What do MONEY and DIETS have in common?
Apparently a lot, according to author & finance expert Susan Hirshman, of a tongue in cheek but interesting & helpful new book on fresh financial advice geared for women (but men could use it too). Before you roll your eyes & tune out let’s just agree that the book puts a cheery spin on something we could all use more sound advice on but at the same time it can all be so mundane and confusing. When was the last time you read a book about financial planning that was enjoyable?
Review: As Susan Hirshman sees it, the rules of successful dieting are the same rules that apply to successful money management. In this upbeat and informative guide she offers women a 3-phase personalized plan that follows common dieting programs to help them understand their finances.
The structure of the book is consistent with that of a typical diet book – it includes an evaluation phase, an induction phase, and a maintenance regimen. Susan offers specific advice on topics that matter most to women including how to develop realistic and attainable goals, how to make smart financial decisions, how to determine the best way to invest based on a reader’s ‘investment personality’, and how and when to get professional help from a financial advisor all while relating it back to a theme that practically every woman has experienced at least once in her life – dieting!.
Susan’s program completely removes the intimidation factor that often accompanies the words ‘personal finance’ and ‘investing’ and provides women with all the information they need to take control of their financial situations once and for all.
From Publishers Weekly – A comprehensive and coherent breakdown of basic financial and wealth management information from a J.P. Morgan financial adviser.
An increasing number of women are controlling more and more of the wealth in America, but studies suggest that women’s financial literacy is not increasing. Hirshman, who counsels investors on their personal finances, uses comparisons with dieting–a framework also used in Alice Wood’s excellent Wealth Watchers–and the metaphor holds up well: both dieting and investing require discipline, take time, and yield rewards. Hirshman presents reviewing a net worth statement as “stepping on the financial scales,” and investment categories as the basic food groups. Though it’s not overtly stated, the advice is aimed at an audience with a fairly old-fashioned view of finances–she speaks passionately about the need for women to be equal partners in their marital finances and admonishes women that “a man is not a financial plan.” Hirshman provides all of the information necessary for a solid financial background, and cheers on her readers with a positive message: “The only person responsible for you is you.”
Link to book: http://www.myfatassets.com/
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