Customer Reviews

From Garage Sale To Financial Freedom In Five Steps

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

This is exactly my type of book.

I would love to live the life that I want and still have some money to live. Yes, I admit, that I am one of those people - who bought into the whole "dream" of work hard and get rewarded at the end, so much of what author McFergus said hit home with me. I particularly liked the line "when I want money, I create it" - I loved that line and its exactly what is standing betwee me and the things I want to do.

In this book, McFergus gives us concrete ways of living the life you want and to get the money that you need (not necessarily that you want) in order to make that life happen.

So much of what I read in this book are things that I have been asking myself for years. What happened to just buying (or making) the stuff that we need? Why do we need 4 tvs and 2 cars? My grandparents managed to live just fine without travelling every few months or without going to the movies every other day. We, as a society spend too much and McFergus calls us on it.

His basic points are:

1- figure out what you NEED;
2- figure out what you want in life;
3- be willing to downsize your way of life;
4- be happy

This is truly a great little gem of a personal financial/inspirational book.

Buy it.

Dirk lays out more than five steps to financial freedom. Instead of doing what countless snake oil salesmen have done before him, he lays out an attainable blueprint to freedom. There's a lot of meat in this book. It's a deep read that will have you challenging what you know about your life and role as an obese shove it in your mouth consumer.

It's awesome hearing how Dirk beat the system and its enlightening to know that anyone can do it.

Not very many pages but the message is huge. I'll bet most people will find this to be edgy and too forthright, but I am here to say; If you're smart you'll read this book. I've given numerous copies to the friends I care about.

This book is full of meat on how to beat the system and thrive. The mindset of the author is the only way to roll to beat the system before the system beats you. The mindset taught applies to any business in any economy. You will survive following the teachings of this book.

This book is a very easy read. I got through it in probably 2 hours. It offers a good case for re-thinking the "American Dream," and realizing that working for someone else isn't going to get you there. There is also a valuable lesson about recognizing the distinction between our wants and needs...and letting go of our wants. The book is a good read for these reasons alone, if nothing else. There's plenty of practical advice in here.

I would like to have seen the 5 steps broken down a little bit more clearly. There are 20 chapters in the book; I was expecting to see six or seven chapters (intro chapter, a chapter for each step, and maybe a final chapter). For this reason, I'd say that the book could use a little more clarity and emphasis, which could very easily be added to the book by introducing repetition (i.e., repeatedly going back to and repeating the five steps).

Additionally, I'm not sure that the strategy presented in this book would continue to be effective. The author's strategy is buying storage units at auction, but with the success of recent television shows which portray this strategy, I know that more people than ever are going to these auctions. As a result, the auctions aren't as widely advertized, and the prices that units are going for are a lot more outrageous. It's become a lucrative option for a lot of people. Is it as easy to implement this strategy now as it was before the television shows? I don't know...I'm just saying that I question it (which Dirk should appreciate, since he instructs the reader to basically question/evaluate everything). Nevertheless, even if this strategy is no longer viable, the principles of the book are excellent.

My final comment is just to note that this books needs a good editor. There are plenty of grammatical mistakes scattered throughout the book, which doesn't take anything away from the book per se, but it does make the presentation of the ideas less professional. It's probably the equivalent of the difference between a waxed car and a non-waxed car. The car is good either way, but a little waxing makes it more attractive on the surface.

It's no surprise that the author lists "con artist" as one of his occupations.

Here's the "magic formula":

Give up consumerism
Sell your stuff
Quit your job
Find more junk to sell - on the street, at garage sales, at storage unit auctions, etc and sell it on ebay and at garage sale after garage sale after garage sale
Repeat

And do it all in five hours a day.

This is not the route to financial freedom - it's the path that will eventually land you a spot on Hoarders and in battles with your neighbors. The author even mentions his "pathways to move around the house" and the neighbors' complaints.

If there's anyone out there who actually believes this is the formula for financial freedom I have a bridge I'd like to sell you.

You can make money selling used junk / antiques - I did it years ago for about a year - but you'll be working your tail off for 12-14 hours a day or more. And it's debatable that it can still be done on a much bigger and more competitive ebay.

Bottom line - you won't find the secrets to financial freedom in this book.

I loved reading this book and I know now that procrastinating will not help improve my life in this new year. I've been thinking about working from home to supplement my income and getting out of debt is one of my main goals.
I also got *NEW* How to Get Debt Free FOREVER & Make Money Online - Your money-mini-guide for 2012! Yes, You Can and I plan to get a couple more books because I believe if I'm going to be investing my time or money in any venture, I at least need the required information/education to stay focused and on the right track.
If you want to take control of your financial future, my advice is, take action!

he talks about branding, like how people would choose Mc Donald's over other fast food
and in close as well like dickies over cakies.
and how we can sell at yard sells and flea markets as well as ebay.
to make extra money