Top 10 Books You Need to Read to Achieve Financial Freedom

Financial freedom is an ultimate goal for many people. However, achieving it is easier said than done. It requires extensive research, knowledge, and the right strategies, which is why many turn to books when looking for information on how to achieve it.

The problem is that there are plenty that talk about financial freedom. With this in mind, finding the right books that can actually help can be quite difficult. If this is your case, then you have come to the right page. We have done the groundwork for you and compiled the best books that will help you on your road to achieving financial freedom.

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Top Books That Will Help You Achieve Financial Freedom

Here are the top books that will help you achieve financial freedom:

1. Rich Dad, Poor Dad by Robert Kiyosaki

When it comes to books that will help you enrich your knowledge with personal finances, Rich Dad, Poor Dad are always on the top of the list. It encourages readers to take financial literacy and financial independence seriously. In this book, you will get plenty of financial knowledge ranging from investing in assets to building your business from scratch.

What makes this book different from other self-help finance books is how the message is conveyed. Most authors convey their message in a conversational tone wherein readers are like their friends. But, with this book, the lessons are delivered using parables based on Kiyosaki’s life. This gives it a more realistic and human approach to teaching readers about finances.

About the Author

Robert Kiyosaki is an American author and businessman. He founded Rich Global LLC, which is a private financial education company that offers business education and personal finances through videos and books.

Bottom Line

You will not feel bored when reading this book. In fact, your emotions might be stirred up in a good way. The realistic contrast between a rich dad and a poor dad will show you the two different sides of the coin and allow you to get an idea of both parties’ right decisions and mistakes. After reading this book, you will get plenty of financial knowledge and motivation to continue to preserve the path of financial freedom.

2. The Millionaire Next Door by Thomas Stanley and William Danko

When you hear the word “millionaire,” the first thing that might come to mind is those who live a lavish lifestyle without worrying about their finances. But, according to this book, that is not the case. In fact, real millionaires are those who live within their means and achieve wealth by saving and working hard.

Aside from teaching you the valuable lesson mentioned above, this book will also provide you with an in-depth description of the common traits that many true millionaires have. This will significantly help you learn from them to increase your chances of being one of them someday.

About the Author

Thomas Stanley is an American business theorist and writer. He worked at Data Points, a company founded based on his data and research, as a chief advisor. He was also a faculty member at the State University of New York, and the University of Albany.

On the other hand, William Danko worked as a marketing faculty for over 3 decades. He has multiple publications that appeared at prominent journals such as Journal of Business Research, Journal of Consumer Research, and Journal of Advertising Research.

Bottom Line

If you are looking for a data-driven and research-based book that will help you achieve financial freedom, this might just be what you are looking for. Despite that, it’s presented in an easy-to-understand manner that even those who are beginners in finance will quickly understand.

3. The Total Money Makeover by Dave Ramsey

One of the biggest obstacles that people face that prevent them from achieving financial freedom is debts. Although these might sound like something that you should avoid at all costs, knowing how to make the right kind of debt is essential in navigating personal finances. This is something that this New York Times bestseller book will teach you.

The Total Money Makeover is a straightforward guide that will help you avoid the common pitfalls when dealing with debts. It talks about different scenarios that involve different forms of debt, such as cash advances, credits, and rent to own.

In addition, this book also contains solid advice on how to deal with existing debts. The advice mainly focuses on how to use the Snowball Method when it comes to paying off debts.

About the Author

This book is among the most popular creations of David Ramsey. He is a well-known American businessman, radio host, and personality. He had mainstream media attention by being a host on a television show entitled the Fox Business, which was on the air from 2007 to 2010.

Bottom Line:

With this book, be prepared to get a hard reality check when it concerns the state of your finances. You might discover unlikable things but what’s important is that you get an opportunity to correct them and be guided with the knowledge you get from this book.

4. The Automatic Millionaire by David Bach

The Automatic Millionaire is a #1 New York Times Best Seller. This book will tell you a story about an average American couple. The guy is a low-level manager while the girl works as a beautician. The couple earns $55,000 yearly, but they are homeowners of 2 properties, living debt-free, and are able to put their kids through college without any problem. At the age of 55, the couple was able to retire with over $1 million in their savings account.

After telling you this story, it is quite normal for your interest to be pique about what’s the secret of this couple and how they were able to gain their financial freedom early in life. But, worry not because the subsequent content of the book will talk more about the secret and what exactly the couple did to achieve all those.

About the Author

David Bach is an American motivational speaker, financial author, and television personality. Over the past 2 decades, he has written over 12 books, and among those, the most popular ones are those that are part of the Automatic Millionaire series and the Finish Rich series. His works have been featured in premier bestseller lists such as USA Today, BusinessWeek, and The Wall Street Journal.

Bottom Line

What’s nice about this book is that it will provide you with a realistic system on how to achieve financial freedom using classic principles. You will be equipped with vast information ranging from the right people to ask for help and their phone numbers.

5. Clever Finance by Bola Sokunbi

Clever Finance is a book that talks about how the new generation of women can close the gender equality gap when it comes to finance. Gender equality has come a long way. However, the disparity between men and women is still quite obvious. In fact, according to the US labor department, women earn only 82 cents for every dollar a man makes. Mothers earn even less than this.

This book will provide you with tips on who to track your expenses and make a budget. It also talks about credit management, building a nest, and how you will be able to take control of your financial well-being.

About the Author

Bola Sokunbi is the CEO and founder of the website Clever Girl Finance. She is also a Certified Financial Education Instructor. Her main advocacy is to empower women to take control of their finances and become industry leaders in their own rights.

Bottom Line

If you are a modern woman who finds yourself struggling with finances, this book is for you. It is highly relatable, and it contains solid and proven advice on how to deal with your finances in a better way to become the girl boss that you are meant to be.

6. The 4-Hour Workweek by Tim Ferriss

Many people nowadays work 40 to 60 hours a week but still find themselves struggling when it comes to their finances. If you are one of those, then this book might be very helpful for you.

The 40-Hour Work Week will teach you how to work smart instead of hard. It will provide you with plenty of encouragement to stop hesitating and questioning yourself and just take a leak. You will also get plenty of ideas on how to start passive income streams that will allow you to quit the 9 to 5 life. This way, you will have the freedom that you are looking for, and you can forget about your desk job.

About the Author

Tim Ferris is an American author, entrepreneur, investor, and lifestyle guru. He is also an angel investor and provides advice to up-and-coming startups. Some of the startups that he has been involved with are TaskRabbit, Trippy, Shopify, and many more.

Bottom Line

You will learn a lot from this book because of Tim Ferris’s decade of experience in the industry and his highly charismatic approach. More than that, it will also help you find the right balance of managing a full-time job and passive income streams to mitigate your financial worries and stress.

7. The Simple Path to Wealth by Jim Collins

It’s no secret that getting rich is far from easy. However, this will provide you guidance that can help make the process more manageable.

This book will explore different topics such as debts, building your wealth, and how to navigate the complex world of 401(K), IRA, TSP, and many more. Aside from that, you will also get in-depth advice on how to invest your money in the right way so that you can achieve your long-term financial goals.

About the Author

James Collins is an American author, consultant, and speaker who is well versed in company growth and sustainability, and business management. He is a BS Mathematics graduate of Stanford and has extensive experience in the finance industry. His other popular work also includes the Great by Choice, Built to Last, Good to Great, and How the Mighty Fall.

Bottom Line

Suppose you are looking for more guidance on how to achieve your long-term goals. If this is your case, then this book might just be for you. It has a detailed overview of how to deal with different types of investment and what to avoid so that you will not get into the pitfall of finances.

8. The Rich Man in Babylon by George Clason

This book was first published in 1926. However, its principles are still applicable even up to this day. It contains a collection of over 4,000 parables from ancient Babylon that focuses on financial advice. Today, it’s considered a classic self-help financial book.

The parables in this book are told by a character named Arkad. He is a fictional Babylonian scribe who became the richest man in Babylon. He shares advice about the “Seven Curse” or how to create wealth and money. He also talks about the “Five laws of Gold,” which is a topic on how an individual can invest and how to protect these investments.

About the Author

George Samuel Clason is a graduate of the University of Nebraska. He is an American author mostly known for The Richest Man in Babylon. During his lifetime, he founded two companies; the Clason Publishing Company and the Clason Map Company of Denver. His map company was the first one to ever publish a road atlas of Canada and the United States. Unfortunately, it did not survive the great depression.

Bottom Line

Arkad generally encourages readers to pay themselves first and to live within their means. Although these principles are easier said than done, he shares in-depth advice on how you can apply them in your daily life.

9. Secrets of Millionaire Mind by T. Harv Eker

The Secrets of Millionaire Mind explains the missing link between achieving success and wanting it.

This book is divided into two parts. The first part focuses on how exactly the money blueprint works. The author included a lot of humor and heart when explaining this, so it’s fun and easy to read.

Meanwhile, part 2 is mainly focused on the 17 “Wealth Files.” These provide a detailed description of how rich people think and how their actions are entirely different from middle-class people. This part also includes actionable steps that readers can apply in their real life to increase their finances and build wealth.

About the Author

Harv Eker is a Canadian businessman and a motivational speaker popular for his theories about motivation and wealth. One of his most well-known theories is about the “Millionaire Mind,” which is a collection of mental attitudes that attract wealth. This theory claims that every individual has a financial blueprint which they can change so that their ability to accumulate wealth can improve.

Bottom Line

Sometimes, the biggest roadblock to success is not knowing what’s wrong and where to start. This book will help you with this. It’s definitely for people who are looking to change how they handle their finances.

10. Think and Grow Rich by Napoleon Hill

Here’s another century-old personal finance book that still holds value up to this day. In fact, this book is dubbed as the Grandad of all of the motivational literature there is.

Although the content of this book is mostly focused on tips on how people can succeed in their careers and do whatever they want with their life, the author put in a huge emphasis on the importance of philosophy to achieve financial freedom. In short, this book tells you that building wealth is not only dependent on doing the right strategy or making the correct decision but also on your mindset.

In addition, this book asserts that persistence, faith, and desire can bring a person to greater heights. It also encourages readers to stop negative thoughts and be focused on long-term goals.

About the Author

Napoleon Hill was an American author born in Southwest Virginia. His first ever job was under Rufus A. Ayers, a coal magnate, and former Virginia Attorney General. He later enrolled in law school, but unfortunately, he had to stop due to financial difficulties.

Bottom Line

This might be an old book, but the principles and philosophy it holds are still relevant even up to this day. In fact, many successful entrepreneurs who have achieved their financial freedom have this in their top personal financial must-read books. This only shows that it would offer you plenty of useful knowledge that can help you get on top of your finances.

Final Words

Financial freedom requires a lot of effort, determination, and self-control. However, each of the books mentioned above can help you enrich your knowledge about different financial topics so that you can make the best decision that would fast-track you to your goal.

Related: How to become a Millionaire