In the Know

Want to know a secret?

Everything I know about finance I did NOT learn in kindergarten. Or high school, or college, or even after college.

Nope, I learned most of it on my own - some by making mistakes, some by asking for advice, and a lot from reading. Lots of reading, and studying what other people were doing. And that's what I suggest you do, as well. Read whatever you can, not just what's on CNN or MSNBC, and not even only what's here on Betty - though you should absolutely continue to read Betty!

Here are the four blogs that I currently have on my Google Reader and consistently read, every day:

Get Rich Slowly

Named the most inspiring money blog by Money magazine, this is a no-nonsense, easy-to-understand collection of writings on personal finance and other related topics. My favorite thing about it is that this guy is not a professional - he's just like you and me, but he's figured out how to make money work - which means that he knows how to explain it all in terms that are easy to understand. His core beliefs (that money is about how you think instead of about the numbers, slow and steady wins the race, and do it now) make perfect sense and are easy to implement. So, do it now - add this one to your blogroll.

I Will Teach You to Be Rich

I know, I know, the blog name is awfully arrogant, and that's usually the kind of thing that makes me brush a blogger aside, but the truth is, Ramit Sethi consistently delivers solid information and advice. He covers everything from consumerism to credit card debt, investing to psychology - after all, just about any finance expert will tell you that our problem with money is usually not that we don't have enough; it's that we don't think about it in the right way.

The Simple Dollar

This is my favorite of all the blogs I read - concise, easy to read, informative - and made just for people like me, who are trying to unlearn a lifetime of bad habits. It's true what they say, that you model your spending habits after your parents' - and it was doubly true in my case, as I had two sets of parents, and they all had terrible money habits. Trent, the founder of the site, wisely doesn't expect readers to learn how to become day traders by reading his blog, but he encourages little ways to make our relationship with money just a little bit smarter and thus a little stronger.

Five Cent Nickel

Nickel has been around since 2005, and for good reason - it's always good, always informative, just like the other blogs I've listed here. This is the guy who turned me on to online savings accounts (get one, they are awesome!), and taught me the inner workings of the credit card industry (crazytown, folks). Go sign up for his newsletter or subscribe to his feed, because at LEAST once a week you'll be glad you did.