F.U. Money by Dan Lok – a book review and summary.

I recently discovered Dan Lok on youtube. The likeable multimillionaire business owner and e-business celebrity has a channel with over one million subscribers and offers brilliant advice for budding entrepreneurs and business owners. His new book FU Money – make as much money as you damn well want and live life as you damn well please! is actually offered free to download in pdf form (www.fumoney.com) so there was no reason for me not to check it out. (Note: this is an entirely unpaid and unaffiliated review)

I’ll simply say that the book is excellent: Written in the powerful, captivating and ‘real’ voice of the author, it was very easy to flow through and finish the 284 pages in a couple of sittings, taking notes along the way. The main concept of the book is ‘F.U. Money’ which is having enough financial freedom to basically be able to tell anyone (bosses, employees, employers…) to F-off at any given time if necessary or desirable. Anyone who has merely pondered or seriously considered quitting their regular job and launching some kind of online business (or doing so ‘on the side’) would be well advised to check out the book.

By the end of the first chapter I was filled with a real desire and belief that I could achieve everything that the author set out about creating my ideal business and lifestyle, and this was cemented further in place throughout the reading. It’s a book that makes no bones about telling you that you can’t just read it and put it away – you have to get up off your ass and do something. It powerfully ends by telling you that you have 24 hours to to do something (however small) towards your goals or you probably never will (and woop-de-doo I did! Maybe I’m gonna make it). Here is a summary of some of the top things I learned from the book:

1. Read books by or about really rich people

Read biographies and autobiographies of successful entrepreneurs. Read books by real world experts in business with a proven track record of making big money. There is plenty of literature out there on business, money, and personal development but much of it is by people who’s expertise is merely theoretical. Basically, read people who are actually rich.

2. Make very specific goals

To achieve goals you need very specific goals. Dan is a proponent of setting an annual income goal and then dividing that number by the number of days in a year that you will work in order to set a Daily Income Goal (DIG).

For example, if you want to make £100k per year that would mean making £274 pounds a day (working 365 days a year).

You can, of course, decide how many days a year you are willing to work and will need to make more per day if you want weekends/holidays out of the equation). Once you have your DIG you can focus much more effectively on how to make it happen.

3. The Wealth triangle

• 

Dan’s big concept on the best way to be financial success is manifested in his concept of the wealth triangle.

1. Start with a high income skill (which you probably need to develop) such as sales, copywriting or consulting (Dan started as a copywriter). It could be anything. In one of his videos dan talks about a high paid ballroom dancing instructor making over 100k per year. This provides financial stability as you can always work for money.
2. After developing a high income skill, build a scalable business. A business has the benefit of bringing in money through sales 24/7 (as you sleep!) which your high income skill does not.
3. When you have a serious stack of money, start investing in high-return assets/ investments. Dan defines this as at least a ten percent annual yield. Don’t worry about this side of the triangle early on when you don’t have much yet.

4. Easy money and leverage

An important concept of being a successful entrepreneur is not doing everything yourself, but outsourcing tasks, either by hiring employees or consultants – ideally ones who are more skilled than you in that field. Doing so allows you to increase performance in those areas of the business and also frees you up to look at the big picture and chart the course of your business.

I could go on. The chapters on the 7 Keys to Internet Riches and the 9 Characteristics of an Ideal Business were very useful and relevant. The overall impression of the book, most importantly, is a powerful call to action-taking and avoidance of excuse-making. It’s a great combination of a kick up the backside with some valuable business concepts that the beginner needs to know. I will definitely be picking up a copy of his forthcoming book ‘Unlock it’ so I guess Dan’s marketing strategy of giving away FU Money for free worked on me pretty well.