Eight Steps to Seven Figures: The Investment Strategies of Everyday Millionaires and How You Can Become Wealthy Too - Hardcover

Carlson, Charles

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0385497318 ISBN 13: 9780385497312

Publisher: Doubleday Business, 2000

Synopsis

In the tradition of the megabestseller The Millionaire Next Door, Eight Steps to Seven Figures brings together in-depth interviews with over two hundred everyday people whose investments have made them millionaires. But while The Millionaire Next Door describes its subjects' lifestyles and spending habits, Eight Steps to Seven Figures focuses squarely on the investing strategies and principles that ordinary people have used to achieve the magic million-dollar mark.

Bestselling author and chartered financial analyst (CFA) Charles Carlson reveals the keys used by the newly wealthy to reap extraordinary dividends, including a discussion of the specific stocks, bonds, and other financial vehicles they choose as part of their investment mix. In the course of the book, readers learn how to determine how much time they need to spend researching and watching over their portfolios, when to buy, and equally important, when to sell. From hundreds of accounts of those Carlson calls "Main Street millionaires," he distills eight specific investment rules anyone can follow to become financially worry-free. Among the lessons he outlines and elaborates on:

"Buy and Hold and Buy and Hold and Buy and Hold"--Harness the power of time in growing your portfolio and compounding your investment returns.

"Know Where You Are Going"--Determine your invest        ment time frame, financial goals, and risk "comfort" level to put together a successful wealth-building strategy.

"Play to Your Strengths"--Everyone has different personality strengths, investment advantages, and specialized knowledge that they bring to the table; recognize and exploit them in achieving your financial goals.

One of the best things about Carlson's book is that it recognizes and allows for readers who may not have the resources to follow all eight rules. It offers reassurance and hope that there is more than one way to achieve the seven-figure pinnacle. Even people who started investing later in life, and can't fully harness the power of time, can find here the guidance they need to become wealthy.

Filled with the insights and investment advice that hundreds of everyday people have followed to become rich, and buttressed with countless you-are-there stories of how these millionaires did it, Eight Steps to Seven Figures is an absolute must for today's investors.
Bestselling author and chartered financial analyst (CFA) Charles Carlson reveals the keys used by the newly wealthy to reap extraordinary dividends, including a discussion of the specific stocks, bonds, and other financial vehicles they chose as part of their investment mix. In the course of the book, readers learn how much time they need to spend researching and watching over their portfolios, when to buy, and equally important, when to sell. From hundreds of accounts of those Carlson calls "Main Street millionaires," he distills eight specific investment rules anyone can follow to become financially worry-free.

One of the best things about Carlson's book is that it recognizes and allows for readers who may not have the resources to follow all eight rules. It offers reassurance and hope that there is more than one way to achieve the seven-figure pinnacle. Even people who started investing later in life and can't fully harness the power of time still can find the guidance they need to become wealthy.

Filled with the insights and investment advice that hundreds of everyday people have followed to become rich, and buttressed with countless you-are-there stories of how these millionaires did it, EIGHT STEPS TO SEVEN FIGURES is an absolute must for today's investors.-->

About this title

Review:

We know some things about the millionaire next door--what kind of car he drives, how big his house is--but we don't know so much about how he built his wealth. In Eight Steps to Seven Figures, Carlson attempts to fill in the blanks by telling us the stories of 170 regular, middle-class folks who made millions by investing in the stock market. The steps he outlines are so simple that most people interested in investing already know them: Invest regularly, hang onto your investments for a long time (75 percent of the millionaires he surveyed held each investment an average of five years); use the tax code to your advantage by fully funding 401(k) plans and Roth IRAs. Step 4, "Swing for Singles," suggests investing in brand-name, blue-chip stocks when they look underpriced--something anyone who's ever heard of Warren Buffett can tell you. A couple other steps aren't quite so obvious. For example, Step 3 dictates that you buy only stocks and stock funds and forget about asset allocation. ("You get rich buying stocks. You stay rich buying bonds.") Step 8, "Limit Shocks to Your Finances," counsels you to keep your day job. (No day traders or Internet jackpoteers in this group.)

This material could be dull as dirt, but Carlson keeps it lively. He reminds investors not to overestimate their genius during a bull market. He suggests that selling too late is better than selling too early, if you buy growth stocks and avoid cyclicals. "If you buy right, selling late may mean making 'only' a 300 percent profit instead of a 400 percent profit," he writes. What's most fun, though, is following the investment careers--the big hits and big mistakes--of the 170 investors. You read stories of selling Microsoft too soon, of not buying enough Dell when it was selling for $5 a share. But these people all ended up millionaires, and when you put this book down, you will almost certainly feel that you can, and probably should, be a member of their club. --Lou Schuler

About the Author:

Charles B. Carlson, CFA, is author of the books Buying Stocks Without a Broker (350,000 copies in print) and No-Load Stocks, and of the "DRIP Investor" and "No-Load Stock Insider" investment newsletters, reaching some 300,000 subscribers. He is also co-portfolio manager for the Strong Dow 30 Value no-load mutual fund. Carlson earned his M.B.A. from the University of Chicago, and his comments appear regularly in the top business press, from Forbes to the New York Times to USA Today. He lives in Hammond, Indiana.

Visit the author on the Web at: www.8stepsto7figures.com

About this edition

• Publisher: Doubleday Business
• Publication date: 2000
• ISBN 10: 0385497318
• ISBN 13: 9780385497312
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 336