$50 Amazon Gift Card to Celebrate 1 Million Visitors

Posted by Madison on October 2, 2009
Sorry, this contest is over. However, if you want to buy gift cards for a fraction of their value, check out Plastic Jungle! You can even sell or swap your existing gift cards, too.

To celebrate My Dollar Plan’s one millionth visitor, it’s time for a giveaway! What a perfect way to celebrate Free Money Friday, since the one millionth visitor will be stopping by sometime this weekend. (We’re at 997,797 right now!)

I’m giving away a $50 Amazon Gift Card! I love Amazon, and since the holidays are getting closer, it’ll come in handy for the lucky winner.

Amazon Gift Card Giveaway

I like easy giveaways, so to enter, all you have to do is leave a comment and answer the following:

What is your favorite book about finances and why?

By the way, my favorite is Your Money or Your Life.

The giveaway will end October 9, 2009 at midnight central time. The winner will be announced on October 10.

Leave your answers in the comments.





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Comments to $50 Amazon Gift Card to Celebrate 1 Million Visitors

  1. Congrats to you on 1 million!!!!

    I’ll go with “The Millionaire Next Door” — the book that got me started on my personal finance journey.

    FMF


  2. hmm, I was going to put “The Millionaire Next Door” because it is such a strong study on the benefits of frugality and proper money management. But since it was already taken, I’ll go with “Random Walk Down Wall Street,” which got me started learning about asset allocation.

    Ben


  3. Good To Great by Jim Collins. Is by far my favorite book about finances and what makes good leadership.

    Joshua


  4. My first choice is “The Millionaire Next Door” but Suze Orman’s book titled “The Money Book for the Young, Fabulous and Broke” was also instrumental for me when I graduated from college.

    Nina


  5. “The Automatic Millionaire” is my favorite book about finances because it makes the process of handling my money more simple and breaks the information down into a simplistic system.
    Congratulations on your success and on 1 million views, this is a great website.

    Yusuf Ali


  6. My roommate bought this “The Money Book for the Young, Fabulous & Broke.” It’s a great starter for those of us that are just out of school and have no idea where to begin.

    Lost Girl


  7. Automatic Millionaire and Millionaire next door are good ones, but the one that is my favorite is Total Money Makeover. Mostly because of the effect it had on my finances.

    Beating Broke


  8. Without a doubt… The Family CFO. It taught me how to look at financial situations from different angles and more importantly how to discuss all financial issues with my husband.

    One Frugal Girl


  9. I’m partial to “Automatic Millionaire”

    I’m a big fan of the step-by-step outline, as it’s what finally convinced me that opening up an IRA was not only a smart idea, but necessary and incredibly easy to do!

    JBP


  10. Rich Dad, Poor Dad….I’m a teacher, so it rang true with me.

    NB


  11. This one’s easy – the best finance book of all time is “A Random Walk Down Wall Street”. If you want to know how to invest, this is best book. It illustrates why trading is a bad idea, and how you can win with a long term approach. No tricks, no gimmicks, just the best approach to investing.
    Amazon has this to say about it “A Random Walk Down Wall Street long ago established itself as a must-read, the first book to purchase before starting a portfolio. So whether you want to brief yourself on the ways of the market before talking to a broker or follow Malkiel’s easy steps to managing your own portfolio, this book remains the best investing guide money can buy”

    Peter Reiley


  12. Total Money Makeover – It changed my life and how I look at my finances.

    MSL


  13. My Total Money Makeover by Dave Ramsey…So simple yet so effective. It made preparing and using a budget easy.

    Terrie


  14. Quite a milestone. Way to go!

    While it’s not directly about personal finance, I’ve always found that 7 Habits of Highly Effective People really helps me in that department, particularly when it comes to putting frugality into its proper context.

    Stephen Ward


  15. I loved “The Millionaire Next Door”. Down to earth and lots of good info.

    Tamara


  16. Dave Ramsey’s The Total Money Makeover. I also love his podcast!

    Meredith


  17. My favorite book about finances is Rich Dad, Poor Dad. It got my husband and I really interested in our finances and has now become a hobby for us!

    Rachel


  18. Suzy Orman’s “Women and Money” is my favorite because it was easy to read, and step-by-step, and it was not intimidating like some other books that I could not get through.

    Christina


  19. I loved “The Wealthy Barber” by David Chilton. My dad bought this easy read for my sister and me when we were college age, and I still refer to it from time to time.

    Elizabeth


  20. “The Money Book for the Young, Fabulous and Broke” by Suze Orman. It’s how I turned the corner from in-debt post-college 20-something to reach goals and learning to dream bigger 30-something. I must have loaned it to over a dozen friends and family by now.

    Marguerite


  21. Not so much a favorite book but a favorite quote from my hubbys grandfather…

    “Son, its not your living its your life style”

    Great advice from someone who lived through the great depression.

    Alicia


  22. I like the book “Debt Free on Any income”. It does have a religious background to it but i feel that the advice that is given is very sound. It is similar to Dave Ramsey, but i have a few things i don’t agree with with his stuff.

    Tony Johnston


  23. I have not read any books about finance. I only read My Dollar Plan. It has saved and earned me many dollars. Thanks

    Peggy


  24. The personal finance book that i really like is called “For love and Money”. It is a book that talks about money but about relationships with couples. As i was reading it with my husband we were able to see spending habits that we both brought into our marriage and how we could fix some of it. It has a very strong Religious aspect to it, but the advice it gives has helped us a lot with our own relationship and money problems.

    Jessica Johnston


  25. “The Snowball” This Warren Buffett biography sums up the traits that really made him who he is.

    Keith


  26. David Bach “The Automatic Millionaire” because the advice was simple to implement and has worked very well for me. I’ve given out copies of his books to my nieces. Advice like automating bii payment, paying extra principal on my mortgage with auto payments, and setting up investment accounts via Sharebuilder were implemented after reading his books.

    Kay Jones


  27. The Millionaire Next Door….because it really is that simple.

    Joe


  28. The richest man in Babalyn by George S. Clason because it is built upon wisdom and biblical principles on investing in yourself and others.
    The Richest Man in Bablyon has 7 basic principles:

    1) Start thy purse to fattening – save/invest
    2) Control thy expenditures – watch out for self serving brokers
    3) Make thy gold mutiply – use powerful investments
    4) Guard thy treasures from loss – watch out for brokers with their hot tips.
    5) Make of thy dwelling a profitable investment – rental properties, your own home—but stay within your means.
    6) Insure a future income – do work that you love to do. Become excellent at it.
    7) Increase thy ability to earn – education never stops. Keep reading good books like yours.

    Michael Cammon


  29. There have been so many wonderful books on finance that have been inspiring and insightful to me, but “The Millionaire Next Door” was life-changing…in great simplicity and by examples, it teaches that great wealth is not necessarily made by the astounding earners, but by the astounding savers and respectors of money…fabulous book!

    GL


  30. My fav is Your Money or Your Life.

    Kathy Lopez


  31. William J. Bernstein’s “The Intelligent Asset Allocator” opened up Modern Portfolio Theory for me. (For those not as math geeky, his “The Four Pillars of Investing: Lessons for Building a Winning Portfolio” covers much the same material without the equations, but with more examples from financial history.) Diversification, it’s what’s for breakfast!

    Jane


  32. The Bible, there are a lot of good lessons in there, even some about finance.

    PK


  33. My favorite book on finances is: “Makeing the most of your Money”, by Jane Bryant Quinn. I’s a book who’s information is timeless. The advice in the book is justs a usefull today as l the day it was first published sometime in the ninteys.

    Mike Tortosa


  34. I love Dave Ramsey’s Total Money Makeover, great site you have here!

    Misty Newsome


  35. Your Money or Your Life was the first book on finances that I read. I re-read it from time to time and get inspired all over again.

    Carmen Carter


  36. Rich Dad Poor Dad is my favorite financial book! Congrats on the 1 million visitors!

    QC Watchdog


  37. So many of the finance books I love have already been mentioned but I’d have to agree “The Richest Man in Babylon” is my favorite by far for the simple yet effective truths it teaches. Also very helpful to me was Suze Orman’s “The Road to Wealth.”

    Linda


  38. Total Money Makeover by Dave Ramsey because it helped drastically change the way think about finances and set me on the road to financial literacy.

    Trevor


  39. Hey, you didn’t say WHY Your Money or Your Life is your favorite book 🙂

    Trevor


  40. My favorite book about finances is The Millionaire Next Door because it reminds me that the people I see that “look” wealthy aren’t always the truly wealthy ones.

    Annalisa


  41. Your Money or Your Life (though Millionaire Next Door is a close 2nd)>

    Adrienne


  42. Rich Dad Poor Dad, Makes alot of sense if you take it the right way!

    Matt Bell


  43. 1 million visitors, now that’s impressive! I wonder what you give away when you hit 10 million?!! As for my favorite finance book, that’s a tough one. But if I had to pick one, it would have to be Your Money or Your Life.

    DR


  44. THE RICHEST MAN IN BABYLON. This is a wonderful book of parables on money management and building wealth. Who knew the same principles hold true no matter what century you are in!

    Diane


  45. Read Rich Dad Poor Dad – great book.

    KP


  46. I’d have to say Dave Ramseys total money makeover. It was the kick in the pants I needed to start getting my finances in order. I’d probably still be drowning if I hadn’t read that book 2 years ago!

    Jenn


  47. Rich Dad Poor Dad is my favorite. Congrats on 1 million!!!:)

    Susmita


  48. My favorite book (and I’m sure some would disagree) is Suze Orman’s Courage to be Rich because it really empowered me to make financial decisions for myself that I am comfortable with, and not just do what others advise or go along with conventional wisdom if it doesn’t fit me.

    Laura


  49. My favorite money/finance book is Secrets of the Millionaire Mind by T. Harv Eker because he understands the link between our beliefs and thoughts and our financial success.

    Lindsey


  50. “The Automatic Millionaire” By David Bach. This was the book that inspired me to get serious with my finances and the book that I still recommend to anyone who asks.

    MITBeta @ Don’t Feed the Alligators


  51. “The Millionaire Mind” by Thomas J. Stanley.

    Edward


  52. “Beating the Street” by Peter Lynch. Excellent book for learning how to research and pick stocks.

    Clark


  53. Your Money or Your Life was the first book that really turned me around. It’s the one I go back to when I need a refresher.

    Rebecca


  54. I think Peter Lynch has some great books on investing. You have to love a ten bagger!!

    Rose O’Hanlon


  55. The Wealthy Barber by David Chilton is a good one to intoduce people to financial planning concepts. Excellent for teenagers and young adults and anyone that finds the subject a little over-whelming.

    carolyn


  56. Total Money Makeover – it just makes sense…most of it anyway. 😉 Thank you.

    Bobbi


  57. My favorite was Your Money or Your Life? I was working three jobs spending over 100 hours working. I never had enough to even make ends meet much less some set aside. I had zero control over my life and my bills and all because of the choice I made regarding a marriage partner. This encompassed the first 45 years of my life.

    Janet


  58. motley fool book

    grace sit


  59. My favourite book about money is Joanne Yaccato’s “Balancing Act,” now sadly out of print. I enjoyed it because of its focus on women & money, and the practical advice therein (save 12%, not 10%, because women live 2% longer than men; pre-nups are your friend; etc.) There’s a lot of crossover value with David Bach’s Smart Women Finish Rich, but I appreciated hearing about it from her point of view. I also was really grateful to find it: my credit union had put a bunch of personal finance books in their waiting section, and this was one of them.

    Rachel


  60. Investing the Templeton Way…because Sir John’s advice is still accurate.

    Steve Amico


  61. I enjoyed Rich Dad Poor Dad.

    Dan Paris


  62. Congrats on 1 million! The first personal finance book that I read was Rich Dad Poor Dad, and while I don’t agree with everything it preaches, RDPD was the first book to get me thinking about personal finances, trading time for money, etc. It made me think more about running my own business. From there I read Millionaire Next Door, The Armchair Millionaire, a couple other books, then on to reading personal finance blogs, then I started my own. 🙂

    Patrick


  63. Mine is Total Money Makeover by Dave Ramsey – it changed our lives and really got my wife and I to focus on paying off debt.

    M.B.


  64. Money Drunk (can’t recall the author’s name)

    Kathleen


  65. My favorite, of the few I’ve read, is Dave Ramsey’s Total Money Makeover.

    Why? It keys in on the psychology of taking control of your personal finance – you can work the numbers, study investing, and other items thereafter.

    Derek Epperson


  66. Payback by Margaret Atwood delves into matters such as why we think debt is acceptable.

    Martha


  67. Congrats!!
    I like “My Total Money Makeover” by Dave Ramsey. Dave Ramsey’s books really help to have new insights on my financial management recently.

    Jessie C.


  68. I Will Teach You to be Rich by Ramit Sethi.

    Liz


  69. “The Number” by Lee Eisenberg is my favorite Personal Finance book because when I started the book, I was, in fact, looking for the “right” number, but as I read it further, I realized that there is more to retirement than just the “number.” He talked about types of people and how they deal with the idea of retirement and how they save, and about how enjoying retirement wasn’t always based on money.

    Amy


  70. The 4-hour Work Week because it challenges normal advise and really made me think.

    Amanda


  71. Wow! 1 millionth.

    You are doing amazingly well that you are doing an amazon for one of the writers!!!!!

    Cool!

    Hope you do some bigger awards by the time you get to 2 millionth reader since that will mean many more adsense or adv $.

    Very cool…..Keep writing and keep up the ‘knowledge-share’ that you have been doing on the topic of $ and life.

    Kenny

    Kenny


  72. Is it me? 😉

    I have a few PF books I love, but will pick ‘Bank of Dad’, since it was most different to all others I’ve read.

    Congratulations on your readership.

    Carmen


  73. I would agree–Your Money or Your Life–stops the treadmill of accumulation.
    Congrats!

    Rob


  74. Dave Ramsey’s, Total Money Makeover really helped me and my wife get control of our debt.

    Don


  75. The best personal finance book I ever read is also “Your Money or Your Life”. It was a realization about the 40-hr work week. I was glad I was following some of the steps preached already – thanks to my parents.

    Seth


  76. What is your favorite book about finances and why?

    Richest Man in Babylon…by George S. Clason

    Ancient advice that seeks only to live below your means; with 10% savings and 10% given away…and telling it in a way that still makes sense today.
    I know was updated in 2007, but I just the original.

    Tina Curtis, IL

    Tina Curtis


  77. Dave Ramseys The Total Money Makeover.
    It helped me pay off all my credit card debt and car loan. His “kick in the butt” teaching is what I really needed.

    Lisa


  78. My favorite book is THE TIGHTWAD GAZETTE.

    Jill


  79. Possum Living. I love the story of this girl and her father living an extremely frugal, but happy and even decadent life.

    Elizabeth


  80. The Joy of Simple Living is my fav cos I love to save money and this book provides so many great tips to do so!

    Kris


  81. My favorite finance book is: “Enough : True Measures of Money, Business, and Life” by John Bogle.

    Jeff Smith


  82. My favorite finance book is: Bogle on Mutual Funds, by John Bogle. This is all you need for investing.

    Sebastian


  83. Definitely The Richest Man in Babylon by George Clason. It’s short and to the point.

    Dave


  84. Congratulations on your milestone 🙂 I like “Women & Money: Owning the Power to Control Your Destiny” by Suze Orman because she’s a proven expert in her field and being a woman I like the female point of view. *Thanks* for the giveaway!

    Cheryl F. (The Lucky Ladybug)


  85. I have only ever read one money book and it was Suze Orman’s Money Book for the Young, Fabulous and Broke. I found it easy to read as the information was kind of a question and answer format but doesn’t go too in depth.

    Gypsie


  86. I love the Complete Tightwad Gazette. Some of the suggestions are a little extreme, but it does get you to think outside the box and gives some good tips.

    Jen


  87. Congratulations on getting one million visitors!

    I don’t have a favorite finance book yet. But Rich Dad Poor Dad and Suze Orman’s television show triggered my interest in personal finance.

    Wealthy Immigrant


  88. My fav is Debt is Slavery, because the advice it gives is practical and simple, which is what I look for when it comes to money.

    Sam


  89. My favorite personal finance book is “I Will Teach You to be Rich” by Ramit Sethi. I’m 23 years old, and Ramit’s book is designed for people my age. I LOVE his writing “voice” and jokes. But I especially love his jam-packed advice, which includes scripts and exactly how to go about achieving results. He also references a lot of psychology in relationship to money.

    Jenni


  90. I was going to say “The Millionaire Next Door” but that seems to be a popular one. “The Wealthy Barber” is a good one too, and in the same vein. The reason is because both of these books empowered me to just get down to business and get started. After reading them I felt as though nothing were impossible, but it helps to have a plan and stick to it.

    Andrea


  91. My favorite book? Your Money or Your Life. Checked it out of the library so many times I had to buy my own copy. From Half-Price Books of course.

    Cindy Campbell


  92. My favorite personal finance book is
    Suze Orman’s 9 Steps to financial freedom. Its a amazing book that got me started on my personal financial freedom Journey.

    Sherry


  93. My favorite book is ‘The Complete Tightwad Gazette’ by Amy Dacyczyn (if it counts as a finance book?) And almost tied to that one is the same as yours, ‘Your Money or Your Life’.

    Congratulations on the milestone! How great, you’re helping so many people!

    Cheryl


  94. I’m also a fan of “Your Money or Your Life”. It’s been so useful I don’t even feel guilty that I bought it!

    Jessica


  95. For sentimental reasons, Your Money or Your Life, which my stepfather gave me as a gift. It was his way of reaching out to share something he cares about and that can help me.

    (I also love it for practical reasons, of course!)

    Kelly


  96. The Wealthy Barber is mine. First book about finances I read, and continue to re-read to remind me on some principals.

    Eric


  97. The Tightwad Gazette

    Judy


  98. The Book of Proverbs – its all about wisdom. Who knows more about money than the Creator.

    Brad


  99. ‘Your money or your life’ would be mine.

    Andrew


  100. Mine is probably “I will teach you to be rich”. It delivers all of the essential information with humor and has a great re-readability factor.

    Matt @ Financial Methods


  101. Nice work on the 1 million visitors! That’s quite an accomplishment.

    Ben


  102. Congrats! I have multiple favorites, but one of them is Unconventional Success.

    Jonathan


  103. To be honest, I haven’t read a lot of books about money – maybe that’s why I need an Amazon gift card! (My favorite of the few I’ve read is A Random Walk Down Main Street.)

    Margo


  104. ‘The Automatic Millionaire’ is a book that has greatly influenced my money management. A friend recently told me about ‘The lazy investor’ by Derek Foster. My friend has radically changed his investing strategy (in a good way!) based on the advice in this book.

    Steph


  105. I don’t actually have a favorite book. I’m a big fan of finance blogs though..!

    Saskia


  106. Total Money Makeover by Dave Ramsey. I was constantly broke before reading this book and it (finally) work me up.

    Gayle

    Gayle


  107. My favorite is ‘Market Wizards’ by Jack D. Schwager (published in 1993, newer versions are available but can’t beat the original). It has conversations with America’s top traders. Excellent choice for anyone starting their journey to winning on wall street!

    Harish


  108. Your money or your life changed my life and put me on a path to retiring in my early 40’s. Also, the Intelligent Investor by Benjamin Graham is a classic and has kept me from foolishly following trends many times.

    Lauren


  109. It is good to meet so many people with the same intrest I have!! My favorite book is Total Money Makeover by Dave Ramsey.

    TONYA


  110. My favorite has to be “Total Money Makeover” by Dave Ramsey because it really got us thinking about money at our house – but my new favorite is “Secrets of a Stingy Scoundrel” by Phil Villarreal – just because it’s funny and a bit cheeky.

    peter


  111. I know this isn’t usually considered a money book, but I’m going with The Tightwad Gazette (the big one that collected everything in one book). The savings ideas gleaned from that book can be amazing. It’s also helped encourage me at various points in my life when things get tough and I just want to forget about budgeting compeltely.

    AnnMarie


  112. Way 2 Go..They say the first million is the easiest. My favorite book is the “Total Money Makeover” by Dave Ramsey. Dave breaks down all of the major money myths. Dave also gives you a very basic, yet effective step-by-step plan to achieve financial freedom. Asweome Book, Highly recomended.

    Chris C


  113. I dont think i have read any finance books, but i watch susee orman on tv and gain a lot of insight on finances for women

    Melissa L – www.sweetbabycakesnmore.com


  114. Rich Dad Poor Dad– although it’s more philosophical than a blueprint.. its inspiring

    Stacy


  115. My favorite finance book is Debt is Slavery by Michael Mihalik because of its direct, concise approach.

    Jamie G.


  116. My favorite book is ‘The Millionaire Next Door’ cause it showcases what the common person does that the ‘millionaire’ person doesn’t. Which is why so many people are in financial distress, obviously doing the opposite of financially independent people.

    Ray


  117. “Total Money Makeover” for it’s simplicity and straight forward approach.

    Mike D.


  118. Favorite pers finance book is How to Get Out of Debt, Stay Out of Debt and Live Prosperously. It’s a realistic comparison of the process of de-debting alongside the process of staying sober.

    Sarah


  119. congratulations!

    It is hard to pick just one, but I like “saving for retirement: without living like a pauper or winning the lottery” by Gail MarksJarvis. It made retirment planning easier to understand for me.

    Kristia


  120. Your Money or Your Life is the personal finance I remember reading first, a couple of *decades* ago, so I’m going to have to say it’s my favorite, too. Thanks for this contest!

    Mrs. Accountability


  121. “The Millionaire Next Door”, because it changed my perspective that you have make/spend alot of money to become wealthy.

    Mike


  122. Many noteable books on my bookshelf have been mentioned by others. Another one to add is “The Storehouse Principle” by Al Jandl and Van Crouch. It teaches how to be good stewards, and to master your money instead of being slave to money.
    We are blessed to be a blessing.

    Rosemary


  123. “Total Money Makeover” is a good reality check.

    Theresa


  124. Your Money or Your life —I sawe the light with debt and the value of your time

    Kathy


  125. One up on wall street by Peter Lynch

    Ken Marks


  126. I enjoyed “Rich Dad, Poor Dad” very much. I don’t read many books on finance, I find that I get more usable information from sites like yours that go directly to the issues and answers.

    Jayne


  127. book: Real Money:Sane Investing in an Insane World by Jim Cramer.

    tom lambert


  128. My favorite financial book is Financial Peace by Dave Ramsey

    Galfridae


  129. The Complete Financial Guide for YOUNG COUPLES by Larry Burkett

    This book gave us budget guidlines which has helped us since we have been married.

    Curtis Lee


  130. Though some of the tips may arguably now be dated, I always liked Charles Givens’ “Wealth Without Risk” just because it was the first book to motivate me to take control of my finances.

    Mike


  131. The Bible. Hands down! Proverbs is full of information on money. Did you know that money is discussed so many times in the Scripture that is is one of the most talked about subjects in the Bible. Read it for yourself. Can’t get any better than this!

    Maureen


  132. total money makeover

    Daniel M


  133. Rich Dad poor Dad… It emphasized the importance of entrepenuership, and having a diverse array of investments. Since reading it togethermy husband and I have started our own small buisness, invested in real estate and are now buying sticks while they are still on sale. Needless to say it gave us a kick start, and we enjoyed the read.

    Rochelle Balkwell


  134. The Millionaire Next Door

    spivey


  135. Wealth without Risk by Charles Givens. That was the first financial book I read after I finished college. It opened my eyes to investing and led me to buy my first mutual fund. That was a while back! It led me to read more and more financial books and I have loved doing our family finances ever since. I rode the wave up with the Internet bubble and back down – all the way down. I realized I was not educated enough in the companies behind the stocks to invest too much in them. I also tried a business and that was short lived. However, I did succeed in Real Estate and so far we are on track to use the RE portfolio as a retirement fund one day. Just one little book that inspires one to do so much is worth every penny!

    Ivonne


  136. The contest is now closed. The random winner is Elizabeth, comment number 79. Thanks for participating and helping My Dollar Plan reach 1 million visitors!

    Madison


  137. My favorite books is written by Adam Khoo
    Titled is: Master your mind, design your destiny

    I though most of financial books always make me feel bored.. but not this one, I just couldn’t stop reading on it until finished
    And yeah, it’s totally awesome!!

    jesica



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