The Richest Man In Babylon Summary

The alarm you set sleepily at 12 at night is ringing loudly at 7 in the morning. You have to leave your warm bed, eat something and get dressed. Now, leaving your cozy house is even harder than all of that hassle. Well, you do it and suddenly it's 5 pm. You have to go back home rest a bit and get ready for the next day. Such fun, right? And for what? Just to be able to pay your credit card statement in full for the next month.

Now, here is a question: Do you think that this system has ever changed in the world for the past five thousand years? Get up in the morning, work for your masters. Pay off your debt to your masters with interest and repeat again all over. Can you spot any difference between the slavery of Babylon five thousand years ago and the modern slavery of today? I will try to answer this question with the success story of a Babylonian named Dabasir who lived five thousand years ago. A story about a man who was able to achieve financial freedom...

Long story short; Nothing has changed in five thousand years. This is both a good and a bad thing. Good, because the ways out of slavery haven't changed either. But bad, because some of us just can't get out of this loop. Thankfully, Dabasir engraved some steps that can be taken on the path to financial freedom on a clay tablets five thousand years ago and whose accuracy has not changed for generations.

Pay yourself first:

“I found the road to wealth when I decided that a part of all I earned was mine to keep. It should be not less than a tenth, no matter how little you earn. It can be as much more as you can afford. Pay yourself first”

“Wealth, like a tree, grows from a tiny seed. The first copper you save is the seed from which your tree of wealth shall grow. The sooner you plant that seed the sooner shall the tree grow. And the more faithfully you nourish and water that tree with consistent savings, the sooner may you bask in contentment beneath its shade.'

| Wealth is built, not won

“Budget thy expenses that thou mayest have coins to pay for thy necessities, to pay for thy enjoyments, and to gratify thy worthwhile desires without spending more than nine-tenths of thy earnings.”

“Study thoughtfully thy accustomed habits of living. Herein may be most often found certain accepted expenses that may wisely be reduced or eliminated.”

| By eliminating small momentary gratifications, you may have more, and can afford the fine things in life

"Gold, indeed, is a willing worker. It is ever eager to multiply when opportunity presents itself. To every man who hath a store of gold set by, opportunity comes for its most profitable use. As the years pass, it multiplies itself in surprising fashion.”

“Every gold piece you save is a slave to work for you. Every copper it earns is its child that also can earn for you. If you would become wealthy, then what you save must earn, and it's children must earn, that all may help to give to you the abundance you crave” 

| Money attracts money, this law is almost supernatural when experienced

Regularly save a portion of your income to gradually build financial security and stability.

Invest wisely to not only grow your wealth but also secure a prosperous and financially abundant future.

Be cautious with investments, seek advice, and take steps to minimize potential financial risks and losses.

Amassing wealth isn’t difficult but it has two preconditions:

1) You need to want money – It needs to become a priority; and

2) You need to understand it – You need to understand how it works.

Fortunately, the basics aren’t hard to master. Nor have they changed in the last few thousand years.

The Richest Man In Babylon basically tries to answer three questions:

1) How Can I Acquire Money?

2) How Can I Not Lose My Money? and

3) How Can I Make Money Multiply?

Now Let's Talk about them in detail!

The secret to acquiring money is to work for it.

1. Stop procrastinating. Get out there and earn a living.
2. keep working at honing your your craft so your earning power increase.
3. Make sure you set up a pension so you can keep acquiring money even when you get too old and doddery to work for it.

I warned you, this ain’t rocket science.

There are two ways not to lose money:

1. Don’t spend it; and
2. To not lose your money in bad investments...

You pay to everyone but yourself. What do you have to show for your earnings of the past month?

You pay for food, for new clothes, shoes and some things that you feel you need that means you labor for others cause you pay others with the earnings which are meant to work for you. If you keep for yourself one-tenth of all you earn how much would you have in a year?

Every gold piece you save is a slave to work for you.

• Every copper it earns is it’s child that can earn for you.
• Wealth, like a tree, grows from a tiny seed.
• The first copper you save is a seed from which your tree of wealth shall grow.
• The sooner you plant that seed the sooner shall the tree grow.
• And the more faithfully you nourish and water with constant saving, the sooner may you bask in contentment beneath its shade.

If you would have advice about jewels go to the jewel merchant. If you would know the truth about sheep go to the herdsman.

Advice is one thing that is freely give away but watch that you take only what is worth having. Why trust the knowledge of a brick maker about jewels?

Take advice from one who is experienced in what you look for.

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

Where The Determination Is, The Way Can Be Found

From a book published almost a century ago, the main character Arkad, dispenses valuable timeless financial advice throughout the story, told through his journey to wealth. Advice which is still all relevant today.