Automatic Wealth for Grads

Mainly the book tells us that wealth is dependent on what we want in life. Wealth is about how long your assets can last and not how much you have. This focuses on income minus expenses instead of real absolute amount of wealth.

Masterson advocates increasing income and savings for the reasons of compounding them. Compounding depends on time, amount of wealth and the ROI (rate of investment) A ROI of 18% is recommended. Always pay yourself first.

Ways to increase one's income:
1) Become an extraordinary employee
- Get in early
- Understand your responsibilities
- Focus on important things
- Never say NO
- Improve one's skills
- Communicate your progress
2) Be in a fast growing company
3) Be indispensible

He also gave some good career advice. Career choice is character dependent and we should do something that suits our personality and gives us fulfillment.

Some notes on certain sectors are:
1) Retail (difficult to be rich unless there is expansion)
2) Service (Increasing wage is met my increasing hours. A good entry level to learn trade)
3) Wholesale
4) Manufacturing
Important thing is to research on which industry is booming and how it suits one's character. Masterson advises that to be a top-earner, we have to focus on profit-generation instead of administrative or technical positions. We ought to learn how the company generates profits (1. Learn how your job contributes to this. 2. Make sure that the top knows how well you do so.) It is always almost necessary to develop one's sales skills (which can be applied in many areas) He also gave some good interview skills and suggestions.

Key points on Marketing
You have to know the difference between
1. Wants and needs
2. Features and benefits
3. Benefits and deeper benefits

Steps to develop one's own business
1. Take small steps
2. Develop expertise and niche
3. Find the right environment (especially motivational)
4. Learn whatever in one's current job first
5. Make sure the business benefits others

9 points to take note of in one's business
1. Make the first step
2. Lower price in a new market
3. It's all about selling
4. Business must be growable without personal involvement
5. Know your stop loss
6. Improve your strengths then eliminate your weaknesses
7. Focus and not diversify
8. Let winners run and cut losses
9. Follow Pareto's Law

Masterson shows that real estate is one of the better investment options (in America) and to reap benefits from the stock market, one must be:
1. Modest
2. Humble
3. Consistent
With this, he advocates Index Funds.

He wraps up his book by advising us to be cautiously optimistic always and finally, on how to enjoy life which was ultimate aim of us trying to accumulate wealth in the first place.

A pretty good book on a general overview on investment strategies. He gives some insightful views on career management and guides readers to decide what can be the best for each individual for any given career.