"Before I start this review, if you haven’t added this book to your cart yet, just do that now and then come back and read the review. Take that initial action so that you don’t get distracted and click on something else.

Ok now that you have that taken care of, here’s the juice.
This book will change your life. And I don’t mean that in a general self help, woo woo kind of way.. I mean that in a truly practical, applicable, actionable, make BIG moves kind of way.

Too many of us are not intentional about thinking through the important questions in life and we fall into this zone of “normalcy�, just trying to stay afloat and get through each day. But is that really what we want out of life? Do we seriously JUST want get by? Are we actually ok with just clocking in and clocking out and not ever figuring out how to make the most out of the short time we have on this planet? If we really think about it, I don’t think any of us are. But then the question is “what do we do about it?� Sahil provides the blueprint to help you figure it out. He doesn’t give the answers, those can only come from you, BUT he does provide the guiding light to help you get there.

If this book doesn’t impact you in some way shape or form, you skimmed through it. Or you didn’t read it ;)

Let’s talk about Sahil for a second. As I’ve been reading this I’ve shared lessons on Twitter. Sahil has MILLIONS of followers across his platforms, yet he has taken the time to message me personally and chat with me. Who does that?! To quote him “Tbh only reason I do what I do is because I actually want to create an impact. And I believe that comes from actually connecting with people in real ways not just the “scalable� ways.�

Sahil is THE MAN! And this book will change your life. Trust me. If youre still not convinced, hit me up on Twitter and let’s talk more @kevinasrx"

"TL;DR - Sahil's debut full-length book is a perfect complement to his years of newsletters and social posts. It presents the wisdom he has curated and distilled into the five types of wealth we are born with and compound through life. The wisdom delivers ways to benefit from these pillars of wealth and provides cautions and ways to avoid squandering it.

Full review: Although I cannot remember when exactly I subscribed to Sahil's newsletters, something in his writing on social media clicked for me. Perhaps it was our shared Indian ancestry, perhaps my desire to hack his way of exercise (but not the icy baths!!), and perhaps the top "x" ways to hack a portion of life. They just did. I became a regular reader of these missives in my email every Wednesday and Friday. The book collects them all and more, and tells some of the backstories. There alone it shines. But there was more.

The book is about designing a life; whether for someone just starting it in their 20s or someone reflecting on it in their 50s (like me). It captures the wisdom of numerous known and unknown names he has interviewed and divides it into five wealth vaults - Time, Social, Mental, Physical, and Financial.

Though many stories steeped in historical wisdom are simply restated parables, this book brings the parables into actionable insights. For example, the parable of a Pyrrhic victory is complemented by checklists and warning signs to avoid - the modern complement for the bus(ier) individual. After all, could a 21st century guidebook not include a checklist or more :)?

Time Wealth - this is, indeed, the most valuable treasure we are born with, an unstated, seemingly infinite reservoir from which we draw seconds until it suddenly empties. The modern parable of 'it's later than you think' helps create a measure - if not of time remaining, then certainly of value achieved from that time. Sahil's book, thinking, and writing are heavily influenced by his young son and aging grandmother, the barbells of life he deeply values, enjoys and cherishes throughout the book. And their lives seem to create the otherwise impossible deposits into his time vault. The books is valuable to study in this juxtaposition alone.

As with each of the other wealth pillars, this pillar provides methods to gauge progress, anti-goals to avoid, systems to implement to achieve satisfaction through progress. He provides simple checklists and quizzes to visualize and document progress without need for expensive journals and toolkits. Many are as timeless as Benjamin Franklin's daily habit and as new as Apple Notes.

Social Wealth: This attribute of the human animal is next. We have an innate ability to form deep networks with those around us yet continue to find ways to devalue the very connections and allow them to wither. This section's stories are more modern, chronicling studies and lectures from luminaries such as Margaret Mead and weaving in Sahil's personal stories. The outcome - a pathway away from loneliness toward an additive, productive, accretive life of the balanced social interaction. He doesn't lead the reader toward extroversion; quite the opposite in his approach to building and nurturing the very connections that matter through their depth, breadth and status. Here too, the section ends with guides, assessments, hacks, and systems for success.

Mental Wealth: This section addresses the world within our mind and how it can expand to infinity or contract to seemingly nothing. How we open ourselves to infinity to a lifelong pursuit of knowledge and curiosity, of the rituals that allow us to grow and reflect are the foci of this section's systems, hacks, and guides. Sahil's collaboration with Susan Cain (author of Quiet and Bittersweet) is powerful in making this section a stand-out chapter.

Physical Wealth: The earliest readers (I think) of Sahil's work will remember his social media accountability about maintaining and attaining physical wealth through seemingly impossible runs, workouts and ice baths. This chapter elevates toward the why and a bit of accessible HOW. He addresses WHY through modern and historical stories and leads to designing a pattern via movement and resistance through simple methods. Exercise without proper nutrition is only part of a solution so he does address nutrition - again simply making it achievable to all. The systems in this section are naturally targeted toward a WOD.

Financial Wealth: This final section addresses the most common type of wealth-money. Here Sahil focuses not so much on the constant addition but the concept of enough. As the pursuit of 'just a little bit more' cannot ever be met, wisdom of the ages distilled in this chapter leads toward understanding enough. The pillars - generating stable and consistent income, managing expenses, and investing for the long-term- are easily stated. These pillars can easily fall when faced with the 'next best thing' but followed religiously, prove to be the wealth generators over time. The guide and systems here are practical, simple, and straightforward checklists and missives.

Each of the five sections end with a summary that I think will be a good one to review every so often as they are nearly complete recollections of the chapters. I reread summaries a month after finishing the book and smiled at the things I'd remembered and underlined those I hadn't. Sahil's epilogue is like the conversation you have with a friend at the end of a shared evening over a favorite beverage. Short yet meaningful. A perfect end.

I'll leave this review with this final thought that Sahil's grandmother shared with him and has stuck with me:

"Never fear sadness, as it tends to sit right next to love""

"This book has the potential to change your life. Sahil defines what it means to live life on your terms and build a life you can be proud of.

Over the last few years, he's put skin in the game to learn the systems, skills and routines that we need to thrive in the new world.

Not only does this book inspire, but it provides you with step-by-step guides on how to action real change.

No matter what your goals in 2025 are, there are sections in this book that will help you get fitter, happier, or healthier.

Buy it and thank me later! "

"This book has got me thinking about several facets of my life in a different way. The author talks about the 5 types of wealth (time, social, mental, physical and financial). The concepts in this book are some that I had already been thinking about. A few of the books referenced were books I have already read. The one type of wealth that is something I’m working on is social wealth. The way that the chapters are put together with an explanation and then a guide that gives you a bunch of ways to look at it. I have already been talking and thinking about this book.

Thank you to Sahil Bloom, NetGalley and Ballantine Books/Random House for the advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Publication Date: February 4, 2025
"