The Richest Man in Babylon: Original 1926 Edition

The Richest Man in Babylon" is an absolute gem of a book that imparts timeless financial wisdom in a captivating and relatable manner. George S. Clason's storytelling takes you on a journey to the ancient city of Babylon, where simple yet profound financial principles come to life.This book is a masterpiece in teaching the art of managing money, showcasing principles like saving a portion of your income, investing wisely, and living within your means. Through relatable parables and anecdotes, Clason delivers valuable lessons that remain as relevant today as they were when the book was written.What sets this book apart is its ability to simplify complex financial concepts. The storytelling format makes it engaging and easy to understand, even for those who are new to financial literacy. As you follow the characters' journeys to financial success, you'll find yourself not only entertained but also inspired to apply the lessons to your own life."The Richest Man in Babylon" doesn't just provide financial advice; it presents a philosophy for building wealth and achieving financial security. It encourages a mindset shift towards responsibility and disciplined financial habits, making it an essential read for anyone looking to take control of their finances and build a prosperous future. Whether you're a seasoned investor or someone just starting to explore personal finance, this book offers a treasure trove of wisdom that will undoubtedly leave a lasting impact.

The richest man in BabylonWhen we speak of history, Babylon is a city that we associate with much wealth and prosperity, however it wasn't always like that. The city of Babylon is a clear example of mans ability to achieve much even though they had little at their disposal.Babylon had only two natural resources, fertile soil and river water , through this and the wisdom they possessed, they were able to build one of the greatest cities ever. They engineered dams which allowed the water to flow onto the fertile soil, encouraging the growth of crops in abundance. It is believed the trading of these crops was the stepping stone for their wealth and splendor.Unlike other well known cities in history, Babylon was that which did not require the use of raiding to increase their profits, though it happened it wasn't incidental to their success as many of their battles were on the defense against opposing forces who aimed to overcome this great city. Their defenses, the sky scraping walls they built, also considered as great as the pyramids of Egypt, were crucial in their survival, and is claimed as one of the seven wonders of the world.It is believed that the Babylonians were ahead of their time, they were skilled arts man, painters, weavers, jewelers etc, they were clever financiers and traders.Babylon though constantly besieged was never overthrown or entered by outside forces until 540 years before Christ's birth. However it wasn't because the opposing army penetrated the impregnable walls.The king at the time was advised to go forth to meet the oncoming army, in doing so, he was unfortunately defeated leaving the city open and unguarded.The city never achieved the greatness it once possessed and over time it became a desolate waste.Nonetheless though the city is no more. the wisdom of the Babylonians lives on, and we all can learn a great deal from the great city of Babylon.The book starts off with a man who desired gold, like every other human being we all want to be better and live better, to accumulate items we like and to bless ourselves with gifts. Bansir a chariot builder was discouraged at his lack of fortune, every day he did the same thing and barely got by, while others were living life ecstatically. He wanted more, and he observed the only way to increase his monetary value was to ask his good friend who done what he wanted to achieve and go where he wanted to go."It costs nothing to ask wise advice from a good friend""Thou makes me to realize the reason why we never found any measure of wealth. We never sought it."The book continues to the advice of the good friend and how he achieved his wealth and greatness and how he became the richest man in Babylon. Likewise, The richest man in Babylon, wasn't handed a silver spoon neither was he a prince with an inheritance. He as well, had to ask one more well off than him how to obtain richest and gold for himself. The grand advice he received was "a part of all you earn is yours to keep."From this the richest man in Babylon understood that he must pay himself first. From everything that he earned, one tenth was his to save, or more based on what he could afford. For "wealth, like a tree, grows from a tiny seed."The rich man than went on to include what else he had learned from his mentor, the seven cures for a lean purse. (Empty purse)They are:1.) Start they purse to fattening: which is to put aside a tenth of what you earned, over time it will accumulate.2.) Control thy expenditures: carefully consider what is necessary and what isn't. Don't throw your coin to what which isn't required.3.) Make they gold multiply: look for ways to get your gold to work for you, investments.4.) Guard thy treasure from loss: this ties in with number 2, to be careful with where we spend our money. We shouldn't be rash with spending or intrigued by get rich quick schemes.5.) Own they own home, Make of thy dwelling a profitable investment: invest in obtaining thine own land. You can't fully enjoy life unless you have something you can call your own.6.) Insure a future income: "save for a rainy day" comes to mind with this. We don't know what the future holds, therefore we must save accordingly for a day that comes upon us unexpectedly.7.) Increase thy ability to earn: "the more of wisdom we know, the more we may earn." Increase your knowledge to better hell yourself. "The man who seeks to learn more of his craft shall be richly rewarded." The more you learn the more you earn.These methods for creating wealth were in the first half of the book. The author continues to include key knowledgeable concepts within the pages, from topics to "good luck" and "working for others", there's so much one can learn. The points are fundamental and simple but without a doubt are crucial. I've begun to adapt some methods and can see the effect it will have in the future.This book isn't complicated or brain wrecking, it's simplified tremendously but the impact regardless is grand. It also goes into detail concerning the seven cures for a lean purse and many other economical situations. Most would do universities courses in economics but this read i feel is a basis for any monetary exchanges and management. This isn't just advice for the well off but for those who have little to nothing. Like the chariot builder, and the richest man in Babylon, these individuals had nothing but they made it into something.

The Richest Man in Babylon: Deluxe Hardbound Edition is both a visually striking and intellectually enriching book. The hardcover is well-made, with an elegant design that gives it a classic, gift-worthy feel. Inside, the pages are smooth and neatly typeset, adding to the overall reading experience. It’s a book that not only offers timeless financial principles but also looks great on a bookshelf or desk.The content itself is practical and motivational, using parables set in ancient Babylon to teach lessons about saving, investing, and living within your means. It’s easy to read and digest, even for those new to personal finance. This edition is ideal for readers who appreciate both substance and style—great for gifting or revisiting over the years when you need a financial reset.

This is a compelling and quirky tale of several people learning the same lesson about providing for themselves throughout their lives as well as (and especially) in their Golden Years. The basic moral of the story is to pay yourself first and faithfully, there is additional useful advice to this basic idea and all of these suggestions, if practiced at an early enough age, will make you comfortable throughout your life.The story is a bit fractured and loose ends lay around at the end of the story. The message is great and the wisdom imparted is very valuable, but the story telling, as engaging as it begins fades about half way through. George S. Clason was born in the late 1800's and I don't know what sort of writing instruction he had but it was not the best delivery of the material considering the subject matter. I think a good editor could have suggested useful improvements. All that said though, I'm really happy I read it and I suggest that everyone should read it. The best part of the book is the enlightening history of Babylon, and its people, in the final chapter of the book.Caveat: I read the kindle version and maybe something was lost in the translation to e-reader, I've seen that happen with other works too. A good hard copy might be a better read.Value - Excellent, I paid $4 for this Kindle version of the book, and I received six figures of advice in return.

The Richest Man in Babylon is an older book written by George Clason around 1926. To give you a real idea of the age of the book, its author served in the Spanish-American War (that was in 1898 for those of you wondering). The book is not written as one constant story; instead it is a collection of parables the author wrote over a period of time, all assembled into one collection. Each parable has a theme to it, such as seven cures for a lean purse and the five laws of gold.The writing style is unique. Most of the story is told through character dialogue, in a language that I can only describe as Shakespeare without the rhyme. You will see the words "thou" and "thy" frequently throughout the book. It took me a few pages to get used to the style, but after that I hardly noticed it.What I like most about this book is the length. My copy is only 155 pages, but those pages cover most of the major personal finance lessons with easy to understand stories that still manage to get the message across.The Seven Cures for a Lean Purse is the first lesson. The 7 steps to accumulating money (in my own words):1. Pay yourself first2. Spend less than you make3. Take advantage of compound interest4. Exercise risk management and don't lose money5. Own your own home6. Create passive income so eventually you can stop working7. Improve your ability to earn more moneyThe rest of book continues to build on these 7 ideas, as well as add a few new ones.Recommendation:If you are looking for a short but great lesson on personal finance this is the book to go too. The lessons in this book are timeless, and since it's such a quick read it's definitely worth a look. If you're just getting started on learning the basics of personal finance this is a great place to start.

I've heard about this book for several years and have intended to get to it but I just kept slipping something else on front of the line. I finally got to it and now I'm kicking myself for waiting so long. I would compare the message to Rich Dad, Poor Dad as they both fall in the category, for most people I've heard from, of books that most significantly altered the financial course of their lives. And while I agree that Rich Dad also teaches a better way to think about your money, Ive never really enjoyed reading it. I've always felt the stories are too long and the conversations it relays are not very likely for a 9 year old and his boss. So, I struggled through to mine the nuggets (eventually, I took great notes so I would never reel like I needed to read through it again). But this is not a review for Rich Dad!Richest Man in Babylon is much different. The stories which encapsulate the nuggets are actually very interesting and entertaining. Reading this financially impacting book is both quick and enjoyable. I didn't want to put it down as I was interested to see what truths I would learn but equally as interested in the outcome of our ancient friends from Babylon. I will say that some of the nuggets are repeated throughout the book in the form of different stories. It's as if the author had some really great points on how you need to think about and use your money to gain "gold" (or wealth) and came up with a few stories (and included them in the book) to relay these truths.If I had understood, practiced and stuck to "Cure #1" "start thy purse to fattening" (which means to retain at least 10% of your esrnings) alone I would be much better off financially than currently. This is merely the beginning and may seem obvious and simple but the book reinforces this point well. And, this is merely the beginning. The power in this book comes from what you do after you follow Cure #1.I will certainly be giving this book to my kids and will ask them to reread it often as they begin to forge their way financially. It should be mandatory reading in our schools. If you homeschool your kids - make it so!

What a great way to teach financial concepts. The Richest Man in Babylon by George S. Clason is a classic collection of stories about how to accumulate wealth.The Richest Man in Babylon was written in the 1920s, but it is still pertinent today. We learn the classic advice of living within our means and how to save money and never miss it.We are told that if we earn 10 coins to only spend 9 of them and save the tenth to work for us. This is great advice.However, one should learn to live on only eight of those coins. The first coin should go to our church or other house of worship. The second should go towards savings and the other eight to be used to support our day-to-day living. This is the idea we try to teach on our How to Manage Your Monkey blog.The Richest Man in Babylon is taught in a very entertaining manner. We suggest that this be a part of everyone’s reading curriculum.We give The Richest Man in Babylon all five stars. This particular version has a few, but not many, typos. We feel this is a great addition to a financial education.Make The Richest Man in Babylon part of your reading now and it just may help you win the next round of Bulls & Bears Board Game you play.We purchased The Richest Man in Babylon in the Kindle format. It is a part of our personal library. We are under no obligation to write any review, positive or negative.We are disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 255.

I do not usually appreciate "self-help" books, but the points made in "The Richest Man in Babylon" seem to be mostly just common sense. Unfortunately, most people completely lack common sense about money.One of the main ideas that most people never seem to get is that it is better, and more interesting, to make money from your MONEY than to make money breaking your back. However, this leads us to the first difficulty: in order to make money from your money, you have to have some.As we supposedly "all know," we cannot have our cake and eat it, too. But most people spend every penny in their paychecks, and then some run out and charge more on their credit cards. They live from hand to mouth, from paycheck to paycheck, and they never even dream of actually saving 10 percent (or more) of what they earn.But how can you have money if you don't have any money? Let us imagine some typical American, earning (say) $40K per year. Saving 10 percent of his salary would give him "only" $4,000 in the bank at the end of one year. This looks pretty miserable, until you stop to wonder just how many people could actually lay their hands on $4,000 in cash WITHOUT doing a cash-advance on their credit cards. By the end of the fifth year, this fictional person would have $20,000 in the bank, assuming no interest and no investment income.But now this person is in a position to actually begin making investments, and watch his money work for him. And the profits from that should just be plowed right back into "the money tree."My personal opinion: if you think there is another way to "financial freedom," you are simply deluding yourself. Win the lottery? Gee, how many rich people do you know who got their start that way?Answer: none. Lottery winners usually run out and spend their winnings faster than they come in. Consider winning "a million dollars" in some phony lottery which does not actually hand you a million dollars, but doles you out $50,000 per year over 20 years. Most people turn this into a sort of middle-class welfare, and wind up as broke as they ever were. But, if you did NOT quit your job, and put that money in the bank, faithfully, over a 20-year-period, you would (after investing it) have a whole lot more than a million dollars.The author of this book was clever: he set it in ancient Babylon. The point was that reality, in many important respects, does not change.I would agree with all that there are many ways to be wealthy: in learning, in money, in love, in friends, and so on. But it is very difficult to attain those other happinesses if you can't make the rent.This is actually a good book. It has never gone out of print, and that may mean something.

It is such a nice book on finance that no one could ever learn from school. Although on some subjects it might have been tackled, but on the majority side, all weren’t tackled in details. The richest man in Babylon tells of the great learnings on how to become rich like that of the richest man of Babylon, told in a classical way, however still, quite understandable if we have to compare in today’s modern way of writing books. Superb and highly recommendable especially to young and newly employed people who would love to invest using their savings or hard earned money.☺️

I love books, but this one was an 8/10. Gets boring after a few minutes.

Awesome

Still following all the advice in this book since I completed reading it. Re-read it again for few times and each time with different realizations

This is my favorite investment book of all time.