The Millionaire Next Door Review

The Millionaire Next Door: The Surprising Secrets of America's Wealthy

     by Thomas J. Stanley

Please don't torture yourself by reading this book if you don't like numbers.This is an fine book because most of the ideas can be digested and are backed by research. You can see the effort that went into writing this book and that the ideas presented are factually deducted.

The book judges the wealth of people by their net-worth which basically is how much wealth you have stored than how much you earn or spend. Everything in this book made sense except one: FRUGALITY

I understand the logic of being frugal when you have credits to pay or if you're building a retirement fund. But denying yourself even after you've saved for the future seems crazy. The millionaires in the book live in low-budget neighborhoods, drive inexpensive cars which last longer and hardly take vacations.

Most people can afford to retire and live without taking loans. If those were the only things we wanted nobody would have cared about making more money. The drive to earn more and do better is usually with the intention to make more money. More money to spend. And to never deny yourself or say "I can't afford it".

But this book revolves around creating an environment of scarcity on purpose in order to save. And to continue doing it even after you are a multimillionaire. This book keeps talking of saving and not enjoying which seems fair in the initial years of life when you begin building a fortune.

But what I felt this book lacked was telling us that each of us is different and our goals are different and that we may not want to be millionaires who've never left the state we were born in. This book doesn't teach how to live a balanced life where in we have enough savings and enough to fulfill our dreams.

There are a few things the author got right:
1) Saving is a must if you want to increase your income. The same advice is found in The Richest Man in Babylon by George S.Clason. The philosophy is save to earn.
2) Taking time to learn more about your profession to increase your productivity.
3) Economic independence i.e ensuring you have enough resources, financial and mental to earn your living even if you lose employment. Not depending on inheritance or Economic Outpatient Care also is important if you're going to be independent.
4) Choosing the right occupation for you so you be the best at your job.

Apart from this the entire book is a rant on living below your means
I would suggest reading Richest Man in Babylon by George S. Clason. That book makes a lot more sense and is applicable to everyone.

However, there are certain points in this book that are relevant. So you want to read it, go ahead.

Thanks for reading the review! Do share your thoughts on the book (if you've read it). You can ask questions, criticize and/or show some love down in the comments.

P.S. I was considering doing a summary of the book so that you may have access to all the important info from the book. Should I do it? Let me know in the comments!