Self Help Book Reviews Tristan on 10 Nov 2009 11:12 am
The Richest Man In Babylon Is A Must Read Book
I recently read The Richest Man In Babylon by Charles S Clason and was absolutely engrossed in it for about a week - it’s only a short book so didn’t take too many evenings to read it.
The book was written in 1926, though it still feels very relevant today, and what’s more, the lessons that it teaches are written in the context of the residents of Babylon circa 500 BC. This is what so fascinated me, the notion that the secrets to wealth and happines are the same today as they were thousands of years ago.
The main lessons that I got from reading the book are the same as the main lessons that you can read in many other self help books. Here are a few:
- Always save 10% of your earnings for future investment
- Control your spending, i.e. learn to live frugally and well within your means
- Don’t get sucked into scams, only invest in things you understand or invest with people that have the understanding themselves
- Make your money work for you, i.e. look for opportunities for passive income to be generated
Now I have read many self help books, most of which have focussed on either generating wealth or improving ones personal finances, and in all the books I’ve read, I can honestly say that The Richest Man In Babylon has had the most profound effect because it makes one realise that the rules of the game have not changed in millenia. This in turn made me come to a very profound realisation, there are no short-cuts, the only path to lifelong wealth and happines is to play a long game.
