The Richest MIB

The Richest Man In Babylon - George S. Clason
the most inspiring book on wealth ever written

page ?
Money is the medium by which earthly success is measured.

Money makes possible the enjoyment of the best the earth affords

Money is plentiful for those who understand the simple laws which govern its acquisition

Money is governed today by the same laws which controlled it when the prosperous men thronged the streets of Babylon, six thousand years ago

LO, MONEY IS PLENTIFUL
FOR THOSE WHO UNDERSTAND
THE SIMPLE RULES OF ITS ACQUISITION

1. Start thy purse to fattening
2. Control thy expenditure
3. Make thy gold multiply
4. Guard thy treasures from loss
5. Make of thy dwelling a profitable investment
6. Insure a future income
7. Increase thy ability to earn.
- The Richest Man in Babylon
[now I will have to reread to rewrite. stay tuned]

Before You Quit Your Job

books by Robert T. Kiyosaki
[I plan to have my friend Nizam read this book. Might as well take something...]

Before You Quit Your Job
Chapter 10 : The Summary

Knowing When To Quit
Entrepreneurship is not for everyone.
"Winner never quit and quitters never win"
In reality, a winner also knows when to quit.
Sometimes in life, it is best to cut your losses.
It is best to admit you have come to a dead end...
or you have been barking up the wrong tree.

A quitter, is someone who quits simply because things have gotten tough.
when things were tough, quitting was always lurking nearby, just a handshake away.

"You can always quit. Why start now?"

"As Much As I Want To Quit, I Won't Quit Today. I'll Quit Tomorrow."
and we know that TOMORROW NEVER CAME.

10 Tips Before You Quit Your Job

1. Check Your Attiude.
Attitude is almost everything.

2. Get As Much Experience As Possible on five levels of the B-I triangle.
Work to learn, not work to earn.

3. Always Remember That SALES = INCOME
All entrepreneurs need to be good in sales.
"Some people are born salespeople. The rest of us can learn to sell"

4. Be Optimistic As Well As Brutally Honest With Yourself.

5. How Are You At Spending Money?
Too many people struggle financially because they do not know how to spend their money.
Know how to spend money and have more money come back.

6. Start A Business To Practice On.
"Keep your full-time job and start a part-time business"

7. Be Willing To Ask For Help.
"Arrogance is the cause of ignorance"

8. Find A Mentor.
Read books about great entrepreneurs.
books can be your best mentors.

9. Join An Entrepreneur's Network.
Surround yourself with fellow entrepreneurs.

10.Be Faithful To The Process.
"Entrepreneurship is a process, not a job or profession"

MISSION ==>>> PROCESS ==>> GOAL

"If you are going to have a big goal you need a strong mission to push you through the process.
With A Strong Mission, Anything Is Attainable"

We Are The Chosen Ones

Kimi ga negau koto nara subete genjitsu ni naru n' darou
Erabareshi mono naraba

OMG! Blasphemy!

because soon I will quote from a PASTOR or priest,
not only an evil western writer, but a priest!
[mr khuruj must be laughing at me in heaven, I guess]

Now I can make myself clear, make my mind clear,
and MY DECISION clear.

what is it about?
it is about.........

HAVING IT ALL.

OK, so I already finished RD's Guide To Investing, and finished summarizing Creating Wealth,
and looking for the next book to finish.
1. Beating The Street - Peter Lynch
2. Over The Top - Zig Ziglar

I choose to finish OTT as I already read first few pages before.
and in Chapter Two : Having It All

"There is a natural alliance between the creation of wealth and the cultivation of character. Economic success is built on moral foundations - on the rule of law, FAITH, discipline, contracts, savings, integrity, a work ethic. Sound families that elevate these beliefs are the source of much of our culture's strength and future."
-Jack Kemp

maybe I really have to fulfill my destiny as an Aries - to have it all.
I noticed that I am lacking in many of the above - law, faith, discipline etc, because I never think of economic success. I never like economy and politics before, that's why I know so little.

btw, I also started to read my favorite kitab, Tanbihul Ghafilin.
from Anas r.a. berkata: Nabi s.a.w. bersabda:
"Permudahkanlah dan jangan mempersukar, dan gembirakanlah dan jangan menggusarkan"

Creating Wealth : Chapter 4 cont.

Stage #2:
The Liftoff or the Struggling Stage

you don't launch spaceships with firecrackers!
you launch them with Titan booster rocket that are proven and tested.
==>>>REAL ESTATE.

be prepared to buy at least one single-family house per year...
for now, don't fear, just learn the concept.

you can always improve your chances of building a profitable long-term
real estate port-folio by becoming and expert at finding bargain properties
or negotiating bargain prices.

Instead of the usual instant gratification, these first years are years of sacrifice
in which the results don't seem to justify the effort.
These few years are also fraught with the temptation to find a quicker, easier, faster route.
For every solid booster-rocket investment there are ten thousand imitations being bandied out.
Now is not the time to change horses in midstream.
It Is The Time For Persistance.

Invest the 90%, Keep the 10% to buy Insurance.
You need to buy staying-power insurance.
and maintain a liquid emergency insurance fund.
you should plan to create a fund as soon as it is feasible.

summary for Stage #2:
1. Concentration of as much as 90% of your assets in real estate.
2. Minimum buying program of one property per year for ten years.
3. Maintaining a staying-power fund equal to at least three monthly payments
for every property you own.

Stage #3:
The Powerful Pre-Orbit Stage

You are trying to create wealth, not preserve it.
Start small with your prime-the-pump fund.
Look seriously to having at least 10% of your assets in liquid-money form.
The best defense is good offense.

Extra cash distribution:
1. 80% real estate
2. 10% liquid paper assets
3. 10% precious metal

Stage #4:
Is so important, it is the entire chapter 5
The Automatic Pilot Principle.

well it seems we are getting deeper into real estate thingy, so I will end this book here.

I Am Torn Between

ever since I started reading about wealth...there is resistance in me.
between what Nabi did and what Nabi allowed.

though Nabi allowed creating wealth, Nabi himself did not accumulate wealth, and even lived a life of scarcity.

though Nabi allowed creating wealth, Nabi always warned about 'chasing the world'

this is where I started to sin.
the bigger sin...
is indecision.
indecision..
indecision..
indecision..
indecision..
indecision..
indecision..
indecision..
indecision..indecision..
indecision..

Creating Wealth : Chapter 4

chapter 4:
Launching Yourself into Financial Self-Reliance

There are four specific stages in the wealth-building trajectory.

Stage #1:
The Pre-Launch Stage

the preparation stage.
"The will to prepare to win is more important than the will to win"
Preparing - Studying and Learning. reading Books, Going to Seminars.
not being afraid to corner experts and ask foolish questions.

The ones who stay to the end, listening and asking questions,
always soaking up the last drop of knowledge, making the extra effort.

get your house in order!
time to clean up your financial statement.
check your credit rating. don't be embarassed.
getting your family to agree for necessary sacrifices.
"No success can compensate for failure in the home"
it is much better to have your family with you than against you.

stage #1 is also a TIME TO REEVALUATE.
life goes on. Lick Your Wounds, Swallow Your Pride, and Change Directions.
will you have the courage to change??

stage #1 is also a TIME TO SET GOALS and WRITE THEM DOWN.
"one small good deed is better than a grand intention"

ALL OF THIS TAKES SACRIFICES.

Stage #2:
The Liftoff or the Struggling Stage









TBC IM BZ

Watch Your Thoughts, They Become Destiny.

Watch your thoughts, they become words.
Watch your words, they become actions.
Watch your actions, they become habits.
Watch your habits, they become character.
Watch your character, they become destiny.
Source: Back of book cover of Pearls of Wisdom 3

Creating Wealth : Chapter 3

*rich dad series is too hard to 'squeeze', so I decided to continue this for a while.

Chapter 3 :
A Fool and His Money Are Soon Parted

but why is that?
because a fool doesn' know how to manage money!

"give a man a fish and you feed him for a day.
teach a man to fish and you feed him for a lifetime"

any approach that doesn't teach the principles of wealth is doomed to failure.

THE SEVEN WEALTH PRINCIPLE.

wealth principle + attitudes of a wealthy mindset = the foundation of your wealth pyramid.

Wealth Principle #1:
Don't Count Your Dollars Until They Have Passed Through
the Strainer of Taxes and Inflation.

Wealth Principle #2:
Make Maximum Use of Your Assets.
Sacrifice to Invest in Things Which Go Up in Value.

"appearance of wealth" - [fancy cars, fine clothes, stereos etc]
make people looks rich but in reality the become poorer each and every day.

Avoid, as much as possible, spending any money for consumer goods which go down in value.
Only borrow money to make money.

The wealth seeker choosed sacrifice and the poverty seeker chooses instant gratification.
The poverty seeker wants what he wants and he wants it now!
The welath seeker tries to make every dollar count.

Wealth Principle #3:
Don't Diversify.
Concentrate All of Your Eggs in the Right Basket.

Andrew Carnegie :
"put all of your eggs in one basket and then watch that absket"
There is a time to diversify and a time to concentrate.
if you are just starting, you CONCENTRATE.

Don't dissipate your energies in a dozen different directions.
become an expert, and when you fail, learn from your failures.

Invest Heavily In Your Strong Investment.
Make It The Workhorse Of Your Program.
Keep Only A Small Amount On Reserve.

Wealth Principle #4:
Wealth Seeker Are Always On The Offensive,
Not On The Defensive.

from a parable:
"Thou wicked and slothful servant[who got 1 talent but afraid to use it]....
Take therefore the talent from him, and give it unto him which hath ten talents
[who originally has five talents and worked to make it ten]....And cast ye the Unprofitable Servant into outer darkness."

The best defense is a good offense.

Wealth Principle #5:
Money Must Multiply at Wealth-Producing Rates of Return.

The answer is to use leverage. Leverage is debt.
Most had not acquired wealthy mindsets because of their fear of debt.
but wealthy thinkers learn how to control debt...
a little sacrifice, and a lot of leverage...

Leverage, the powerhouse of any investment plan, must be used carefully
and only in conjunction with the right investments.

Wealth Principle #6:
Choose Investments That Are Both Powerful and Stable.

Power and Stability.
Power - the ability of an investment to grow at high wealth-producing rates of growth.
Stability - the ability of an investment to grow steadily, surely, relentlessly upward in value
without broad fluctuations up of down in price.

The only way for an investment to achieve liquidity is to give up something of value.
Stability is more important than liquidity.
The key to becoming wealthy in a "when-to" investment is to learn when to buy and when to sell.
timing is of the essence.

BUT, I would rather be a "how-to" investment adviser.
not when to buy them but how to buy them...

HOW-TO inevestments are rarely liquid, are always management intensive, require a higher degree of expertise
....but they produce wealth.

Don't Wait To Buy Real Estate. Buy Real Estate And Wait.

Wealth Principle #7:
Control Is Essential.

Somehow, somewhere along the line, we transferred ultimate control of our money to someone else.

There will be tempting offers.
but remember Wealth Principle #3

You Concentrate Heavily Into Your Strong Suit.
and nothing else.

*****************
next chapter preview
*****************
Part Two
The Creating Wealth Strategy
Chapter 4
Launching Yourself into Financial Self-Reliance.

blogger notes : this will be a deeper discussion than just general numbered points.
and eventually leads to real estate strategy. anyway this is one of the best books I read.

May Find It Ironic...

that a mere salary man like me writing in this blog about being rich and all.
yeah, of course it may sound ironic. i have no qualification to serve...

and i comes to believe the quote :
"only the victorious has the right to be righteous"
that, if you are a fallen or a loser by general view,
you better shut up.
it is hard for me to swallow, but i know the reality.

but then i understand why...

my goal is not about being rich
i am going to be a teacher.

but the best teacher won't say:
"do as I say, not as I do"

rich dad and robert teach by example.
SO WILL I!