Want to learn the ideas in The Index Card better than ever? Read the world’s #1 book summary of The Index Card by Helaine Olen, Harold Pollack here.

Read a brief 1-Page Summary or watch video summaries curated by our expert team. Note: this book guide is not affiliated with or endorsed by the publisher or author, and we always encourage you to purchase and read the full book.

Video Summaries of The Index Card

We’ve scoured the Internet for the very best videos on The Index Card, from high-quality videos summaries to interviews or commentary by Helaine Olen, Harold Pollack.

1-Page Summary of The Index Card

Personal Finance Made Simple

Most people don’t handle their finances well. Finances often cause stress and arguments in relationships. Many people are afraid of outliving their retirement funds, so they rely on experts to manage them but that isn’t the best way to do it.

The author of the book has condensed all the financial rules into 10 simple statements. These can be written on a small card, and if you follow them, you’ll be in better financial shape than most people.

1. Save “10% to 20% of Your Gross Income”

Saving money is hard, because new expenses always crop up. The median income in the United States has dropped $3,000 since 1998. Costs keep rising in basic categories like housing and medical care. Most of the people’s income increases went to wealthy people whose spending distorts the economy and creates markets for luxury items that raise expectations about what it takes to live a good life. America doesn’t encourage living moderately; saving requires discipline and demands sharp focus when most Americans are encouraged to consume as much as possible with little thought given to moderation or savings.

You should look at how you spend money and see where you can cut back. You should track your spending for three months, using software like Quicken that will help you record and categorize your expenses. After a month of tracking your expenses, review them to find out where the majority of your money goes. Once you know this information, managing your spending will be easier and more manageable in the future.

In case of an emergency, set aside enough money to cover your expenses for three months. Stop using credit cards and start saving 20% of your income instead. If you have a job that lets you automatically deposit funds into a savings account, join in the effort. Don’t expect to jump straight from spending all the time to saving all the time; take realistic steps towards financial stability over time.

2. Pay the Balance on Your Credit Card

In the past, people had less access to credit. If they wanted something and didn’t have enough money, they could borrow from their friends or family members or ask a local merchant for credit. Businesses would only give you credit if they knew you well. In an emergency, your social circle might help out with small loans, but larger purchases were harder to get without having deep connections in the community. Loan sharks provided high-interest loans that were risky because of how much money was involved. Today’s laws governing lending let companies offer more credit than ever before; this is especially true for banks and other financial institutions who make most of their profits from people who don’t pay off their entire balance every month on time (credit card debt).

If you’re not paying off your credit card debt, it’s time to get serious about getting out of that debt. The easiest way to do this is by paying more than the minimum payment each month and then focusing on eliminating one credit card at a time. Talk with an accountability partner about your plan for getting out of debt so you can stay motivated throughout the process.

If you have a credit card with an interest rate that is too high, try negotiating for a lower rate. Some companies will reduce your interest rate rather than lose you as a client. If not, transfer your debt to another credit card with a lower interest rate. Be careful: some cards charge higher interest rates on any new purchases made after the balance transfer. To avoid this, be sure to pay off the transferred amount before making any more charges on the account or else it will incur additional fees and interests. If all else fails, declare bankruptcy to get out from under excessive debt; however, declaring bankruptcy is not easy and limits your access to credit for many years afterward so only do it as a last resort if there’s no other way out of debt and you’re willing to accept those consequences in order to regain financial freedom.