By Felix Dennis
(Reviewed by Kevin Knebl)
 
Here's another great book recommendation from my friend David Fein! This is one of the most interesting books I have read in some time, and I read a lot of interesting books.

Some will look at the title and immediately dismiss it. I wouldn’t do that too quickly. Lessons can always be learned from people who are very good at what they do. Dennis is undeniably a master at making money. He’s also so disarmingly honest about his motivations and his past that you quickly realize that he didn’t write this book because he needs the money. He’s in a position where he can speak his mind freely and let the chips fall where they will.

If you're looking for a practical how-to, what’s-it-like guide to becoming a rich entrepreneur, written by an expert and eccentric, How to Get Rich is probably for you. Though I really liked Dennis’ writing style—direct, bold, and funny in a self-effacing way—truth be told, with a title like How to Get Rich, I lowered my expectations a bit in case it turned out to be the usual stuff you find in the Business Profiles section of a bookstore. Actually, Dennis has some pretty harsh words for all the authors out there who write how-to-get-rich books without actually having done so, except by selling copies of their how-to books!

Enter Felix Dennis, a British publishing mogul who loves writing poems, drinking outstanding wines, and telling it like it is. If you’ve never heard of him, he started Dennis Publishing in 1974, hit it big by publishing magazines related to the PC revolution back when no one else thought it would last, and nowadays publishes some of the most successful men’s lifestyle magazines in the United States: Maxim, Stuff, and Blender. By his own estimation, he’s worth 400–900 million dollars, before tax.

Dennis emphasizes that his book is a definitive how-to guide to being rich, and he regularly repeats, more than half seriously, that if you’re not using his book to get rich, then you’re wasting your time and might as well give it to someone who will use it properly. I disagree wholeheartedly. You’re going to get good advice from this book regardless of whether you’re aiming to become rich, want to run your own simple business, or even if you work for someone else.

Sure, for those who are looking to get filthy rich, Dennis’ advice is probably spot on. In a nutshell: Choose a good industry (he gives some guidelines on what to avoid); mix in some luck (he gives advice on how to improve your chances of catching Lady Luck); and, finally, the most important part, retain 100% ownership of it through thick and thin (much easier said than done).