Tag Archives: Steve Repak

Book Review: 6 Week Money Challenge for your personal finances – by Steve Repak, CFP

Having written a review of Steve Repak’s first book, Dollars & Uncommon Sense: Basic Training for Your Money, I was asked if I would review this one. I’ve sent an apology to the author for taking far too long to do so; I got overwhelmed with life stuff. But here is my review of this great little book.

Title: 6 Week Money Challenge for your personal finances

Author: Steve Repak, CFP

Published: 2016

This beautifully published little 5″ x 7″ book packs a big wallop. It is attractively presented with a hard cover and an attached lime green ribbon bookmark.

Steve Repak, a Certified Financial Planner, is the author of the very helpful Dollars and Uncommon Sense: Basic Training For Your Money – which I also reviewed.

In this book, his purpose is to help people wisely and responsibly manage their personal finances. The book is designed to take the reader through 6 weeks, giving valuable information and challenging the reader to break old/bad money habits and to begin practicing new good behaviours to carry them forward.

As a Christian, Mr. Repak based this step-by-step program on biblical principles, and even if the reader is not a Christian the advice given works for anyone needing it.
After the Foreword written by Boyd Bailey, CEO of Ministry Ventures and author, is an introduction with a few questions to answer and sections to prepare you – The Inspiration Behind This Book, How to Use This Book, What You Will Learn in This Book, Are You Ready For a Challenge?

Each week’s reading is divided into parts. Beginning with a scripture, the author then proceeds to tell you some things that are helpful and interesting, follows with a few questions to consider, and continues with great teaching, examples, personal experiences stories, and encouragement.

Week 1: The Biblical Foundations of a Solid Financial Future
Week 2: Spending
Week 3: Debt and Credit
Week 4: Savings and Investments
Week 5: Estate Planning Documents and Insurance
Week 6: Review (here he goes back to the theme of each previous week’s reading and gives extra challenges.)
Resources – suggestions to help you set up your finances
About the Author

This is a must-have book if you want to set your finances in order.
I included this book in my reading for the 52bookclub for prompt “an educational read.” Well suited!

 

Have you ever found this type of book helpful?

Thanks for Reading, and … Blessings on your day! 🙂

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Book Review: Dollars & Uncommon Sense: Basic training for your money – by Steve Repak, CFP

Book: Dollars & Uncommon Sense: Basic training for your money
Author: Steve Repak, CFP
Publisher: RFS Publishing
Date: January 2, 2012
Genre: Non-Fiction; Personal Finance
Pages: 166; paperback
Price: $14.95
My Rating: Excellent for anyone wanting to get out of debt and have enough to live on now and in retirement.

 

I received this book from Library Thing in exchange for an honest review.

I am so glad I was given the opportunity to read this book! With clarity and ordinary language, Steve Repak shares from experience how to get out of debt, how to save money and still have enough to live on, and how to prepare for a financially secure retirement – starting now.

In Dollars and Uncommon Sense you will find sound information and advice. The author, who is now a successful financial adviser, came out of the army with over $32,000 in credit card debt. He struggled to break free of that and eventually figured out how to efficiently pay it all off and still get ahead. In his well-written book – which is as easy to read as it would be to sit down and talk with him – he tells it how it is while helping the reader set up a plan for wise financial transformation. At the end of each chapter is a summary of the main points.

Part 1: Basic Training

Chapter 1 – Change the Way You Think

Chapter 2 – Build Your Foundations

Part 2: Spending

Chapter 3 – Principle: If You Spend Less, You Will Have More

Chapter 4 – Priorities: Give, Pay Yourself, Pay Everybody Else

Chapter 5 – Plan: A Plan for Your Paycheck

Part 3: Debt

Chapter 6 – Principle: Debt Puts Your Financial Health at Risk

Chapter 7 – Priorities: Quit Charging and Start Saving

Chapter 8 – Plan: Uncommon Sense Steps for Getting out of Debt

Part 4: Saving and Investing

Chapter 9 – Principle: It Doesn’t Take a Million to Make a Million

Chapter 10 – Priorities: “Life Happens,” Then “I Quit!”

Chapter 11 – Plan: Invest in Your Future

At the end, Steve Repak has a section called Useful Websites, a Glossary of the words perhaps hard to understand, and Worksheets that can also be downloaded from his own website. He seems to have made every attempt in this book to help the reader understand how debt can be handled, and how to live with adequate funds while also saving for  enough to live on comfortably in retirement.

It is never too late to apply his methods. For anyone too young to even be considering retirement, this is the very time to begin the plan! You won’t regret it.

Dollars & Uncommon Sense: Basic Training for Your Money is not a book to read, say “that was helpful,” and lay aside. This is a book with a step-by-step strategy to live free of the burden of debt and the worry of ‘will I have enough to live on?’ I urge you to “take the steps necessary to change your financial future.”

You can find Dollars & Uncommon Sense: Basic Training for Your Money listed on my BUY THE BOOK! page.

Thanks for reading, and … Creative Musings! 🙂