Cold Hard Truth On Men, Women, and Money: 50 Common Money Mistakes and How to Fix Them

Having been a fan of TV's "Shark Tank" for several years and an avid reader of business and finance books, I decided to give Kevin O'Leary's precedence over books that the other Sharks wrote. The reason for this is that while Kevin doesn't come across as the nicest Shark in the tank, he certainly has a laser-like focus on money and investment, what niche products are and what a good business strategy is. It's not that the other Sharks don't, it's just that Kevin's approach is direct and, like him or not, he'll tell an entrepreneur on the show that an idea/product is doomed to fail, point blank. Not too long ago, I read "Stop Acting Rich . . . and Start Living Like a Real Millionaire" by Thomas J. Stanley. O'Leary's book is a complement to Stanley's, because there is a resounding reiteration that conspicuous consumption does not a millionaire make. In fact, quite the opposite. By the time most people become millionaire's, they have ingrained saving and investment habits. They're not out buying luxury vehicles, but eating rice and beans and socking away whatever they can. Kevin covers quite a lot of material in this book and he proves to be a good, concise writer on both personal, personal finance and business. The subject matter ranges from banking, to credit cards, to weddings, to college, to adult kids living in the house, to saving for retirement, to real estate (as an investment and for general living purposes). Interestingly, the target readers of some sections are different. For example, when he talks about college, he's primarily directing his prose to young adults, but when he's talking about adult kids living with their parents, he's generally talking to said parents and indicating ways to get the kids out of the nest. So there's something for everyone in this book. Oddly, he doesn't mention banking at credit unions, where they don't--in my case, at least--require minimum balances and such.

O'Leary has written a busines book within a memoir. His life story is interesting and well written. His advice on busines is sound, and based on a successful career. He also has good advice on investments (of course he is always selling and runs his own onvestment firm, but he is transparent on that and I almost picked up the phone to get more information based on what seems to be a sound investment philophy on his part). His advice on sales and raising money is simple: Pick..Up..The...Phone. As Donald Trump says, the messenger just as important as the message, and most people are nt as charismatic and engaging as O'Leary, but the advice stands. I learned a lot about how to view people. One quote that stuck in my mind--and aI paraphrase--if I approach someone about an opportunity and they decline, they are dead to me. A bit melodramatic perhaps, but this philosphy completely obliterates fear of rejection and diminished self-confidence. It may be a useful psychological tool for those who suffer from such issues. O'Leary cleary does not. All in all, salespeople and entrepeneurs, in fact businesspeople of all stripes, will benefit from reading The Cold Hard Truth. I have seen only a few minutes of The Shark Tank, but I look forward to the next season and would like to catch up on past episodes based on getting to know "Mr. Wonderful" via this book.

Likes: • Straight to the point • Sound financial “life advice” • The genuine Mr. Wonderful • Basic investing advice Wish it had more of: • Real-world investing advice(most of the advice was what percentage to allocate your investment in sectors and always invest in stocks with dividends) • Realistic ideas(some of the ideas I think people might find borderline offensive and just plain unrealistic. For instance, not to get married, never go out to eat, don’t have kids, don’t have pets etc.) Of course some of these are made in good humor and then an alternative solution is made which seems to be the underlying theme throughout this book Overall: Similar to many others I purchased this book because I watch shark tank religiously and I like the “Mr. wonderful” character on the show. I also wanted to learn a little more about Mr. O’Leary to see how he made his fortune. You have to ask yourself, “is this just marketing crap to make money because every shark on the show has multiple books out now, or is this a genuine interest in educating/sharing experience, knowledge, and expertise to the general population.” I kept the frame of mind that it was a sincere interest in sharing success. There were many times while was reading this book on my Kindle that I wanted to throw it against the wall because it was so unbelievably “stupid,”but then I would fall asleep and think about it the next day and a in the purist form, it made sense. Even though a lot of the ideas are ridiculous for society in America, you still come away with ideas that can be less harsh and perhaps work for you. For example, not everyone has to go to college. I have to say, I agree, not everyone has to go to college and some might be better suited for some specific trade hence vocational school. I think if you have kids it’s not a bad idea to evaluate this and get off the hype that everyone has to go to college. However, in the early chapters, I found it a little irritating that in your 20s all you should do is work and really never go out have fun. Some people might want to live their life like that…. I think this is a very personal choice. For me, I like to live in the moment and I look at my 20s and 30s as a time to share a ton of experiences while you’re young and in a responsible manner. O’Leary’s book seems to be the opposite, at least that’s how I took it. As I read deeper into the book, I was able to train myself to see through the BS of not doing anything besides working and saving, and actually take away some useful BASIC money tips. Money Karma is real and you need to respect that.

Kevin O'Leary really is "Mr. Wonderful" when it comes to the cold, hard facts about a person's relationship with money. Not only is he a successful entrepeneur, but he is a great writer-------concise and straight to the no-nonsense point. He shares his own life story from childhood to present, while discussing money matters at every stage from the "womb to the tomb". He offers some simple, yet great tools which enable you to evaluate your personal money matters and goals. This is the first self-help book I've read relevant to money (or self-help for anything else), that I simply could not put down. Read it and you will feel as if you know Mr O'Leary personally. I think this book would make an awesome gift for the college or high school graduate, or for newlyweds. This is a book I will most likely re-read; and will always keep for reference. The book makes me (1) want to do better with saving habits; and (2) makes me wish I had an opportunity to talk to Mr. Wonderful one-on-one on several topics he discusses, particularly real estate and bonds. Don't miss the opportunity to read this excellent book. Whether or not you agree with his theories or not, I promise you will learn something from Kevin O'Leary.

This is an outstanding and amazing book. I consider it a book about personal finance and the philosophy (and exact details) of how to manage your money. A lot of the advice, you won't like (how to manage family and money for example) but it is sound. The author provides practical solutions to almost every point in life (from a college education, to getting married and divorced, to getting older). Let me be clear this is not a book about Mr. Wonderful's life and rise to riches. This is a knock on the head book telling you the things you NEED to do. Not necessarily to be mega wealthy but definitely to keep from being destitute and poor. This book is set up with the first part talking a little about O'Leary's family and the attitude you need to have about money. After that O'Leary talks about the different stages of life and the financial things you need to do. In many cases this isn't rocket science but O'Leary's splash of colder water in your face is well worth the price of this book.

Well, I am originally from a different country and the reason why I bought that book is that I am trying to integrate in the new society and understand it better and avoid the financial mistakes. I must say the information given in the book was of not much of a value to me, I mean it IS a good book if you were born and raised in the US and try to live according to the "American Dream" model, but I could probably give thousands of more ideas on what to get rid of or change to save your money. Actually my own life style was very similar to what the author describes here even without the book, my only "mistake" was that I don't have any credit cards and debt. Period. But generally I would highly recommend this book to the westerners/ big spenders, because you trust a "Shark tank" hero better than any foreigner whose words simply cause a smile and a feeling of superiority. Nice book.

Kevin O'Leary's book is full of great financial advice that's straight forward and right to the point. He breaks down what people need to do in order to reach financial levels like where he's at. This book alone has forced me to really look at how I manage my money and why I'm at where I'm financially. One of the advice that he gives in this book that really stuck out to me was that, I need to make saving money as important as brushing my teeth. I have never heard anyone say things like Kevin has about money. This book was worth a million times more than what I bought it for. For anyone serious about reaching a higher than average financial status, this book should be added to your library.

I like Kevin's writing style. It is straight forward. I am one of those that is always looking to find good info on making smart decisions with money. I felt this book was a good validation of many things I already do and I found some good nuggets as well. This is the kind of stuff I like to talk to my young adult children about as well. I may be getting this book for them as a gift at some point. There is is good info about the sensible handling of money at different stages of life. There were a couple of things I disagree with, as well. I think when you get married, all assets should be pooled and money decisions should be made together. His advise for keeping separate accounts does nor resonate with me. When you marry, I believe in the "2 become one" aspect. I just feel like separate accounts would create too much dialog about who's paying for what, etc. We pooled everything immediately and never looked back. Not everyone gets 30 years of marriage, but it worked for us. There is always discussions about major purchase decisions, but one thing we do not have to discuss is which account(s) the money is going to come from.

Read this book: you will find solutions to the money mistakes you may have made in your life and you can also learn what other people did wrong financially and avoid their mistakes.

Every responsible parent should buy this book for their teenagers!!many valuable life lessons in this book!

The book can be summed up as 'always be a tight arse, and make every dollar work for you'. It's a good book and I enjoyed reading it.

This book was absolutely amazing. Kevin brings up a ton of great ideas and opinions, plus it's a great story on how he started out! Whether you agree with everything he says or not, it's a good read.

O livro vai direto ao ponto e não está cheio de matemática financeiro, por isso é muito compreensível. Além disso as lições são de fácil entendimento e bem justificadas