General Thoughts

• After having read many books on entrepreneurship, this is the first book that comes to mind when people ask my what my favorite is.
• I love this book; Dennis writes in an extremely conversational tone, is completely open and honest, funny, and very knowledgeable. This book is packed with great advice.

Detailed Contents

Part One: Reasons Not to Get Rich

1. Pole Positions
2. A Million to One

• If I had my time again, knowing what I know today, I would dedicate myself to making just enough to live comfortably (say $60 or $80 million), as quickly as I could–hopefully by the time I was thirty-five years old. I would then cash out immediately and retire to write poetry and plant trees.

Part Two: Getting Started

3. Harnessing the Fear of Failure
4. The Search
5. The Fallacy of the Great Idea
6. Obtaining Capital
7. Never Give In
8. The Five Most Common Start-Up Errors

• Mistaking Desire for Compulsion
• Overoptimism Concerning Cash Flow
• Reinforcing Failure
• Thinking Small and Acting Big 
• Skimping on Talent

Part Three: Getting Rich

9. Cardinal Virtues

• Persistence
• Self-Belief
• Trust Your Instincts
• Make More Baskets: Diversify!
• Listen and Learn

10. A Few Words About Luck

• "Luck is preparation multiplied by opportunity." - Seneca

Lessons learned from a bad experience

1. NEVER make your finance director or CFO the MD or president of anything!
2. Never go on vacation when a deal is going down.
3. When you change accounting systems (or accountants, for that matter), have the numbers checked over and over again.
4. Never personally underwrite business loans for your company unless you absolutely, positively, are forced to.
5. Listen to people who are good with money and always invest in property with a good address if you can afford to wait a few years.

Reasons for Albert's bad luck

• This section is EXTREMELY useful. A MUST-READ. It may very well be the most valuable part of the entire book.
• Then there is the case of a man I have known for thirty years. He is a better publisher than I am and has been a better publisher since we both set out on our own back in the early 1970s. He is a better businessman, too. He networks more and is always one of the first to understand which way the wind is blowing. His writing skills are way above my own—not that that's saying much, I know. But even so, good wziting skills can be important in our business.
  
  He listens to others more often and more closely. He is a fierce but fair negotiator and has more patience than I. And, by God, he has needed more patience, more patience than Job. Like a modern-day version of that tormented biblical figure, misfoftune dogs him. No sooner has he struck gold than it crumbles into dross. No sooner has he dug another mine than it fills with water nobody guessed was there. Nothing will work. Nothing has ever really worked for him. It must be absolutely galling.
  
  His personality has changed for the worse in recent years. He now exhibits, perhaps not unnaturally, a degree of resentment toward those who have done so much better so much less talent and less determination. I notice I have begun to avoid his company. And so have others. Is it because I feel guilty? Is it because I wish to avoid his flashes of bitterness and dark humor? Is it because I am leery of vile, involuntary gloating? Or is it because in some pagan corner of my heart, I believe that bad luck might be contagious?
  
  I don't know the answer to that. But I do know that he ought to be rich. At least as rich as I am, and perhaps a great deal richer. So what is it that separates us? Perhaps a dispassionate analysis will help us to peer dimly into the murky world of what we humans call "luck" and "misfortune".

1. Albert never stuck with one project long enough to realize the benefits of accumulated knowledge. The hardest part of starting something is often at the beginning, when there are lots of mistakes that you still need to make and learn from. Albert took these problems as a sign of being in a bad industry.
2. Albert "wastes too much of his time seeking [visionary ideas]". "Few visions or new technologies result in a serendipitous outcome."
3. Albert "is a great believer in partnering and share options and employee profit participation". Albert assumes that employees will be most motivated by the promise of profit, when in fact they're often far more motivated (and made happy) by a pat on the back, the chance at being recognized by their coworkers, etc. He also wastes a LOT of time figuring out the details of these arrangements at the expense of focusing on the actual business.
4. Albert is a perfectionist, which slows him down. He ends up trying to do everything himself, and ends up not getting as much done. Successful people focus more on the bigger picture. And Albert's employees resent him because he doesn't give them the chance to grow. "He reminds me of a groom-to-be who is so keen to redecorate the church, the reception rooms and his new house to ensure a perfect wedding day that he fails to notice his bride-to-be has grown tired of waiting and has married another man."
5. Albert cares too much and takes himself and his destiny too seriously. He won't laugh at himself enough...He cares what people think about him. He cares about his gravitas.
6. Albert has a penchant for calling himself unlucky. This becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy.

11. The Art of Negotiating

• great summary of tips at the end of the chapter

12. Ownership! Ownership! Ownership!

• ownership is the ONLY thing that matters. NEVER part with a share if you can help it.
• a brief discussion of his experience running a public company

13. The Joys of Delegation
14. A Piece of the Pie
15. The Power of Focus

Part Four: Troubleshooting and Endgame

16. Whoops!
17. A Recap for Idlers

The Quest for Wealth: A Health Warning

• Don't sacrifice happiness to chase money. [Tim Ferris says the same thing]

Cut Loose

• • Separate yourself from bad influences. [I said the same thing re: the LSAT]

Choose the Right Mountain

Choose the Right Mountain

The world is full of money. Some of that money has your name on it. All you have to do is collect it.

If you are not just reading this book for a bit of entertainment (nothing wrong with that), and if you seriously do wish to get rich, then I am going to ask you to memorize the words below, close the book and repeat the words again to yourself. Let's go:

THE WORLD IS FULL OF MONEY. SOME OF IT HAS MY NAME ON IT. ALL I HAVE TO DO IS COLLECT IT.
 
Done that? OK, now we're rockin' and rollin'. The first question to answer is where is the goddamn money? Let's imagine it is in a mine in a mountain. Fine. Which mountain? The mountain that is already making a lot of other people rich would be a good bet.

Gold rushes don't happen in old mines. There will be people making a good living out of old mines, but they won't be too keen to let you muscle in on their stake. Look for new mountains where gold is being mined; or will be mined soon. 

Fear Nothing

Go! Go! Go!

18. How to STAY Rich

19. The Eight Secrets to Getting Rich

1. Analyze your need. Desire is insufficient. Compulsion is mandatory.
2. Cut loose from negative influences. Never give in. Stay the course.
3. Ignore "great ideas". Concentrate on great execution.
4. Focus. Keep your eye on the ball marked "The Money is Here".
5. Hire talent smarter than you are. Delegate. Share the annual pie.
6. Ownership is the real "secret". Hold on to every percentage point you can.
7. Sell before you need to, or when bored. Empty your mind when negotiating.
8. Fear nothing and no one. Get rich. Remember to give it all away.

20. Remember to Duck!