30 Day Challenge

Luna Group Pty Ltd Publishing (Published 2009)

Written by Analaura and Wilson Luna

Country: Australia

Review: 3 Stars – Good Read

How the blurb describes the book:
Would you like to save your family $30,000 in 30 days? – Would you like your own money coach to help you get financially fit? – Do you want to 'spring clean' your finances? – Are your money habits getting out of control?

If you answered 'yes' to any of these questions... this book is for you!

The 30 Day Challenge is a detox program for your money management habits—it will address all of your attitudes and beliefs about money, getting you into the shape you need to be in to change your financial situation.

This one-of-a-kind interactive multimedia program is just what you'd expect from Wilson and Analaura Luna. Combining their special brand of commonsense, refreshingly down-to-earth advice and extensive experience in the financial industry, this challenge will give you the tools, tips and resources you need to change the way you live with money—forever!

The 30 Day Challenge will shine a spotlight on the details of your money living and deliver fast and effective results every day, letting you make the small changes that are necessary if you want to create fundamental and lasting change in your money habits.

'In only 30 days you can kick-start getting your family into top financial shape. Are you up for the challenge?'

About the Authors:
As a couple, Wilson and Analaura Luna are passionate about providing financial education to families across Australia. Their latest project, Your Family Your Money, is the culmination of their dreams and desires to bring wealth and prosperity to every Australian family. Thanks to their interactive online community, book series, mentoring program and industry-leading financial skills workshops, they are able to reach countless families, sharing their trademark blend of 'real life' advice with them. With their backgrounds firmly planted in the working-class community, Wilson and Analaura have the perfect combination of theoretical knowledge and practical experience.

Having been raised in blue-collar working families, the couple met in the final years of secondary college. Wilson was a year ahead of Analaura in school, and after he completed his HSC he put off going to university for a year, working as a builder's labourer and night security officer to save up enough money to pay for both of their university educations.

They graduated from the University of New England with bachelor degrees in business, majoring in accounting and applied finance, and set about gaining valuable experience in the financial services sector while they built their life together. Wanting to offer clients a more holistic approach to financial management, Wilson and Analaura founded their own private practice and now offer financial advice and guidance to over a thousand families each year. Their practice, having reached the sought-after level of 'platinum status', is widely considered to lead the industry in terms of quality, thought leadership and the provision of simple solutions to traditionally complicated problems.

The reason for their success is simple—Wilson and Analaura bring their heart and soul to a traditionally 'black and white' field. They believe that accounting and financial advice is about more than just numbers; it's about the effect that these numbers can have on the lives of real people. And they approach all areas of their practice with a unique combination of financial knowledge, commonsense and good humour.

Today, with over 20 years of experience between them and the good fortune of having been mentored by some of the leading financial minds in the industry, they have turned their focus to giving back to the community. Realising that the best way to positively affect more Australian families was through print, they took up the challenge of creating the ultimate family financial guide. The objective behind the Your Family Your Money project is to provide resources that were once available only to the 'wealthy', giving everyday Australian families everything they need to create the wealth and security they deserve.

Today, Wilson and Analaura live in Sydney with the light of their lives—their son, Ethan. They divide their days between enjoying time with him, running their private practice and indulging in their individual passions. Wilson is a sought-after international keynote speaker on topics such as leadership, life skills, entrepreneurial spirit and surviving the global credit crisis. Analaura contributes her time and skills freely, advising the boards of numerous charities and not-for-profit organisations, such as UNIFEM Australia and Girl Guides Australia.

Mr Home Budget's Review:
Nothing in budgeting happens quickly, especially if you are trying to change your spending habits. But this book has a real knack of getting you to make some big decisions in just 30 days. Some people might call this the microwave version of home budgeting.

This book focuses on one subject a day for each of the 30 days, and it really goes into a lot of detail on that subject. It makes you think of myriad ways to cut back in the specific areas. Subjects can be as diverse and complicated as home loans or as simple and homely as the family pet.

The authors try to show you how in just 30 days you can make changes which will save you $30,000 in the first year. To prove their point, they use a fictional family called the Models: Mum, Dad, Son, Daughter and Pet. They are presented as a typical Australian family with typical Australian spending patterns.

However, this is where the book falls a bit. I really dispute that the Models are a typical Australian family. There is no doubt they earn a very good wage and have expensive tastes. Thus, to find $30,000 to cut from their budget is easy. Compare this with what I would suggest is a typical Australian family and it would be whole lot harder to cut anywhere near $30,000.

However, although I believe $30,000 is a bit rich, don't let my opinion put you off this book. In fact, even if you could save $5000, $10,000 or even $15,000, this pays for the purchase price many times over. And if you are a high-income family (like the Models) then, yes, $30,000 may be achievable.

Each day contains many saving tips on the day's particular subject. At the end of each chapter, the authors share their personal opinions in a section labelled Beliefs and Behaviours. This is where some of their better advice is located, as it is spoken from the heart. The advice isn't just about black-and-white numbers but thoughts and feelings. Towards the end of the book, the authors show you how to fill out a statement of net worth, which is a document that tells you how rich (or poor) you are down to the last dollar—something that is extremely important!

Some of the better paragraphs which I highlighted in the book include the following:

'The interest on most loans is daily reducible, which means it is calculated daily on the balance of the loan. So, the more you pay off each day the lower the balance will be and the less interest you will pay. If you pay your mortgage fortnightly or weekly instead of monthly you can save thousands over the term of the loan.'

'Many people love their pets more than anything in the world—pets are a wonderful comfort, a friend who never expects anything of you except that you love them back. But the reality is that there's very little you need to do to prove to your pet that you love them—a diamante-studded $30 collar won't do it, and neither will costly toys, clothes and over-priced food. So stop and think for a minute about whom you're trying to prove your love to. Are you trying to look like the perfect pet owner when you're out in public with your pet or at the vet, or are you trying to compensate for the fact that you leave them alone during the day? Think about what you really need to do for your pets and do that instead—they'll know you love them and you'll know it too and that's all that counts.'

This book is a solid three out of five stars. I just couldn't bring myself to give it more than three. Personally, I believe that because the book is so heavily promoted as saving $30,000 in 30 days, it just does not stand up. And although some people may be able to do this, they would be few and far between. Still, this is a good book and is as close to a four-star review as a three-star review can get.

Pros:

The book is very in-depth on all subjects.

There are great savings ideas which will increase your bank balance in a short time.

The authors show you how to fill out a statement of net worth.

Cons:

Very few families will save the full $30,000 as promoted.