The book, Manage your money like a F*cking Grownup was a gift from my 30 year old niece who is an avid reader. She attended the launch of the book last year and came back excited about it and the author. She couldn’t stop talking about it. She told me about new easy financial concepts she had just discovered and how saving suddenly seemed so easy. She also mentioned how the author broke down financial goals into simple measurable tasks using everyday language and examples. I smiled as I listened, happy that another young person finally got it.

When she told me about the title of the book conservative me found it aggressive. I was a bit affronted by it. I wondered why the author had to use such a title for a book. I concluded that it must have been to draw the attention of reader or appeal to young people. The other reason  was that I have young kids who are learning to read. My seven-year-old reads any piece of writing he lays his eyes on.

Reading this book or even leaving it lying around in the house was a challenge because we are at that stage in our relationship where we are teaching him not to swear. We also talk to him about words that people should never use and what they mean. So, it was tricky reading this book at home. In her defense, the author does explain about her potty mouth in the introduction of the book. However, when using swear words to make your point isn’t your everyday language, it does take some getting used to.

After I got over my issues with the tittle, I became receptive of the message in the book. I finally got what my niece was talking about and started to appreciate that the book was written by a young person. who seems to be a regular Jane.

Most finance books are written by people with a finance or investment background, so it was refreshing to get money tips and perspectives from a different voice.

This makes the book appealing to both young and older readers as she speaks about money, financial and investment terminology and goals in simple manner. She writes in a way that is understandable and feels attainable for a regular Joe than would be the case if the book was written by a financial planner or advisor. I found her book relatable.

Looking after your money

The fact that the author is South African made the book relevant to me. I didn’t have to worry about translating currencies for example or wonder about equivalent South African financial terminology or products. I often have these kinds of challenges when reading books authored by people outside of South Africa.

She  took great care to simplify money in a manner that a non-financial reader would understand, starting with a money crash course which touches on saving, growing your money and keeping it safe. She offers ways for the reader to organize their finances, identifying various tools readers can use to do so.

I particularly enjoyed the chapter on figuring out which game you’re playing. This helped me a lot as many a time I have found myself wondering what to focus on, paying off debt, saving or investing. Always feeling like there are a lot of competing priorities but with limited resources. There is a flowchart in the book which helps one to work out where one is in the money game and what one should be focusing on. What I found useful was that she offered suggestions on how to win whichever money game or stage one is playing.

I also liked the idea of having f*ck around money. It pains me even writing that. Some of us are that conservative! Being an accountant, and one that likes counting all the pennies, this is a concept I support fully. The idea is that after you have taken care of all your adult responsibilities including the mortgage, the car, savings and investments, you should allow yourself some money to do with as you please. And if you spend it, that’s that and you will not have access to another fund. I fully embrace this!

One of the chapters touches on the subject of side hustles, life-long learning as well as the lack of free money. On the lack of free money, she really drives the point home about get rich quick schemes and explains concepts like pyramid schemes, multi-level marketing schemes and work from home scams among others. I found this appropriate as these are some of the basic ways people lose their hard-earned cash.

I valued the section on Black tax as it is often a subject that is discussed without proposals of how to deal with it. How many people have you met who said they couldn’t save or reach their financial goals because of Black tax? I have sometimes wondered to myself, “What it is about black tax that makes it hard for people to plan for it?”. The author explains different ways black tax arises and gives several suggestions to deal with it in a manner that doesn’t leave you financially wounded.

Another idea that resonated with me was the notion of having multiple sabbaticals during one’s working life. Micro-retirements as she calls them as opposed to retirement being a single period during your life when you are old and wrinkled. It’s a concept I fully buy into having recently taken a break from banking to pursue my cooking hobby. Such endeavours are worth while and give one an opportunity to grow and learn skills that one can still apply while one is still young. Giving one an opportunity to embrace life fully without worrying about the limitations of a 9 to 5 and you end up doing more in your lifetime or possibly having multiple careers.

A theme that one gets throughout the book is that of money being an enabler, being a tool that will give you freedom. And how if one wants that freedom one needs to think and act differently. One of my favourite quotes from the book is
that “If you spend everything you earn, you’re always infinity years away from retirement. You can never stop working, because the day you stop working is the day your money runs out.”
Who would want such a life?

I loved the structure of the book as  I got a sense that a lot of thought went into putting the book together. She starts off with a money crash course, then helps you to “get your shit together” before helping you to figure out which game you are playing. Thereafter she  provides you with tips to handle your spending and make money and stay motivated. She also talks about critical and simple issues like basic bank accounts, credit cards, savings accounts, retirement, getting out of debt in a fun but impactful way.

This is a book I would recommend to anyone wanting to understand how money works and know what simple steps and changes they can make to improve their financial awareness and position.