The 6 Personal Finance Books Every Creative Needs to Read
By Literally Broke
Throwback to the start of quarantine when you promised yourself you’d finally read Infinite Jest, write that screenplay, and save a ton of money. Well, folks, while I can’t help you meet all your goals (though, hey, send an email and we’ll see what I can do) I am here to help you meet your financial goals.
Getting your shit together around money is pretty easy once you find the personal finance bloggers (hi!), writers, and podcasters you identify with. Yes, there are young women in personal finance. And yes, there are people in personal finance who don’t want to take away your iced oat latte (we’re not all happiness thieves here).
Broke Millennial by Erin Lowry
Erin Lowry’s financial journey began while interning on The Late Show with David Letterman. Erin is a former theater major whose blog, Broke Millennial, detailed her early years in NYC cobbling together income while working at Starbucks. Broke Millennial covers everything from budgeting to paying off debt to talking about finances with your partner. It’s accessible, thoughtful, and the perfect read if you’re just dipping your toes in the personal finance waters.
The Financial Diet by Chelsea Fagan
I love The Financial Diet and their first book offers a great overview of money management for those just entering adulthood. TFD situates money at the intersection of politics, lifestyle, and career, which makes it a necessary and important read. While you may not leave the TDF book with the same concrete action items other books on this list include, it will teach you how to think about and approach money without fear.
Anti-Diet by Christy Harrison
Okay, so this isn’t exactly a personal finance book. But if you’re a human being who has struggled with body image, restrictive eating habits, and spending way too much money in the pursuit of a “perfect” body, then Anti-Diet is for you. Christy Harrison breaks down the very racist origins of weight bias and walks her reader through the fucked up, damaging world that is diet culture. Next time someone asks you to shell out your hard-earned cash for a diet meal delivery service, infrared sauna, or cold yoga class you’ll be like “thank you, next.”
Bad With Money by Gaby Dunn
How to describe Bad With Money? It’s part memoir, part finance book, and part critique of capitalism. Gaby Dunn, the host of the Bad With Money podcast and writer of this book, walks you through the money lessons she learned as a child and the money mistakes she’s made since. Outside of the personal finance space, Gaby is an accomplished writer (she’s sold scripts to MTV and written NYT bestsellers) which makes her story of bad financial decisions made in the name of art #relatable. I love Bad With Money because it destigmatizes the money mistakes we make when we’re just trying to follow our dreams.
Your Money or Your Life by Vicki Robin
What would you do with your days if money were no object? That’s the question Your Money or Your Life poses. Like all the books on this list, Your Money or Your Life offers a necessary critique of American consumerism and the workweeks that keep us stuck in a cycle of living paycheck-to-paycheck and spending on shit that doesn’t fucking matter. Your Money or Your Life is my favorite personal finance book (if you can call it that). It’s a life changing read and everyone needs this book on their shelf.
I Will Teach You to Be Rich by Ramit Sethi
As far as step-by-step personal finance guides go I love Ramit Sethi’s book I Will Teach You to Be Rich. His plan for financial health is straightforward and doesn’t market any of those all or nothing approaches personal finance is known for. Ramit believes you can #treatyourself to coffee, shoes, whatever so long as you’re meeting your other financial goals (this shouldn’t be a hot take but it is). Ramit gives you the tools to build a “rich life,” AKA a life where your spending is in line with your values and goals. Get it, read it, love it!
What book(s) changed your relationship with money? Let me know in the comments below!
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