Wise Book Reviews: 1 Hour Investor
Hello and welcome to a segment that I’d like to call Wise Book Reviews! The title is pretty self-explanatory. However, there is a method to the madness. If I find a book that I genuinely enjoy reading, I’ll post a review. Maybe you, the reader, have a book that you’d like me to read. I will make a review on it! Even those who have their own personal ebook, I will still review it. Just like 1 Hour Investor!
For those who’re wondering, I’ll be reviewing 5 key elements. Length, readability, content, usefulness, and whether the book is beginner-friendly. Furthermore, I’ll provide a completely subjective rating. As I said, to start, we have 1 Hour Investor by Vishal Reddy, published by TCK Publishing. Let’s get right into it!
1. 1 Hour Investor: Length
1 Hour Investor is not a terribly long book. In fact, the book does not even break 100 pages. This is not a coincidence. The 1 hour in the title is a way of saying that the book is short and to the point. That a beginner investor can read this book within a short period of time and be an expert! While I don’t think any single book can make someone into an expert investor, this book is excellent for those who’re just starting off or are generally interested in finance!
As I said, the length is integral. However, this book doesn’t overdo it. When a book is too long, one of two things can happen. You may get lost within the pages and are not able to follow along because you lack the basic knowledge required to keep up. Furthermore, since there is so much information, you’ll be required to read through the book a few more times.
This is due to the fact that your brain won’t be able to retain every single thing you’ve read. While the same can be said about a 100-page book, you’ll have a much easier time retaining the information. Vishal Reddy understands this.
The fact that this book is 100-pages makes it easier for anyone to pick up and start reading at any given time. Since 1 Hour Investor is catered to those who just want to learn, this was a smart idea. However, everyone has their own preference. Although, I can tell you that I personally felt the 100-pages was well worth my time. That being said, I definitely think it’ll be worth your time.
2. Readability
Readability is probably one of the most important aspects of any book. This isn’t exclusive to the world of finance. When you want to read a book, especially at a beginner level, the book needs to have a high degree of readability. This means that the content is understandable and easy to digest.
It’s very easy to get lost and misunderstand certain concepts within the world of finance. However, if a book takes it’s time to make sure that the reader will understand the driving points, then it’s worth reading.
One thing that 1-Hour investor does that I didn’t expect it to do is make the information so easy to understand. Let’s appreciation, for example. Vishal illustrates how appreciation is useful, followed by multiple examples at different levels. For example, $10,000 with 2% interest growing over 10, 20, 30, and 40 years (not an example from the book. However, it illustrates the point).
Not only does he provide examples to prove his points, but Vishal also does not use long words or financial jargon. Vishal took complicated topics and broke them down. Similar to a steak. You have to cut the steak into smaller pieces to eat it. Vishal took these concepts, broke them down, made them simple to understand and fed it to the readers.
Lastly, on the subject of readability. Since the content is easy to understand, it fair to assume that you’ll have a better time remembering what you’ve read. In terms of length and readability, this book is a match made in heaven. Very easy to understand and grasp concepts.
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3. Content
Next, we will be discussing the content within the book. Out of respect for the author and future readers, we won’t discuss specific content within the book. Rather, we will look at the content as a whole. Often times, you may read a book or article and have not learned anything. However, this isn’t the case for 1 Hour Investor.
As a new investor, you’ll probably read this book and already know some of the things that Vishal is talking about. For example, stocks. However, I believe that even a moderately seasoned investor can learn something from this book
1 Hour investor is rich with content, Vishal knows this which is why the book claims:
It’s a pretty bold statement. However, I am proud to say that I actually learned many things in this book. From small details to whole concepts! The reason I say that I’m proud is due to the fact that I actually learned something. Although I know some content already, I received what I was looking for, knowledge.
I learned something new which is always exciting to me and many of you. That’s the whole point of reading finance books, right? To learn. This is why I can recommend this book to anyone. Your money will not be wasted in the slightest.
The information is not only useful but easy to understand. It comes in abundance and is displayed in a cohesive manner. Vishal will talk about once concept earlier on in the book and apply it to later concepts to further illustrate his point. However, further on in the book, there are some concepts that some might find jarring or difficult to understand, like taxes.
Almost everyone I know hates taxes because they’re difficult to understand. However, the use of examples, graphs and data tables make the content easy to understand.
To conclude this section, this book is rich with content. There are many beginners to intermediate level concepts. However, due to the fact that the book has a high degree of readability, anyone can pick up this book and gain more knowledge in the world of finances. This is not an easy feat but 1 Hour Investor pulls it off.
4. Usefulness
Usefulness can be quite subjective. This is due to the fact that people often receive and use information in various different ways. However, 1 Hour Investor does a good job of providing content that will be useful to its readers.
For example, the book goes on to describe how you will evaluate a stock. For anyone remotely interested in stocks, this is extremely useful information. Considering the fact that stocks can be extremely volatile at times. Learning how to properly evaluate a stock and whether or not you should invest money into it is a huge bonus.
1 Hour Investor also tackles subjects that many people may not know about, even seasoned investors. For example, 401k(s) and balance sheets. From my personal experience reading through this book, there is definitely information that I’ll implement in order to make my investing more efficient.
There is something in here that everybody can find value in. Furthermore, this is true whether it’s strictly knowledge or applicable strategies in evaluating investments.
5. Rating
Now, let’s get to the rating. For this book, I’ll give it a solid 8/10. Pretty good right? There are many reasons as to why I’d give 1 Hour Investor a great score. For one, the book wasn’t too long. However, Vishal managed to pack a ton of useful and easily consumable content into such a short amount read. Although, I do think beginner or intermediate investors are the ones who’ll find the most value within this book.
If you’re an investor who has been in the game for 20+ years, chances are you already know all the information within the book. However, experienced investors may find new information. This book is definitely worth more than its $3.99 price tag. Therefore, this book is quite the steal.
Criticism
Many of you may wonder why the book isn’t a perfect 10. After all, I did nothing but praise it. Well, there are some things that could have been different. There is quite a bit of repetition within the book and it can get quite tedious at times.
I acknowledge that Vishal does this in order to really drive home the point. However, sometimes I find it’s unnecessary. For example, at certain points, Vishal shows how interest can become powerful over time. He shows an investment grow over 10 years and contrasts it to 20 years.
At this point, it’s safe to assume the reader understands that the longer you have money gaining interest, the more you’ll have in the future. Therefore, there is no need to show how much that same investment will grow over 30 and 40 years. Considering the point was that compound interest becomes more powerful over time.
Lastly is sort of a double-edged sword. Within 1 Hour Investor, a lot of calculations are done through a financial calculator. Although this isn’t a bad thing and is definitely a useful tool for anyone. I would have preferred if the calculations were manually shown as well.
This is due to the fact that I like to see numbers fleshed out in front of me. I want to do the calculations myself (with the assistance of a basic calculator) because I’ll have a better understanding.
Example
For example, instead of saying $500 at an annual interest rate of 2.5% = X after 30 years and you can get this calculation by plugging all these different numbers into a calculator. Show the equation. Show how the numbers add up and why the sum is X.
I do want to end by saying that Vishal doesn’t always rely on the finance calculator, these instances are few and far between. However, take a look at this passage from High-Interest Savings Accounts:
In this picture, I show how 2.5% interest on a $10,000 investment is calculated over a year. The equation is broken down and then explained that every other month is calculated the same. However, the only thing that changes is the new total balance due to the interest payment.
Although it may be tough to grasp, I do think that reads would find it advantageous to know exactly how their interest is being accumulated over time.
6. Final Thoughts
Overall, this book is a definite read. From start to finish, you won’t be disappointed. The book is full of useful information that even a beginner can understand. Therefore, it holds an incredible value that outweighs its price. There are some criticisms on the book but nothing that’ll take away from the overall experience. Lastly, I’d like to say thank you to Vishal for creating a book that was valuable to me and probably many others. Check out Vishal’s Twitter and the TCK Facebook Page!
8/10
If you have any book that you’ve written or genuinely want me to read and give my thoughts on, feel free to comment or contact me!
Shameed is just a man on a mission to help those around him gain financial success. Obsessed with writing about all things finance, this GTA native is constantly learning and sharing his experiences with others.
