I found some of the best money advice for my 20-something self inside Rachel Cruze’s new book, Love Your Life Not Theirs – 7 Money Habits For Living The Life You Want.
While the title of this book seems to imply the whole thing is about comparison, only the first step out of the seven goes into great detail about it. The seven tips all together do you help you live your best financial life and give great advice on focusing on your finances, not how they might compare to someone else’s.
Keep reading to hear my honest review of Love Your Life Not Theirs and see why you need to read it in your 20s.
You see, money doesn’t have to be so hard. Well, it’s not so hard once you know what you are doing.
If you’re like me you probably graduated college, started getting your first real paycheck and started spending it of course. However, you may not be handling it very well.
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Even though Rachel is no longer in her 20s, this book gives sound wisdom on how to handle your money from the get-go. Don’t wait till you’re 30 or 40 to start trying to set up money habits.
My blog is all about setting the right habits in your 20s and being wise like a grandma now, while you’re still adulting so that the rest of your life can be set up for success! #beinga20somethinggrandma
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And Rachel Cruze, daughter of money-expert Dave Ramsey, gives us the formula we need to get started on the right foot with our money, whether you’re in your 20’s, 30’s, or older. Everyone can start making the right habits now. But why not start as early as you can?
After reading this book I felt even more freedom in my money because I was more educated and knew I was on the right path to success.
Overview of Love Your Life Not Theirs
This book was a pretty quick and easy read for me, yet was jam-packed with solid information. While there are a couple of things I don’t completely agree with (which I’ll touch on in a little bit), I loved that this book sets you up with the right habits.
The seven money habits Rachel writes about are (1) Quit the Comparisons, (2) Steer Clear of Debt, (3) Make a Plan for Your Money, (4) Talk About Money (Even When It’s Hard), (5) Save Like You Mean It, (6) Think Before You Spend, and (7) Give A Little. . .Until You Can Give a Lot.
If you don’t know, Rachel Cruze is Dave Ramsey’s daughter and she works for her dad, so a lot of the money theme’s in this book sounded just like Dave was speaking to me. I love his books and have read almost all of them now.
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Except it wasn’t exactly the same. Rachel did give a fresh new perspective to the money principles I’ve been reading about in Dave Ramsey’s books. Being a woman, I definitely think it helped hearing about basic life struggles regarding money from a woman’s perspective.
Rachel touches on subjects like comparison, grocery shopping, and relationships from a woman’s point of view that give this book a unique flow. I appreciated her honesty throughout this book.
The basic overall lesson I learned from reading Love Your Life Not Theirs was that what I value may be different from what someone else values. For example, I valued writing and so spending money on launching a blog was something important to me. To someone else that may seem frivolous.
If you value having fresh flowers in the home, then that is something you can budget for and enjoy. For your friend, it may be purchasing DVDs. Either way, you value something different. That’s where the comparison falls short of real life.
When you find out what you value, you will be able to quit comparing yourself to others.
Rachel hits the nail on the head in Love Your Life Not Theirs. Comparison can kill our money dreams, cause us to lose focus on our money goals, and hurt our relationship with money.
We must conquer the first money habit of comparison before we can move on to the next six.
When we know what we value, we can become grateful for what we have. Gratitude leads to humility which leads to contentment.
If you need help understanding this process, that is reason enough to pick up this book. Become grateful, humble, and thankful and you’ll see contentment blossom in your life.
While I was originally worried this was just a repeat of Dave Ramsey’s Baby Steps, Rachel mentions them but also gives her own wisdom on the subject. If you’ve read or heard about the Baby Steps before, don’t let that stop you from reading this book.
Learn about the Dave Ramsey Baby Steps here.
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The Best Advice in Love Your Life Not Theirs
Now that you know the best advice overall for me was found in the first habit, Quit the Comparisons, let’s see what other advice I learned.
In habit two, Steer Clear of Debt, Rachel discusses the impact of debt. In today’s culture, this is so important. Debt can suck the life right of everything, yet so many of us play with debt like it’s our friend.
Debt is evil. That must be your perspective. If it’s not, that’s something to work on first.
You see, if you’re in debt you can’t build a life of financial freedom. You have payments always calling for your attention. And think about how you could put those payments on student loans, credit cards, etc. towards your retirement or investment account, and how much money you would make.
Rachel and her dad Dave Ramsey do hold very convicting beliefs about debt that make them stand out in the industry.
They completely avoid debt altogether, not even owning a credit card. When I first heard they didn’t even have a credit score I was shocked.
However, their message is so important – debt is not worth it, so avoid it at all costs. They pay cash for every purchase or use a debit card, even those large ones like a car, or even a house.
Like Rachel, I too hold very strong Christian values that make me stand out and receive some backlash. I appreciate how she stands up for what she believes in.
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I completely agree that debt is not good, and she argues there are no such things as “good debt” and “bad debt” however I do somewhat disagree.
Two Things I Disagree on in Love Your Life Not Theirs
First, I did use student loans to go to college. Without the student loan, I would not have had the experiences I had and the opportunity to go to an amazing Christian college.
Fortunately, it was a small loan that I was able to pay off very quickly after graduation in less than three years.
Before you jump all over me, I understand the huge crisis our country is facing right now with student loan debt. It is horrible. The amount of student loan debt people carry blows my mind and I understand why Rachel writes saying to never use it.
I value Rachel’s money advice and debt-free living in Love Your Life Not Theirs, my complaint, however, is that sometimes student loans can work out.
Yes, avoid student loans at all costs and stay out of debt as much as possible. However, if you know you can pay off your student loans in under three years after graduation, I think it could be ok to take on some.
When I think about my situation, I am so glad I used a few student loans to go to college right after high school. Otherwise, I may have had to work for five years before I could have afforded the school I wanted to attend, and then my whole experience would have been different.
So, yes avoid student loans as much as you can and at all costs if possible, but if you are able to pay them off very quickly after graduation, in three years or less, and have the mindset of paying them off as soon as possible, then I think there is some benefit to them.
Just like it might not be possible to save up for an entire house to avoid a mortgage, sometimes it isn’t possible to save up for a four-year degree. Consider your options and only take on debt that you can pay of quickly.
I admire anyone that works their way through college to afford it and doesn’t go into debt. I agree with Rachel, that is the ultimate goal.
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Second, Rachel and her dad, Dave Ramsey, say to never use a credit card. However, I believe that if you have established the right money habits and use a tool like I use, you can certainly use a credit card wisely.
I use a credit card, but it acts like a debit card. Say what?!
That’s right. It’s my favorite money tool to talk about because I have seen its benefits of it firsthand. It’s an app called Debitize. Let me explain…
I am not perfect. Just like everyone that owns a credit card, I have been tempted to spend more money than I currently have. It’s easy to just charge things to the card and worry about paying it off later.
And just like Rachel talks about in Love Your Life Not Theirs, it is so easy to swipe a card than feel the impact of cash leaving your wallet. Cash is harder to spend than money on your credit card.
However, Debitize turns my credit card into a debit card by directly taking the money out of my account as I spend it, just like a debit card would.
Here’s an example. I go to the grocery store and pay with my credit card. The next day Debitize recognizes the activity and removes the exact amount I put on my credit card from my checking account. It then holds the money in a Debitize account I can see on the app and pays off my credit once a week or month (whichever you choose).
I love that there is an option to pay off your card weekly (a monthly fee of $5) because it helps improve your credit score and makes sure you never miss a payment.
The app is free if you just have it pay off your credit card once a month. Such an awesome deal and something I think everyone should have.
I have never missed a payment with this app and have never overspent on my credit card. Plus, their customer service is great. Be sure to check it out here.
As Rachel talks about it Love Your Life Not Theirs, credit cards can be very dangerous. I agree with her that if you can’t handle one and tend to overspend, then cut it up right away.
The bonus, travel miles, cashback, etc. are never worth it to go into debt. You have to be financially prepared with an emergency fund in place. Only use your credit card when you are held accountable with a tool like Debitize.
While I stand beside most of Rachel’s money principles, I wish she would give some credit (no pun intended) to those who can handle a credit card well and use tools to hold you accountable.
Using my credit card with Debitize attached is no different than using a debit card. However, now I get the benefits of a credit card and I am held accountable.
Click this link to get $10 for free for using Debitize!
In my opinion, you can still use a credit card if you are responsible enough to never overspend on it, never use it as your emergency fund, and never keep a running balance. Otherwise, ditch the card.
Overall, I love Rachel and her book Love Your Life Not Theirs because she talks about intentionality. That is something I write about all the time.
She encourages you to have a long-term perspective. Fight the need for instant gratification now. Save for your goals, don’t just throw them on your credit card now and face regret later.
Being wise means handling your money with a long-term goal, being intentional about paying off debt, spending less, budgeting, saving for the future, and giving. Her principles are timeless and much needed in today’s culture.
Practical Ways You Can Apply “Love Your Life Not Theirs” To Your Life
This book, Love Your Life Not Theirs, gave me so much encouragement. I love that Rachel talks about spending habits, saving tips, and how to handle money in relationships.
There is so much wise money advice in this book that will help anyone at any stage of life, but for those of us in our 20s, it could possibly help you the most.
Love Your Life Not Theirs teaches you how to change your mindset on money. It shows you how to save well. You will learn how to set up a budget and control your spending. It gives you the tools you need to talk about money with others and be held accountable, whether you are in a relationship or single.
If you want to live a rich life, have security when it comes to your money, and have financial freedom then follow the steps in this book.
This book isn’t just a repeat of Dave Ramsey’s Baby Steps. Rachel gives new and fresh ideas to the Baby steps formula, and uniquely talk about her seven steps while adding element so the Baby Steps are inside them.
I loved this book and it was a fabulous read. Know how to handle your money in your 20s. Start building a life of wealth now. Keep the end goal the main thing.
Be intentional. Make a budget. Pay off debt. Stop spending so much. Save more. Give generously. Invest. Save for retirement and one day you could be a millionaire.
I highly recommend this book, Love Your Life Not Theirs by Rachel Cruze.
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Kelsey at GoodPointGrandma
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This sounds like an interesting book, but I definitely disagree with her point of view on debt. I have two credit cards, and when I use them, I make money because of rewards. As long as you are responsible, I think debt is a tool, not something fear. Thanks for sharing!
Thanks for sharing your opinion Kait!
Definitely adding this to my reading list- thanks for sharing!
Yay! You are welcome Rachel.
This book sounds like a great read!! I’m going to have to check it out!!
Kileen
cute & little
Please do Kileen, you won’t regret it!
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