Since I worked at various Borders bookstores for over 35 years, I'm kind of addicted to reading. I read newspapers, magazines, books, and more.

A few weeks ago a book was released about Warren Buffett, the world's richest man, with an estimated fortune of $62 billion. Hmmmmmm. He could have rescued a few banks all by himself. The book is The Snowball: Warren Buffett and the Business of Life, by Alice Schroeder.

One of the promotional pieces in advance of the release date was 10 Ways to Get Rich: Warren Buffett's Secrets That Can Work For You, a synopsis of which I provide for you here:

1. Re-invest your profits—Most of us spend our profits: new car, vacation, etc. Re-investing it can lead to greater wealth down the road.
2. Be willing to be different—I think I read where Buffett said about the stock market, "Buy when everyone else is selling."
3. Never suck your thumb—Gather the information you need to make a decision, and then make a decision. More sitting and more thinking is just "thumb sucking."
4. Spell out the deal before you start—Many of us can take this one to heart because of all the work we did for a "Client" who wasn't under contract only to have him or her use someone else.
5. Watch small expenses—I'm constantly amazed at the super rich who will haggle over a dollar here and a dollar there. Perhaps that's how they got to be rich.
6. Limit what you borrow—As many have discovered recently, living on loans and credit cards doesn't make you rich. Keeping up with the Joneses doesn't make you rich. Having lots of toys that aren't paid for doesn't make you rich.
7. Be persistent—My Partner loved this one since his favorite catch phrase seems is "Be persistent and consistent in what you do." That persistency and consistency can result in winning battles against more established competition.
8. Know when to quit—You will have some losses in life. Know when to walk away.
9. Assess the risks—I like to do this by creating two TOP 10 lists for any major decisions I might make, one for all the negative things that might happen, and one for all the positive things that might happen. It usually happens that one of them won't have 10 things on it, making my decision quite easy.
10. Know what success really means—This is really powerful, so I'll quote directly from Buffett: "I know people who have a lot of money, and they get testimonial dinners and hospital wings named after them. But the truth is that nobody in the world loves them. When you get to my age, you'll measure your success in life by how many of the people you want to have love you actually do love you. That's the ultimate test of how you've lived your life."

Borders Books and Music

 

 



Some of Jim's blog entries

1. Home safety for children: Why let them be injured or killed?
2. Buy-and-bail loan fraud
3. Is it okay to climb a tree on someone else's property?
4. Is 13 YOUR lucky number?
5. Representing two buyers on the same property simultaneously
6. Slow down, look around, and pay attention
7. Are you as drunk as a bee?
8. Are you a food label reader?
9. Pets are wonderful support, but not very good drivers
10. Do you prefer roses or rotten eggs?
11. San Diego Plant Atlas is now online
12. The common sense gene is missing from the gene pool
13. Is there a conflict here?
14. You mean I've been subsidizing the sports stars?
15. We could learn from history if we'll just take time to study it
16. Excessive furnishings and storage create fire hazards
17. Is Active Rain trying to tell me something, or am I just weird?
18. Make every Friday "Backup Friday"
19. STOP THE INSANITY!
20. If you can't get to it, you can't tell how old it is
21. Your digital camera can do so much more than just take pictures
22. It's hard to believe Zoey's already been here a year
23. It's hard to believe Sophie's been gone a year
24. Is THAT the house?
25. Don't trust, do verify
26. Please help me identify this type of architecture. Craftsman? Victorian? Modern?
27. Southern California fire season is just around the corner
28. Welcome to my home
29. If you could easily get rid of your child, would you?
30. Wow! Nice underwear
31. There obviously is no financial crisis if Zoey has been pre-approved for a $5,000 credit card
32. Is there trash in your trash can?
33. Private, gated, fenced, coded subdivisions
34. What's in a name?
35. Location, location, location? Ha! Views, views, views
36. Oh give me a home, where the buffalo roam
37. Did you put that on the disclosure form? "I didn't think I needed to."
38. If you needed to hide from someone, could you do it in today's world?
39. A home is like a child
40. Should I stay or should I go now. Remodel or move?
41. Water, water everywhere, or is it?
42. Always on the lookout....
43. Are you prepared for an emergency?
44. Four secrets to getting and keeping online customers
45. Holding an open house with fleas
46. Tuesday laugh session with the "treadmill kitty cats"