The Money Book

My husband, who is self-employed, came across a book on a financial blog geared toward those of our kind. It's called The Money Book for Freelancers, Part-Timers, and the Self-Employed: The Only Personal Finance System for People with Not so Regular Jobs.

Since I am the one who does the finances in our house, I had already come to realize that the traditional methods of saving weren't the ideal method for us. When your income flow is unpredictable, it's hard to save x amount predictably. So, I was interested, and, after reading the reviews, decided to get it.

I must say, I like it. It's easy to read and understand, and the authors use civilized humor which makes the reading enjoyable as well.

The plan works off of percentages instead of flat sums, really, really, really emphasizes prioritizing emergency savings, taxes, and retirement as well as paying off debt, and helps you find ways of prioritizing and saving for other things you want. It does all of this while understanding where the self-employed, etc are coming from (a non-stable income flow, business taxes/deductions, lack of good/any medical coverage, absence of a 401K, etc.).

Also, being a homeschooling mom, I thought about how I would like my kids to know these things. After all, don't most high school/college students fit into this category? Babysitting? Working at McDonalds? Lifeguarding over the summers? These aren't exactly stable, benefits producing jobs, but they can learn how to save according to their earnings. And, what's more, the percentage of people who fit into this category is growing rapidly. The odds are that our kids will be faced with this kind of work at some time or other in their adult careers.

In any case, especially if you fit this category of employment and even if you do not, I think it is a very enlightening and helpful read.