Post written by Leo Babauta. Follow me on twitter or identica.

Most people don’t know that when I started Zen Habits in January 2007, I was reading a small handful of blogs. Lifehacker, of course, was one, but Get Rich Slowly was another must-read blog for me.

J.D. Roth’s common-sense, frugal philosophy on Get Rich Slowly wasn’t just advice about getting out of debt and being financially sound, it was advice about living life itself.

J.D. had more influence on Zen Habits than anyone realizes, and continues to inspire me to this day. He’s become one of my favorite blogger friends (among many), and that he’s come out with a new book, Your Money: The Missing Manual, is a source of both pride and excitement for me personally.

I’m also excited that J.D. gave me this exclusive interview, and I have to say, it rocks. Some of the things we covered (it’s fairly long, but that’s a good thing):

• The core of J.D.’s philosophy, that helped him get out of $35K of debt
• How to get out of a job/life you hate
• Automating finances
• The five stages of personal finances
• How to get started getting out of debt, when it seems hopeless
• Becoming frugal with naysayers (or “trolls”) in your life
• Why a frugal life isn’t a horrible life

He shares a ton of great financial info, and as I said, it’s advice that will help in any area of life. Enjoy, and then go and buy his book: Your Money: The Missing Manual.
» Continue your journey »