‘Here’s What It Takes … to Be Healthy, Wealthy, and Wise’

New Self-Help Book Sees Life as Pieces of a Puzzle, Offers Advice on Making Those Pieces Fit

“When trying to understand life, it helps to look at it like a puzzle with several big pieces that make a whole,” writes Dr. Linda A. Smith in her new self-help book, “Here’s What It Takes … to Be Healthy, Wealthy, and Wise” (published by AuthorHouse - http://www.authorhouse.com). “These puzzle pieces are actually the key areas of your life. This book is designed to help you identify and learn how to make the most of each one of those areas, and to understand how to fit them together to make life easier and better.”

Dr. Linda has identified eight pieces to the puzzle of life: career, money management and consumerism, education, health and well-being, interpersonal relationships, spirituality, leisure time, and fun. “Here’s What It Takes … to Be Healthy, Wealthy, and Wise” is divided into eight sections corresponding with each puzzle piece.

Dr. Linda presents her information in a concise, straightforward, bulleted format. Some of her advice in the area of money management and consumerism includes:

Identify specific financial goals (e.g., a vacation, holiday presents, college tuition, a home of your own, etc.), and what actions to take to reach those goals.
Accept that there will be “rainy days,” better known as emergencies, and that it’s important to be prepared for them (to avoid borrowing from family, friends, or taking out payday loans that most times charge exorbitant interest rates). The “rule of thumb” is that you need at least two to three months of salary saved for emergencies.
Keep saving simple. To start, use jars. Mark them or not, but put in your spare change and/or bills on a regular basis.
Full of commonsense guidance, “Here’s What It Takes … to Be Healthy, Wealthy, and Wise” offers real-life advice that is simple to follow. Also included are goal-setting worksheets for each life area that readers can complete to clearly identify and do what it takes to reach their goals.

Dr. Linda A. Smith worked in consumer affairs at the Gas Co. and ARCO for 12 years before deciding to leave the corporate sector for work in the non-profit area, promoting consumer education in communities and schools. She’s written and hosted numerous consumer education programs airing on cable television, some sponsored by the Gas Co. and others by the California Alliance for Consumer Education (CACE), where she serves as president. She also works as a career advisor and college instructor, teaching courses in life management, consumer awareness, and marriage and family life. She holds a doctorate in organizational leadership and a master’s degree in family and consumer sciences. “Here’s What It Takes … to Be Healthy, Wealthy, and Wise” is her first book.