Last editedJun 20212 min read
Like Liam Neeson in the film Taken, you have a particular set of skills. It’s your skills, experiences and natural talent that got your business up and running. As your business grows from strength to strength, your unique skills, experiences and insights continue to form your USP and build your brand identity. After all, you are the one thing that your competitors can never replicate! But brilliant as you are at what you do, as a business owner you need to be a true autodidact. You should aim to constantly build on your knowledge and skill base.
Many business owners look to US business tycoon, investor and prodigious reader Warren Buffett as an example of someone who is constantly learning and growing. And wherever your skills and talents may lie, improving your knowledge of finance is a key step in your journey of personal growth. Here we’ll look at 5 of the best finance books for 2021 that can benefit you in your personal and business life.
Best place to start: The One Page Money Plan
Not all business owners are financial geniuses. Indeed, many aren’t. if you’re not sure where to start, The One Page Money Plan by Carl Richards is a great entry point. It’s very accessible and can help demystify the workings of finance. Perfect for those with a habit of burying their heads in the sand when it comes to money matters (we’ve all done it). It starts by helping you to identify financial goals and develop a simple one-page plan to achieve them.
Best for market research: The Psychology of Money
The Psychology of Money by Morgan Housel is a fascinating read, and one that could prove invaluable in your business and personal life. It can help us to identify the emotional and psychological predispositions and triggers that influence our decisions around money. A great way to better understand your customers’ spending habits as well as your own, and a useful tool for your market research arsenal.
Best for investors: The Financial Times Guide to Investing
If you want to grow your personal wealth, prudent saving is only one piece of the puzzle. If you’ve always wanted to get into investing but haven’t a clue where to start, The Financial Times Guide to Investing by Glen Arnold should be your bible! It is both accessible and comprehensive, demystifying the world of investment and helping you to make informed decisions on what and when to buy, sell and hold.
Best for personal finance: The Total Money Makeover
The economics of running a business aren’t necessarily the same as running a financially healthy household. Especially when it comes to your relationship with debt. But learning to get your own house in order can benefit you in both your personal and business finance. The Total Money Makeover by Dave Ramsey is very American and unabashedly confrontational in its prose. Nonetheless, it’s very good at helping you to take an uncompromising look at your bad habits, take steps to avoid them in future and mitigate their effects on your current finances.
Best all-rounder: Money: A User’s Guide
Finally, if you’re looking for a great all-rounder you can’t get much better than Laura Whateley’s Money: A User Guide. Designed to be everything you could want in a finance book, it covers all the bases in succinct chapters that make it great for quick reference. It’s also staggeringly comprehensive, balancing personal finance with happiness and emotional harmony with subjects like ethical investing and the link between money and love.
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If you’re interested in discovering more about any aspect of your business finances, then get in touch with our financial experts. Find out how GoCardless can help you with ad hoc payments or recurring payments.
