In the voice of his surrogate, the gardener, Soforic writes “The pursuit of wealth was a spiritual journey that required virtue and nobility. It was the effect of a valued service to mankind, and it was built on a foundation of using the hours of many passing days. It was a life of striving, not settling, to shape his garden by design.’’
Will sophisticated readers appreciate Soforic’s folksy format?
Will the eyebrows of even worldly HNW clients go up reading Soforic’s single-minded pursuit of financial independence, leavened somewhat by his staunch belief in the spiritual?
“I chose to believe that my sacrifices benefitted (my family) and I was willing to trade my time for their welfare. I chose to believe that balance is the way to mediocrity, money worries, financial instability and helplessness to withstand setbacks.’’
He anticipates demurs, writing, “He reviewed the book’s table of contents one last time, concerned that his wealth tenets would be castigated. Many jaded people with rational leanings would likely criticize his belief in the unseen force. Conversely, those with spiritual leanings would surely criticize his emphasis on amassing money. However, he was glad to have expressed his own truth.’’
Tucked into the unconventional format of The Wealthy Gardener is plenty of common sense advice about gaining and increasing wealth: embrace the miracle of compound interest and save “urgently’’; invest “excess’’ income to increase earnings; buy used cars; avoid luxury vacations, furnishings and trappings; have a financial plan and revisit it on a daily basis; read voraciously about the stock market, entrepreneurship, real estate investing, buy-and-hold investing, land-lording, saving money, getting out of debt and personal finance; and develop an income-producing pursuit in addition to working a day job—Soforic bought and rehabbed houses and apartments which he then flipped. He paid $75,000 for a house with an asking price of $190,000, fixed it up and still lives there.
The Wealthy Gardener: Life Lessons on Prosperity Between Father and Son, by John Soforic. 419 pages. $32.00. Self-published.
Eleanor O’Sullivan is an award-winning journalist who writes for Financial Advisor.