Written: 22 April 2022

Author: Kirsty O'Hara

10 min read

Celebrate World Book Day with a mix of books and online investment resources

Introduction

If you’re sitting on the fence about investing, because you feel like you may not know enough, here are some helpful starting points for weekend reading and consideration.

With World Book Day on April 23rd, we thought it made sense to kick this list off with book recommendations. But we get that not everyone likes to learn by reading, so we've also included video, audible and podcast options if you prefer to learn this way!

The following suggestions are not financial advice, and are opportunities to grow your knowledge and confidence around investing. Like all things in life, they require you read / listen with attentiveness, and do additional due diligence around all future investments you are considering. The following are more guiding principles, and informed ways to approach money and finances in general.

With no more introduction, here are some top picks from the bookshelf, websites and Spotify:

Books:

1. The Barefoot Investor – by Scott Pape

This is a good easy breezy read for anyone new to the world of investing. A number of our customers have also said it is a great first read. It’s written with good humour by an Australian financial celebrity and includes plenty of good stories to help you unpack and improve your mindset and habits around money. You can expect to read what a bush fire taught Scott about money and a story about why we should all think like alpacas. He goes on to remind people that their family home is not as asset because it’s not something you can sell off (we all need somewhere to live) - and in doing so you can also expect some good tips about how to rename your bank accounts, how to think about safety-net emergency funds, how to allocate your income based on Scott’s percentage of income recommendations; and where to start when thinking about investing.

When we recently asked some of our existing Flint customers what helped them start their investment journey, they have also by chance pointed towards this book - as a good confidence builder to create healthy money habits and financial confidence.  

AUDIENCE: This book is best for people wanting to improve their money habits, or feel reassured that they have good money habits in place. It’s a light hearted fun read, that inspires readers to reassess their current and future financial situations in a non-judgemental way.

ACQUIRE: You can get a copy of The Barefoot Investor by clicking here, or if you prefer audio books you can find an audible copy by clicking here.

2. Rich Enough – by Mary Holm

If you’re new to investing, or new to finance literature, then Mary Holm is a name synonymous with commentary about all things finance related. A read from Mary Holm that you might find interesting is ‘Rich Enough’ which is a great source of financial titbits and wisdom. Mary Holm’s thoughts around money, and ways to stay calm during market volatility are surprisingly reassuring. She shares these philosophical takes on different financial situations in a good humoured and matter of fact way.

You can expect to read about debt (both good debt and bad debt), the importance of emergency savings, investing in KiwiSaver (Mary Holm’s a big fan) and the popular New Zealand debate about buying or not buying a house.

Our favourite outtake is a humble reminder that having more money is not the key to happiness, and sometimes can be the opposite.

If you find you enjoy this book, Mary Holm also has another title ‘A Richer You’ which you also may like to add to your nightstand wish list.

AUDIENCE: If you’re looking for the voice of common-sense and reason when it comes to money and setting financial goals – then Mary brings philosophical and considered guidance to inform money attitudes in any financial climate.

ACQUIRE: You can get a copy of Rich Enough here, or if you prefer to listen to Mary Holm you can listen to her on NZ Radio here.

 3. Rich Dad, Poor Dad – by Robert Kiyosaki

You may have spotted this title on a bookshelf at a friend or family member’s house. It has been a popular go-to read for decades and comes very much from a place of wanting to educate children about finance. The premise of the book is that Robert Kiyosaki was privy to two money mindsets: the money mindset of his hard-working father, contrasted with his best friend’s dad who taught him how to be hard working and strategic with money earned.

The key takeaways revolve around how we think of assets and how fear and greed can govern our appetite for investment. More than anything else, he highlights the danger of ‘not starting’  and is particularly passionate about people building good money habits.

AUDIENCE: This is a good book to pick up if you enjoy a casual read, regardless of whether you are new to the world of money and investing or just want to refresh your financial perspective and feel like you’re on track. Please do keep in mind it is written by an American, so there will be some aspects of the book that are not specific to investing in New Zealand – however the general overview of money and creating good financial habits holds true internationally.

ACQUIRE: You can get a copy of Rich Dad, Poor Dad here, or if you prefer audio you can listen here.

4.Principles – by Ray Dalio

Principles by Ray Dalio is a dry, slow read and probably not so great for the newbie investor! It is, however, very informative if you are keen to understand more about the Bridgewater founder’s backstory, philosophy and interest in commodities trading. Ray Dalio talks about the early days of investing and the lessons he learned the hard way. These hard lessons form the backbone for the principles Ray Dalio chooses to share with the world. His general thinking is that values, principles and rules can be a good backbone for making decisions that are less emotional and more likely to hold steady over time. If you’re brand new to investing, this may not be the best first pick for the nightstand, but if you’ve been interested in investing for a while then this could be one to consider.

If you follow Ray Dalio on LinkedIn, you will find your feed littered with regular quotes that can act as timely prompts to help shape your own ‘principles around investing.'

AUDIENCE: This one is probably more for someone wanting to formulate their own philosophy around investing. It’s a good book to remind investors that even those who appear to be creaming it, may have had some hard lessons along the way that shaped their personal investing philosophy (which may in turn shape yours).

ACQUIRE: You can get a copy of Principles here, or if you prefer audio you can listen here.

5. How I Invest My Money: Finance experts reveal how they save, spend, and invest - Edited by Joshua Brown and Brian Portnoy

How I invest my money is a collection of 25 short, entertaining essays from experts in the finance industry on how they invest their own money. While the book features only people from the US, the learnings are universal. The contributors discuss how they save, invest, borrow, spend and give. The key outtakes from the book are that there is no one ‘right’ way to invest and manage your finances. Instead, the best way for you to invest is dependent on your own experiences, values and goals.

AUDIENCE: It’s a great read for someone who is working out how best to manage their own finances. You may find that some of the ideas and practices ring true for your personal situation and help you form your own financial strategy.     

ACQUIRE: You can get a copy of How I Invest My Money here, or if you prefer audio you can listen here.

Podcasts and Online Learning:

1. Money Hub

This is a popular go-to website for guides, tools, reviews and calculators. It covers many topics related to money, investment, insurance, banking and KiwiSaver. It’s a good one stop shop for all those things we have to think about as adults. Navigation on the site is basic, but the content could be useful towards better understanding the different types of investment opportunities available for your consideration.

VISIT: Money Hub or read Money Hub’s Flint review.

 2. Your Money with Mary Holm (Radio Series available on Spotify).

This is a RadioNZ regular feature, where if you don’t mind the occasional covid-muffled recording you can enjoy conversations on finance related topics. The only catch is the titles on Spotify aren’t well labelled, so it can be a bit of a lucky dip when you are listening as to the specifics of the content being featured in each episode. If you want to see more about each episode, visit maryholm.com. This podcast is great for those who have time to wade through the episodes and enjoy a dose of inspiration from a well-respected financial commentator.

AUDIENCE: This is a good one for ordinary investors of all ages, wanting a very pragmatic voice of reason sharing guidance on all aspects of finance.

LISTEN: to Mary Holm here.

3. The Curve (Podcast & Masterclass Series - available on Spotify).

The Curve is a podcast for those aged 20 to 40, focused very much around providing an investment education platform for women. It’s a fun introduction to money. The Curve have both a Podcast channel on Spotify, as well as an Educational Masterclass on their website.

On the podcast the main host is Victoria Harris, an investment strategist from Devon Funds, who talks her best friend Soph through the world of money habits and investing.

It’s a fun listen, as these two thirty-somethings unpack financial abbreviations and how to start thinking about investing - especially when you are new to it.

There are lots of great episodes that talk about the specifics of managed funds and key investment considerations that may inform your own personal investment philosophy when investing via Flint.

AUDIENCE: This channel has a strong focus on inspiring women to feel confident about money and finance. It’s a fun platform for any newbies wanting to learn about finance in a upbeat and empowering space.

LISTEN: to The Curve here.

4. Barry Ritholz – Top 10 Rules for Money

If blogs and lists are your favourite way to learn and get inspired, then this list crossed our desks recently. Sometimes you just can’t beat a good top 10 list to get motivated and inspired. Barry touches on key mindsets that will steer you well, with everything from the basics of ‘spending less than you earn’ through to valuable mindsets to keep top of mind when taming your emotions and assessing your appetite for risk and investing. This is one list worth checking out:

AUDIENCE: This has some gems that would hold true. For newbies it might shape your philosophy. And for more mature investors, it may be a nice refresher and head nodding experience.

READ: to read the full list of Barry’s Top 10 Money Tips click here

5. It’s no Secret (Available on Spotify).

The Kernel team have a great series that is very much driven by statistical insights, presented in a fun and informative way. The duo presenting the content come from advisory and life coaching backgrounds, however they aim to keep things in a ‘Personal Case Study’ realm – where you can enjoy learning from the presenters own financial journey’s around money mindsets and investing, and apply this learning to help form your own money attitudes.

WARNING: husbands do get thrown under the bus from time to time, but all with the sincere objective of highlighting different money mindsets and attitudes we each have when learning about financial wellbeing.

AUDIENCE: this is a good one for those aged 28 – 45 years, who are starting to feel on track with money but are wanting to learn more about investing, and how to prepare for retirement.

LISTEN: Click here to check out It’s No Secret.

 6. Get Sorted, with Sorted - Online tips & tools

Last on the list, but definitely not least, the Flint team are fans of Sorted. For years now Sorted, a New Zealand Government run website, has been recommended across the industry as a go-to site for references and tools to help you better understand money topics such as investing, saving for your first home or planning for retirement. They provide all sorts of handy guides, tips, calculators, and assessment tools for you to better understand your money personality and money habits to help you achieve your long term financial goals.

AUDIENCE: No matter where you are at in your investment journey, head on over to see what Sorted is serving up for consideration. Sorted regularly remind us to reassess our budget, lifestyle, age and stage – and offer prompts and guides as to how we best prepare for finance across all ages and milestones.

VISIT: https://sorted.org.nz/guides/saving-and-investing

Let’s summarise

At Flint we appreciate that starting can sometimes be the hardest part of investing. We encourage you to stay, curious seek to be informed and soak up information on investing. Hopefully some of the above suggestions might resonate with you, whether you’re just starting out or are a seasoned investor. And remember, the suggestions provided here are simply reviews of sources and are no away advice or endorsement of the views of any of these sources of information.

We wish you all the very best for your financial future and wealth generation.

Happy Investing!

IMPORTANT NOTICE AND DISCLAIMER:

All content shared is of a general nature, current to the time it was penned, and is not financial advice. Before making any investment decisions, please be sure you have completed full due diligence. This should include reading the product disclosure statement (PDS), considering fees and taxation, identifying your time horizons, and understanding the performance history and reputation of the investments you are considering.

Please note: When investing you are not guaranteed to make money (and on occasion you may lose some or all of the money you began with). Seek independent advice to establish if an investment is suitable for your financial situation and long-term wealth generation goals.