Review: Live It, Love It, Earn It

Summary: Does your heart race when your credit card bill arrives? Are you one flat tire or one emergency room visit from financial ruin? If you think a secure financial future is out of reach, you're wrong. Let Marianna Olszewski teach you how to love your money instead of running scared from it.

Marianna didn't start out rich, happy and fabulous. A strapped-for-cash childhood motivated her to strive for abundance and financial independence-goals she exceeded by age thirty as a successful business owner and respected Wall Street player. Now Marianna reveals the lessons she learned on her own road to success and the savvy strategies of other amazing women. She shows how to let go of stress, break your bad money habits, take control of your finances, and finally achieve your goals and a happier, richer life.

You'll learn to:
-Say Yes to Yourself: Turn toward people and situations that enhance your life and well being, and away from those that don't. Until you start affirming your future through both thought and action, your efforts to improve your finances will fall flat.

-Fall in Love with Your Money: Having a cavalier attitude toward money is part of the reason many of us find ourselves in a financial pickle. But when you treat your money with respect, keep track of it and spend and save it wisely your money will always love you back.

-Act as If: If you think that change is impossible, think again. Start your transformation by acting as if you already are as successful, intelligent, and prosperous as you want to be.

Live It, Love It, Earn It is full of true stories of ordinary women who have overcome tough challenges, such as climbing the corporate ladder, getting out of debt, and changing jobs mid-career, to get the life you want. Marianna also shares insights from other successful women like designer Diane von Furstenberg; shoe mogul Tamara Mellon (of Jimmy Choo); fashion entrepreneur Tory Burch; the first woman to hold a seat on the New York Stock Exchange, Muriel Seibert; and Congresswoman Marsha Blackburn.

Let Marianna give you the tools you need to create and maintain and abundant and fulfilling life. -- Portfolio

I usually don't read financial books (I leave that to my husband) but when I heard about LIVE IT, LOVE IT, EARN IT: A WOMAN'S GUIDE TO FINANCIAL FREEDOM by Marianna Olszewski, I thought it might have some good ideas for helping me pay more attention to money! So I watched the entire video to see if this book was something I'd be interested in. My ears perked up at the idea of keeping a journal to document all my spending, and I was definitely interested in hearing more of the author's ideas.



I have to admit that I didn't read this entire book from cover-to-cover. There are parts of this book that aren't really relevant to my current position in life. I decided the best approach to this book for me would be to skim through it and read the parts that pertain to me. I found that there is still a lot of terrific advice between the pages of this book, namely the author's nine fundamental tools that helped her achieve financial success.

One thing I found extremely interesting was how the author suggested that the book be read. She mentions that you can just read the book straight through like an ordinary book, but she thinks that women will benefit more from discussing this book in small groups. She suggests that a few women who like and respect each other, yet have different work and and life experiences, meet at regular times to talk about this book. She feels that the power of the nine tools in this book are magnified when women work together on them rather than by themselves. I can only imagine how helpful a group like this would have been when I was starting out.

I found parts of this book to be very interesting, and I really appreciated that this book was about bettering one's entire self and not just finance-oriented. I enjoyed reading the success stories of other women especially when they were written in their own words. It is always encouraging to read how people overcome their situations to really make something of their lives. I also liked reading the "Try This" sections of the book which offer practical advice for life in general (not just financial advice.) And I thought the "Success Secret" blocks had loads of good advice as well like separating business and pleasure and learning when to shut up!

If you'd like to learn more about LIVE IT, LOVE IT, EARN IT, there is a website devoted entirely to the book. You can read an excerpt here. I recommend this book because it does have a great deal of valuable information for women, and I think it would make especially wonderful gift for recent college grads or others who are just starting out on their own.

I'd like to thank SheKnows for sending me a review copy of this book. In case you aren't familiar with SheKnows, it is a fantastic website that is kind of like an on-line magazine. There are articles on entertainment, beauty, parenting, health, etc. I think SheKnows a wondeful one-stop site for women of all ages!