Whether you work as an accountant, you’re studying to be one, or you simply have an interest in the subject, you’ll want to know what the best accounting books are to accelerate your mastery of the subject.

To save you the headache of figuring out which ones come out on top, we’ve done the research for you.

#1 “Accounting Made Simple: Accounting Explained in 100 Pages or Less”

If you need a quick guide to accounting, “Accounting Made Simple: Accounting Explained in 100 Pages or Less” is an ideal choice.

Written by Mike Piper, CPA, this book explains accounting in layman’s terms.

No technical jargon is used, which makes it ideal for a person who is new to the subject of accounting.

Piper assumes that you have no knowledge of the practice or principles of accounting, so he starts at the beginning.

This book covers topics such as the accounting equation and how to read and prepare financial statements.

It also provides an overview of calculating and interpreting several different types of financial ratios.

Is Accounting Made Simple Right For You?

This is a good book to choose if you want a basic overview of the principles and concepts of accounting.

If you are thinking of starting an in-home or a small business for yourself, it will prepare you to set up an income statement as well as to decide on topics, such as whether to select the cash method versus the accrual method of accounting.

It also offers helpful tips about amortizing expenses and calculating depreciation of equipment.

For e-commerce sellers on platforms like BigCommerce, you may find its sections about determining the cost of inventory helpful with setting your prices.

#2 “Barron’s Accounting Handbook, Sixth Edition”

The sixth edition of “Barron’s Accounting Handbook” features up-to-date information about the concepts, principles, and practices of accounting.

Written by Jae K. Shim, Ph.D.; Joel G. Siegel, Ph.D.; Nick Dauber, CPA; and Anique Qureshi, Ph.D. and CPA, this is an in-depth textbook that teaches many basic and advanced concepts of accounting.

The authors intend for this book to be used as a reference. It is ideal to have on hand if you are an accounting student, in business for yourself, or in practice as an accountant at a business.

Is Barron’s Accounting Handbook Right For You?

This book is written for bookkeepers, CFOs, CPAs, entrepreneurs, controllers, accounting managers, and business managers.

If you are already familiar with technical accounting jargon, this is the book for you.

Business students who are still learning the jargon can refer to the extensive glossary too for definitions of the terminology.

“Barron’s Accounting Handbook” starts with an overview of financial accounting.

It then explores basic topics such as financial reporting requirements and compliance, different accounting methods, and the United States generally accepted accounting principles (U.S. GAAP).

After the overview, each chapter focuses on a specific topic related to the practice of accounting.

Some of those chapters include federal taxation forms, cost management, and international financial reporting standards.

#3 “Financial Statements: A Step-by-Step Guide to Understanding and Creating Financial Reports”

Written by Thomas Ittelson, “Financial Statements: A Step-by-Step Guide to Understanding and Creating Financial Reports” offers a detailed look at accounting and financial reporting.

After reading this book’s introductory chapters, you should have a better understanding of how to evaluate a company’s overall financial health and history.

This book could also help you make smarter investments by showing you how to read the public filings of companies on the major stock exchanges.

Ittelson uses both everyday language and technical jargon so that you will be able to effectively communicate with the accountants in your organization.

Technical terms are clearly defined as they are introduced.

Each chapter of “Financial Statements: A Step-by-Step Guide to Understanding and Creating Financial Reports” uses straightforward examples of the topic at hand.

You can follow along with Ittelson as he explains a financial transaction in a step-by-step process.

Each step is clearly explained, so there are no mysteries about how an answer or a final number is calculated.

Is Financial Statements Right For You?

If you are a visual learner, this is an ideal book for you.

Concepts and principles are explained using plenty of graphs, charts, and flow sheets. This makes it easier for you to follow a transaction from the start to the finish.

Whether you are an accountant or you need to manage accountants, you’ll find in-depth coverage of financial reporting topics.

The book is designed to help managers to understand:

• Income statements
• Balance sheets
• Cash-flow statements

>> Related: What Is The Best Financial Calculator?

#4 “Warren Buffett Accounting Book: Reading Financial Statements for Value Investing”

“Warren Buffett Accounting Book: Reading Financial Statements for Value Investing” prepares you to make sound investments and to gain a better understanding of any company’s finances.

It is the second volume of Warren Buffett’s accounting manual.

In this book, you learn two methods of how to calculate the intrinsic value of a company.

You may want to be able to do this in order to assess whether a company is priced at bargain basement prices or overvalued.

>> Related: How To Invest For Cash Flow

The book also explains discount rates and how they work in relation to public stock offerings.

The third section of this book teaches you how to read an income statement, a cash-flow sheet, and a balance sheet. This information can also help you with investments selection.

The fourth and final section examines the ratios that are used for calculating the value and the worth of a business.

Is Warren Buffett Accounting Book Right For You?

If you are a beginner in accounting or you are preparing to make your first investments in public stocks, this is the book for you.

It eases you into the essential principles and concepts that you need to know in order to make sound decisions.

“Warren Buffett Accounting Book: Reading Financial Statements for Value Investing” builds off the first book in the series, but you can start with this one and reap its benefits.

One of the best characteristics of this book is the examples. They are easy to follow, and each transaction is broken down in a step-by-step manner.

Another top quality of this book is that it provides you with access to online forums.

In the forums, you can even converse with others and have accounting experts answer your questions.

Even if you are an experienced accountant, this book is helpful to have on hand as a reference and as a source for quick summaries of different principles.

>> Rich Dad Poor Dad Review

#5 “Accounting All-in-One For Dummies, with Online Practice, Second Edition”

The “Dummies” books are known for offering a general overview of a subject and assuming that you have no prior knowledge of anything related to the topic. “Accounting All-in-One For Dummies” is no exception to this rule.

Written by Kenneth W. Boyd, this book features an overview of multiple accounting topics.

The introduction explains some basic concepts and jargon that will be used throughout the text.

It also has a glossary and a bibliography for more information that you can use at a later time.

Is Accounting All-in-One For Dummies Right For You?

“Accounting All-in-One For Dummies” is an ideal book if you are considering going to accounting school, are starting your own business, or are preparing to make initial investments in the stock market.

Some of the topics in “Accounting All-in-One For Dummies” include understanding financial statements, making smart business decisions, recognizing and reporting accounting fraud, handling cash, and making wise purchasing decisions.

At the end of each chapter, there is a URL for an online quiz. The quiz provides you with questions. If you miss an answer, it explains what the correct answer is and why.

This book is like nine books put into one, and it provides an overview of nine different subjects related to the practice of accounting.

When you are looking for an overview, it is a good reference to have on hand.

If you need more in-depth information, you will need to get an additional book on that particular subject of interest.

>> Cashflow Quadrant Book Review

#6 “Accounting for Non-Accountants: The Fast and Easy Way to Learn the Basics”

“Accounting for Non-Accountants: The Fast and Easy Way to Learn the Basics” by Wayne A. Label, CPA, MBA, Ph.D. is written for anyone who wants to know more about the practice of accounting.

You will find straightforward and simple explanations for each concept explained in everyday terms so that you can understand them.

The author places the jargon at the end of the non-technical explanation.

This book explains accounting concepts such as preparing and using financial statements, controlling cash flow, managing budgets, using accounting ratios, and handling audits conducted by the Internal Revenue Service or state taxation auditors.

Is Accounting For Non-Accountants Right For You?

“Accounting for Non-Accountants: The Fast and Easy Way to Learn the Basics” is geared toward anyone who plans to start a small business or become an entrepreneur.

This is also the book to get if you need a quick review of accounting practices,

You can refer to the chapter that includes the information you need to have refreshed.

When you are preparing a business plan or considering working for yourself as an entrepreneur, this book will help you make sound financial decisions.

>> 7 Best Personal Finance Books

#7 “Schaum’s Outline of Principles of Accounting I, Fifth Edition”

“Schaum’s Outline of Principles of Accounting I” helps you put your knowledge of accounting principles to work.

The introduction of the book explains the basic concepts of accounting. Each chapter covers an area of accounting that will help you as an accountant, a business owner, or a manager.

The content includes basics such as debits, credits, and ledgers.

This book includes hundreds of practice problems. It shows you an example calculation, and then you are given information to figure out a similar problem on your own.

Is Schaum’s Outline of Accounting Principles Right For You?

This book is a wise choice if you plan to hire employees or grow your company.

For the management of your business, the book explores scrap value, depreciation, and fixed-asset valuation.

It then delves into more complicated areas that include measuring inventory, calculating net realizable value, recovering of bad debts, and computing interest.

The article 7 Best Accounting Books was originally posted on Investormint

What is Robert Kiyosaki’s Cashflow Quadrant book about? In a word: taxes.

A book about taxes? Yawn! right? But hang tight, you will definitely want to read on to learn more about why if there were only one Robert Kiyosaki book to read, this would be it.

While the book contains lots of useful information, taxes underpin the major themes throughout it. The big idea which few salaried employees understand well is that investors and business owners pay far fewer taxes than employees.

And because taxes usually take the biggest chunk out of your paycheck each month, you should explore ways to lower them and find alternative income streams that enable you to pocket more of your earnings.

Cashflow Quadrant Summary

After the enormous success of his first book, Rich Dad Poor Dad, Robert Kiyosaki published Cashflow Quadrant.

And while Rich Dad Poor Dad has lots of valuable concepts in it, the book is not a “how to get rich guide” by any means.

Readers of the original Rich Dad book demanded more from Kiyosaki than high level concepts and, in the Cashflow Quadrant book, he delivered.

By spotlighting how much of your money is taken each month in taxes, Kiyosaki gives a proverbial kick in the butt to employees.

His assertion that it is dumb to live life as an employee and pay the government close to half of each paycheck is not made in a vacuum.

Yes, he takes aim at how unfair the US system of taxation is for employees, but he also provides tangible steps to pocket more income from your earnings.

Indeed, he walks readers down the path of how to transition from working every day to earn highly taxed money to not working whatsoever and paying low tax rates.

That’s a lofty promise to make so how does he do it? In this Cashflow Quadrant summary, we will walk you through the steps.

Get Cashflow Quadrant Here >>

Step 1: Employees Pay Highest Tax Rates

Robert Kiyosaki fires shots at traditional academic institutions and the education system in general in his books, and with good reason.

High school and college classes rarely, if ever, teach students the skills needed to start, manage, and succeed in business.

Instead, Kiyosaki argues traditional education teaches kids to become employees.

But the U.S. tax code favors corporations and investors, not employees. So why not teach individuals how to become tax savvy and pay less to government?

In Cashflow Quadrant, Kiyosaki advocates that employees migrate their income streams to lower tax brackets.

The first leap is to move from Employee to Self-Employed.

As an Employee, you only earn income when you are “on the clock” so to speak.

If you decide not to show up for work, you may be fired. And if you want to earn more, you need to work more.

So, you don’t have a whole of opportunity to get really rich because you have to work ever harder to earn more.

And even then whether you remain in your job or get fired is not under your control.

A better alternative to a job is to become Self-Employed, argues Robert Kiyosaki.

Become Self-Employed To
Gain More Financial Freedom

Once you migrate from Employee to Self-Employed status, you gain more financial independence.

Many doctors and lawyers who work for themselves fall into this “Self-Employed” category. So too do owners of laundromats, dry cleaning stores, and these days even Uber Eats drivers.

When you become Self-Employed, you can legitimately deduct certain costs. For example, if you are a contractor for Uber, you could deduct various costs that would otherwise need to be paid with after-tax income.

Speak with your tax attorney to see which costs may qualify. You might be surprised to learn how much can be written off as expenses before you need to pay the government a dime.

Do The Math!

To keep the math simple, imagine an employee earning $100,000 who pays the government $40,000 in taxes and gets to keep $60,000.

It’s probably fair to guess that the biggest expense each year for the employee is their tax bill.

Even mortgage costs are unlikely to exceed $40,000 per year.

Now compare the taxes paid by a Self-employed person who earns the same $100,000 but gets to deduct $25,000 per year in business expenses.

That individual gets taxed on just $75,000 and so pays lower taxes than the salaried employee. Way to save money right!

But wait, there’s more…

Cashflow Quadrant Game:
Become A Business Owner

Alongside the release of his book, Kiyosaki released the Cashflow Quadrant game to help readers play a virtual game of life that transitions from high-tax bracket income streams to much lower tax-bracket earnings.

What he points out is that business owners, who he defines as employers of 500+ people, can vastly lower tax payments by setting up the right legal structures.

As a business owner, you don’t necessarily need to show up for work to earn an income. That means you don’t exchange your time for dollars.

Instead, you get paid by leveraging the collective efforts of your employees.

As your company generates revenues and profits, you get paid potentially even without lifting a finger!

Unlike self-employed individuals who have more autonomy than employees but are still largely “owned” by their jobs – because they still have to show up to make money – business owners can take days or weeks off at a time.

When the systems and processes are set up, employees generate money on behalf of the business owner, who reaps the rewards.

And the icing on the cake is the business owner pays fewer taxes.

But business owners are not at the top of the totem pole when it comes to low tax rates nor free of responsibilities. After all, most business owners still need to oversee hiring, salaries, business strategy, and so on.

The privilege of earning income without having to show up to work goes to the person in the fourth quadrant: the investor.

Become Wealthy As An Investor

Investors like Warren Buffett got rich not only because they are good a picking stocks but because they understand how the tax code favors investors.

Buffett frequently said that he gets taxed less than his secretary. The actual amount he paid in Federal and State taxes was higher but in percentage terms his secretary paid more.

His point was that, as an investor, he enjoyed all sorts of favorable tax breaks that employees do not receive.

For example, when you work for Amazon as an employee and decide to purchase a new personal computer at home, you need to pay for it with after-tax dollars.

As a business owner, you may be able to legitimately write off the purchase as a business expense provided you actually conduct business on the computer.

Over time all those deductions add up to some very meaningful savings. Instead of the money going into Uncle Sam’s coffers, they line your pockets instead.

And best of all, you don’t have to pick the next Google, Facebook, or Netflix to be a successful investor.

Some slow and steady dividend-paying stocks could fit the bill. Or you could purchase publishing rights to music, like Michael Jackson and Paul McCartney did in the past.

Or perhaps, like Michael Jordan or Mark Cuban, you could purchase a stake in private companies like they did with SportRadar, which provides sports data to TV networks among other clients.

The point is that, as an investor, you can receive a steady stream of income that is taxed at lower rates than the earnings received by employees. Plus, you don’t have to operate the businesses from one day to the next as business owners do.

In short, the holy grail is to become an investor because you earn passive income even when you are sleeping and pay among the lowest tax rates.

Cashflow Quadrant
Book Summary

To become rich, Kiyosaki recommends migrating from the Employee category to one of the other three categories: Self-employed, Business Owner, or Investor.

Employees exchange time for money. And you lose control of your time and income. When you fail to show up for work, your boss can lay you off.

Self-employed individuals gain more control over their time but are still tied to their work. Kiyosaki describes this category as the job owning them. To make money, they still need to work but they don’t risk being fired by a boss.

Business owners have much greater flexibility because they earn money on the back of the efforts of employees. However, they still have responsibilities to guide corporate strategy and manage operations. Nevertheless, the tax treatment is more favorable than it is for employees and many self-employed individuals.

The holy grail is to become an investor where passive income rolls into your bank account each and every month without having to work whatsoever, and the US tax code favors investors by charging much lower tax rates than are applied to employees.

What finance books have you read that you would recommend? Let us know what the top personal finance books are in your opinion, we would love to hear from you.

>> Best Stock Market Books For Beginners

>> Top 5 Warren Buffett Books

>> Best Books On Technical Analysis

The article Cashflow Quadrant By Robert Kiyosaki Summary was originally posted on Investormint

In this Rich Dad Poor Dad review, we’ll see what catapulted Robert Kiyosaki’s book to the top of bestseller lists globally and why his critics have fired missiles at him for controversial statements made in his book.

You will find out whether the Rich Dad Poor Dad book is one of the best personal finance books ever written or not worthy of your time.

And you will discover how to transition from salaried employee dependent on a job for income to become an investor who makes money work for them.

Rich Dad Poor Dad Book:
Who Is It For?

For aspiring entrepreneurs, reading Rich Dad Poor Dad is almost a right of passage these days.

The book is jam-packed full of concepts that are rarely taught in traditional academic institutions.

In conventional school systems, students generally study materials to pass a test and must sit exams alone in order to graduate.

Kiyosaki shoots down this idea as a poor template for business success. He argues that in order to succeed in business, you need to collaborate with others, learn to work as a team, and join forces with others who can accelerate your progress towards achieving goals.

In school, Kiyosaki says “collaboration” with others is viewed as cheating. So, he argues that students learn a bad lesson: working with others leads to punishment when in business it is needed to become successful.

If the idea of working in teams to achieve big goals sounds more to your liking then Rich Dad Poor Dad is probably going to be a personal finance book you’ll really enjoy.

Why Critics Hate Rich Dad Poor Dad

While aspiring business creators will find lots of value in Rich Dad Poor Dad, business owners who have already experienced significant success may find it less valuable.

The book is a less about “how to become a successful entrepreneur” as it is a contrast between how employees think versus how rich people think and operate.

Readers looking to receive actionable advice about how to build a successful business will likely be disappointed.

However, anybody who has come through the traditional education system will almost certainly experience dozens of eye-opening moments.

For example, Kiyosaki contrasts how employees make money compared to how business owners and rich people make money.

Employees exchange their time for money every day they show up at work, whereas rich people build wealth by investing capital in assets that produce a regular stream of cash flow income.

As a result, rich people make money 24 hours a day whereas employees only make money when they show up to work.

Buy The Book

The Most Important Skill To
Master To Become Rich

Like Grant Cardone, Robert Kiyosaki believes that learning how to sell is the key skill needed to succeed in life and business.

Kiyosaki describes his experiences of selling Xerox copy machines and being laughed out of an office by one prospective customer because he (Kiyosaki) did such a poor job selling the machine.

But before leaving, the prospective customer advised Kiyosaki to keep going as a salesman because he had the courage to stand before a stranger, pitch a sale and ask for money.

Kiyosaki says that while salespeople have a reputation for being slimy, the reality is every CEO is ultimately a salesperson for their company because their primary responsibility is to generate sales.

Grant Cardone goes even further with this idea. He says that in order to succeed in life and relationships you need to master how to sell too.

By way of example, he shares a story about his wife, who was initially reluctant to date him but by “selling her” successfully on the idea of going on a date with him he finally won her over.

What Makes Rich Dad Poor Dad
Controversial

If you are fairly new to investing, some of the concepts shared by Robert Kiyosaki and Sharon Lechter will seem startling.

A famous but highly controversial one is the idea that an asset is something that puts money in your pocket.

By this definition, a house is not an asset because it takes money out of your pocket each month.

But all conventional accounting standards would label a house as an asset. By standing squarely head on against the entire accounting industry, Kiyosaki has received a lot of criticism.

Nevertheless he has not wavered from this unconventional perspective.

And he’s not alone. Grant Cardone also advises that nobody ever own a home either.

The idea behind this advice is that if you could invest your money in an asset that produces a higher return over 30 years you would end up with more money than you would by simply paying off a mortgage.

Plus, home prices don’t always rise over long time periods so there is no guarantee that owning a home is going to be a valuable investment.

Are Robert Kiyosaki & Grant Cardone Wrong?

Before blindly following this advice, you should think about whether it makes sense for you because renting has its own downsides.

When you rent, the amount you pay each year may increase if your landlord decides to hike your monthly payment each year.

If your landlord decides to sell, you may be forced to leave your home.

And when you pay rent you don’t build any “ownership” or equity in your home.

At least when you own a home you can lock in the monthly payment amount and be confident you will own the home in 30 years whereas when you rent you end up with nothing after 30 years.

Now imagine if you paid rent for your entire life, you could perhaps end up paying 60 years of monthly costs, which could possibly increase each and every year at the discretion of your landlord.

Sum up all those payments and it may amount to the equivalent of paying off two homes entirely!

Which Cashflow Quadrant Do You Fall Into?

Perhaps one of the most valuable concepts Kiyosaki shares is what he describes as the Cashflow Quadrant.

Most people go to school and then many go to University in order to earn qualifications needed to be hired as employees by companies.

But to become rich, Kiyosaki recommends migrating from the Employee category to one of the other three categories: Self-employed, Business Owner, and Investor.

As an employee, you exchange hours of your life for money. If you don’t show up when your boss requires then you get fired.

When you migrate to becoming self-employed, you gain more freedom. You get to show up when you want to work but you still need to perform the job in order to get paid.

As a business owner, your flexibility and responsibility increase further. People work for you and so, if your business is set up well, you earn some money from all their efforts.

Each dollar your profitable company earns as revenue is allocated. Some portion goes to employee salaries and, after all expenses are paid, you end up with some profits from the collective efforts of the team.

When you become a business owner, you have more freedom to take days off when you like and set work schedules. However, you also have more responsibilities to hire employees, manage human resource issues, pay salaries, set up healthcare and retirement plans and so on.

The most coveted category is the Investor, who doesn’t need to show up to work as an employee, doesn’t own a job like a self-employed individual, and doesn’t need to manage employees like a business owner.

An investor puts money to work and receives regular cash flow from investments, so they don’t need to work a 9-to-5. Instead, money works for them. An example of this is a dividend-paying stock like Ventas, which pays out a fixed amount of the total you invest each year.

Rich Dad Poor Dad:
The Good, Bad & Ugly

While Rich Dad Poor Dad is an eye-opening read for aspiring entrepreneurs and employees who never previously considered an alternative career path as a self-employed person or business owner, it may not be right for seasoned entrepreneurs looking for specific advice about how to take their companies to the next level.

It’s probably a good idea to take some of the more controversial topics with a pinch of salt. For example, Kiyosaki argues that it is less risky to be an entrepreneur than it is to be an employee.

As an employee, you can be fired at any time. Your salary is in the hands of a boss. And your income is dependent on whether you come to work each morning. By contrast, an entrepreneurial venture provides you more freedom, control, and flexibility.

Nevertheless, we suggest that anyone considering jumping ship from employee to self-employed or business owner status thinks deeply about the pros and cons first.

Many successful entrepreneurs say that in their quest to live a life with more time and freedom, they ended up working much harder than they did as an employee.

And entrepreneurship has its own set of risks. If you don’t find the right business model which can produce predictable profits, you may end up out of business and lose out on a stable career path.

Plus, hidden hardships lie in wait for entrepreneurs. Taking out a bank loan can be difficult unless you have stable income – a luxury many self-employed individuals do not enjoy.

Successful entrepreneurs tend to embrace risk too so you need to have the right mindset.

Day one after quitting your job, you need to generate income from somewhere. Be sure what goods or services could be sold to acquire customers. And be goal-oriented so you have a clear plan to reach milestones.

Whatever You Do…. Invest!

If the idea of setting up a company as a business owner or becoming self-employed doesn’t sound too appealing, consider dipping a toe in the water as an investor while remaining a salaried employee.

By squirreling away savings each and every month, and then investing them, you tie yourself to the future wealth and economic prosperity of already successful companies.

If you not sure where to begin, consider outsourcing your investments to Betterment or Personal Capital. These robo-advisors are much more than automated investment management services. These days, they can also connect with you financial advisors who help you to plan for your financial future and charge much less than traditional financial advisors.

Over time, the compounded gains from your investments can produce sufficient income so that you no longer need to depend on a job alone for money.

If you prefer to invest your own money, consider ways to boost income from stocks you own beyond what dividends pay. For example, you could look to sell covered call options at a specialist options broker like tastyworks or thinkorswim.

Above all, remember that cash gets whittled away over time as inflation eats into its purchasing power. So, while it’s important to have a cushion of cash for emergencies, it is crucial to invest for the long-term in order to build up a nest-egg that affords you the luxury to retire.

What finance books have you read that you would recommend? Let us know what the top personal finance books are in your opinion, we would love to hear from you.

>> Best Stock Market Books For Beginners

>> Top 5 Warren Buffett Books

>> Best Books On Technical Analysis

The article Rich Dad Poor Dad Review – Best Personal Finance Book? was originally posted on Investormint

Whether you are a twenty something, a beginner, a young adult, in college, or an experienced budgeting pro, you can always improve your financial IQ.

The average Joe or Jane citizen claims to read one book each year while the average CEO is reported to read sixty books annually. Why is reading more important to improving your financial well-being?

To build a richer life, make more money, and live more comfortably, new habits and knowledge are needed. And it’s for that reason we compiled a list of the best personal finance books to read.

1 – Best Finance Book
For Entrepreneurs: The 10X Rule

The 10X Rule: The Only Difference Between Success and Failure by Grant Cardone is a book designed for the go-getter who aspires for greater professional and personal wealth.

Cardone explores the habits that lead to mediocrity and the actions needed to create phenomenal success.

If you want to achieve extraordinary results professionally, personally, or physically, you will need to radically alter how you spend your time each day, according to Cardone.

A routine 9-to-5 job won’t translate into enormous riches. To reach phenomenal heights of success, you need to stop underestimating the effort needed and operate by what the author describes as the fourth degree of action: Massive Action.

The 10X Rule is provocative and will prod you to reflect on whether you could be doing more to realize a life of abundance versus an ordinary life which simply meets your needs.

The title of the book offers a hint of what lies within the pages of this bestselling book. You will be asked to think not about how you can increase your salary by 5-10% but how you can find ways to boost your income by 10X.

By aiming ten times higher, your mind is forced to seriously evaluate what it will take to transform your life from its current state to one of significantly more abundance.

In The 10X Rule, Cardone claims you will learn how to:

• Set goals and guarantee they are realized
• Achieve goals you previously imagined were unattainable
• Create happiness professionally, personally, and physically
• Never settle for what you have and understand why that is important
• Be motivated by fear and use it to fuel massive action
• Eliminate procrastination and follow a step-by-step guide to success

Get The 10X Rule Here >>

2 – Top Finance Book For
Adults – Principles: Life and Work

Ray Dalio may not be a household name to the general public but he is an icon in the investment management industry.

As a young, ambitious go-getter, he started a company in his two-bedroom apartment in 1975 and grew it to become one of the most successful private companies in the United States.

That company is called Bridgewater Associates and it made more money for its clients than any other hedge fund in history.

In Principles: Life and Work, Dalio shares a philosophy that he believes can be applied by anyone to create greater wealth and success in life, both professionally and personally.

As an ordinary kid from a middle class neighborhood in Long Island, Dalio claims that what led to his enormous success and that of Bridgewater Associates was a ruleset that anyone can follow.

Dalio believes economics, investing, and life itself can be systemized into rules and understood much like machines.

In this video, for example, he describes how the economy acts like a machine:

The basis of Dalio’s philosophy stems from the importance of what he calls “radical transparency” and “radical truth.”

He applies this philosophy at his firm, where employees receive “baseball cards” that highlight both their strengths and weaknesses. This approach he believes leads to more meaningful relationships and work.

Within the pages of Principles: Life and Work, Dalio shares hundreds of practical lessons to help individuals and companies become more effective and create richer outcomes.

Get Principles: Life and Work Here >>

3 – Best Book For
Getting Out Of Debt:
The Total Money Makeover

The Total Money Makeover: A Proven Plan For Financial Fitness by Dave Ramsey is a must-read for debt-laden consumers who overspend.

If you are saddled with debt from student loans, auto loans, personal loans, or a mortgage, and trying to figure out how to improve your financial health, this is the book for you.

In The Total Money Makeover, Ramsey attacks head-on the idea of “keeping up with the Joneses.” Just because your neighbor bought a new car doesn’t mean you should too in order to keep up appearances.

Instead, Ramsey advocates getting out of debt and shows you how to lower your debt levels through a 4-step process that includes:

1. List your debts from smallest to largest
2. Make minimum payments on all your debts except the smallest one
3. Pay as much of your smallest debt off as you can afford
4. Repeat the process until all of your debts have been paid off

If you want an automated way to help you achieve this method, called the Debt Snowball Method, check out this Tiller Money spreadsheet.

While some critics argue that it is better to pay off your highest interest debt first, Ramsey claims that research shows eliminating an entire bucket of debt feels better and helps people build momentum to pay down debt at a faster rate.

So, if you have credit card debt, a car loan, and a personal loan, the goal would be to pay off your personal loan or car loan entirely because it will make you more likely to get out of debt sooner – even if your credit card debt is costing you more each month because of higher interest rate charges.

If the idea of being more disciplined with how you spend money resonates with you, The Total Money Makeover is one of the top personal finance books to buy.

Get Total Money Makeover Here >>

4 – Personal Finance Book
For Beginners: MONEY Master The Game

Tony Robbins is best known as a speaker, life coach, and consultant to some of the best known celebrities, sports stars, and dignitaries from Princess Diana to Andre Agassi.

Usually his work concentrates on how to break bad habits, control your mind, rebuild broken relationships, be more confident, and discipline yourself.

So it may seem unusual for him to write a book purely about money, but following the stock market crash of 2008-09, Robbins believed people needed to learn about money in a simple, powerful way that wasn’t cluttered with financial jargon.

His book, MONEY Master The Game: 7 Simple Steps To Financial Freedom is a blueprint for how to improve your financial wellness.

Where most other personal finance books for adults, twenty somethings, or college kids are written from the perspective of the author, MONEY Master The Game is based on extensive research and interviews with 50 of the world’s richest people, including Warren Buffett, Ray Dalio, and Steve Forbes.

Robbins dispels financial myths that can steal away your financial future and shows you step-by-step how to become financially free by creating an income plan.

In the book, you will be guided through a 7-step plan designed to create financial freedom for you and your family. Not only does Robbins make complex financial concepts easy to understand but he provides an actionable plan to use from day one.

Get MONEY: Master The Game Here >>

5 – Best Finance Books of All Time:
Rich Dad Poor Dad

Rich Dad Poor Dad by Robert Kiyosaki is a timeless classic and a must-read for anyone who is working a 9-5 job yet aspiring for more wealth.

Kiyosaki shares the story of his real father who he describes as poor and his “Rich Dad” who taught him the skills of the ultra wealthy.

His actual father was by no means a professional slouch. He had succeeded in his career when it came to a lofty professional title but financially he was poor.

In Rich Dad Poor Dad, Kiyosaki explores the professional journeys of both his real father and his so-called “Rich Dad”, who had fewer academic credentials but had attained much greater wealth.

If you earn a regular salary, Kiyosaki will contrast your income potential with the earning possibilities of investors and business owners.

You will also learn about smart passive income streams so you can make money even when you are sleeping.

In Rich Dad Poor Dad, Kiyosaki shares his own story from unsuccessful Xerox salesman to multi-millionaire real estate mogul, successful author, and investor.

For readers who want to open their minds to new ways to make money and enjoy a page-turner in the process, few personal finance books are as compelling as Rich Dad Poor Dad: What The Rich Teach Their Kids About Money That The Poor and Middle Class Do Not!

Get Rich Dad Poor Dad Here >>

6 – Best Selling Finance Book:
The Richest Man In Babylon

The Richest Man In Babylon has long been regarded as one of the best books on finances.

What began as a collection of leaflets provided to consumers in the 1920s culminated in a book of timeless financial principles, priceless suggestions, and financial tools designed to help you become more financially successful.

You will learn how to control your expenditures, guard your nest-egg from loss, insure a future income, and enhance your capacity to earn.

The more you read the more you will discover pearls of wisdom, such as the Five Laws of Gold and how Work is the Key To Golden Shekels.

If you are looking for a book that reads as easily as a novel but is jam-packed with valuable financial lessons, The Richest Man In Babylon is a timeless classic.

Get The Richest Man In Babylon Here >>

7 – The Automatic Millionaire

Hailed as one of the greatest books on getting rich, The Automatic Millionaire by David Bach shares the story of a low-level manager and a beautician who earned no more than $55,000 per year collectively.

What makes their story extraordinary is how they retired with over $1 million, owned two homes debt-free and put their kids through college.

The natural conclusion is they must have adhered to a strict budget but in The Automatic Millionaire you will see how they achieved their financial goals without:

• Budgeting
• Earning a lot of money
• Summoning a lot of willpower
• Having an interest in money

In fact, this New York Times Bestselling book, which has sold over 1.5 million copies, claims to be a simple one-step plan that can be designed in one hour and it lives up to its promise.

If you are worried about securing your financial future and want a simple plan to achieve your financial aims, The Automatic Millionaire won’t disappoint.

Get The Automatic Millionaire Here >>

What finance books have you read that you would recommend? Let us know what the top personal finance books are in your opinion, we would love to hear from you.

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The article What Are The 7 Best Personal Finance Books? was originally posted on Investormint