Has Anyone Else Been Completely Captivated by MJ DeMarco’s Books?

[binydev]

Hey fellow fastlaners,

I’ve encountered something fascinating and somewhat unexpected on my recent reading journey, and I’m curious to know if anyone else has experienced something similar.

My reading list was carefully curated with a mix of financial and psychological insights. It started with MJ DeMarco’s The Millionaire Fastlane , followed by Psychology of Money. However, after diving into DeMarco’s work, I was so captivated by his ideas that I immediately moved on to his other books, finishing with The Great Rat-Race Escape. The latter was not only insightful but also wrapped in a sensational fictional story that I found incredibly engaging.

Here’s where things took a turn: after being immersed in DeMarco’s perspectives, I attempted to pivot to Psychology of Money. To my surprise, I couldn’t get past page 17. The discussions around Wall Street, which I would normally find intriguing, suddenly felt intolerable. I even tried starting another book on my list, but my motivation fizzled out just as quickly.

This has led me to ponder: Is my newfound intolerance for certain financial discussions a direct result of being so deeply influenced by DeMarco’s ideas? Or am I being overly judgmental towards other financial narratives after being sold on DeMarco’s approach?

I’m reaching out to this community because I value the diverse perspectives here. Has anyone else felt a similar shift in their reading preferences or attitudes after engaging with specific authors or ideas? Could this be a common phenomenon among us fastlaners, or is my experience more of an anomaly?

I’m eager to hear your thoughts and whether you’ve had any similar experiences. Your insights could help me (and perhaps others) navigate this intriguing junction in our reading and learning journeys.

Looking forward to your responses!

 

Dislike ads? Remove them and support the forum: Subscribe to Fastlane Insiders.

[MJ DeMarco]

Once you know about life OUTSIDE the cave, people preaching about life IN the cave can be nauseating.

Good news is, once you read one of these "financial" books, you've read the other 45,102,003 others.

 

[binydev]

Once you know about life OUTSIDE the cave, people preaching about life IN the cave can be nauseating.

Good news is, once you read one of these "financial" books, you've read the other 45,102,003 others.

Wow, I’m really glad to hear you DeMarco. I shared my experience eagerly, hoping to hear others’ thoughts because this change in my mindset has been both surprising and a bit unsettling for me. The transformation has been so profound that at times I worry if I’ve leapfrogged to becoming akin to an M4 processor in a world where traditional financial wisdom feels like it’s teaching me abacus calculations. The fear isn’t just in the change itself but in wondering if this shift is isolating me from conventional wisdom that still holds value for many. Looking forward to hearing more insights from everyone here!

 

[MJ DeMarco]

I am reminded of this thread every time I'm on X.

Just every god damn post is about index funds, frugality, and early retirement while living like a broke-coed.

I continually mute these people and they still flood my feed.

Anyhow...

Here's the thing: You can use the knowledge in "those" books while you're working on your business.

My step son actively invests while building his business. Because he started young, he's already grown a portfolio bigger than I ever had until I was in my 30s.

But he fully understands the duality...

Business = Wealth
Investments = Passive income + Passive growth

 

Dislike ads? Remove them and support the forum: Subscribe to Fastlane Insiders.

[binydev]

That’s incredibly true, and it resonates deeply with my recent experiences. Over the past five years, my consumption of content shifted entirely from music to podcasts and YouTube videos focused on startups, SaaS businesses, and software development—areas directly aligned with my professional work and aspirations for change. Among those I’ve followed is my childhood hero, Robert Kiyosaki, the author of Rich Dad Poor Dad, whose insights on X and YouTube I’ve regularly consumed.

Just this morning, I received a YouTube notification and eagerly began to watch a new video. The speaker opened with the statement, “The fastest way to become a millionaire is by copying other millionaires.” I found myself unable to continue listening. As I mentioned earlier, my tolerance for such content has drastically diminished.

For years, I consumed these messages with fervor, believing in the pursuit of success as it was presented. Yet, I’ve come to see the fallacy in chasing what I now view as “peeled fruit”—it’s a path that, for me, no longer holds the promise of genuine change. Reflecting on the time I invested in exploring various project management methodologies and programming languages, I realize that the journey, not the specific tools or strategies, was where the true value lay.

My daily routine once included spending 30 minutes on X, absorbing and engaging with this content. However, my growing intolerance for what I now perceive as superficial advice has led me to drastically reduce my engagement, to the point where I might not even open it weekly.

This rapid change in my perspective leaves me pondering: Have I really evolved this quickly? Can I reconcile the aspirations I once held so dearly, especially my dreams of emulating these figures upon moving to the US, with my current disillusionment? Taking the “red pill” and confronting these realities is indeed challenging.

 

[Jinzou]

Hey fellow fastlaners,

I’ve encountered something fascinating and somewhat unexpected on my recent reading journey, and I’m curious to know if anyone else has experienced something similar.

My reading list was carefully curated with a mix of financial and psychological insights. It started with MJ DeMarco’s The Millionaire Fastlane , followed by Psychology of Money. However, after diving into DeMarco’s work, I was so captivated by his ideas that I immediately moved on to his other books, finishing with The Great Rat-Race Escape. The latter was not only insightful but also wrapped in a sensational fictional story that I found incredibly engaging.

Here’s where things took a turn: after being immersed in DeMarco’s perspectives, I attempted to pivot to Psychology of Money. To my surprise, I couldn’t get past page 17. The discussions around Wall Street, which I would normally find intriguing, suddenly felt intolerable. I even tried starting another book on my list, but my motivation fizzled out just as quickly.

This has led me to ponder: Is my newfound intolerance for certain financial discussions a direct result of being so deeply influenced by DeMarco’s ideas? Or am I being overly judgmental towards other financial narratives after being sold on DeMarco’s approach?

I’m reaching out to this community because I value the diverse perspectives here. Has anyone else felt a similar shift in their reading preferences or attitudes after engaging with specific authors or ideas? Could this be a common phenomenon among us fastlaners, or is my experience more of an anomaly?

I’m eager to hear your thoughts and whether you’ve had any similar experiences. Your insights could help me (and perhaps others) navigate this intriguing junction in our reading and learning journeys.

Looking forward to your responses!

Hey there,

I've experienced similar changes. Lucky me, Fastlane Millionaire was the first ever financial book I've read.

Thanks to MJ, I won't waste any time or money on reading one of the dozens of books that would probably misguide me in the end.


On that note, I actually did an experiment out of curiosity.

In Germany we have a very popular finance youtuber "Finanzfluss". They've got over 1,2 M subs and create overall high-quality videos, at least considering the video editing.

Now, probably most people would guess that their created content has to be good, right? I mean more than a million people are watching this regularly. And the guy talking about money looks smart.

However, the best thing is their published book.

Please hold on to something before you proceed, I don't take any responsibility for the cringe incoming.

It's titled "the only book you should ever read about Finance". I bought it for fun to see what great money-raining tips I would get.

Do you want to take a guess?

I've managed to read 30 pages and after the first maybe 15 of it, they started talking about investing 10% of your money in some ETFs and whatnot. They even included a table proving how profitable that would be. The table shows that I'd reach thousands of euros after a minimum of 40 years.

Mhm, nice.
Guess it really will be the only book about finance I'd ever read because I'd be f*cking dead before realizing this ain't it.


This exact book was the number one finance book bestseller for literal months in every store I visited.

What the hell?

Yeah, thanks for the offer but no thank you.

You know, usually, I don't want to throw books away. They're valuable after all. I like to place them in front of our house for someone else to take.

But this thing? Never before have I trashed something that quickly.

Though, I have to add that not everything they do is bad content.


Moving on, the only financial advice I'd get was from my stepdad and bank accountant a few years ago. Both told me I should invest in fonds managed by this bank. Of course, I agreed.

I even vividly remember saying to my stepdad afterward that it couldn't be wrong if everyone was doing it. Ha.

I wish I could yell at my younger self to stop. Well, at least it wasn't a huge sum.



So, to bring this to an end: Yes, I share your feelings. It's basically as MJ says.

Once you know about life OUTSIDE the cave, people preaching about life IN the cave can be nauseating.

But I'm damn grateful to be in this spot. I'm gladly taking any nauseous headache in return.

 

[SSTrey]

Once you know about life OUTSIDE the cave, people preaching about life IN the cave can be nauseating.

Good news is, once you read one of these "financial" books, you've read the other 45,102,003 others.

I've realised this too.
This 'if I read another book then ...' mentality got scrapped out the window for me.
I shifted my focus from reading 100 books to jsut reading the next one that gets me to the next step in my business, and so on - just the way one would treat a textbook.

 

Dislike ads? Remove them and support the forum: Subscribe to Fastlane Insiders.

[Athena_]

Hey fellow fastlaners,

I’ve encountered something fascinating and somewhat unexpected on my recent reading journey, and I’m curious to know if anyone else has experienced something similar.

My reading list was carefully curated with a mix of financial and psychological insights. It started with MJ DeMarco’s The Millionaire Fastlane , followed by Psychology of Money. However, after diving into DeMarco’s work, I was so captivated by his ideas that I immediately moved on to his other books, finishing with The Great Rat-Race Escape. The latter was not only insightful but also wrapped in a sensational fictional story that I found incredibly engaging.

Here’s where things took a turn: after being immersed in DeMarco’s perspectives, I attempted to pivot to Psychology of Money. To my surprise, I couldn’t get past page 17. The discussions around Wall Street, which I would normally find intriguing, suddenly felt intolerable. I even tried starting another book on my list, but my motivation fizzled out just as quickly.

This has led me to ponder: Is my newfound intolerance for certain financial discussions a direct result of being so deeply influenced by DeMarco’s ideas? Or am I being overly judgmental towards other financial narratives after being sold on DeMarco’s approach?

I’m reaching out to this community because I value the diverse perspectives here. Has anyone else felt a similar shift in their reading preferences or attitudes after engaging with specific authors or ideas? Could this be a common phenomenon among us fastlaners, or is my experience more of an anomaly?

I’m eager to hear your thoughts and whether you’ve had any similar experiences. Your insights could help me (and perhaps others) navigate this intriguing junction in our reading and learning journeys.

Looking forward to your responses!

Your bullshit detector is too strong after reading MJ to tolerate any of that nonsense in those useless finance books! That's it - I said it,loud and clear

 

[ozer]

Hey fellow fastlaners,

I’ve encountered something fascinating and somewhat unexpected on my recent reading journey, and I’m curious to know if anyone else has experienced something similar.

My reading list was carefully curated with a mix of financial and psychological insights. It started with MJ DeMarco’s The Millionaire Fastlane , followed by Psychology of Money. However, after diving into DeMarco’s work, I was so captivated by his ideas that I immediately moved on to his other books, finishing with The Great Rat-Race Escape. The latter was not only insightful but also wrapped in a sensational fictional story that I found incredibly engaging.

Here’s where things took a turn: after being immersed in DeMarco’s perspectives, I attempted to pivot to Psychology of Money. To my surprise, I couldn’t get past page 17. The discussions around Wall Street, which I would normally find intriguing, suddenly felt intolerable. I even tried starting another book on my list, but my motivation fizzled out just as quickly.

This has led me to ponder: Is my newfound intolerance for certain financial discussions a direct result of being so deeply influenced by DeMarco’s ideas? Or am I being overly judgmental towards other financial narratives after being sold on DeMarco’s approach?

I’m reaching out to this community because I value the diverse perspectives here. Has anyone else felt a similar shift in their reading preferences or attitudes after engaging with specific authors or ideas? Could this be a common phenomenon among us fastlaners, or is my experience more of an anomaly?

I’m eager to hear your thoughts and whether you’ve had any similar experiences. Your insights could help me (and perhaps others) navigate this intriguing junction in our reading and learning journeys.

Looking forward to your responses!

I see the point. I'm also reading 3 books at the same time, MJ's storytelling skill is far better than other financial books or personal development books. I also found real examples from real life in The Millionaire Fastlane , which also affected my perspective.