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How to Get Rich, by Felix Dennis

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GregTK

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My Rating: 5 stars out of 5 stars
:star::star::star::star::star:

Format:
Audible

My thoughts/review:
Very enjoyable audio book and difficult to put "down" or rather stop listening. I do admire his honesty and hindsight nuggets of wisdom.

Somehow I found myself always comparing his life and achievements to Richard Branson's... even though they both started in publishing, their paths couldn't have been more different. Well, except for their Caribbean properties maybe ;-)

Favorite (or least favorite) chapter:
I enjoyed all chapters but some concepts resonated more that others obviously.

Key takeaways:
  1. Key takeaway #1 You can't copyright/trademark ideas only the execution! (an idea in itself is worthless)
  2. Key takeaway #2 There's money out there with your name on it, go find it!

Challenge after reading this:
Always the same one really... I have a Why, I don't waste time on mind-numbing entertainment but I can't seem to find/choose a path to freedom. I could start making up excuses but you will have heard them all before (young daughter, obligations, mortgage, blablaa).
Whenever I have an idea I am extremely good at coming up with reasons why it might not work... sigh! Probably more of the remit of therapists than an entrepreneur forum ;-)
I have spent decades doing marketing and PR (while having a science degree) in different countries (tri-lingual) and have developed quite a few skills in the process but I still can't seem to identify opportunities... I could kick myself for having these blinders on.

Any suggestions?

I like bringing value to others and do so regularly... my girlfriend starts yoga classes, well here are leaflets, a website, work sheets, etc. Same for my Muay Thai club... quickly created them a website.

From a young age I realised that "create once, sell many times" was a way out of the 9-5 life (and tried to achieve this in the music business... didn't really work out but was fun though). I have always felt that the way most of us live and work is completely ridiculous and doesn't make sense... however I can't seem to cut the umbilical corporate chord... argh!

Sorry, I do realise that this is supposed to be a book review but it led me back to the question I am struggling with the most hence the reason I just threw it in the group, hoping for some a$$-kicking feedback ;-)
 
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luniac

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My Rating: 5 stars out of 5 stars
:star::star::star::star::star:

Format:
kindle

My thoughts/review:
5 stars because i was very entertained and at the same time learned some good advice.
The book read like a story vs a cold educational self help book.
Felix uses tons of interesting anecdotes from his life story, and argues his points based on real extensive personal experience running businesses.

He doesn't shy away from talking about his failures either, and overall comes across as an open and sincere fellow.
If anything I'd say Felix got a jolly attitude about it all, of course it helps being rich lol

Although there's a whole chapter on luck and that it's best definition is "preparation meets opportunity", you gotta admits and he does as well that he got SUPERRRR lucky with bruce lee dying and making his ALMOST FINISHED biography the hottest thing on the block.
That shit is like winning the lottery.
Of course you still gotta respect his hustle on milking the opportunity, but he also admits he didn't milk it for all it's worth either.

It's funny how in a book called "How to get rich", Felix spends quite a deal of time questioning if it's worth it.
He pretty much outright says it in the end that if he knew beforehand that poetry is his thing and that people would pay for his work, he would never have tried to become that rich.

Then again, "rich" to Felix Denis is not 1 or 2 million which is "well off", it's in the 10's of millions.
In this case I would agree with Felix, I don't need to be rich.

But like Felix himself stated, he got started because he would not be a wage slave no matter what, he would never accept being poor.
That's basically my own feelings on the matter.
I don't care about being rich, but I can't stand being poor with a predestined fate of wage slavery for life.

Favorite (or least favorite) chapter:
Several favorite chapters.
The one on ownership really reinforced the tenet of Control from the fastlane book. I promise you Felix, I will never give away a single percent of control of my company, no matter what.
Individual products on the other hand, I'm more than happy to collaborate.

The delegation chapter was great too, it really made me look closer at my friends' attributes. Who can i trust, who has a history of responsibility and work ethic, who's honest with me, who got potential, etc
Sure right now i don't have a blossoming company, but if i ever reach a point i gotta hire talent, I'll keep Felix's lessons close at hand.

Regarding loneliness and friendship Felix seems a bit contradictory. On one hand he says when you become rich, only those friends you had before you were rich are probably your real friends who will always be brutally honest with you, and even some of those will became fake and intimidated by ur money.

On the other hand he says he had an amazing time with the people he built his companies with, and with his "white knight" partners in america Peter and Bob who he did business with for over 30 years and they were dear friends to him.
Seems to me the path of entrepreneurship can foster great friendships with people on the same wavelength as you.

His section on Fear was awesome and i agree. It's like a weird opposite of nihilism. Basically he's saying nothing really matters anyway so might as well shoot for the stars.
Here's an excerpt
Armies and governments fear men or women who know they are going to die soon; and they have good reason to. Such people have nothing to lose. They will commit any atrocity and take as many others with them as they can, if they are driven to it. You must now become that doomed man or woman. You are going to die. Nothing can alter the fact. It is immutable. Incomprehensible. Unfair. All those things. But it sets you free, don’t you see? It sets you free.
Dennis, Felix. How to Get Rich (pp. 262-263). Penguin Publishing Group. Kindle Edition.


lol maybe life extension technology will change things but for now, you might as well go for broke. Playing it safe just doesn't make any sense to me either.

Key takeaways:
  1. Get rid of negative influences in you life especially those in ur own head, its just a pointless waste of time and energy.
  2. There's nothing to be afraid of
  3. CONTROL CONTROL CONTROL
  4. Hire people smarter than you and different than you
  5. Sex Drugs and Rock n Roll are awesome but they will kill you in the end lol
  6. Life isn't fair, get used to it but feel free to make a difference if u like.
  7. There's money out there with your name on it, all u have to do is go get it.
  8. Its all just a game

When i first read the book I even wanted to see what the dude was like in real life, here's a TED talk by Felix Dennis, pretty entertaining.
Odes to vice and consequences

Sad he's dead now, I would have wanted to meet him someday and drink some of his wine LOL
And visit his Mustique property. Hell I'd live there.
Look at this place!!!
Mustique Island, The Official Website for Enquiries and Reservations for The Villa Collection and The Cotton House Hotel
 
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Morganvincroft

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HOW TO GET RICH, by FELIX DENIS

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Grab it and read it if you haven't!
https://amzn.to/2EprieI

PLEASE USE THIS REVIEW FORMAT!


My Rating: 4 stars out of 5 stars
:star::star::star::star: :xx:
(The STAR/X emojis are under the emoji icon, under "commenting icons.")

Format:
Audible

My thoughts/review:
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is simply dummy text of the printing and typesetting industry. Lorem Ipsum has been the industry's standard dummy text ever since the 1500s, when an unknown printer took a galley of type and scrambled it to make a type specimen book.

Favorite (or least favorite) chapter:
Lorem Ipsum is simply dummy text of the printing and typesetting industry. Lorem Ipsum has been the industry's standard dummy text ever since the 1500s, when an unknown printer took a galley of type and scrambled it to make a type specimen book.

Key takeaways:
  1. Key takeaway #1
  2. Key takeaway #2
  3. Key takeaway #3
  4. Key takeaway #4
Would make for a sure read.I shall be laying my hand on this book soonest.Cheers
 

njord

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Just read it, Ill give the book 4.5 out of 5 stars.
The book is slightly short but it has some great gold takeaways in it (although i must say i skipped most of his poetry, not my thing just tell me what you mean damit!)

Key take aways;

- If you really want to get rich you will have to really work for it
- Choice your mountain and dont keep looking for greener pastures
- ownership is everything (make sure you own as much of your companys as you possably can)
- hire tallent people smarter then you dont fall in the trap of hiring people like you but rather that fill in your weaknesses
 
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SK1

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Not sure if I was one of the few, but I didn't really like the book.

Yes, a few good pieces of advice, but nothing new and nothing that I have not read in TMF .
"Work hard, don't give up, fail and go again, no need to be perfect, take full responsibility, JUST TRY". Yawn....

Must stop wasting time reading books when I should be taking ACTION!
 

mathiagr

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Great book. Just one thing that caught my interest:

Felix really punctuates the importance of maintaining as much ownership as humanly possible. However I've heard the opposite from other high profile people such Guy Kawazaki who says it's better to have a small ownership in a great company, than a large ownershit in a crappy on. I have to say I'm more with Guy K. on this.

What do you guys think about these opposing views?
 

njord

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I dont agree, ownership is everything!
Look if you can invest 10,000$ in a small company and gain control over it or invest the same 10,000$ in a large company where you have no control but just a small piece of the cake I would allways choice the first choice.

In the second case you have no control and control is one of the fastlane commandments.
 
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Sander

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I dont agree, ownership is everything!
Look if you can invest 10,000$ in a small company and gain control over it or invest the same 10,000$ in a large company where you have no control but just a small piece of the cake I would allways choice the first choice.

In the second case you have no control and control is one of the fastlane commandments.

What if you got just a small piece of Google 20 years ago?
 

jesseissorude

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My Rating: 4 stars out of 5 stars
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Format: Library Book

My thoughts/review:
I'm hard to get a 5 out of, but I thought this was a great book. It has actionable takeaways (not just a fluffy pep-talk), and the writing itself was great. I found myself rereading some of the sentences just to enjoy how they flowed... but maybe that's because I was hearing a british accent in my head when I was reading. :happy:

It reminded me of Richard Banson's Business Stripped Bare. Being from the US, I had no idea who Felix Dennis was, so Richard Branson was my only cultural touchstone... Especially with the magazine publishing and ties to rock music.

Favorite chapter:
Obtaining Capital - Probably because I'm going through this right now and had a lot of takeaways. I bet if I re-read this at another point in my life, a different chapter would stand out. This book is very re-readable.
This chapter in short: A loan from an angel (shark) or a bank will keep you working for someone else. I liked the reminder of the poem about the fleas feeding on each other (here's the full text of that poem)

Key takeaways:
  1. Use your fear of failure to make you work harder, not prevent you from starting.
  2. "Think big, act small."
  3. The Chock Full O'Nuts example - The owner built one basket (nuts) that made him a living, but the second basket (coffee) made him a mint.
  4. To borrow money, the best way to get it is to not truly need it.
-------

Honestly, the Chock Full O'Nuts example is probably the part of the book that will stick with me the longest.
 
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Edwin Fernandez

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My Rating: 4 stars out of 5 stars

Format: Book

My thoughts/review:
See Key takeaways section.

Favorite chapter:
Chapter 8, The Most Common Start Up Errors

Key takeaways:
Im half way through reading the book, wanted to chime in before I forget.

The biggest takeaway so far is in chapter 8, The Most Common Start Up Errors, the section, "The First Error: Mistaking Desire for Compulsion.

He states:

"As far as getting rich is concerned, the cardinal error is to begin such a quest in the vague belief that you would like to be rich."

he goes on later,

"Wishing for or desiring something is futile without an inner compulsion to achieve it. Such lack of compulsion, if not frankly acknowledged, can lead to great personal unhappiness....It is my hope that this book will cause you to consider very carefully whether you are truly driven by inner demons to be rich."

and finally,

"Never have I met a self made rich man or woman whose family or personal relationships were not plagued by the burden of creating a fortune, even a small fortune. A rocky marriage ; lack of time spent with their children."

This has helped me re-frame why I am doing what I am doing, trying to build this business. It is true that starting this business (while still having a full time job) has led me to much stress and anxiety for not only myself but my family too. My wife feels ignored, my kids ignored because my free time outside of work is spent staring at a monitor working on my business. I started to experience health issues that manifested in my body because of this stress.

This section helped me realize it is not that I am truly driven to be rich, it is that I desire to have more autonomy, to be free of indentured time( time I spend working), I desire to be with my family more, having fun more. I don't really want to build a business, I just want the f*cking money to free myself from the JOB.

I desire to be a high status person, rich in time, options, love, health, and social status not to be rich.

The problem is, in reality, there is no other way to get those things I desire unless I have a pile of money that will allow me to jump off the hamster wheel that is indentured time, aka a JOB.

I have adjusted how I am working on my business because of this revelation of thought. More balance and a mindset shift towards the LONG haul, 5+ years.

I adjusted things so that I don't miss out so much on my precious moments with my kids and family. I wake up early, 5 am, work on my business until I have to go to work which gives me about 2 hours a day. I do NOT work when I come home, I play with and teach my kids. On the weekends I am not working all day on the business like I was doing previously. I am cutting it to 4 hours Sat, Sun 5am- 9am. So in total I still have ~17-18 hours a week building it while not missing out on the most important things.

My 2 cents, I am sure others in my position can relate.
 

The Racing Driver

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And what if you invested in myspace instead of FB? you never know whats going to work or not but With control you at least can do something about it.

Myspace was sold in 2005 for $580 million. If you were one of the co-founders or had significant equity, you'd definitely come out of it very well off.

But yes, no-one really knows until they know. So regardless of whether you own 100% or 10%, you don't want to be on the sinking ship. A lot of the major tech giants have been started by multiple founders. I guess the founders all had some element of control, but not necessarily complete ownership like Felix Dennis advocates.

I guess this all comes down to how you wish to pursue your Fastlane journey. If ownership is your thing, go for it. If you work well with a team, that could work too.
 

Jello

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A little late to the party but finished the book last night. Was in the middle of reading some other books too but How to get rich was my reading material before going to sleep.

My Rating:
4 stars out of 5 stars
:star::star::star::star:

Format: paper

My thoughts/review:
I really enjoyed this book. Felix Dennis is in my opinion a born writer and i like the way how he's trying to teach other people howto get rich by telling his life story or at least certain events of his live in a funny, sometimes deadly serious but always witty style.

Favorite (or least favorite) chapter:
So many chapters that i liked and by every new chapter i thought this is the best chapter, but then i read the next one and liked that one too. But if i have to choose then i would say the art of negotiating. I liked the thrilling story how he managed to get a deal of a lifetime by setting certain rules. Or at least learned the rules through this deal.

Then there was the chapter Recap of idlers which has a small part about fear nothing. This was for me the most crucial information i got from the book. This part really took to me and opened my eyes. But since it's not a full chapter I'm mentioning it second to the art of negotiation. Still this part of fear nothing and another part where he explains we are all just a blink in the eye of the history of the world on a small planet where one day all life will disappear when the sun fades away and so it really doesn't matter at all what you'll do today so might as well go for it, this part really got me thinking and viewing things differently in a positive way that is.

Key takeaways:
  1. Fear nothing, go for it. It all doesn't matter years from now. Might as well shoot for the stars.
  2. Again like M.J also is mentioning in his books Execution is king, do it today!!
  3. Hire people smarter then you and delegate the important tasks to them. But always keep a eye on everyone and everything. Pay them well in bonuses but never give away a share of the company.
  4. Ownership. Always keep the company in your hands and if you've to share share as little as possible.
 
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Magna

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My Rating:
5 stars out of 5 stars
:star::star::star::star::star:
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Format:
Paperback and half way through audiobook form

My thoughts/review:
One of the best books I have read not just because of the content also the way it was written. Witty and entertaining and a good pace to it.

Favorite (or least favorite) chapter:
The cardinal virtues where it talks about self belief, persistence and making more baskets when you've filled your first one as quickly as possible.

Key takeaways:
  1. Weave "new baskets" fast don't see your first company as a first born child
  2. Hire talent better than you.
  3. When you're walking through hell, keep going.
  4. Make sure to be flexible as well as persistence.
 

drleeds

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My Rating: 5 stars out of 5 stars
:star::star::star::star::star:

Format:
Kindle

My thoughts/review:
It was surprisingly entertaining.

Favorite (or least favorite) chapter:
Ownership

Key takeaways:
  1. Ownership.
 

LuckyPup

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Great book. But ...

I wish I hadn't read it.

One of the main themes in the book was that the company that suceeds is not typically the first to bring an idea to market but (rather) the company that excels in its execution and does so with speed.

So ... after reading the book ... rather than launching my first project fast ... I spent years getting a project "ready" for a "perfect" launch that ... in retrospect ... should have failed fast.

Oh well.

Won't make that mistake a second time.
Amen to that. Same mistake here.
 
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Hai

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My Rating: 5 stars out of 5 stars
:star::star::star::star: :star:

Format:
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My thoughts/review:
Damn good book! It goes in-depth into the philosophy you need to have as an entrepreneur . Felix was both an enterprise entrepreneur and a poet(in his later years).
In his later years he found out that he can provide enough value from his poetry and still live well from it. He wished he knew that in his earlier years.
Not everyone can become an enterprise entrepreneur or is willing to make the sacrifices for it.
He was an 4w5 Enneagram imo, which is why his enterprises leaned on the artistic side and also is eccentric.

Favorite (or least favorite) chapter:
-

Key takeaways:
  1. Enterprises require sacrifices
  2. Look for early market trends, because investor capital is exuberant
  3. Execution is more important than ideas
 
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Bones81

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My Rating: 5 stars out of 5 stars
:star::star::star::star: :star:

Format: Kindle

My thoughts/review:
Was a very good read and written by someone who has walked the walk. As others noted, it was a mix of practical operating advice (e.g. manage your cash flow, never give up ownership) to more philosophical musings (facing your fear of failure, etc.). There are numerous quotes throughout the book that I've highlighted. It was curious that the most important thing that he thought was that the pursuit of wealth was folly given the time required to do it. As in TMF , he emphasizes that time is the most valuable of all commodities and that he would trade all his fortune and more to be young again. The fact that he died several years ago to throat cancer really drove this home.

Favorite (or least favorite) chapter:
The chapter on the perils of wealth and how you should be careful what you wish for.

Key takeaways:
  1. You have to go all-in to make it. No half measures.
  2. Look for the right mountain to mine in
  3. You can give employees a piece of the annual pie but never give them ownership
  4. Hire people smarter than you, keep them happy.
  5. Time is the most precious commodity of all
 

TreyAllDay

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I read this book when I was in my "Get rich" phase and really didn't like it after the first 3 or 4 chapters- maybe I should give it another read.
 
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Suzanne Bazemore

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I read this book when I was in my "Get rich" phase and really didn't like it after the first 3 or 4 chapters- maybe I should give it another read.
I think maybe you might enjoy it. I still have a few pages left to read, too.
 

MTF

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After a brief conversation with @Mathuin in the random thread I wanted to bump this thread, link back to my review of the book from 2019, and repost my post from the random thread here:

I find Felix Dennis's book unique in that he wrote a how-to make money book but in reality it sounded more like a call for help and a realization that he spent his life on ultimately meaningless pursuits. This to me was a way bigger lesson than his business tips. This isn't something you're going to learn from a neat how-to business books with 7 steps to generational wealth.

This quote shows how bitter he was about his life choices:

Wealth makes many demands and, by the time you have acquired it, you will be prey to certain habits. You will fear to lose it and must spend a great deal more time to defend it. No one is ‘independent’ of the human race. ‘No man is an island entire of itself; every man is a piece of the continent, a part of the main.’ Heed the words of John Donne, finest of poets: ‘And therefore never send to know for whom the bell tolls: it tolls for thee.’ Aye, so it does.

No luxury of choices for rich little you. You will be too busy keeping the sea from washing away the sand you have spent so long collecting at such terrible cost to your health and your sanity and your relationships with others. It is always thus. There is no escape. You believe (I know you do) that it will be different for you. But it won’t be. It never is.

Happiness? Do not make me laugh. The rich are not happy. I have yet to meet a single really rich happy man or woman – and I have met many rich people. The demands from others to share their wealth become so tiresome, and so insistent, they nearly always decide they must insulate themselves. Insulation breeds paranoia and arrogance. And loneliness. And rage that you have only so many years left to enjoy rolling in the sand you have piled up.

The only people the self-made rich can trust are those who knew them before they became wealthy. For many newly rich people, the world becomes a smaller, less generous and darker place. It sounds ridiculous, doesn’t it? Ridiculous and gloomy. But then, you are to consider that I have been very poor and I am now very rich. I am an optimist by nature. And I have the ability to write poetry and create the forest I am busy planting. Am I happy? No. Or, at least, only occasionally, when I am walking in the woods alone, or deeply ensconced in composing a difficult piece of verse, or sitting quietly with old friends over a bottle of wine. Or feeding a stray cat.

I could do all those things without wealth. So why do I not give it all away?

Because I worked too hard for it. Because I am tainted by it. Because I am afraid to. All those reasons and more. Perhaps, if I am lucky enough to become old, I will accumulate something else: the courage to give it all away before I die. That would be a good thing, I think.

(When I die, it is all going to a charity called ‘The Forest of Dennis’. You see, even when I do a good thing with my money, my ego insists that I name it for myself. Not a good sign.)

Giving money away when you are dead takes no guts. No courage. But to divest yourself of hundreds of millions of dollars, or the greater part of your fortune, before your death? That would be something to be proud of, don’t you think? It even makes logical sense.

For what is left afterwards but a few tears by a graveside and years of bickering and waste over a complex will? (The wills of the rich are always complex.) Bitter years, where lawyers count the number of fairies they believe you once thought danced upon the head of a pin – years in which they enrich themselves at your descendants’ expense. A fine legacy, to be sure.

But you must make your own choice. I have said my piece and I meant every word of it. This small part of my book was composed in my mind years ago. It was easy to write. I knew all of it before my fingers touched the keyboard. It has troubled me for years and I thank you for allowing me to share it.

I suspect it will have little effect on you, though. You are probably young and are tired of being poor. And tired, from years of growing up and schooling, of being lectured. Very well. Let us return to a recap of the ‘important bits’ to help you on your journey. But just before we do, can I ask you to do me a small favour?

Please lodge one fact in your memory: that the last one thousand five hundred words was an ‘important bit’. In my heart of hearts, I know it was the most important bit you will read in this book.

@Kak, could this be a good topic for your podcast?

@Antifragile, what do you think about his words considering you're super ambitious in business?

@Andy Black, I feel that you instinctively know the lessons Felix Dennis learned so late in his life.
 
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Mathuin

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I find Felix Dennis's book unique in that he wrote a how-to make money book but in reality it sounded more like a call for help and a realization that he spent his life on ultimately meaningless pursuits. This to me was a way bigger lesson than his business tips.
I think it all depends on the person.

Felix was a Hippie before he was an entrepreneur and ultimately became everything he once hated.

Whilst I have a feeling someone like @Kak, who most likely came out of the womb in a coat and tie, would have a much different view reflecting on his career as an entrepreneur.
 

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what do you think about his words considering you're super ambitious in business?
Thanks for the tag, MTF. Fascinating topic. I’d love to dig deep into it but first let me start small:

My ambition started with wanting money for my freedom of choices. Now that I’m moderately wealthy, I can confirm your quote text isn’t wrong. Wealth has its challenges. It does not bring happiness. Yet I’m as ambitious as I’ve ever been. Why?

Simple. I’m happiest when I achieve things. My days start with a zero. I feel I must do something because that’s who I am. It can be business, sports, family time, reading etc.

And I find business to be fascinating and challenging all the time. I don’t want or need to be a billionaire. But I do want to see what I’m capable of achieving in my life.
 

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Happiness? Do not make me laugh. The rich are not happy. I have yet to meet a single really rich happy man or woman – and I have met many rich people. The demands from others to share their wealth become so tiresome, and so insistent, they nearly always decide they must insulate themselves. Insulation breeds paranoia and arrogance. And loneliness. And rage that you have only so many years left to enjoy rolling in the sand you have piled up.

Wow, what a horrific generalization. Sounds like he surrounded himself with grifters and losers, not to mention a mental framework of paranoia. But then again, weren't "hookers and blow" a regular part of his life?

One man's opinion and experience need not be your truth.

I've never been happier, but then again, I never owned a company with a gazillion employees and a significantly bigger shadow.
 
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After a brief conversation with @Mathuin in the random thread I wanted to bump this thread, link back to my review of the book from 2019, and repost my post from the random thread here:

I find Felix Dennis's book unique in that he wrote a how-to make money book but in reality it sounded more like a call for help and a realization that he spent his life on ultimately meaningless pursuits. This to me was a way bigger lesson than his business tips. This isn't something you're going to learn from a neat how-to business books with 7 steps to generational wealth.

This quote shows how bitter he was about his life choices:
I always say that if you want to be REALLY rich you’ve got to be ruthless - or at the very least your chances are much better if you are ruthless. Meaning that you let nothing stand in your way and stop at nothing to fill up your coffers.

But you must be ruthless in an intelligent way of course… just being ruthless in a stupid way will land you in jail or lead to self-destruction.

Being really rich isn’t the way to heaven, that’s for sure, but if that’s your goal, that’s what it is.

At the highest levels money and power blend together, and there isn’t much of a separation anymore.

Taking an extreme case, like a Saudi prince, you’re having access to so much cash you’d put Bill Gates to shame. Saudi Aramco (the Saudi oil company) is BY FAR the biggest and most valuable company in the world - only that it’s a private company, with shares just in the past few years hitting the market in a semi-privatisation. Market cap of around $2.5 TRILLION.

Having a company like that is literarily having access to a machine that can print as much money as you could possibly want. What that means isn’t yachts, castles, airplanes and what not (though sure, that is included). But what it really means is control over people and nations.

Not that it will make you any happier - I don’t think it will. But unhappiness at that level comes with the territory as Felix Dennis says. You can’t be a happy go lucky fella and hold onto that wealth. No, you need to be a ruthless killer, doing whatever it takes to protect your assets and grow them because you are surrounded by other ruthless killers looking for a moment of weakness to take it all away from you. Meaning the game you’re playing isn’t freedom: it’s power.
 
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I think it all depends on the person.

Felix was a Hippie before he was an entrepreneur and ultimately became everything he once hated.

Whilst I have a feeling someone like @Kak, who most likely came out of the womb in a coat and tie, would have a much different view reflecting on his career as an entrepreneur.

He was definitely an artist at heart and probably at some point in his life he realized how much time he had wasted doing something that didn't bring him joy.

Thanks for the tag, MTF. Fascinating topic. I’d love to dig deep into it but first let me start small:

My ambition started with wanting money for my freedom of choices. Now that I’m moderately wealthy, I can confirm your quote text isn’t wrong. Wealth has its challenges. It does not bring happiness. Yet I’m as ambitious as I’ve ever been. Why?

Simple. I’m happiest when I achieve things. My days start with a zero. I feel I must do something because that’s who I am. It can be business, sports, family time, reading etc.

And I find business to be fascinating and challenging all the time. I don’t want or need to be a billionaire. But I do want to see what I’m capable of achieving in my life.

You seem to want to grow in all aspects of life. For Dennis it was mostly, if not primarily, money. For most of his life I don't think he had any other big interests or ambitions besides business.

Wow, what a horrific generalization. Sounds like he surrounded himself with grifters and losers, not to mention a mental framework of paranoia. But then again, weren't "hookers and blow" a regular part of his life?

One man's opinion and experience need not be your truth.

I've never been happier, but then again, I never owned a company with a gazillion employees and a significantly bigger shadow.

You need to keep in mind that his definition of rich was way different than what most people consider rich:

rich.jpg

So for him, being rich started with £75 million in his time (he wrote the book in early 2000s). According to this inflation calculator, £75 million in 2005 would be £119,160,174.30 today so $157,619,001.40.

This is probably 10x what the most successful guys here on the forum are worth so a completely different game with a completely different impact on your lifestyle.

In 2010, his net worth was approximately more than $750 million so yeah, a completely different world (he'd be a billionaire in today's money).

I always say that if you want to be REALLY rich you’ve got to be ruthless - or at the very least your chances are much better if you are ruthless. Meaning that you let nothing stand in your way and stop at nothing to fill up your coffers.

But you must be ruthless in an intelligent way of course… just being ruthless in a stupid way will land you in jail or lead to self-destruction.

Being really rich isn’t the way to heaven, that’s for sure, but if that’s your goal, that’s what it is.

At the highest levels money and power blend together, and there isn’t much of a separation anymore.

Taking an extreme case, like a Saudi prince, you’re having access to so much cash you’d put Bill Gates to shame. Saudi Aramco (the Saudi oil company) is BY FAR the biggest and most valuable company in the world - only that it’s a private company, with shares just in the past few years hitting the market in a semi-privatisation. Market cap of around $2.5 TRILLION.

Having a company like that is literarily having access to a machine that can print as much money as you could possibly want. What that means isn’t yachts, castles, airplanes and what not (though sure, that is included). But what it really means is control over people and nations.

Not that it will make you any happier - I don’t think it will. But unhappiness at that level comes with the territory as Felix Dennis says. You can’t be a happy go lucky fella and hold onto that wealth. No, you need to be a ruthless killer, doing whatever it takes to protect your assets and grow them because you are surrounded by other ruthless killers looking for a moment of weakness to take it all away from you. Meaning the game you’re playing isn’t freedom: it’s power.

Yeah he covered that in the book as well. I think he was as obsessed as you described which contributed to this feelings about having too much money. I don't think he had that much power, though (outside of his companies).
 

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For Dennis it was mostly, if not primarily, money.
That explains why he comes off so bitter. My priorities in order of importance:
#1 Family
#2 Health
#3 Business (mostly to allow me to focus on 1 and 2).

Let me tell you that nothing can come close to the feeling happiness like infectious laughter of your kiddo. And yet you must be healthy to ever feel happy.

I did not read his book (and now I won’t)
 
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Andy Black

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@Andy Black, I feel that you instinctively know the lessons Felix Dennis learned so late in his life.
I read what you quoted.

It sounds like there was a want in him and that he hadn’t figured out how to be happy.

I don’t know what lessons he learned (from that quoted passage). It all sounds like sour grapes to me.
 

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That explains why he comes off so bitter. My priorities in order of importance:
#1 Family
#2 Health
#3 Business (mostly to allow me to focus on 1 and 2).

Let me tell you that nothing can come close to the feeling happiness like infectious laughter of your kiddo. And yet you must be healthy to ever feel happy.

I did not read his book (and now I won’t)

Ha I would put health first as without health you can't serve your family well (or enjoy it).

I read what you quoted.

It sounds like there was a want in him and that he hadn’t figured out how to be happy.

I don’t know what lessons he learned (from that quoted passage). It all sounds like sour grapes to me.

Here's his main lesson:

Lastly, in any list of reasons not to get rich, we must come to philosophy and the benefits of hindsight. If I had my time again, knowing what I know today, I would dedicate myself to making just enough to live comfortably (say £30 or £40 million), as quickly as I could – hopefully by the time I was thirty-five years old. I would then cash out immediately and retire to write poetry and plant trees.

Making money was, and still is, fun, but at one time it wreaked chaos upon my private life. It blocked me from beginning to write poetry until my early fifties. It consumed my waking hours. It led me into a lifestyle of narcotics, high-class whores, drink and consolatory debauchery. As a philosopher might have put it – all the usual dreary afflictions of the seeker after wealth. These afflictions, in turn, helped to undermine my health.

But like an old, punch-drunk boxer, I couldn’t quit. I always craved just one more massive pay-day. One more appearance under the lights with the roar of the crowd and the stink of the sawdust and leather. One more fight. ‘I can take this young punk. I know I can. Just this once, so I can go out as a winner. So I can retire as the champ. Then I’ll retire. Just this last one.’

Pathetic. I should have known better. There is no such thing as a permanent champ. After all, I co-wrote the first bestselling biography of Muhammad Ali back in 1974. (You’ll find it, republished as Muhammad Ali: The Glory Years on Amazon.com.) And there isn’t a single fan of Muhammad Ali who does not wish he had quit the ring several years before his failing powers made the decision for him.

It’s no excuse, but making money is a drug. Not the money itself. The making of the money. This sounds like so much hooplah, but it’s true, all the same. Nobody believed that exercise could prove addictive until science stepped in and discovered ‘endorphins’ or whatever the damn things are called. And making money, I assure you, is a hell of a lot more of a rush than jogging.

Up to just seven years ago I was still working twelve to sixteen hours a day making money. With hundreds of millions of dollars in assets I just could not let go. Like I said, it was pathetic. Because whoever dies with the most toys doesn’t win. Real winners are people who know their limits and respect them.
 

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