Why did I read this book?

In one way or another, a question about how to become excessively rich in the shortest possible time always pops up in my Quora feed. Usually the answers are dismissive but inevitably someone will quote a few passages from or outright recommend that the original poster read The Richest Man in Babylon.

To be fair I’ve always been sceptical about this man. If he was anything like the richest man in Egypt or the richest man in Tenochtitlan then slavery, brutality and subjugation probably played a large role in his success. Modern laws coupled with my moral compass would preclude me from following in his footsteps.

Still, I couldn’t get over the sheer volume of references to this book, some from really respectable sources, so I decided to give it a go.

Now I’ve completed it and …?

This book operates on the premise that there is a timelessness to the desire to create and manage wealth as well as the strategies and techniques to do so. Few have mastered this ability while the masses for the most part have only managed to master complaining about their lack of success. It delivers this message using the vehicle of a fable set in Babylon when it was at the peak of its fortunes.

The story begins with two labourers lamenting the fact that they were always broke even though they were good at their craft. (Sounds familiar?) They then decide to seek advice from a childhood friend who had grown up to become the titular richest man in Babylon. He welcomes his friends with open arms and proceeds to offer them the 7 cures to that most debilitating of diseases, “a lean purse.”

The message in the book is simple and clear. The ingredients to success are hard work, self discipline, being proactive and seeking advice from those that have already done the journey. Having wealth is different from having a wealth generating capability and it is the latter that the richest man in Babylon advises his friends (and by extension us) to focus on. Sure, some people get lucky, they inherit a fortune or the win the lottery or they find a sugar daddy or whatever but none of these are in our control and none are immune to being wiped away at any moment.  However, if we develop and follow a system that at its core builds wealth, then we can overcome most circumstances and in time will become wealthy ourselves. No shit.

What are some sample quotes?

Opportunity is a haughty goddess who wastes no time with those who are unprepared

Will power is but the unflinching purpose to carry a task you set for yourself to fulfillment

Preceding accomplishment must be desire. Thy desires must be strong and definite

We mortals are changeable. Alas, I must say more apt to change our minds when right than wrong

There is no chain of disasters that will not come to an end

The hungrier one becomes, the clearer one’s mind works

The soul of a free man looks at life as a series of problems to be solved and solves them

Was it worth the money?

I really want to say that this book didn’t teach me anything that I didn’t already know and so every penny spent on it plus every second spent reading it was a penny and a second wasted. For the 99p that the kindle edition cost me I could have got the inflatable parrot from amazon and taken my first step towards fulfilling my real dream of being a pirate.

The reality however is that this was one of the best books I’ve read. The message was hammered home in the most effective of ways and there was food for thought throughout. The fable stands up very well on it’s own as work of fiction as well so whatever angle you take it from, it was worth the read.

Verdict: Buy.