Author: Jana Lynch

Jana Lynch

A little while ago, I gave you a list of books that will help make you a better adult. They covered topics from cooking to finance to time management and all things in between. It was a pretty comprehensive list. But you know what’s better than one list of all that stuff?

Two lists.

This one, though, is brought to you by my friends. I polled people on Instagram, Twitter, and in real life to cultivate this list and all opinions are theirs (if I’ve read one of their suggestions, I’ve made a note and added my thoughts). And, as always, I’d love to hear from you so leave a comment on what books have changed your adulting life or let us know in the #Adulting Facebook community.

Better Than Before by Gretchen Rubin.

This book is the precursor to her newest, The Four Tendencies, and it covers habits and self-improvement, not so much from a happiness perspective, but from an understanding your motivation perspective. It’s more introspective than her other books, particularly for the reader, and what you learn about yourself will surprise you.

My friend Alyssa said that she consults the notes she took while reading this book bi-weekly.

The Year of Yes by Shonda Rhimes.

This is one of those books I keep meaning to read but don’t, even though everyone I know who’s read it cannot stop raving about it. Written by THE Shonda Rhimes, Alyssa (the same one from above) gives this praise: she makes it OK to be different, to flounder/find your way, to question the status quo and to fall victim to perceived perfection, and then to use all of that to question yourself in a useful way to find your best path and how to blaze it. Her honest, real vulnerability spoke to my own and made me want to healthily face it.

Tuesdays with Morrie by Mitch Albom.

My friend Catherine suggested this one but she said she had a hard time summarizing it in a few sentences so I’ll give it a shot. I read this book years ago and while it’s not quite as memorable for me as it is for others, it’s still a fascinating read that shows what you can learn from a mentor and the profound impact having this kind of relationship has on you. I encourage everyone to find someone in their life like Mitch had Morrie.

The Last Lecture by Randy Pausch.

If you’re not much of a reader, you can watch him deliver his last lecture. But I highly, highly encourage you to read it. It’s a short book, a one sitting book, but you will come away from it a smarter, better person. A weepier one, too, once you realize the intended audience was his children.

Feel the Fear and Do It Anyway by Susan Jeffers.

From TL Clark, an author: Honestly changed my life. Title says it all. Pretty effective endorsement from my point of view.

A Guide to a Good Life by William B. Irvine.

Jason Vitug, founder of Phroogal and the author of You Only Live Once: The Roadmap to Financial Wellness and a Purposeful Life, suggests this book. It focuses on the practices of the Stoics (of whom I know very little about and it’s pretty adult to read a book and then do more research to understand what you’ve read) and how to emphasize the things we can control rather than the things we can’t. Definitely worth checking out.

Sh#t Your Ego Says by James McCrae.

Truth be told, I had never heard of this one until it was mentioned to me on IG but the title alone makes me want to read it. The woman who recommended it said that she’d only started reading it a few days before but was taking her time to absorb everything and that even in just those few days she’d already begun to monitor the negative thoughts her ego is trying to tell her are true. As someone who battles depression, I feel like this has a ton of potential.

Eat Dirt by Josh Axe.

This was suggested by my friend Kerry who said that this book really helped her understand what was going on with her body from the foods she was eating. Who doesn’t want that? After all, one of the most adulting things you can do is take care of your health.

Other suggestions include The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas, Small Great Things by Jodi Picoult, and The New Jim Crow by Michelle Alexander. While the first two are fiction and the third is nonfiction, they all deal with racism in America in their own unique and thought-provoking ways, and it’s an issue we all need to understand.

I’ve read the first two and cannot recommend them highly enough (and both are being adapted into movies so make sure you read them first!).Br

So there you have it. A solid bookshelf primer for all your adulting needs.

What’s missing? Share your recommendations in the #Adulting Facebook community.

Jana Lynch

Just so we’re clear up front, I fundamentally disagree with several parts of this book. However, the author of Set for Life, Scott Trench from BiggerPockets, is very clear that this book is not for everyone. This book is for a very specific subset of people, he writes specifically for them, and he does a great job of communicating those ideas for the right people.

So who is he writing for?

Anyone just starting out, or starting over, and who wishes – and is able to – live a very frugal lifestyle for a few years for the purpose of saving $25,000 (in just the first year!). If successful, within a few years, they can be financial free. Free of debt. Free of traditional employment. And free to pursue a business idea, travel, passions, or whatever they want.

This isn’t a population that’s never been targeted before. There are dozens of books that speak to anyone wanting the kind of lifestyle Scott describes. And those books, like this one, discuss the value of investing and real estate and savings. But the approach that this book takes is that it’s more necessary to scale your larger expenses like housing (he’s a huge proponent of what he calls “house hacking”) rather than your smaller expenses like entertainment and clothing.

By doing so, he argues, you can design a lifestyle where you live on $2000 or less per month, roughly half your income if you’re making a $50,000 per year salary, and you can save the rest towards your “financial runway”. This runway is essentially your launching pad to a financially free life.

To establish your financial runway, Scott maps out a doable plan for savings and investing, and he presents well-researched and detailed information to support his plan. He uses realistic examples to highlight the benefits of following his advice (and what can happen if you don’t) and his writing is conversational and helpful rather than preachy.

But for me, the most substantial and helpful part of the book was his lists explaining his rationale behind his advice. I like hearing people’s reasoning; it helps make sense of the advice even if I disagree with it and it provides additional support when I do.

The other piece of the book I enjoyed is that he effectively makes the case for personal responsibility. He discusses the importance of controlling your emotions, staying focused on your goals, and learning to do things for yourself. For the latter, he discusses the lack of DIY abilities and that with a little determination and YouTube, there’s not a whole lot you can’t do (he does say if you need an expert or professional, by all means call or use one).

For the former, he discusses that these are essentially temporary while you’re in the process of building your financial runway and you can ease up on them once you’re stable. But, in the end, it is all up to you. You must take control and do the work and make things happen for yourself.

So. Do I recommend this book? If you are willing to sacrifice, learn, do the work, save, and you want nothing more (and I mean NOTHING more) than being financially free at an early age, then yes I do. If you realize that a few years of working your ass off to the exclusion of almost anything else will be the best choice you can make for your financial future, then yes I do. If you are okay with your status quo or aren’t willing to make hard changes, then this isn’t the right book.

These are the important Adulting takeaways.

• Save $1000-$2000 right away
• Design a frugal lifestyle that gives you the flexibility to save a significant portion of your income
• House hack
• Learn to DIY whenever possible
• Build a side hustle that’s in line with your day job (ex., if you’re a teacher, tutor on the side)
• Network, let people know your goals, and take advantage of opportunities to talk to those who have achieved what you’re aiming for
• Read and self-educate
• Eliminate decision fatigue and learn to make instant trivial decisions
• Take control of your income whether you work for yourself or someone else

Set for Life

Scott Trench

Jana Lynch

A big part of adulting is managing your money. From negotiating a salary to managing a budget to starting a side hustle, money is present in every aspect of your adult life. So why not read a book on how to make the most of what you have?

Enter 31 Days to Radically Reduce Your Expenses by Kalyn Brooke.

The premise of the book is simple: take a long, hard look at your finances and figure out how to reduce them. And not just the little expenses, like the daily coffee or new purse or book. The big ones like your housing expenses (there’s more than you think!) or groceries. Reducing your expenses on the big things frees up more money for the fun things so you can maximize your income and even save!

It’s not always an easy task, reducing your expenses. It takes time and means making some hard choices and trying to do it all at once is overwhelming. Fortunately for the reader, Kalyn breaks it down, day by day. As in, she gives you a task to do each day.

For instance, one day you’ll look at your electric bill and the next you’ll negotiate your car insurance and the next you’ll learn how to manage special occasions. And while the book is structured in a way that all items under one category are grouped together, you can read and apply them in an order that’s most helpful to you without losing the message.

Each budget category she has you examine comes with a minimum of 4 tips to practically and realistically reduce your spending. She’ll tell you where you can find deals or coupons, websites for ideas, even simple and frugal hints for hair and pet care. Everything she presents is reasonable and at no point does she make you feel like you must do what she says.

It’s all helpful advice, like you’d get from a financially savvy or frugal friend (and she even includes tips from her blog readers. I enjoyed getting their perspectives as well as Kalyn’s). And even those who are already great with money might pick up a hint or two.

The only part of the book I’d caution about is that the first 14 days or so are very homeowner directed. While renters can certainly find pieces of helpful information, it’s not necessary to heavily invest in those chapters if you don’t own a home. Maybe read and store the information for a later day, when and if you choose to buy a home.

Overall, this is a practical guide to keep on hand for when you feel like your budget is getting away from you. It also makes a great primer for anyone just starting out or finding themselves on their own for the first time.

These are the important Adulting takeaways.

• There’s always room to reduce an expense, even when you think you can’t
• Everything is negotiable
• Fixing your budget doesn’t happen in one day; it takes time, discipline and patience
• DIY is a great way to save money but sometimes you need a professional. Have an emergency fund for those occasions
• Understanding Parkinson’s Law alters your position on your income dramatically
• Planning is key to managing your money
• Changing your money habits ultimately falls on you

31 Days to Radically Reduce Your Expenses

Kalyn Brook