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The Sound Mind Investing Handbook: A Step-By-Step Guide to Managing Your Money from a Biblical Perspective
Many excellent books teach God's principles of finance. Perhaps one or more of them has helped you lay a strong biblical foundation for carrying out your money management responsibilities. But as you try to apply those principles to making real-life investing decisions, it's easy to feel overwhelmed by the jargon and the sheer number of investment possibilities. Investment advisor Austin Pryor has carefully created the "next step" guide that helps you put Godly principles of finance into motion. Whether you're a beginner or an experienced investor, you'll benefit from stepping across this bridge between "theory" and "action". Each user-friendly lesson is written in everday English and filled with helpful visual aids. In this revised and updated edition of The Sound Mind Investing Handbook, you'll learn - What investing is and why it's actually quite simple
- Six characteristics of investing that glorifies God
- What important steps to take to prepare yourself financially before invest
- What mutual funds are and why they make investing easier than ever before
- How to use your personal investing "temperament" and present "season of life" to make decisions and limit your risk
- How to implement an investment strategy that's guaranteed to help you keep pace with the markets
- Tax-wise ways to invest for college, including the state-sponsored 529 savings plans
- The pros and cons of investing internationally
- The rules governing IRAs and 401(k)s and which should have the priority
- How to make the calculations needed to make sure your retirement countdown is on schedule
- College professors have even used this book in their finance classes because of its easy to understand format. So, whether you invest a little or a lot, these biblical principles apply to you. In short, he's made learning about investing as painless as it's going to get.
- Six characteristics of investing that glorifies God
- What important steps to take to prepare yourself financially before invest
- What mutual funds are and why they make investing easier than ever before
- How to use your personal investing "temperament" and present "season of life" to make decisions and limit your risk
- How to implement an investment strategy that's guaranteed to help you keep pace with the markets
- Tax-wise ways to invest for college, including the state-sponsored 529 savings plans
- The pros and cons of investing internationally
- The rules governing IRAs and 401(k)s and which should have the priority
- How to make the calculations needed to make sure your retirement countdown is on schedule
- College professors have even used this book in their finance classes because of its easy to understand format. So, whether you invest a little or a lot, these biblical principles apply to you. In short, he's made learning about investing as painless as it's going to get.
368 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1996
12 people are currently reading
118 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews
March 15, 2024
My parents trusted the strategies in Sound Mind Investing newsletter through my entire childhood, and I have seen the results. They're good. So my mom got me this handbook for Christmas one year by my request, because though I don't want to commit to a monthly newsletter, I thought I could handle a "one-and-done" presentation of the same material.
You guys, it was. So. Hard. Not because it's not readable: it's written so that even I, dumb as a brick as soon as you start saying the word "annuities" or start presenting percentages, could follow. It's just that where and how to invest is something that, even though I feel like I *should* know it in order to be a responsible adult, I don't *want* to have to know. I hate that I have to know it. There are no easy answers, and in this of all subjects, I would really prefer an easy answer. This is possibly my least favorite Adulting Subject in the school of life.
But I had SEEN SMI work. So after years of putting it off, I finally slogged through the book this year. And often, it felt like I was beating my head against a wall. I just don't understand this stuff easily.
But I'm done now, and I'm SO, SO glad I read it. Usually this stuff is "in one ear, out the other" for me. I forget it almost as soon as I re-learn it. But something about this book has made concepts stick, and I am finally more invested in the subject. (Get it? INVESTED.) I can have an intelligent (or at least, semi-intelligent) conversation about investing now. I can make decisions and know the reasons I'm making them. I've already changed several major things about where and how we are investing our savings. And after reading the book's last section, which shares Austin Pryor's testimony and presents truly encouraging biblical life principles to keep in mind in any situation, including investing, I so appreciate the heart that birthed this book. Its witness was a wonderful gift to me.
I thought I would make space on my shelf by washing my hands of this book as soon as I was done--why keep a thick book on INVESTING when an analysis of C. S. Lewis' Space Trilogy could take that space instead?--but I now consider it invaluable as a resource. I'll be keeping it--and referring to it--for years. One extra feature that I find particularly great is a series of worksheets in Chapter 21 that help you figure out 1) how much money you will likely need for retirement and 2) how much money you need to save annually in order to reach that goal by your chosen retirement age. I didn't know it was even POSSIBLE to have an educated guess for that kind of thing, but now I know. (And it's just as sobering as you might imagine it to be. Which makes me appreciate the wise and balanced counsel in this book even more!)
You guys, it was. So. Hard. Not because it's not readable: it's written so that even I, dumb as a brick as soon as you start saying the word "annuities" or start presenting percentages, could follow. It's just that where and how to invest is something that, even though I feel like I *should* know it in order to be a responsible adult, I don't *want* to have to know. I hate that I have to know it. There are no easy answers, and in this of all subjects, I would really prefer an easy answer. This is possibly my least favorite Adulting Subject in the school of life.
But I had SEEN SMI work. So after years of putting it off, I finally slogged through the book this year. And often, it felt like I was beating my head against a wall. I just don't understand this stuff easily.
But I'm done now, and I'm SO, SO glad I read it. Usually this stuff is "in one ear, out the other" for me. I forget it almost as soon as I re-learn it. But something about this book has made concepts stick, and I am finally more invested in the subject. (Get it? INVESTED.) I can have an intelligent (or at least, semi-intelligent) conversation about investing now. I can make decisions and know the reasons I'm making them. I've already changed several major things about where and how we are investing our savings. And after reading the book's last section, which shares Austin Pryor's testimony and presents truly encouraging biblical life principles to keep in mind in any situation, including investing, I so appreciate the heart that birthed this book. Its witness was a wonderful gift to me.
I thought I would make space on my shelf by washing my hands of this book as soon as I was done--why keep a thick book on INVESTING when an analysis of C. S. Lewis' Space Trilogy could take that space instead?--but I now consider it invaluable as a resource. I'll be keeping it--and referring to it--for years. One extra feature that I find particularly great is a series of worksheets in Chapter 21 that help you figure out 1) how much money you will likely need for retirement and 2) how much money you need to save annually in order to reach that goal by your chosen retirement age. I didn't know it was even POSSIBLE to have an educated guess for that kind of thing, but now I know. (And it's just as sobering as you might imagine it to be. Which makes me appreciate the wise and balanced counsel in this book even more!)
February 5, 2017
Typically, I prefer to move steadily and systematically through a book. This is a book you cannot rush through, as there are unlimited pearls of both spiritual and practical caliber within its pages.
April 22, 2018
A financial lifesaver. Truly valuable reading.
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October 13, 2023Goodreads
July 24, 2015
I don't know any family with a more pure heart than the Pryor family! I whole heartily recommend this resource, and their website, to anyone looking for biblical application for their finances. It's a relief knowing their topmost priority is for the audience to make financial choices with God as opposed to earning commissions on our sales. There are plenty of other financial advisors in our country with the latter as their top motivation. So, you make the decision who to get your financial counsel from!
December 3, 2012
This book does a fantastic job doing exactly what the title tells you. It explained securities in a very simple and easy way to understand and helped me not only begin to understand how the stock market works, but some of the best ways to invest in it according to what I need and my beliefs. I highly recommend it to anyone wanting to get a basic education on investing.
July 9, 2011
This is an excellent resource for understanding investing, lots of information and is very much a primer that explains what the average person needs to know, in order to be knowledgeable enough to start investing. Don't need to read the whole book but a great resource to have.
September 12, 2009
This book has been super helpful and motivating. I'm on the right track now!
October 28, 2011
Great book for anyone who is looking to learn about managing money and is a very easy read!
December 28, 2014
Good from a Christian perspective. Positive toward index funds and Vanguard. Reads like a textbook. Annoyingly, the books comes pre-highlighted.
Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews