Moonshine Money: a DIY guide to personal finance

https://themeasureofaplan.com/moonshine-money/

4 6 2 years ago

This is a free course that I wrote to explain the foundational concepts of personal finance.

It covers building an emergency fund, tracking your spending / budgeting / net worth, paying down debt, investing, automating your finances, and more.

There are ~20 articles that explain the concepts, and several spreadsheets provided to give the reader a practical way to track and manage their finances on a recurring basis. I've been using those spreadsheets and tools myself for more than 10 years, and have improved them over time based on user feedback.

This is intended to be a step-by-step guide geared towards those who are just starting to learn about money management.

Any feedback would be appreciated.

nimzoLarsen• 2 years ago

I read through the agenda and skimmed some articles -- this is certainly for a younger / less money savvy audience, but it's well written and covers the important basics.

The chapter on "investing" is well done. I'm going to send it to a friend who asks me to explain low-cost index / "Bogleheads" investing every so often. This might save me from having the same conversation a fourth time...

getToTheChopin2• 2 years ago

Thanks. I actually started writing this course to share with friends. Explaining the fundamentals of budget tracking and Boglehead investing got a bit tiresome, so I decided to write it down.

I find it only leads to more questions and more time commitment, but I do think it's been at least somewhat helpful as a reference guide.

earthWindFi• 2 years ago

Looks very good. I would like to see some specific info about managing money in France (reducing taxes, our retirement accounts / pension), but I understand that is a lot to ask for.

mamonster• 2 years ago

My 2 advices(one is kind of not line with this guide, one kind of is):

1. Do not be scared of debt - If you have access to an asset that carries positively(i.e it makes more than it costs to own it plus finance it) you should max out the leverage. If you were debt free last 10 years you missed out on a lot of money(because the cost of carry was so low since 2010). Dave Ramsey (and his analogues) did an incredible amount of damage with his stupid anti debt positions.

2. Stock market is not for poor people- The reason why rich people like the stock market is that it essentially has infinite capacity and it is a way for them to diversify from their main activity. It can return 7% from a capital base of 100 million in the exact same way as from a capital base of 1 billion. You, if you are not rich, likely have access to opportunities that require 10-100k of capital and can generate very high returns with not as much risk as the stock market, but require you to keep your finger on the pulse of your industry and be ready to be a bit active. These opportunities disappear as your capital grows higher. Bogleheading is easier and takes no work but it is MUCH less money and slows down your journey a lot. You should stay away from stocks unless 1) You have a specific stock you want to buy based on your industry/professional knowledge 2) You maxed out the capacity of your non-stock "cashcow".

beardyw• 2 years ago

It's helpful that you offer investment advice, but be wary of the legal implications. I don't know the law in the USA but your audience will not be limited to there. Personally (in the UK) I would couch it in plenty of get out words and then some more!

Moonshine Money: a DIY guide to personal finance

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