How to Be Richer, Smarter, and Better-Looking Than Your Parents

Zac Bissonnette has another winner on his hands with How to Be Richer, Smarter, and Better Looking Than Your Parents. His self-deprecating humor is on display in one of the most useful personal finance books you will ever read. Whether you are young or old, in debt or financially solvent, you can learn how to get your financial house in (even better) order with this quick, interesting read.The book starts by reminding readers what financial freedom is. It is not the fantasy of being rich and living a life of leisure. It is being able to live life the way you choose: being able to take a lesser paying job because it's what you love to do, being able to start a family because your debts aren't eating up all of your paycheck, and simply having more choices in your daily life.Bissonnette lays the foundation by discussing research which shows that the more materialistic they are, the less happy they ultimately are with life. Having nice things won't make you happy, especially if you're going into debt to get them or you're sacrificing meaningful belongings (like a modest house, for example) in favor of expensive labels on consumer goods.The meat of this book is in Bissonnette's ability to debunk many myths surrounding personal finance issues, and succinctly explaining how you can make better financial choices. He starts with the financial services industry, pointing out how these people are there to help themselves, not you. Readers are educated on how to use financial services (credit cards, insurance, loans) in ways that will help keep them available and protect your financial well-being, without overpaying.A discussion of investing and mutual funds will help you understand what the average consumer doesn't: the type of fund you should pick, fees to avoid, and the long-term results you will get from keeping your money in an inexpensive mutual fund.Bissonnette spends little time on budgets. Why? Because most people won't follow them for the long term anyway, and making true changes in your lifestyle is the real way to becoming more financially secure. The author discusses topics including wine, clothing, getting in shape, technology, and food, pointing out many obvious ways to change your spending and still feel good about yourself. Yet as obvious as these are, too many consumers aren't following the rules and are ending up broke because of it, so they need to hear it again.A whole chapter is devoted to automobiles, probably because this is one area in which people universally waste a lot of money. People buy new cars because they think they will make them feel better about themselves, but scientific studies debunk this myth. The concepts of leasing, buying new, avoiding auto loans, and how to buy a used car are covered briefly, but thoroughly.The chapter on home ownership is one of the most useful in the book. Bissonnette talks about how to compare renting versus buying, and provides valuable tips on purchasing . The book closes with chapters on relationships and careers, which are definitely geared toward the younger reader. (So if you're an older reader, buy the book and read it, give it to your kid to read, and you've just doubled the return on your investment.)This book is geared toward the younger generation, particularly with Bissonnette's brand of humor. However, nearly all of the information is applicable to older people (myself included) as well, so if you can get past the tasteless (but still quite funny) jokes, you will learn a lot from the book.How to Be Richer, Smarter, and Better Looking Than Your Parents may not present any new personal finance topics (Are there any that haven't been discussed to death?) but Bissonnette has built a better mousetrap. The explanations and logic are clear and easy to follow, the information is right on point, and it is summarized well. My biggest disappointments were that I wasn't mentioned in the book, and that Zac's editor failed to change "OK" to "okay" numerous times throughout the book. If these are my most pressing complaints, I think it's clear that the book is a winner.

Helps me set up and manage my Roth IRA, as well as explaining to me in a non-boring way what the heck that is. It's been a good introduction to budgeting and (just as important) good spending habits. Since reading this, I feel somewhat more confident in my financial decisions and plans, and it also taught me ways to assess if purchases are still going to feel worth it a year or more down the road. (Hello, my new drone, electric bike, and game console- as all of those things bring me regular joy and will be supported for years, they were worth every penny. And goodbye, unnecessary desserts, now that I just pick out the really good ones and ignore the rest.)This book is not only about saving and investing strategy, but it encourages you to get out and seek more experience of this, and things to consider when buying things, so you get the most for your time spent earning that cash.Time, and use thereof, is also a good thing to invest wisely- and this book is at the very least a middling-useful time investment itself. I found it quite helpful.TL;DR version: Buy it. It's a couple bucks, and it saved me more than just a couple bucks within a week of starting to think about it. He's a good narrator, too.

I picked up this book because out of all the other personal finance books it was new and stood out a lot.I very much enjoy reading personal finance blogs, but for once I opened my wallet and took a chance on this book.I found Mr. Bissonnettes ideas very fresh and up to date. He certainly kept my wife and I interested with his constant humor and allusions to popular culture.Many of the suggestions were more strict than I expected, for example his opinion on television and your spending. The personal stories and real life examples he gives in each chapter provide an in depth look at the bad effects of a mistaken financial identity.I would highly recommend Mr. Bissonnette's book for anyone who is looking for the personal finance book that fills in all the gaps that the text-book-dull publications fail to illustrate.I would say that my only qualms with the publication were how it failed to be regionally universal, particularly when he mentions owning property and the housing market. However, I believe any experienced writer would have a hell of a time trying to tackle this subject so it gives solid advice involving real estate whether they live in Omaha, Manhattan, or DC!It's a very quick, fast-moving read. Unlike most investment magainzes with their advertising of annuities and life insurance overflowing the pages as if they are a sub-publication of AARP, the book has been written with the young, entry-level worker in mind.Good job, Zach!I look forward to your next book, perhaps one that is more technical or in depth, however wouldn't that be against your "reach the masses" style?

Don’t buy these book,pages are turned yellowish and have fungus on it.