Quarterly Blog (Q125): Why I wrote this book?

I often get asked the question, 'What made you write this book?'

While there is no single answer to this, I feel we all have a book inside us, but very few of us get to write their story.

For me, I love to help people, but what brought this to my mind was a couple of incidents in my life.

Firstly, I was 'cornered' by my cousin in Toronto and asked, 'What advice would you give to a young person on becoming wealthy ?' while sitting infront of his 'army' of nephews, nieces and grandchildren! I knew my answer had to be good as they were quite young and impressionable. I gave a very general answer, along the lines of work hard, be patient, find your passion etc. it was good, but not quite good enough for me.

The second incident was having read my all time favourite finance book, 'The Richest Man in Babylon', I thought this is something I could do! I loved the simplicity of the timeless message and the underlying story which was used to weave the financial lessons together.

I have a great backstory: I was made redundant at the age of 30 with a baby on the way and a mortgage to pay. If we didn't keep up with our monthly payments, we would have lost our home. This experience, set me on the path to seeking financial freedom. It did not feel it at the time, but in hindsight, it was the best thing to ever happen to me! In 'Rat Race to Riches' I capture my journey from FINANCIAL VULNERABILITY to FINANCIAL FREEDOM. I wanted to get across my money lessons in a timeless, easy to read and relatable way, which would benefit any reader, irrespective of where they are on their financial journey and what their financial goals are.

It was then that I started writing and I couldn't put my pen down! It took me about 3 months to get 50,000 words onto paper. I would get up in the middle of the night and jot down my thoughts, so I would not forget them when I woke. I would get ideas while going out for a walk and rush home to get them on paper. I would even get ideas whilst sitting on the toilet!

It was a labour of love over 2 years, and I finally published my first ever book on 5th December 2024! The reviews I have had, the old friends I have reconnected with, the new connections I am making and the new skills I am learning are all amazing.

I recently reconnected with my favourite teacher, dear Mr. Clopet (Economics) almost 45 years after I left Elthorne High School in 1981, well that's a story for a later blog ...