The Education of Millionaires - Michael Ellsberg [1]
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Ellsberg, Michael.
The education of millionaires : it’s not what you think,
and it’s not too late / Michael Ellsberg.
p. cm.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN : 978-1-101-54449-5
1. Success in business. 2. Practical reason. I. Title.
HF5386.E435 2012
650.1—dc23
2011019060
Without limiting the rights under copyright reserved above, no part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in or introduced into a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise), without the prior written permission of both the copyright owner and the above publisher of this book.
The scanning, uploading, and distribution of this book via the Internet or via any other means without the permission of the publisher is illegal and punishable by law. Please purchase only authorized electronic editions and do not participate in or encourage electronic piracy of copyrightable materials. Your support of the author’s rights is appreciated.
http://us.penguingroup.com
For my greatest teacher of all,
Jena.
Your journey of self-education inspired this book.
“[A] whale-ship was my Yale College and my Harvard.”
—Ishmael in Moby-Dick (Read in colleges across the land;
written by a high school dropout)
GET ARTICLES, RECOMMENDATIONS, TIPS, AND INVITATIONS TO FREE CLASSES—
JOIN MY PRIVATE E-MAIL LIST
Send an e-mail to privatelist@ellsberg.com, with “private list” in the subject heading, and I’ll put you on my e-mail list, regularly sending you all the goodies described above. I’ll also e-mail you, as a thank-you for purchasing this book, these two free PDF reports related to my book:■ The Dropout Revolution: Why Today’s Savviest Kids Are Forsaking Debt and Educating Themselves—In this free PDF report you will learn why many kids today are choosing to avoid student loans and to educate themselves. Featuring interviews with some of today’s hottest young entrepreneurs and rising stars, this report is sure to inspire you, challenge you, and make you think. This book also has my detailed responses to nearly every objection I could imagine a reader having about the message of my book, such as “But college graduates earn more!” and “But you need a college degree to get a good job!”
■ Self-Education in Health and Relationships—In this free PDF report, learn how to educate yourself to succeed in relationships and health. We all know that happiness depends on more than just money and career. Learn how to educate yourself for success in all areas of your life that matter to you, including your personal health and relationships.
I send only quality content I’ve written myself to my e-mail list, zero spam, and I never ever give your information to anyone else. You can remove yourself at any time with one click.
Once again, to get immediate access to everything described above for free, just send an e-mail to privatelist@ellsberg.com with “private list” in the subject header.
INTRODUCTION
THE CRAIGSLIST TEST OF THE VALUE OF A BA
(or, Why Practical Intelligence Almost Always Beats Academic Intelligence)
You’ve been fed a lie. The lie is that if you study hard in school, get good grades, get into a good college, and get a degree, then your success in life is guaranteed.
This might have been true fifty years ago. But it is no longer true today.
If you want to succeed now, then you must also educate yourself in the real-world skills, capabilities, and mind-sets that will get you ahead outside of the classroom. This is true whether you’ve been to college or not.
This book shows you the way.
A thirty-seven-year-old Harvard MBA and a twentysomething college dropout, the latter a few credits shy of a film and theater degree from USC, are sitting across from each other in a job interview. The MBA is wearing a crisply pressed three-piece suit with a yellow tie. The twentysomething is wearing jeans and a pullover sweatshirt, with no shirt underneath. The twentysomething