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Living The Savvy Life: The Savvy Woman's Guide to Smart Spending and Rich Living
It's Not About Being Cheap. Living the Savvy Life isn't about being a cheapskate, a miser or a tightwad. It's about having security and peace of mind by spending less than you make. It's about knowing where you stand financially on a daily basis so you can make intelligent fiscal decisions. It's about being penny-wise on the things that are less important to you so you can spend money on the things that are important to you. It's about choosing to purchase only the things that you love and make you happy. It's about cooking at home more often so you can occasionally splurge on dinner at your favorite restaurant. It's about creating an environment in your home that is warm, comforting, and expressive of who you are. It's about having a wardrobe made entirely of clothes that fit and look great on you. It's about enjoying your time off even more because you planned for it and know you can “afford it.” Although Living the Savvy Life is filled with ways to save money, it isn't about frugal living. It's about finding, attaining and maintaining balance. Are you ready to start Living the Savvy Life?
228 pages, Paperback
First published January 11, 2011
26 people are currently reading
222 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 30 reviews
February 11, 2019
I have read a lot of books on how to save money, how to get out of debt, how to spend less and most were books about getting strict with yourself and sacrificing your lifestyle to be debt free and have security. What is different about this book and what I love about this book is that it is not about being frugal for frugality's sake but being frugal so you can do the things you really want, have the things you really want and still have a responsible monetary life and savings in the bank for emergencies.
For instance she writes that living the Savvy life isn't about being a cheapskate, a miser or a tightwad. It's about:
Being penny-wise on the things that are less important to you so you can spend money on the
things that are important to you.
Choosing to purchase only the things that you love and make you happy.
Cooking at home more often so you can splurge on the dinner you really want at your favorite
expensive restaurant.
Having a wardrobe made entirely of clothes that fit and look great on you.
Having security and peace of mind by spending less than you make.
Enjoying your time off even more because you planned for it and know you can "afford it."
She gives so many useful tips on decorating, clothes, beauty, travel, etc.:
Before you consider making a single purchase, ask yourself, "is this going to make me happy
now and in the future?" Fall madly in love with an item. Don't be an easy date.
Shop Your Closet - it's ironic but true that the less clothing you have, the more of your clothes
you actually wear. Then she teaches you how to "shop your closet."
When shopping, head right to the back of the store where the sale items are then work your
way to the front where the regularly priced items are.
Drinking coffee first thing in the morning causes your kidneys to have to work too hard, hence,
dark circles under your eyes. Instead, drink water first thing in the morning before you drink
your coffee.
For lips and eyes, gold lip gloss and gold shadow looks good on just about everybody.
On food: Sales can lure us into overbuying. Remember: your pantry is inventory, if your
inventory isn't moving then it's money sitting on your shelf.
This is a book I will keep on my reference shelf and read it again once a year to refresh my memory on great attitudes and tips for spending my money and ordering it in a way that creates a lifestyle of things and activities that I really love and want in my life, and not just settle because I have spent my money on things I don't really need or don't really love.
For instance she writes that living the Savvy life isn't about being a cheapskate, a miser or a tightwad. It's about:
Being penny-wise on the things that are less important to you so you can spend money on the
things that are important to you.
Choosing to purchase only the things that you love and make you happy.
Cooking at home more often so you can splurge on the dinner you really want at your favorite
expensive restaurant.
Having a wardrobe made entirely of clothes that fit and look great on you.
Having security and peace of mind by spending less than you make.
Enjoying your time off even more because you planned for it and know you can "afford it."
She gives so many useful tips on decorating, clothes, beauty, travel, etc.:
Before you consider making a single purchase, ask yourself, "is this going to make me happy
now and in the future?" Fall madly in love with an item. Don't be an easy date.
Shop Your Closet - it's ironic but true that the less clothing you have, the more of your clothes
you actually wear. Then she teaches you how to "shop your closet."
When shopping, head right to the back of the store where the sale items are then work your
way to the front where the regularly priced items are.
Drinking coffee first thing in the morning causes your kidneys to have to work too hard, hence,
dark circles under your eyes. Instead, drink water first thing in the morning before you drink
your coffee.
For lips and eyes, gold lip gloss and gold shadow looks good on just about everybody.
On food: Sales can lure us into overbuying. Remember: your pantry is inventory, if your
inventory isn't moving then it's money sitting on your shelf.
This is a book I will keep on my reference shelf and read it again once a year to refresh my memory on great attitudes and tips for spending my money and ordering it in a way that creates a lifestyle of things and activities that I really love and want in my life, and not just settle because I have spent my money on things I don't really need or don't really love.
December 24, 2011
An interesting and useful read. Some of these things I can definitely adapt to our lifestyle over here, and the website & extra resources she provides inside are helpful and many of them are free! The writing style was good - she didn't talk down to the reader about having a superior lifestyle/way of living, but worked on coaching the reader and providing examples of how you, too can do this.
October 1, 2023
Overall really liked this book, it did an excellent job of showing how financial literacy will improve every aspect of your life.
My only complaint is that in the list of financial rules of thumb the author left out one of the most important: the 4% rule of thumb (you can safely withdraw up to 4% of a market based portfolio and never run out of money, which means you need 25x your annual expenses to be financially independent).
My only complaint is that in the list of financial rules of thumb the author left out one of the most important: the 4% rule of thumb (you can safely withdraw up to 4% of a market based portfolio and never run out of money, which means you need 25x your annual expenses to be financially independent).
June 7, 2023
Full of ideas and insights. I will easily recommend this to my girlfriends. It took me two days to read and I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book. Melissa's ideas aren't far fetch, and it's relatable to all of us.
August 10, 2017
Very basic ideas and suggestions on how to arrange your lifestyle and habits as it pertains to money. if you're looking for something a little more advanced then I'd suggest skipping this.
May 22, 2011
The key to financial success is balance. This is reiterated throughout the book. Yet, it is still one of the best lessons I've ever learned about managing my finances. From my experience, the toughest aspect of financial freedom is setting any plan to habit. What I enjoyed most about this book were the simple to follow ideas, and suggestions to finding the areas of your life where you can save. Some of the suggestions in this book seem simple, though actually applying them into every day financial planning may be very difficult and frustrating. Living The Savvy Life is a great book for anyone looking for great ideas that can change how you look at spending and saving. I would recommend this book to men, as much as I would for women. Even though the advice is guided more towards women, it's still great advice and can just as easily be applied for men. Great job Melissa and Kevin! I look forward to reading more from you.
February 3, 2014
Meh, this was ok. I think it was targeted to a slightly younger, most likely single female demographic. Nothing really new here. I appreciate that she has a moderate approach to finances - you should still be able to do the things you love, buy the things that you really want, just be smart about it and make sure your priorities are in place and focus on quality, not quantity. I/we are definitely doing a lot of things right but need to tighten up the spending and this was a good reminder of that. I didn't really find much advice about digging yourself out of the black hole of debt other than to cut back expenses. Well, duh. But is it worth it to go extreme and buckle down, be a hermit, to pay that stuff off or take the nice and easy route of leisurely ticking away at it? This was a little more touchy feely soft than what I'm looking for right now. I need a fire to be lit under my ass and this does not do it.
August 6, 2011
A good book. I already knew a lot of the info, but I was coming to it as a generally frugal/thrifty person looking for ways to help curb my spendaholic partner, not as a spendaholic myself (except occasionally when the meds don't work.) If you're a spendaholic I can see it being helpful.
There's still some new stuff that I think I'm going to try, especially the 'spend book' (list the purchases you want to make over and above your normal shopping, so when you do have the extra you're more focused on what you really want.) I think that might be useful because while I tend towards frugality, when the bipolar kicks in I have been known to impulse buy like mad (pun intended), so maybe if I do it this way I'll at least impulse buy stuff that I wanted when I wasn't manic. It's worth a try, right?
Also there are some avenues in the cleaning section I might have a go at.
There's still some new stuff that I think I'm going to try, especially the 'spend book' (list the purchases you want to make over and above your normal shopping, so when you do have the extra you're more focused on what you really want.) I think that might be useful because while I tend towards frugality, when the bipolar kicks in I have been known to impulse buy like mad (pun intended), so maybe if I do it this way I'll at least impulse buy stuff that I wanted when I wasn't manic. It's worth a try, right?
Also there are some avenues in the cleaning section I might have a go at.
April 9, 2012
A good read. I gave only four stars to this book because I've read other books and articles giving similar financial advice and money-saving tips. If you've never read a book on how to save money, then this book would be a good starting place. They have all the basic components of how to analyze your spending and find places where you can save money. The language and the organization of the book is extremely user friendly.
I didn't come across any new financial tips. However, I did find some new resources that may be helpful. I've bookmarked a few new websites that I may end up loving. I've also added some more books to my to-read list.
I didn't come across any new financial tips. However, I did find some new resources that may be helpful. I've bookmarked a few new websites that I may end up loving. I've also added some more books to my to-read list.
October 3, 2019
Living the Savvy Life is full of helpful, well-organized information on money management, but more than that, on how to really enjoy the money you do spend to the fullest. The authors provide lots of good advice, helpful ideas and fun examples of living a satisfying life while still putting money in the bank and paying all the bills. There is nothing unusual or difficult about anything presented, just plenty of simple, down to earth common sense, laid out in simple everyday language that doesn't take any kind of expertise in finance to understand. A wise and useful guide to financial security and the deep satisfaction that can bring.
November 13, 2011
"Save money on the things that aren't important to you so you can afford to spend money on the things that are important to you" is the philospophy of Living the Savvy Life. Beside the obvious financial advice this book touches on shopping, cooking, dressing and makeup selection and how to clean and organize your home. Most of the information is just common sense but I did find some new ideas for doing things. Worth the short time it takes to read this.
August 2, 2013
Pretty good and very common sense but with some twists. It was good for helping to understand forcing priorities and budgeting appropriately. Strangely, the money section was the least helpful for me. A spreadsheet is not the most efficient tracking mechanism for a budget and spending. Mint is much better for us.
April 20, 2016
There are a few really good nuggets of advice in here which will see you through if you can follow them. The book is well laid out and the information presented in such a way that you can pick or choose which parts are most pertinent to you. I read the whole book but I did feel that some advice was so obvious although I guess it depends just how far down the rabbit hole you have gone.
July 19, 2011
Good advice for living within your means, but nothing new for me. The gist is summed up with this: be selective about what you spend your money on so you can have money for what you really want and really love. Take care of what you own so it can last a long time.
August 11, 2011
This hit such a chord with me that I'm re-reading. The philosophy and rules are so do-able and common sense. I can envision incorporating her recommendations into my life and it making an incredible difference.
December 8, 2011
Really great "how-to"/motivational book on spending money on the important things/goals in one's life versus that disabling rampant consumerism mindset most people live by. I will definitely be incorporating some of the author's ideas and suggestions!
December 22, 2011
The financial tips are interesting and useful. The writing is occasionally stilted, but the author is likeable.
January 5, 2012
great ideas in this book!!
April 19, 2012
A lot of common sense stuff with a couple of new suggestions (like a book to keep track of the things you want to buy).
November 18, 2012
Easy read. Simple, practical tips to paying attention to your choices and habits in finance.
December 18, 2012
Common sense but still give you motivation and good ideas :)
February 4, 2013
Good ideas on budgeting and saving for big ticket items.
February 2, 2014
I enjoyed her talk when I saw her in person, but didn't feel those ideas came through well in the book. I couldn't relate to most of it.
August 13, 2014
This book has very helpful tips for living a savvy life.
September 24, 2014
Sou uma iniciante nestas andanças do conceito de minimalismo e de viver de forma simples e este livro dendo uma grande motivação para continuar neste mudança na minha vida. Aconselho!!
April 15, 2015
I enjoyed this book. It contained a lot of simple common sense advice that was just what I needed at the right time in my life. Good reinforcement for making the right decisions.
July 16, 2015
No new info here for me- I could have written this book! However, it's nice to see the common sense on these pages and others who don't already follow the"savvy life" will benefit from reading it!
January 28, 2016
A few good tips....
May 10, 2011
A nice collection of ideas for financial organization. Geared towards women. A few new ideas.
November 19, 2012
A must read for everyone looking for financial security.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 30 reviews