Everything but Money

by Jessica Moorhouse 🍁 

Why I picked it up

I’ve listened to Jessica Moorhouse’s podcast for some time, so I was excited to read her first book. She’s a Canadian financial educator whose approach I’ve always found knowledgeable, relatable and refreshingly free of judgment. I was especially intrigued by a money book that promised to explore our relationship with money. Our patterns and family messaging - and everything influencing our financial decisions beyond budgets, spreadsheets and investment returns.

My thoughts

I really liked this book. Instead of giving readers another list of things they “should” be doing with their money, Jessica looks beneath our financial habits to explore where they come from. Our upbringing, experiences, relationships, beliefs and emotions all help shape the way we earn, spend, save and think about money - often without us realizing it.

What makes the book work is that it’s thoughtful without becoming abstract. Jessica combines research and practical guidance with genuine compassion for how complicated money can be. She doesn’t remove personal responsibility, but she does replace shame and judgment with curiosity. That creates a much more useful starting point for change. This book is kind of where Mindfulness and Money overlap.

I also appreciated reading a personal finance book written by a Canadian. The language, examples and perspective feel much closer to home than advice built entirely around the American financial system.

My biggest takeaway

Financial habits that appear irrational on the surface often make sense when we understand the experiences and beliefs behind them. A better spreadsheet may help, but lasting change often begins with understanding the person using it. Why can be more important (and more useful) to ask than How Much.

Who I’d recommend it to

Anyone who knows what they’re “supposed” to do with money but has struggled to make the usual advice stick. It’s especially valuable for people who experience anxiety, avoidance, guilt or shame around money, or who want to better understand the role money has played in their family and relationships. If you avoid checking your bank account because you believe if you don’t look it isn’t real, this book is for you.

Interested in reading it?

Find Everything but Money through Books on Main, an awesome independent bookstore in Bath, Ontario.