Suze Orman’s 2009 Action Plan: Keeping Your Money Safe and Sound is a book written specifically to help people know how to handle the current economic crisis. Suze Orman is direct and to the point in this book. She admits that no one is sure how long or how bad the current financial crisis will be, but she does provide sound advice on how to protect and prepare yourself and your family during this.
Pros
- Sound specific advice to address current economic problems
- Easy layout
- Good reference book
Cons
- Worries too much about FICO score
This book is laid out in a series of chapters. The first chapter urges each person to begin taking responsibility for her financial future. Suze Orman points out that with the new economy it is essential to face facts and take control of your financial life. Chapter two explains the things that cause the current crisis, and talks about the people who are responsible for it. She urges individuals to take responsibility for their finances.
The next six chapters out line an action plan for each specific financial area of your life. The first area is credit. She urges readers to get out of debt and then addresses the steps you should take in specific financial situations to maintain your credit score. The next area is retirement. This section is good because she breaks up the retirement actions differently depending on how many years you have for retirement. She explains how you should have your stocks and bonds in your 401(k) distributed, and encourages people to keep saving for retirement.
The next area is saving money. In this area Suze Orman talks about different savings tools, and ways that readers can most effectively save. She also talks about the safety of your money in the bank. The next area is spending. Suze Orman talks about setting a monthly cash flow plan (a budget). She encourages people to cut back and to be careful. The other areas discussed are Real Estate, Paying for College and Protecting Your Family. She does urge readers to increase their emergency funds to cover six months of expenses.
Suze Orman ends the book by urging readers to begin to take responsibility for their own financial lives now. She points out that sitting crippled with fear will not change the situation. True change will come as a result of action. Although the next few years may not be easy, it is important to keep working on improving.
This is a good book. Suze Orman cuts straight to the point with her advice. It is easy to find answers to specific questions or situations that you may be in. The advice is easy to follow, and she does promote financial responsibility. This is a great book to read if you have questions about the current economy and how you should change your financial habits during this time.
