Money Basics: A Beginner’s Complete Guide to Financial Literacy

Build a stronger financial foundation, one practical step at a time.

Written by Emmanuel S. Desmolieres, CLTC®, founder of Planning & Prospering, this beginner-friendly guide explains budgeting, emergency savings, debt, credit, investing, retirement, insurance, taxes, and legacy planning in plain language.

Turn learning into action

Practical examples, chapter action steps, reflection prompts, a financial checklist, and a first-30-days plan help you apply what you learn. Selected action pages include writing space for your next step and deadline.

Who it’s for

Adults beginning their financial education, starting fresh, or seeking a clear refresher on the fundamentals.

What you receive

The updated 49-page PDF ebook, including the cover and clickable contents. Read on a PDF-compatible device or print pages for personal use.

Digital ebook only. No physical book, Playbook workbook, or recorded session is included.

General U.S. financial education. This ebook does not provide personalized investment, insurance, tax, or legal advice. Examples are illustrative; rules and limits may change.

Turn your financial goals into a practical plan.

The Prosperity Playbook from Planning & Prospering brings your budget, debt, savings and planning figures into one downloadable Excel workbook. Start with the everyday tools and explore the scenario calculators when you need them.

What you receive

• Excel workbook with 13 tools, a Start Here dashboard and two supporting debt schedules

• Four-page PDF quick-start guide with setup steps, a suggested workflow and troubleshooting

The 13 tools

Monthly Budget Planner; Bill Pay Calendar; Net Worth Tracker; Emergency Fund Builder; Savings Goal Tracker; Debt Payoff Planner; Mortgage Calculator; Insurance Needs Calculator; Investment Growth Calculator; Retirement Snapshot; Financial Checklist; Tax Prep Checklist; Credit Action Plan.

Make it your own

Replace the clearly identified examples with your figures in the pale blue input cells. Calculations update from your entries. Compare avalanche and snowball debt payoff strategies using monthly schedules with interest and rolled-over payments. Keep your figures organized and choose your next action.

Format and requirements

Digital downloads: one .xlsx workbook and one PDF guide. Desktop Microsoft Excel is the intended application and is not included in this purchase. No macros are required. Calculations have been checked in the authoring engine; desktop Excel and Google Sheets compatibility have not been separately verified. Other spreadsheet apps may change formatting or formula results. Desktop use is recommended; this is a spreadsheet toolkit, not a mobile app.

The workbook does not connect to bank accounts, make payments, send reminders or automatically save a history. Save dated copies and enter history where provided.

Standalone Playbook purchase

$47. The Money Basics ebook and recorded video are not included. A future video offering will be listed separately; this purchase does not promise a future video.

For personal use. These tools provide educational estimates and organization, not personalized investment, insurance, tax or legal advice. Scenario results depend on your assumptions and are not guarantees.