This is a post I wrote for LongTermPassiveIncome.com
I liked this book so much I thought I would post the book review on my personal site because it was THAT GOOD!
I’m not sure why I picked up this book. I got a random email from a famous person who I can’t remember the name of, who recommended the book.
When it comes to books I am the most impulsive buyer ever. I will load up the Kindle App on my phone and buy. I’m so impulsive I even turned on the “One Click Buy” feature.
I had also never heard of James Altucher who has accomplished a fair amount in his life. He has created and sold his website Stockpickr.com for 10million USD.
He claims he is mainly an investor and doesn’t want to run companies, I respect that.
I don’t want to run a big company either. My favourite thing is eating pizza and playing video games.
He has also gone broke multiple times in his life but kept at it.
THE BOOK:
279 pages
This is the first James Altucher book I have ever read, and after completing this book I may just pick up a couple of his others.
The book is laid out in 3 parts:
Part 1: New Game New Rules
The book is called Choose Yourself because you have to stop comparing yourself to others and focus on you because the society is changing FAST.
“Here’s a secret: you don’t have to worry about “finding” your passion. You’re naturally going to get passionate about what you are good at.”
Altucher also emphasizes that you need to come up with 10 ideas a day to get your “idea muscle” in shape. I decided to make this a daily habit and it’s given me almost an inexhaustible supply of ideas for content.
Heres an example of one of my idea sessions:
10 Way’s To Inspire
1. Speak the truth
2. Solve 3 pressing problems
3. Make those 3 problems your USP
4. Add Value
5. Educate & Demonstrate
6. Show your mistakes (adds human element)
7. Lead by example
8. Easily consumable solutions
9. Wave Of Emotion (remind people what it costs them not having the solution)
10. Build a system and help people through it
The above list took me about 15 mins to come up with. Around idea 5 you will start to sweat, because your mind has to really work to come up with further ideas.
This of course depends on the theme, some are easier than others.
I found this exercise so valuable that I make it a daily practice I do 7 days a week.
Part 2: Making Money In The Twenty First Century
He goes into several MAJOR trends that are going to shape this century.
Biotech: Aging babyboomer generation are going to need and want a massive amount of services. Everything from diagnosing disease better to cosmetic treatments for removing stupid tattoos they got in their younger years.
Observation: Not so much cameras and shady government people in the back of unmarked vans, but rather noticing patterns in peoples behaviour.
I actually talked about this in my Why You Need A Behavioural Response Autoresponder post.
Its about anticipating things before the person even knows they want it. Amazon does this when you look at something on their website. If you like this book you will love these books, and guess what, we will even bundle them in a special package with FREE SHIPPING.
The Temp Workforce: Everyone is getting fired and companies are replacing them with temp workers.
Altucher points out this is what leads to services like Uber & Air B&B. It’s not all bad unless your one of those people who don’t change.
There are numerous other trends worth exploring which he elequoently writes about.
Part 3: Keep & Grow the Money You Make
This section deconstructs alot of myths like, don’t buy a home thinking it’s an “investment.” Inflation @ 2%+ a year outpaces the average growth of .2% the homeowners enjoyed in the past 5 years.
Also don’t forget a home is an illiquid asset that requires expensive maintenance, taxes, insurance, etc.
In fact Altucher mentions in the book that he simply rents because in the long run it is cheaper for the above reasons.
He covers the fraud and manipulation involved with paper assets like stocks, bonds, mutual funds etc and why the best course of action for most is simply holding cash.
Why going to college is a pretty safe bet of getting a job, when in reality 50% of college graduates are unemployed.
He brilliantly concludes his books with the “Avoiding Regrets” section. Almost all from his personal experience.
This book is one that you should read and that I will re-read at least once a year. I took notes and highlighted alot of quotes.
If I had to rate this book I would give it a solid 4.5 / 5 stars – A Must Read
/Ethan
