Customer Reviews

Rich Like Them: My Door-To-Door Search for the Secrets of Wealth in America's Richest Neighborhoods

5 star:		(10)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(5)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

I liked this book. It is the write-up of a research project the author undertook regarding how rich people generally get to be rich or to stay rich. 50 rich people from around the country who live among the top 50 well-to-do zip codes in the country were interviewed. They resided in one of 19 towns within 11 states. And the results of the interviews were compiled into the 5 chapters included in this book. I encourage you to take a look at the Search Inside feature Amazon provides. You can see the Table of Contents there.

Sprinkled through the 5 chapters were 41 point headings that represented words of wisdom the author learned from those he interviewed. My favorites were as follows:

>>Connect the people you meet
>>Once you connect the dots, then follow through
>>Don't deviate from your planned path to get a quick gain
>>Perseverance doesn't take forever
>>Do one thing and do it well
>>Don't plan a career - plan a life
>>Never stop being a student
>>Calculate every risk - even the one you live in
>>Don't worry about what other people think
>>If you hate your career, um, change it
>>Sometimes the biggest risk is doing nothing
>>Never let pride get in the way of profit
>>Be humble even if you're as rich as Brooke Astor
>>Understand your limitations
>>Don't be a slave to Plan A - it'll prevent you from seeing Plan B

Supposedly half of those interviewed had started their own business or businesses to become wealthy. I'm not sure about the other half, but they either had high paying corporate jobs or had inherited their wealth. Of course, the author points out that those who inherit have a full time job just preserving their wealth.

I thought the book could have been a little better written. Part of it seemed a little repetitive to me. The real value in the book is the 41 point headings I refer to above. But it was a fun read and quick to complete. And it was an interesting concept for a book. 4 stars!

Great Idea for a book. I was anticipating its release with excitement. After completing it last week, I have to say that the opportunity was wasted.

He does what he says, but gets about an inch deep with the individuals, then he crams the few insights they had into whatever his outline's mantra is for that chapter (he puts words in their mouth to fit his format).

Also, the author is confused about what kind of writer he is. I mean, this book isn't Old Man and the Sea, so it seems out of place when he slips in and out of wild descriptive periods and clever similes that seem like he's been waiting to use them. They feel shoe-horned into descriptions.

But I don't want to just bash him here. Its an interesting read, but seems shallow for all the time he put in. He is also genuine about his interest in the subject.

Unique concept, but I'm still surprised that people talked to him... Rich Like Them: My Door-to-Door Search for the Secrets of Wealth in America's Richest Neighborhoods by Ryan D'Agostino. He decided to bypass all the hyped stories of self-made millionaires and physically go door-to-door to see what people would tell him about how they got rich. In order to pull this off, he used a company called ESRI to determine the 100 wealthiest zip codes in America. His plan was to go to these particular locations, find a neighborhood or two with very nice houses ("proof" that they probably had money), introduce himself and his project, and then listen and take notes. 500 doors and 50 interviews later, he had a wide array of first-hand information about how people got themselves to their comfortable financial position in life. And not surprisingly, there's no one single way that everyone gets rich. But there are common practices and mindsets that raise your odds significantly.

I personally got the most out of the chapter on obsession. Too many people try to go into a business or career with the thought of making lots of money. But if that's the main driver for someone, it won't last long term. If you're doing something you love, and there *is* money to be made in the field, the money will almost always show up automatically. While I don't consider myself "rich", there is some truth in my life to that secret. D'Agostino also had one interview that rang very true for me. If you look forward to going to work, that's a good sign that you'll do well financially. The ability to work long hours because of your passion and obsession means that you'll end up creating the opportunities that others call "luck". It was encouraging to see that I was doing some things correctly, while I found plenty of other areas where I could improve.

If you're looking for a 12 step "get rich now" formula, Rich Like Them isn't the book you're looking for. The author doesn't have any secret program or agenda to push. What you end up with is, in my opinion, something far more valuable. You get advice from people who are not much different than you, except that they've worked hard to get to where they are. And long term, that's the information that is most valuable.

This is a pretty good book to read. No, it's not an instruction manual on how to get rich but it does give some (or should I say, a lot) of insight on how many people from different walks of life became wealthy.

At first sight, by reading the title, you might think that this book talks a lot about money...and I guess it does, in a way...but that's not necessarily the main point. What I liked most about this "door-knocking" project is that it just might give you the needed push you need to get out there and start doing something you actually enjoy...maybe even something that you obsess over (in a good way).

The common theme throughout the pages I kept finding over and over is that the main motivation for the people being interviewed was not money...it just happened to come along. Sure, money is an important reason and it should be important, but it should not be the ONLY reason you are working in that job.

This is an inspiring book that talks about people who do what they love and are willing to take chances.

What a bold move to go door-to-door and interview wealthy people, and then write a book about it. Wow, I am impressed! This book may disappoint some because it does not offer a formula of how to get as rich as the interviewed individuals. They are all different and chose different paths to achieve success.

I absolutely love the chapter on obsession. Many of these individuals found something that they loved. Their main goal was not money. Because of their dedication and hard work, the money was just a result. I can relate to this myself. I remember when I was working in a different industry, I hated going to work even though there was a lot of money to be made. I kept watching the clock all day long. Now that I love what I do, I don't count the hours anymore. It's just fun for me.

If you like reading stories about successful people, you will also enjoy and this book, but I also recommend The Millionaire Mind by Thomas J. Stanley.

- Mariusz Skonieczny, author of Why Are We So Clueless about the Stock Market? Learn how to invest your money, how to pick stocks, and how to make money in the stock market

I read this book and finished it in 2 days. He was completely brave and bold to do his version of "research" and I found it to be quite enlightening. I had a chance to visit some of the locations and places mentioned in the book and they all remembered speaking with him, so I know he was on the up and up.

There were some great stories from those that are wealthy and you might find some great tips to use. My question, was this book written before the bubble burst last year? If so, he should do a sequel to see how those same people are doing now.

The same way I am intrigued by glimpses into the illuminated windows of the fabulous homes I pass by all the time, I found it easy to join author Ryan D'Agostino as he crossed the threshold of mystery into the mansions of America's wealthy. Well-written with vivid details, he finds a way to translate the stories of a range of extraordinarily successful individuals into usable nuggets of encouraging wisdom. More fun than any financial planning guide, this book indulged my curiosity about what it's like inside the house on the hill and how its lucky inhabiters got there.

A quick read with lots of good anecdotes from successful business people and entrepreneurs. More than anything, the opportunity to get into the psyches of these people and understand their motivations and what it took to become successful despite their ordinary backgrounds is inspiring to me. I appreciate their willingness to let D'Agostino capture some of that and share it with us.

I hate to knock someone who has put in the effort to write a book and has even had a great idea for it, but after thinking about it for a couple of nights, I couldn't hold back anymore with all the good reviews floating around.

I have read tons of personal finance books and this is by far the worst book I have read so far.

- You actually don't find out what the rich people think but rather what the author thinks you should do and then he just pulls single sentences from "the rich" to prove his "points".

- His "points" are just too general. There is no insight in there that you wouldn't have heard if you just read one other PF book.

- most of what you get is a description of him walking around and knocking on doors, e.g. not enough substance and it's not exactly like Odysseus.

- I just can't shake the feeling that the author thinks he is very interesting. To be honest, I just don't give a hoot about what his daddy or brother has done or what he's thinking. I bought the book on the premise that he will tell me what the richt told him and you get practically nothing of that. (Take "Millionaire Next Door" if you don't know that one yet.)

I for one am going to return the book. And you shouldn't get it as it is neither informative nor fun to read.

Rich Like Them is not a self-help book, unless you're securely placed in upper-middle class or higher, and are financially secure. In the author's door-to-door search to find the secrets of wealth is America (paraphrase of the subtitle), the true secret is "already be wealthy."

Of 500 houses in several cities across the top 100 richest zip codes, D'Agostino went door to door knocking/ringing doorbells to find out the secrets to everybody's wealth. He managed to snag 50 interviews.

While I respect the goal of the book, the execution of it was flawed. About a third of the advice on making it big would appeal to many of the readers of the book.

The people who made it big in this book were either already wealthy, married into wealth, started a business appealing to the wealthy, were from wealthy families, or made continual sacrifices to their families to get wealthy, by either burning the midnight oil ("Hey, it's Uncle Dad!"), or by continually relocating a family to keep getting better and better homes and by making a killing off the previous one. Oh, or you could work hard your entire life, scrimping and saving so that you could live luxuriously in your golden years (and by then, could you really enjoy it? What's the point of having an Olympic-sized swimming pool if all you can do is wade in the shallow end because of your arthritis?).

Sure, there were some innovators, like the author's friend who revolutionized the credit card/shop interface, but it seemed everybody else put everything in their lives to the side except for success (granted, a better goal than money), and all we see is the good: their giant house with a wonderful view of some body of water, but we don't see their neglected families (well, one of the guys, we see, doesn't have any furniture in his multi-million dollar home).

An interesting book if you liked the show Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous, or Cribs, but not really any more helpful than listening to the financial talk radio shows on the AM ("act your wage" and so forth). About the only thing it brings to the table is to be a risk taker. Here, though, "risk" is a carefully calculated thing that would put you in the poor house if it fails.

Additionally, the author spends as much time interpolating his own agenda on getting rich as he does listening to the rich talk about their methods of getting rich. Oh, and he sickeningly describes every single overpriced meal he has and every lush hotel he visits as he does this project.

All in all, I wouldn't recommend this book unless you have loads of money lying around and would like some tips on how to invest it. Unless you're prepared to sacrifice and work really hard, this book will give you nothing more than a little warmth on the inside. That warmth is called "heartburn."