The Magic Money Machine
Piersall’s inspiring financial advice steers clear of hype but helps win the race toward success.
The Magic Money Machine uses a series of real-life scenarios and challenges to successfully demystify financial strategy for even the most financially illiterate. Marvin L Piersall takes us on a journey toward what he dubs the financial “tipping point,” that much-desired state wherein even if we are not rich in a splashy Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous fashion, we can be secure in knowing that our basic needs will be met.
By skillfully choosing realistic scenarios depicting ordinary people tackling the everyday—but nonetheless intimidating—pitfalls and setbacks of layoffs, illness, and disability, Piersall outlines how even those with modest financial resources and minimum investing savvy can make it through. Although well educated, undoubtedly smarter than average, and fortunate enough to have carved out a successful practice as a financial adviser, Piersall has not lost touch with just how difficult and intimidating planning for financial trials and tribulations can be for the average American. He speaks honestly from his own experience, and from the experiences of friends and colleagues.
Piersall’s aim is to show how significant wealth can be reliably generated with low up-front investment, uncomplicated methodology, and a minimum of tinkering or course-changing. He rightly realizes that what most people crave is not the glitz and glamor of opulent wealth, but simply the reassuring feeling that there’s money to meet expenditures, some resources for potential hardships, and the realistic possibility of reaching this stability without being a star athlete, top-flying businessperson, or child of privilege. With his series of well-crafted narratives, Piersall engages those who are not natural financial whiz kids, and those who might never delve into financial websites or newspaper columns. By detailing the emotional and human cost of poor financial decision-making, he makes us receptive to his simple, careful, methodical strategies. These concentrate on “getting rich slowly”—but surely.
The Magic Money Machine is above all a book about simple-to-understand yet surprisingly remunerative financial strategies. Through first illustrating the peace of mind that most of us could achieve through consistent investment in conservative investment vehicles such as bond funds, Piersall convincingly explains to the layman how bond funds—provided the dividends are reinvested—can provide a competitive alternative to mutual funds mainly invested in stocks. Along the way, he entertains with engaging chapters with enticing titles such as “The Slow Dance,” “Face to Face,” and “Smoke Break.” He caps it all with a simple, multi-page table illustrating how an initial investment of $3,000 plus $100 per month continual investment could grow impressively over five, ten, twenty, and thirty years.
Having established the human needs for stability and security so convincingly in previous chapters, when Piersall divulges the details of his strategy, the overall result is blinding in its simplicity and compelling in its promise. His overall message—slow and steady—might not be flashy or exciting, but it sure wins the race at the end of the day.
Reviewed by
Seamus Mullarkey
Disclosure: This article is not an endorsement, but a review. The publisher of this book provided free copies of the book and paid a small fee to have their book reviewed by a professional reviewer. Foreword Reviews and Clarion Reviews make no guarantee that the publisher will receive a positive review. Foreword Magazine, Inc. is disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255.
