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26 of 31 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
100 millionaires tell you how to get rich --- why not listen?, May 6, 2009
Have you noticed that almost no one ever seems to ask the rich about the subject they know best?
No, on the "Fiddler on the Roof" theory --- "When you're rich, they think you really know" --- the rich get to sound off on all manner of topics outside their expertise. We're regularly served their views on inheritance taxes, wars, medical research and the arts. What's harder to ferret out: what they know about becoming and staying rich.
Randy Jones --- W. Randall Jones to you, but I once worked for him when he was the publisher (and founder) of Worth Magazine --- got interested in money when he was a kid in Georgia. As far as I can tell, he has amassed piles of it. In addition to the duplex in Manhattan, there's a house in Westchester. I doubt his kids have ever been shamed by clothes from The Gap. And his wife needed an operation on her earlobes a while back, thanks to decades of wearing earrings encrusted with massive diamonds. (No. Not really. But you get the idea.)
A few years ago, Jones decided to write a book about his favorite obsession: how you make money. In 'The Richest Man in Town: The Twelve Commandments of Wealth', he crisscrosses America to interview a slew of self-made millionaires. (Actually, the poorest of the people he interviews has at least $100 million.) Then he divides their knowledge into buckets --- "the twelve commandments of wealth".
It's a simple structure. It's a simple book. There's almost nothing here that you haven't read, heard or thought before.
So why aren't you rich rich rich?
For one thing, you may be confused. "It's good to be rich" is not the same as "Greed is good", but because so many of the visible rich are selfish bastards who would greatly benefit from a stunning increase in the tax rate, it's easy to think that wealth and bad values go hand in hand. "Yeah, I'll have no money worries if I get rich," you think. "But I'll also be a jerk."
Not so, Jones says. Wealth is the byproduct of worthy activity. It's what happens when you perform a useful service or make a decent product, then market it aggressively and treat customers decently. It's about Right Livelihood, not pursuit of money. Sharks may score big for a while, say Jones and his interviewees, but over the long haul it's the good people who win biggest.
And good people don't put "success" and "wealth" in the same sentence. They measure success by satisfaction: their pleasure in the enterprise they've created, in the work they do each day, in their families and their causes. The high life in the big city? Most shudder at the prospect --- they're still living in their hometowns.
Each chapter in "The Richest Man in Town" is peppered with anecdotes, and they serve that chapter's commandment. Don't work for other people. Trust yourself. Be obsessive. (Robert Stiller sold his first company --- he made EZ Wider "cigarette" papers --- and started Green Mountain Coffee Roasters, which required him to use every dollar he ever made and go out to sell the product himself.) Early work experience gives you a solid work ethic. (Your kid is 14 and still going to summer camp?) Education matters; Harvard doesn't. Take care of your health.
A lot of kids will be given this book for graduation, birthdays and holidays. Good. They'll get something out of it. And so will Randy Jones, who not only has made a very good product here but made very sure I got a copy.
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7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Informative Motivational Book, July 28, 2009
According to The Richest Man In Town by W. Randall Jones, Stephen Bisciotti is the richest man in my hometown. Do you know who is the richest man in your hometown? If you have ever wondered you can probably discover him in Jones' new book. In addition to listing the local Donald Trumps The Richest Man In Town attempts to answer how they became so successful.
To that end Jones interviews many of the richest men, from both large and small towns, to discern the twelve commandments of wealth:
-- Seek Money for Money's Sake and Ye Shall Not Find
-- Find Your Perfect Pitch
-- Be Your Own Boss
-- Get Addicted to Ambition
-- Wake Up Early--Be Early
-- Don't Set Goals - Execute or Get Executed
-- Fail to Succeed
-- Location Doesn't Matter
-- Moor Yourself to Morals
-- Say Yes To Sales
-- Borrow from the Best - and the Worst
-- Never Retire
Many above the commandments are counter-intuitive and it was interesting to read how taking the proverbial road not taken led to their success. I also enjoyed the vignettes of various wealthy men. For example, I learned that Dell Computer wasn't Michael Dell's first business. Rather he started at age twelve by selling stamps on consignment and made $2,000! Not many twelve year olds have that drive or success. The Richest Man In Town is filled with other equally awe-inspiring stories.
As in everything in life, there is a downside to being the richest man in town. For instance, Leroy Landhuis, the richest man in Colorado Springs, confesses, "I have not been successful in my personal life the way I would have liked to be. My marriage wasn't successful and at times, I have been much too occupied with business." Such candid admissions, however, are few in far between in The Richest Man In Town.
It is clear that Jones is enamored with his subjects. In fact, he admits, "as hard as I tried to be a totally dispassionate journalistic observer of these big buck creators, I found that a very, difficult, near impossible task." A little journalistic distant, however, might have led to more insights and made a more balanced view. Still if you are curious as to what it is like to cruise down the yellow brick road of success then The Richest Man In Town provides a front row seat!
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5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Learn lessons from the experts, June 30, 2009
Synopsis:
W. Randall Jones, founder of Worth Magazine, identified and interviewed the Richest Man in Towns (RMITs) in one hundred American towns and cities. Jones selected self-made types who found their own paths to success through hard work and their creativity. While members of this select group span a range of companies and industries, they share certain traits. Jones calls these traits the Twelve Commandments of Wealth.
Here are the first few:
1. Seek Money for Money's Sake and Ye Shall Not Find.
- Wealth comes from a contribution of real value
2. Find your perfect pitch
- Know your own unique strengths and talents and match them with your personal passion.
3. BYOB: Be your own boss
- Don't work for someone else, found your own enterprise. Choose partners carefully - only those who bring something critical to your success.
The bulk of the book is devoted to describing these Twelve Commandments of Wealth and sharing how successful men demonstrated these traits. Anecdotes come from a diverse group of successful folk. Here are just a few: Michael Dell, Stephen King, Sam Zell, Fred Smith, Carl Icahn, John McAfee, Bill Gates, Sergey Brin, and Larry Ellison.
Aside from describing the traits, Jones offers exercises to help us find our strengths and individual paths to wealth. For instance, when describing the need to look for more than money, he suggests writing your own obituary to visualize your lifetime goals.
Review:
I found The Richest Man in Town: the Twelve Commandments of Wealth to be an interesting and absorbing read largely because of the wealth of stories shared by his sources.
Some of the quotes are particularly memorable and here are a few that I can't resist sharing:
"I always tell young people there is no substitute for hard work and diligence. It takes eight hours a day of hard work to be a success, but it takes most people twelve or thirteen hours a day to do eight hours of good work."
- Joe Taylor, former CEO of Southland Log Homes and secretary of commerce for SC
"Everyone should have at least one silent goal. This is a goal that is known only by you. It's a reach goal, one that is extremely hard to attain, but potentially life altering, even world changing. These kinds of world-changing golas are realized by only very few people. If you don't reach them, you certainly won't be judged by others-it's your well-kept personal secret."
-Dr. Thomas Frist Jr., co-founder of Hospital Corporation of America (HCA), the largest for-profit hospital management company
As I read, my copy slowly filled up with post-it tabs and notes. I highly recommend the book for those interested in business books and personal finance and for their loved ones who might need personal finance tips.
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