Big Bucks!

...it was worth the money if only for the first lesson which sems like common sense, but I've seen so many people go wrong - the lesson is this: You have to love what you do, and do what you love. Do not take a job just because it pays well; if you hate it, not only will you be miserable, but you probably won't succeed. Likewise, if you get a job that you like, even if you don't get paid a whole lot right away, your drive will lead you to bigger and better things.

I have read dozens of personal growth books and they all purport to have the answer...27 keys to success, 15 strategies for happiness, 40 things you can do to get better. By now I probably have 1000 things I need to focus on, it's rediculous.This book has only a few key points, but they are the most direct, to the point, and fundamental points in making huge money. This book isn't the end all, but it is absolutely essential.I guess the reason I'm so excited about this book is it had the one key that I had been missing all these years. So many books I've read talk about discipline, delayed gratification, and million different ways to try to motivate yourself. What this book taught me, was that the very foundation of all success is doing what you love.It sounds simple. Most people hear that and they respond "Of course." but few people really take it to heart. Everything gets really easy when you are doing what you love. Motivation is a snap. Discipline is a snap. You follow everything through because you are having so much fun.That of course is just the foundation, the beginning. But what a beginning! Buy this book right now, it could change your life.

Big Bucks! is the third in the series that started with Raving Fans and proceeded on to Gung Ho. Although you can certainly read Big Bucks! as a standalone, I recommend that you read the other two fine books first. The subject is pretty simple: How to earn, keep, and enjoy substantial wealth. That description will probably sound like any of several hundred thousand self-help books written in recent years. In true Ken Blanchard style, Big Bucks! manages a refreshing new take on an old subject.Len, our future multimillionaire, meets three spiritual leaders in a card game, who introduce him to three role models who teach him the three initial, and four eventual, rules of of getting, keeping and enjoying his Big Bucks!Simple messages are powerful, because we can remember them. I subscribe to the themes in this book, and enjoyed reading how they were articulated. Big Bucks! makes the pursuit of wealth seem downright spiritual, which of course it can be. In practice, the book is at its best in encouraging you to eventually have your own business. The perspective is certainly more that of an owner/manager than an employee. But the latter is addressed.Those who do not like The One Minute Manager format will really hate this book, because it takes that format even further into simple stories and humor than usual. As such, the format is almost a satire on itself. On the other hand, I greatly appreciate authors who can boil down important information into the gist of what needs to be done. Having considered those I know who have lived the Big Bucks! ideal, it is clear that they followed these principles unconsciously, if not consciously. I think Blanchard and Bowles have really put their finger on the pulse of the positive pursuit of wealth. This book would be a wonderful gift for a young person starting on a career, an older person thinking about starting a business, or anyone who seems serious about acquiring wealth. Even if you are not interested in having Big Bucks! for yourself, I think you will enjoy reading the book. And you never know. You just may decide that you are interested in Big Bucks! after all.

Daily (or so it seems to me) there are 10-15 new books published which offer to help their readers get RICH (quickly or eventually) during these "turbulent times" of "unprecedented opportunities." Because of his well-deserved prominence, whenever Ken Blanchard publishes a new book, it receives special attention. He knows this. I suspect, therefore, that he feels special pressure to provide in each new book solid content which is carefully organized and well-written, content which has real value. He and co-author Sheldon Bowles succeed brilliantly in the third "leg" of their trilogy in which they describe "the three key factors that determine the long-term success of an organization: as a provider of choice (Raving Fans), as an employer of choice (Gung Ho!), and [now] as an investment of choice (Big Bucks)."The "story" they tell is of a fellow named Len whose quest is to learn the secrets to moneymaking. Like Bunyan's Pilgrim, Len encounters many adventures during his quest, accompanied by the reader. We are introduced to Rabbi Silver, Father Murphy, Pastor Edwards, and moneymakers from their respective congregations. At first, this seemed odd to me. What are Blanchard and Bowles up to? Why include clergy? What is the connection to accumulating "Big Bucks?" Yes, yes, of course. Regardless of their denomination, all congregations heavily depend upon financial support to sustain their good work. But isn't this book supposed to provide "guidelines to becoming a multimillionaire?" What about making "serious money" for both me and my company?It would be a great disservice both to the authors and to the book's readers were I to reveal the aforementioned "three key factors" or to explain the relevance of the clergy and several of their congregants to the reader's own "quest" to learn the secrets of moneymaking. Read the book. Then re-read it. Judge for yourself.Recall my previous reference to the daily appearance of books about wealth creation. I rate Big Bucks so highly on its own merits but also admire it for another reason which the authors may not have had in mind when they wrote this book: This would make an excellent gift for recent graduates of schools, colleges, and universities. Why? Because, as they embark on their own journey in search of economic health (if not wealth), this little book will help anchor them in some profoundly important values: commitment, intensity, purpose, and even fun.One final Point: Big Bucks also provides a conceptual frame-of-reference within which to evaluate other books on wealth accumulation. For that reason alone, it is a "must read."