7 Money Mantras for a Richer Life: How to Live Well with the Money You Have

By Michelle Singletary

Book Overview

The best financial planner Michelle Singletary ever knew was Big Mama, her grandmother. Big Mama raised Michelle and her four brothers and sisters on a salary that never reached more than $13,000 a year. Yet at her death, Big Mama owned her own home, had paid off a car loan, and had a beautiful collection of Sunday-go-to-meeting church hats and a savings account that supplemented her Social Security check and small pension. Most important, she had taught Michelle "7 Money Mantras for a Richer Life." Those mantras serve as the inspiration for this straight-talking book of practical personal financial advice that really works.

The 7 Money Mantras are:

1. If it' s on your ass, it's not an asset
2. Is this a need or is it a want?
3. Sweat the small stuff.
4. Cash is better than credit.
5. Keep it simple.
6. Priorities lead to prosperity.
7. Enough is enough.

Michelle Singletary is a syndicated columnist for The Washington Post whose popular personal finance column appears in more than 120 newspapers. She's also a mother of three children who understands what it's like to live on a budget. In a plainspoken, sassy, no-nonsense voice, Michelle provides answers to the financial issues that confront almost every household: how to teach children the value of money; how to address money issues in a relationship or marriage; household saving tips; getting the best loans; and much more.
"This book is about saving enough money to have choices," she writes. "It's about feeling free to be cheap if you can't afford to buy a ton of gifts at Christmas. It's about eliminating wasteful spend-ing so you can begin to save and invest. It's full of uncommon commonsense lessons and guidance on the way people should use their money."
With humor and down-home financial wisdom, Michelle Singletary offers practical and realistic advice that will help you live well with the money you have.

Michelle Singletary on . . .

Romance and Money
"It's okay to say: 'Honey, I love you and everything, but if you need money, ask your mama.'"

Credit Cards
"We are minimizing our financial potential by making minimum credit-card payments."

Car Buying
"If you want to save money, keep your car until you're on a first-name basis with the local tow-truck drivers."

Leasing a Car
"You, too, can drive a car you can't afford and then have to give it back. It's crazy."

Gift Giving
"Generosity isn't about how much you spend. It's about how much thought you put into the gift."

Penny Pinching
"I once bought a stick-shift car because it was $1,000 cheaper than the automatic in the same model. There was just one little problem. I couldn't drive a stick-shift. But at least I saved $1,000 "

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0375759042
• ISBN13: 9780375759048
• Release Date: December 2004
• Publisher: Random House Publishing Group
• Length: 288 Pages
• Weight: 0.52 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.6" x 5.2" x 7.9"

Customer Reviews

If I knew then......

I enjoyed this book so much that I purchased it for all the young people in my family. I wanted them to be able to make sound financial decisions and not become a member of the "working poor". This book has the tools that will help them accomplish that goal. The information is sound, concise and to the point. Told with enough humor to get your attention but serious enough to underscore the fact that it is not "just money".

See review for 7 Money Mantras

This book appears to be the same as the earlier book "7 Money Mantras...". Read the reviews for that book as well - they are favorable, not like the ones here as of 5/6/06. It's a great book, and will help you negotiate through the darker side of capitalism.

I am ashamed to admit . . .

that I am a Washingtonian who had not read any of Michelle Singletary's columns until I heard her interview on the Diane Rehm show on NPR a couple of weeks ago. She was discussing this book. Everything she said made sense. Immediately I looked up old columns on the internet. I ordered her book because she was talking to me!I'm very pleased to say that I am not disappointed in her book. The way in which she spoke on-air is the same way she speaks in the book. Her mantras are ones that we all can understand. If I had an MBA and wanted someone to speak to me in MBA jargon, why would I want a book on money management at all? Surely my education would have already provided it!The 7 mantras are applicable to all of us. I must admit that there were sections of the book that did not apply to me--but isn't that true for most money management books? (I don't foresee taking in a family renter, for instance.) We are not all on equal footing when it comes to money.In recommending this book to friends, I have frequently used examples such as how much money one can save over a year if one doesn't use ATM's from other banks that charge a $2 fee. Singletary frequently breaks these and other fees down and shows us just how much we could save if we didn't choose to be so frivolous. How much we could have saved! How much we could have invested! How much we could have put toward our children's education or our retirement.Yes, it's true. I'm sure that there are other books that may give you more specifics, talk to you in jargon that you need a dictionary as well as an accounting manual to comprehend, but I don't believe that Singletary's aim was to write a book for MBA graduates. I think she intended this book to be read by the masses who might be floundering in a sea of debt or who might not have enough saved or who might need a little insight into how to deal with their income. I'm very glad that Michelle Singletary is willing to share Big Mama's money sense with us. I'm happily recommending it to everyone I see!

Ms. Singletary is wonderful!

Ignore the negative customer reviews as MichelleSingletary truly speaks the truth about money in a fashionthat most readers can understand.If you were to see or hear Michelle on TV or radio, respectively, it would be clear that her easy-going, humorous style is adopted for the book as well.Ms. Singletary writes the way she speaks for the mostpart, which is refreshing as she talks to the reader insteadof preaching like other books of this nature.She doesn't give financial advice. It is common sensestuff that we all tend to forget when we lose our mindsover money!Bravo, Ms. Singletary

Financial Advice For The Masses

Unlike the two listed reviews I feel this book is wonderful and has a unique voice. It's a fun read. It's funny. It's a book anybody can read. IT'S NOT AN INVESTMENT BOOK! So, if you're looking for a book on how to buy stocks or mutual funds or bonds with some stupid formula or system then you should look elsewhere. But if you're in debt, if can't manage to save any money, if you're wondering how to talk to your children about money then this is the book for you! Ms. Singletary continues in this book the great common sense advice she passes along in her syndicated column. In fact, Better Investing magazine gave it a great review in it's Jan. issue. The writer said this book was just what the everyday person could use right now!