The Happiness Handbook by Dr Timothy Sharp

A self help book like no other I have read.

I have read tons of self help books and maybe even more Christian books promising change. Don't get me started on sermons that promise to 'change your life', I tried them all.

I went looking for Dr Sharps book after reading a review at the barefoot investor on 100 Ways to Happiness: A Guide for Busy People, by Dr Timothy Sharp. I din't find it but I did find the Happiness Handbook and I am glad I did.

Here is the link to the review article at barefootinvestor.com

http://www.barefootinvestor.com/are-you-self-help-tragic/

This book gives you simple practical steps to actually help you be happier, and build on it. It looks at goals, how to figure out your purpose (something many stuck in church attendence are still searching for). It is only 10 chapters long but packs inenough information to keep you busy for ages.

One nteresting thought from the book is how he deals with 'feeling lost', he sees it as having its roots in not having any goals and therefore no life direcion. Well duh! you might say and rightly so but I didn't know that in the 90's and took that feeling and went in search of meaning through the New Age and all its shenanigans and then into Christianity. I still love God but no longer am I attending a Church for weekly meetings.

He had a fairly simple system for working out your life purpose be they one or a few, but for some reason I was fearful of this and didn't do it.

He looks at our thinking and its role in happiness. This has helped me question my thoughts rather than just letting anything run around my head. This has been an area of interest for me for years. Probably sparked by one of the self help gurus I read in the 90's but to his credit, Dr Timothy Sharp gives you tools to actually make some improvement in this area.

I really can't speak highly enough of this book. I read a library copy but it would be well worth owning a copy for ongoing reference, and who knows maybe even to tackle the 'purpose' issue that got so overdone in church that it turned me off.

I'd still like to read 100 ways to happiness, a guide for busy people by Dr Timothy Sharp and may just have to spend the $$ to get myself a copy. I am confident it wil be worth it!

The Total Money Makeover by Dave Ramsey

New York Times Bestseller Revised 3rd Edition

A finance book. I like this one. I have read quite a few but this one is simple and do-able. I got started on his babysteps from a forum list of the 7 babysteps, it is that simple.

I have read Noel Whittaker, Paul Clitheroe, Anita Bell, Scott Pape, Bob Katz and one from Crown financial ministries. I also bought Joyce Meyers, How to handle your finance series and listened to that over & over, thats where I got onto Bob Katz & Frank Demazio but they were just full of information that didn't seem all that relevant to me nor did the inforamation seem to lead to action, not action that lasted anyway.

My favourites would have to be Charles Stanley's The Millionaire Next Door and The Richest Man in Babylon by George Clason, followed by The barefoot investor by Scott Pape. At least Pape is Australian and relevant with his weekly news & tips from the radio that I hear weekly. I got onto Ubank for high interest online savings thanks to The Barefoot Investor newsletter.

I learnt things from all the books & audios I listened to but the difference is now I am following a plan that is working (and has for lots of people). We have direction and meaning in our finances and above all purpose! Something I have always lacked. We have the most in the bank we have had in 10 years of marriage and we have no debt apart from the house. We work to a written budget each month which is a great planning tool also. I have started a christmas fund so we won't be short of cash at Christmas again. The budget is helping me think beyond one paycheck and start to plan and direct where the money goes. I have such hope and I am grateful I found Dave & his many resources, like a free podcast & free newsletters & online tools, and I don't think it is too late for me even at 41.

THE BOOK

It is a 13 chapter book, the first 7 chapters focus on debt and debt myths and the first 2 babysteps. Debt gets a lot of attention as it is such a drain on personal finance and is so prevalent in our culture. He adds in lots of success stories from real people who have followed the babysteps and been successful.

It is a very encouraging read.

We had just finished babystep 2 (pay off all debt other than the house) when I got thee book. We are now working on babystep 3 which is to build a 3 - 6 month emergency fund.
I bought the book mainly to get a fuller understanding of babysteps 4 which is to put 15% into retirement or superannuation and babystep save for the kids college (or university).

He outlines how to calculate how much you will need to be a self-funded retiree and why that is a good idea. Though I am not sure that it is the same here as it is in the US but I really don't know.
He even provides a formula for calculating how much you will need.

The chapter on babystep 5 is quite short but full of valuable information, like what a higher education won't provide. He helps take the emotion and guilt out and promotes the use of scholarsips and work.

Next is paying off the house, being ultafit, as Dave calls it. I aspire to do this and am confident we will get there. Mortgages here in Australia are higher than the US, in my observation. If you have purchased in recent times here your mortgage will be quite high like ours. Not all the information in this chapter is relevant to me. It does seem that fixed rate mortgages are the most common in the US, which is unlike here where the are predominantly variable. But the goal of paying off the house is still worthy as is this chapter.

In the final chapters he paints a brilliant word picture of conquering a mountain and the coast downhill on the other side, it is powerful.

I highly recommend Dave Ramsey's resources to everyone and plan to continue with this plan for a long time, simply because it works.