financial resources, I decided to give it a go.
Honestly, as a confession, I AM one of those people who notes down all their finances and tracks it fortnightly on a spreadsheet, I love doing this, it must be an OCD thing or maybe it’s born from the fear of watching all the women before me struggle financially, or barely scrape their way out of poverty through luck or the help of someone else. Either way I have been obsessive about my finances since I earned my first paycheck working minimum wage at 18.
While I have always been pretty good with my finances except for a rough patch in my early 20’s, I thought I would read and compare my current habits with those recommended by a financial expert. I have to say there was a lot of recommendations and topics covered that I was already doing, but this was comforting as sometimes you don’t know if you are doing the best you can. The designated bank accounts advice provided by barefoot is something I have been doing for almost a decade now, but it was a good reminder to take stock and make sure I did a review of each bank account I had and ensure it really was serving me.
When it came to other topics of savings, I have to admit I had not thought about this area, I was able to get a better discount on my health insurance for the New Year, something I would not have done if I did not read through barefoot, as it’s always one of those things on the back burner.
What I most found helpful though was it’s section on mortgages, investing and how to make a long term savings account work for you and most importantly - retirement. Even if you have a pretty good grasp on your finances, this book 100% will touch on a topic of your finances you probably have been neglecting or not though about.
I highly recommend it for setting up and creating good foundational habits if you have very little financially literacy or are struggling with consistent healthy financial habits. If you already have good financial habits like I did, you will still come away with something learned and areas of your financial habits you can finesse for a greater return.
Remember, if you are like me and intend on one day completely being self employed, now is the perfect time to perfect your financial habits and create great foundations - using somebody else’s steady paycheck.
Then once you need to make that transition you will have a greater cushion and habits to fall into.
Book rating - 8/10 ( but remember this will differ for someone who does not already have my habits)
Good for: Everyone and most aspects of your financial health, but particularly those who want to set up good financial habits and decisions that will affect their long term future and security.