All financial books from the past 10 years should be burned.
That's what the owner of this used book store told me this weekend.What the hell? What did finance ever do to you? I guess you don't read personal finance blogs ;) Here's how the conversation went down (if you could call it that):
Me: "Hey how's it going man, do you know where I can find your economics or finance section?"Ummmm...thanks? I guess you're just gonna walk away and not help me, okay I gotcha. Initially I just brushed it off and went about my business looking for other books instead, but the more I thought about it, the more curiosity got a hold of me. Was he just talking out of his ass? Did he say it cuz it was the "trendy" thing to do? Did he *ever* carry these books? Unfortunately he was long gone by the time these questions started to bubble up.
Book Store Owner: "Hah! We don't have that here ... (walks away & starts mumbling) ... All financial books from the past 10 years should be burned."
Instead, I am left posting about it and coming to my own assumptions. Here's what I think. I think Mr. Store Owner got burned by the economy in some form or another, and he's now bringing in much less than he used to. He probably also meant to say that all investing books should be thrown out of the window, not financial ones. How could books promoting savings and proper money management possibly harm anyone? I can't imagine anyone getting rid of The Richest Man in Babylon or The Millionaire Next Door on grounds of horrible advice.
Obviously, I think he made a bad choice of words. The average person may not have picked up on it (or cared for that matter), but I take it as an insult. You run a book store where people go to LEARN and give you money, not to hear you spout out conspiracy theories. The next time someone's interested in buying a book from you, try helping them, not patronizing them.
Labels: cockamamy indeed, crazy economy, education, rant
posted by J. Money at
7:08 AM
13 Comments:
No one takes personal responsibility anymore, I used to have a advisor at a financial institute and I realized I had no idea what I was investing in or what he had in my best interest. I lost a lot over the past year just like everyone else. Instead of blaming my advisor I decided to look into my cost and such...I am now managing my own accounts with vanguard. I didnt blame him I blamed myself for not caring enough about my money to just give it to someone to manage.
Either way I agree with you whole heartily that there are some great books out there and they shouldn't all be burned!
Hmmm, maybe he took some bad advice from one of those books and now he's bitter. I'm sure there are some that are not very sound. Either way, it's not very good customer service to bash what your customer is interested in. Way to go bookstore guy!
I'm guessing that the economy burned him, but the economy was aided by his anti-social, unhelpful attitude toward paying customers, which is very bad for business.
To venture a guess...I bet it had to do with the fact that most of the books from the past ten years (1999 to 2009) either touted 2 things:
1) EQUITIES FREAKING RULE - Do it up 100% OR
2) BUY A HOME and/or FLIP REAL ESTATE and you'll be the next trump.
I haven't read those books, but a huge number of them told you the key to getting rich was real estate. They just forgot to mention that you better get out before the bubble burst. Oopps
Great post, interesting story. I agree.... what a weird situation. And yes, how can money management books hurt anyone? He obviously didn't read enough investment books anyway if he was burned so bad that he has this type of grudge on them all.....
Hmmm, you know who else thought books should be burned - Nazis (see: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nazi_book_burnings).
That alone makes me a bit weary of anyone promoting any sort of knowledge destruction...
I also think a lot of people just cant accept making mistakes (including financial ones) are a part of life. You have to learn and move on.
Good points on the real estate stuff. Although, most books talk about it being an investment over the LONG run, not so much in flipping to make a quick profit (although there are def. books around that as myjourney and stackingpennies mentions). Plus, many people like "owning" their own homes for many reasons other than just investing, so it all goes back to what this guy really meant about these books...
I guess I'll have to wait until the next time I'm in charlottesville to find out! I'd totally bring it up and see what I could conjure out of him too ;)
@Atlas@mymoneyshrugged - Good job taking control and not blaming someone else! That'll get you a lot farther in life.
Matt @ My Financial Recovery - You're funny :)
I'm guessing that guy was on his period?
lol @ PunchDebtInTheFace!
Seriously, lots of books offer "outdated" information -- that's why there are always new editions of books on history, science, medical information, etc. Learning is a constant process.
Whatever he was thinking, he is an idiot to treat a customer like that. Are you sure he was the Owner and not an employee.
-1MansMoney
yeah, i'm like 99% certain. he had this air about him, and acted/talked like it was his store. who knows though, either way you're right in that he needs to get his customer service up to par.
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