The 32 Best Personal Finance Books: Your Reading List for Early Retirement
The FIRE journey is not for everyone. It’s a lifestyle that requires a focus on earning money. A serious commitment to investing for the long haul. And frugal living that prevents lifestyle creep.
I started reading personal finance books in middle school. I’ve done a lot of reading over the past few decades. I’ve put together a list of a few of my favorites. Think of this list as a crash course. These books will get you going, teach you basics, help you stay the course, and enjoy the ride.
The road to financial freedom is a marathon. There are no shortcuts. But, there are cheat codes. These books. They will help get you faster than going at this on your own. These books will help you learn and help you earn. The books are ordered in a phased approach, from beginning to freedom. Have fun!
Get started, get inspired
Every journey begins with a single step. These 3 books are short and packed full of inspiration. Read these books to get your mental game to a whole new level. This is your catalyst!
Grow your knowledge and build your toolkit
The FIRE is lit! Keep up the momentum and grow your knowledge. There is a lot to learn on the road ahead. Investing in the stock market can make you rich. Learn simple strategies to make it easy and automatic. Technology makes recurring investments and dollar-cost averaging easy.
- A Random Walk Down Wall Street
- Stocks for the Long Run
- The Millionaire Next Door
- The Little Book of Common Sense Investing
Increasing your income and earning a lot of money is hard. Build your base skills to be a great leader and make a massive impact on your company.
- The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People
- Start With Why
- Measure What Matters
- Quiet Leadership
- A More Beautiful Question
- The 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership
Survive the dip and enjoy the ride
There will be setbacks early in your journey. Muphy’s law will make sure of it. Stay calm and power through! It’s a long road and you still need to smell the roses along the way. Play, create and laugh. The whole point of financial freedom is to enjoy life! Don’t wait!
Stay the course
It’s a marathon, not a sprint. I sprinted for the first few years of my FIRE journey. I almost burnt out. I realized that I didn’t need to go full speed to get to where I wanted to go. Slow down a bit and bring your life into balance.
There are certain factors that are out of your control. Your money needs time in the market to grow. You can’t cheerlead the stock market to go faster just because you want to retire early. I wish it worked but it doesn’t.
Make some tea, find a good chair, and read a couple of books to help pass the time.
- Your Money and Your Brain
- Enough: True Measures of Money, Business, and Life
- A Guide to the Good Life
- Do Less: A Minimalist Guide to a Simplified, Organized, and Happy Life
- The Talent Code: Greatness Isn’t Born. It’s Grown. Here’s How
- Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind
- Tools of Titans
- Everybody Lies
- Unshakeable: Your Financial Freedom Playbook
Other reads for the curious
- Go Wild
- Thinking, Fast and Slow
- The 4-Hour Workweek
- The $100 Startup
- Family Inc
- How Much Money Do I Need to Retire?
- Spend ‘Til the End
Key Takeaways
The more you read about personal finance, the more you’ll see the underlying principles. The basics, the core strategy, it’s rather boring and not complex. The math is not difficult. These truths are hard to believe in the beginning. It requires the journey to understand this for yourself.
I stumbled upon these books on my own. I’m lucky enough to find the topic of money interest-ing… It helped me read a lot of books on the subject. A lot of them stink. These are a few of the good ones.
Read, relax, don’t forget to invest and have fun. See you out there.