One Year to an Organized Financial Life: From Your Bills to Your Bank Account, Your Home to Your Retirement, the Week-by-Week Guide to Achieving Financial Peace of Mind

by Regina Leeds, Russell Wild

Do you constantly feel anxious about money? Have unopened credit card statements piled up on your countertop? Are you forever losing receipts for items you meant to return? In an economic downturn taking charge of your financial well-being is more crucial than ever. One Year to an Organized Financial Life is a unique week-by-week plan to make saving money simple, automatic, and stress-free.For decades, professional organizer Regina Leeds and financial advisor Russell Wild have helped thousands of clients get their lives in order. Using Leeds’s “Zen organizing” approach, which addresses the underlying causes of chaos and replaces them with routines, they now show readers the steps to improving finances within a manageable timeframe. From sticking to a budget to getting out of debt, curbing spending to maximizing retirement savings, One Year to an Organized Financial Life makes it possible for anyone to live more richly on less.

Genres: Nonfiction, Self Help, Finance, Personal Finance, Reference, Money, Personal Growth

271 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2009

About the author

Professional Organizer. New York Times best selling author of 9 books. Speaker.

Reviews

[Brittany · Rating 2 out of 5]

In concept I think this is a good book it just wasn't for me. Each chapter in the book is a month. The first few chapters are for folk who apparently don't know how much money they make or where to find their bills. So it spent three chapters /three months organizing the work space and gathering bills. I skipped alot of this. Since I already have a budget and a workspace that is organized.

By the fifth chapter/month I had lost steam because we were no talking about making a realistic budget and talking to your partner about a budget (which frankly I thought should be your first step).

I stopped reading after the six chapter because the author revealed that she is a single woman. I am not opposed to single women in general having once been one. But I am not single I am a wife and a mother and I am running a household.

I had hoped this book would give we some insights into better budgeting or some tools I wasn't already accessing but it didn't.

It was well written and organized it just wasn't for me.

[Kevin Keating · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is one of those books that has a lot of obvious stuff but also some pretty good gems of ideas of stuff to do. Pretty easy-going style and some handy resources in the back,. I hope it has a more updated edition, this one being fro 2008. Gets dated pretty fast. Author mentioned spending too much time on a Blackberry.

[Jay French · Rating 2 out of 5]

Given the title, I was hoping this would provide details in what to save in terms of finances, organization ideas, and record keeping requirements. I have read many magazine articles that offered advice on these same topics, but I figured that, given this was book length, I’d learn more detail. Instead of diving into the details of these topics, the author broadens the coverage to include topics beyond organization and record-keeping to general personal finance, including ideas on how to shop for the holidays, differences between IRA accounts, and the like. As a generic personal finance book, it was mostly OK, hitting most topics but missing a few. As for the organization of a financial life, I was surprised to see the author recommending destroying receipts early on, then mentioning later that some of those receipts might be required for recordkeeping for, say, real estate basis. And I was looking for suggestions on how to handle receipts and recordkeeping for product warranties. Not covered here, to my surprise. I also expected some coverage of information tracking, like tracking of net worth, as well as scanning and data organization. Not here. Overall, in many ways about what you’d expect if it had a broader title, but not quite deep enough for the title it has. If you haven’t read a magazine article on personal financial recordkeeping, this would cover it as a readable but incomplete introduction. If you already have a system or some knowledge, this isn’t necessary.

[N. Nelson · Rating 2 out of 5]

Confession: I started skimming halfway through. Once again, a book aimed towards people who are firmly mid/upper class. "Where are the financial books for people at or below the poverty line?" I ask. Most of the advice here is laughably useless (sure, I'll sell that RV that is collecting dust in my yard) or is common sense (pay off your credit card every month, duh).

The keep/shred list and a few of the organizational tips were useful, which is why this gets 2 stars instead of 1.

[Bonnie G. · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm conflicted on this book- in one sense it really is exactly as it claims- a one year plan to get your financial health in order. A collaboration bw a professional organizer and CFA, this book delivers. Halfway though it gets incredibly dry and not as well written and I have a feeling Russell Wild the MBA is to blame. I actually like Regina Leeds writing- she asks really interesting and probing questions to make one reflect on what is truly valuable. The book is set up as a calendar year for tax purposes and prob t take advantage of NYE resolutions! I def so recommend this book as an overview to finances and general financial health but skim the sections you don't really need. A good solid resources and a nice addition to figuring out a tailored financial plan.

[Maureen · Rating 4 out of 5]

I like the zen organizing approach of this book and that it is a year-long project, not an overnight fix. I got some great practical information on what kind of paperwork I need to save vs toss, how to create a good organization system for important documents, and how to correct errors on credit reports, etc. There is also information on investing, mortgages, insurance, saving for college, so something for everyone. :)

[Charlotte Harness · Rating 4 out of 5]

It’s a good book to follow to get the basic idea of things. Many of these things I’m already doing but read it to see if there were any new ideas for me to help improve on. It would be great for someone just starting out.

[Annburnett · Rating 4 out of 5]

It is a good monthly book to get you on the right track to getting your finances organized. It covers all twelve months and gives you weekly things to concentrate on.

[Sydney · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good playbook for getting your financial house in order.

[Dulcinea · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very helpful.

[Shauna · Rating 4 out of 5]

Hoping that an update is on the horizon as this is a touch old, but good for getting a foundation started! Although this is meant to be read weekly, I read the entire thing in a couple of weeks and will be following the advice that is pertinent to me. 🙂

[Westminster Library · Rating 3 out of 5]

A great deal of good information about organization, budgeting, retirement, etc. Anyone could find some part of the information in this book helpful in improving skills. The two author’s different strengths make this book very useful.

Find One Year to an Organized Financial Life at the Westminster Public Library.

[Angela · Rating 3 out of 5]

An interesting collaboration between a professional organiser and a financial planner. One of the best things about the book was the website references--I had to keep it out a little overdue to go back through the book and get all the sites bookmarked! Helpful organization tips especially for dealing with taxes and record retention. Worthwhile read, not earthshattering but with some helpful nuggests and ideas.

[Breanne · Rating 4 out of 5]

I checked this book out from the library as part of my quest to organize my finances to save for a house, and it was wonderful! The advice is just incredible for organizing everything that has to do with your finances. I am so buying this as an e-book to have on my nook to start right at the beginning in the new year.

[Amber · Rating 3 out of 5]

Easy to read book that breaks down organizing your finances into simple, manageable, weekly chunks unified under a monthly theme. No real new information here for someone who is familiar with personal finance books. As it says in the title, the focus here is on getting things organized. Would be a good companion book if you struggle with finding time and materials for managing your finances.

[Nichole]

I checked this book out from my local library a few months back and really liked how the book was broken down into sections and tasks to do each month. Since my husband and I are trying to get back on track with our spending and budget I will be giving this book a second glance really soon.

[Laura · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was a little more helpful than her other one but still not super helpful (it's those shopping lists again). I did appreciate the list of what to keep/what to shred so I may check out the book again in a month or two for that.

[Vicki · Rating 2 out of 5]

The table of contents to this book is incredibly detailed, more like an outline than a TOC. The book itself doesn't add much to those first 10 pages, unfortunately. Basic advice and not a very engaging voice.

[Heidi · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not exactly what I was looking for. Seems like there were some good tid-bits that were hidden amongst the fluff.

[Therese · Rating 3 out of 5]

258 Pages

I do alot of things recomended