So you want to become a millionaire, and everyone is telling you to read books, but hardly anyone’s got time for that. Luckily, over my many years in business, I’ve read hundreds of books. Among them, 40 money-making books have really stuck with me. In this post, I’ll condense these books into core lessons that will actually make you rich. This isn’t just theory—I’ve gone from absolute zero to making tens of millions by running real businesses, not just on YouTube. These lessons will help you go from $0 to $100,000, $100,000 to a million, and a million to $10 million, if you apply them correctly.
Level One: Going from Zero to $100,000
1. Master Your Mind
I didn’t come from a wealthy background, and during my youth, I often heard the phrase, “money is the root of all evil.” “Secrets of The Millionaire Mind” explains how these phrases program us to believe that rich people are the devil. It took me a long time to overcome this negative mindset. For me, money represents freedom. “The Psychology of Money” emphasizes that it’s all about control. To be wealthy, you need to understand that wealth is what you don’t see—cars not purchased, diamonds not bought, renovations postponed. “The Magic of Thinking Big” teaches that many people set their finish line too soon, preventing them from ever being successful.
2. Setting and Achieving Goals
I struggled in school but thrived in the real world by choosing jobs I was passionate about. “The Winner Effect” discusses how success breeds success, supported by actual studies showing a correlation between successful stock market traders and their testosterone levels. “Think and Grow Rich” tells a story of a commander who burned his ships to force his soldiers to fight with everything they had. This shows the importance of needing to succeed, not just wanting to.
Managing Stress and Developing Great Habits
3. Managing Stress
“Unscripted” discusses how society aims to transform us into mediocre, obedient, dependent, entertained, and lifeless individuals. “The Essence of Success” provides perspective on stress by comparing it to a small glass of water forming a vast fog. “Atomic Habits” introduces the habit stacking technique, pairing a new habit with an existing one. “The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People” stresses the importance of always knowing where you’re going.
4. Creating a Sense of Urgency
“The 12 Week Year” suggests treating a year as 12 weeks to create urgency. “The Art of Getting Things Done” emphasizes capturing tasks on a phone or notepad to organize and prioritize them. “Essentialism” reminds us to value the word “yes” and not be afraid to say “no.”
Building High-Value Skills
5. Building Skills
“I’ve previously said that I don’t like the advice, ‘follow your passion.’ “So Good They Can’t Ignore You” explains that passion often follows mastery. “The Unfair Advantage” suggests playing to your natural strengths. “Mastery” stresses developing a unique stack of skills. “Steal Like An Artist” recommends copying from multiple inspirations to create a truly original mix.
Investing Wisely
6. Understanding Assets and Liabilities
“The biggest lesson I learned, which is also shared in ‘Rich Dad Poor Dad’, is that everything we buy is either an asset or a liability. To figure out which one it is, we simply have to ask ourselves, ‘Is it putting money in our pocket or taking it away?’ To be wealthy, aim to buy as many assets as possible.
7. The Power of Compound Interest
“Would you rather have $3 million now or a penny that doubles every day for 31 days?” The correct answer is the penny because it turns into 10.7 million. “The Compound Effect” uses this analogy to demonstrate the power of investing and compound interest.
8. Smart Investing Principles
“Trying to beat the market is a losing game. Instead, own the entire market.” “The Little Book of Common Sense Investing” suggests investing in broad market index funds like the S&P 500. “The Intelligent Investor” advises to treat the market as an unpredictable entity and focus on long-term value.
Generating More Value
9. The Cash Flow Quadrant
“Cash Flow Quadrant” outlines four ways to earn money: Employee, Self-Employed, Business Owner, and Investor. To become rich, move to the right side of the quadrant where you use other people’s time and money to build wealth.
10. Creating Relative Income
“Relative income trumps absolute income.” Consider an investment banker earning $500,000 per year but working 80 hours a week versus an e-commerce entrepreneur earning $40,000 per year but working four hours per week. The entrepreneur is richer in terms of time and freedom.
Level Two: $100,000 to $1 Million
11. Betting on Contrarian Truths
“Zero To One” states that successful businesses often start with a contrarian truth. Examples include Netflix and Airbnb, which bet on unconventional ideas.
12. Effective Business Strategies
“Disrupt You” suggests identifying daily annoyances and finding better solutions. “The Lean Startup” emphasizes the build, measure, learn feedback loop to create products people actually want. “Blue Ocean Strategy” and “Oversubscribed” stress the importance of creating demand by entering less competitive markets and maintaining scarcity.
Influencing and Leading Effectively
13. The Psychology of Persuasion
“Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion” teaches the importance of giving value to build customer loyalty. “Never Split The Difference” highlights tactical empathy to achieve win-win situations. “How To Win Friends and Influence People” stresses understanding and empathizing with others.
14. Effective Communication
“Pitch Anything” explains how to break through the croc brain by using emotion and simplicity. “Start With Why” introduces the Golden Circle, where inspiring leaders communicate their ‘why’ to motivate action.
15. Building Systems and Processes
“The E-Myth” explains that many entrepreneurs are just skilled individuals rather than true business owners. “Profit First” suggests calculating profit first to ensure profitability. “Good To Great” introduces the hedgehog mentality—focusing on being exceptionally good in one area.
Level Three: $1 Million to $10 Million Plus
16. Understanding Historical Cycles
For those with considerable wealth, “The Fourth Turning” and “The Change in World Order” provide insights into historical patterns and superpower dynamics, useful for long-term investment and business decisions.
Conclusion
These lessons, drawn from 40 money-making books, provide a comprehensive guide to achieving financial success. By mastering your mind, managing stress, building high-value skills, investing wisely, generating more value, influencing and leading effectively, and understanding historical cycles, you can build a business that thrives and achieve the freedom you desire.
FAQs
Q1: Why is it important to focus on one product or service?
A: Specializing in a single product or service improves quality, helps build a reputation, and makes it easier to scale.
Q2: How can I ensure my business can run without me?
A: Train your employees to be as skilled as you and develop processes that can be followed by others.
Q3: What does it mean to own a process?
A: Owning a process means developing a unique, repeatable method for delivering your product or service, transforming your service-based business into a product-based one.
Q4: Why should I charge upfront?
A: Charging upfront creates positive cash flow and reduces the risk of clients not paying or delaying payments.
