The author of The Psychology of Money is back with more wisdom on finance, thinking about risk, and general life advice, based on the premise that we’d all be better off if we stopped focusing on the details of life that always differ and instead looked at the big-picture things that never change.
I listened to the book on a 14-hour flight from London to Tokyo after a couple of little bottles of airline red, so it’s possible I drifted off and missed some chapters, but it felt like I’d heard (actually read) much of it before from his blog posts at Collaborative Fund (https://collabfund.com/blog/authors/morgan/)
But even so, Housel raises profound points and summarizes them with a thought-provoking final chapter of questions that we would be wise to ask ourselves should we wish to be, if not as sharp a knife as Housel, at least a slightly smarter cookie —
- Who has the right answers but I ignore because they are not articulate?
- Which of my current views would I disagree with if I were born in a different country or generation?
- What do I believe is true because I desperately want it to be true but it is clearly not?
- What do I think is a problem that only applies to others that will eventually hit me?
- What do I think is true but is actually just good marketing?
- What haven’t I experienced first-hand that leaves me naive?
- What looks unsustainable but is actually a new trend that we haven’t accepted yet?
- Who do I think is smart but is actually full of it?
- Am I prepared to handle risks I can’t even envision?
- Which of my current views would I change if my incentives were different?
- What are we ignoring today that will seem shockingly obvious in the future?
- What events that almost happened would have fundamentally changed the world if they had happened?
- How much have things outside my control benefited me that I take credit for?
- How do I know I’m being patient (a skill) or stubborn (a flaw)?
- Who do I look up to that is secretly miserable?
- What hassle am I trying to eliminate that is in fact an unavoidable cost of success?
- What crazy genius that I aspire to emulate us actually just crazy?
- What strong belief that I hold is most likely to change?
- What’s always been true, what’s the same as ever?
Bottom line? Same as Ever is good, worth a read especially if you haven’t been keeping up with Housel’s blog posts, but The Psychology of Money was a masterpiece of its kind and, as such, is a hard act to follow.
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No. 5 of 50 books I intend to read and review in 2023.
I’m Patrick Sherriff, an Englishman who survived 13 years working for newspapers in the US, UK and Japan. Between teaching English lessons at my conversation school in Abiko, Japan, I write and illustrate textbooks for non-native speakers of English, release Hana Walker mystery novels, short stories, paint, sketch and write essays and a monthly newsletter highlighting good writing in English, often about about Japan, art, crime fiction and teaching.
Patrick Sherriff 