One wise advice from my grandmother in 2007-almost " Financier"
Hi, everybody. I decided to write a review of Theodore Dreiser's book the Financier, which I first read in 2007 and which had a powerful impact on my life. The review will consist of two parts. The first part is about my personal experience and how I came to this book. The second part is about the book itself and interesting ideas from it.
1 Part. How, where, and when did I get acquainted with the book? The Admiralty shipyards plant in Saint Petersburg.
I will start my story with a little background. Those who have read my short biography know that after studying in 2004-2006 at Novocherkassk College, I went to work in St. Petersburg, and in order to somehow catch on to the big city, I got a job at the Admiralty shipyards factory as a ship's cutter (a worker who cleans metal parts with a grinder and cutter). It was certainly difficult, and the conditions were very harmful, but they provided a hostel, rest, not expensive food, and most importantly, you could participate in sports competitions in football and athletics (thank you very much to Yura Kudin and Anna Islamshina).
During lunch breaks, workers usually sleep, but my partner, Sergey Martyanov, always liked to read. His favorite books were from the Stalker series. He told me about the computer game, about the story from the book, and about how it's great to dive into this world not for long from the hard factory life. Well, I decided to read one of the books about stalkers, and I liked it. Then I started playing the game, too. I was also introduced to Boris Akunin and Fandorin's adventures by the master welder who gave out the electrodes. In General, in 2007, I read about 10 books from these series and it really was a record for me. But there was one book that really changed my thinking.
As a rule, during my vacation, I went to visit relatives and friends in the Krasnodar territory, the sea, the sun, and so on. So one warm evening, over dinner, I shared my stories and discoveries with my grandparents. I remember for a long time the moment when I asked my grandmother, and which book would she recommend me to read from those that she liked the most in life? To which she replied "Financier" Theodore Dreiser. By the way, my grandmother was a mathematician and taught this subject for more than 20 years! I memorized this book and went back to the factory to read it. And only after 12 years, I realized that this was the "first seed" from which a desperate factory worker could become a stock trader.
Part 2. The story of Frank COWPERWOOD and my paradigm shift.
From the first Chapter, as soon as I opened the book "Financier", I was simply drawn into this world. I read the book as if spellbound. It was interesting to me to realize that even in those days it was possible to earn a fortune by thinking with your head and implementing interesting schemes on the stock exchange. And in our time of high technology, it should have been even easier. In General, my body was working in the factory, but my spirit was already there, in the world of Finance. But let's briefly talk about the content of the book, and then share my emotions!
The story of Frank COWPERWOOD begins with his childhood, when he began to attract the world of Finance. At the age of 14, he conducts a commercial adventure with the resale of soap. After working in various firms and amassing initial capital, COWPERWOOD begins his accounting and bill business. He believes in the future of horse-drawn Railways and invests a lot of money in stocks. Frank understands that all officials in Philadelphia and the state of Pennsylvania are engaged in speculation. During the civil war of the South and North, he enlists the support of the Irishman Edward Butler to take out a loan, which allows COWPERWOOD to assert himself and compete with other major financiers.
The turning point in COWPERWOOD's career is a collaboration with George Stener, the city Treasurer. Stener is the plaything of the Republican party, namely the financial bigwigs: Butler, Mollenhower, and Senator Simpson. They need someone who can wrap money from the city Treasury. COWPERWOOD is invited to do this. All participants in the case receive a good income from such financial transactions. Behind the back of the three main influential figures, stener and COWPERWOOD (on Frank's advice) start buying up horse-railway shares through front men. Frank and his father build mansions connected to each other. The decoration of the houses is in good taste. At this time, the financier begins to collect works of art.
The Chicago fire of October 7, 1871 momentarily destroys COWPERWOOD's financial well-being. The fire that engulfed the commercial part of the city causes a stock market panic. Frank has put five hundred thousand out of the city Treasury into circulation, and now this is his biggest problem...
Reading the book and absorbing these stories, it is as if you live them yourself, and your life becomes bright and full. And this has a strong influence on what happens to you next. So it happened to me. In 2009, my friend and partner, Vitaly Sergeev, invited me to a seminar of the CIS network company, where I learned about Robert Kiyosaki and his book "Rich dad, poor dad" (I read this book in 1 night), and after that I left the factory and went to study as a trader. But this is a completely different story and a review of the next book. And read" Financier", you will not regret it!
PS: on June 25, 2019, my grandmother Galina left this world, but in my memory she will always remain kind, attentive and strong. At the age of 33, I have lived through so many amazing situations, experienced so many emotions, and seen so many wonders in this world that would not have been possible if not for her wise advice to read Theodore Dreiser's book "the Financier". Thank you, God rest your soul.
And what are you most impressed with in the book "the Financier"? Please share how it has influenced your life?
1 Part. How, where, and when did I get acquainted with the book? The Admiralty shipyards plant in Saint Petersburg.
I will start my story with a little background. Those who have read my short biography know that after studying in 2004-2006 at Novocherkassk College, I went to work in St. Petersburg, and in order to somehow catch on to the big city, I got a job at the Admiralty shipyards factory as a ship's cutter (a worker who cleans metal parts with a grinder and cutter). It was certainly difficult, and the conditions were very harmful, but they provided a hostel, rest, not expensive food, and most importantly, you could participate in sports competitions in football and athletics (thank you very much to Yura Kudin and Anna Islamshina).
During lunch breaks, workers usually sleep, but my partner, Sergey Martyanov, always liked to read. His favorite books were from the Stalker series. He told me about the computer game, about the story from the book, and about how it's great to dive into this world not for long from the hard factory life. Well, I decided to read one of the books about stalkers, and I liked it. Then I started playing the game, too. I was also introduced to Boris Akunin and Fandorin's adventures by the master welder who gave out the electrodes. In General, in 2007, I read about 10 books from these series and it really was a record for me. But there was one book that really changed my thinking.
As a rule, during my vacation, I went to visit relatives and friends in the Krasnodar territory, the sea, the sun, and so on. So one warm evening, over dinner, I shared my stories and discoveries with my grandparents. I remember for a long time the moment when I asked my grandmother, and which book would she recommend me to read from those that she liked the most in life? To which she replied "Financier" Theodore Dreiser. By the way, my grandmother was a mathematician and taught this subject for more than 20 years! I memorized this book and went back to the factory to read it. And only after 12 years, I realized that this was the "first seed" from which a desperate factory worker could become a stock trader.
Part 2. The story of Frank COWPERWOOD and my paradigm shift.
From the first Chapter, as soon as I opened the book "Financier", I was simply drawn into this world. I read the book as if spellbound. It was interesting to me to realize that even in those days it was possible to earn a fortune by thinking with your head and implementing interesting schemes on the stock exchange. And in our time of high technology, it should have been even easier. In General, my body was working in the factory, but my spirit was already there, in the world of Finance. But let's briefly talk about the content of the book, and then share my emotions!
The story of Frank COWPERWOOD begins with his childhood, when he began to attract the world of Finance. At the age of 14, he conducts a commercial adventure with the resale of soap. After working in various firms and amassing initial capital, COWPERWOOD begins his accounting and bill business. He believes in the future of horse-drawn Railways and invests a lot of money in stocks. Frank understands that all officials in Philadelphia and the state of Pennsylvania are engaged in speculation. During the civil war of the South and North, he enlists the support of the Irishman Edward Butler to take out a loan, which allows COWPERWOOD to assert himself and compete with other major financiers.
The turning point in COWPERWOOD's career is a collaboration with George Stener, the city Treasurer. Stener is the plaything of the Republican party, namely the financial bigwigs: Butler, Mollenhower, and Senator Simpson. They need someone who can wrap money from the city Treasury. COWPERWOOD is invited to do this. All participants in the case receive a good income from such financial transactions. Behind the back of the three main influential figures, stener and COWPERWOOD (on Frank's advice) start buying up horse-railway shares through front men. Frank and his father build mansions connected to each other. The decoration of the houses is in good taste. At this time, the financier begins to collect works of art.
The Chicago fire of October 7, 1871 momentarily destroys COWPERWOOD's financial well-being. The fire that engulfed the commercial part of the city causes a stock market panic. Frank has put five hundred thousand out of the city Treasury into circulation, and now this is his biggest problem...
Reading the book and absorbing these stories, it is as if you live them yourself, and your life becomes bright and full. And this has a strong influence on what happens to you next. So it happened to me. In 2009, my friend and partner, Vitaly Sergeev, invited me to a seminar of the CIS network company, where I learned about Robert Kiyosaki and his book "Rich dad, poor dad" (I read this book in 1 night), and after that I left the factory and went to study as a trader. But this is a completely different story and a review of the next book. And read" Financier", you will not regret it!
PS: on June 25, 2019, my grandmother Galina left this world, but in my memory she will always remain kind, attentive and strong. At the age of 33, I have lived through so many amazing situations, experienced so many emotions, and seen so many wonders in this world that would not have been possible if not for her wise advice to read Theodore Dreiser's book "the Financier". Thank you, God rest your soul.
And what are you most impressed with in the book "the Financier"? Please share how it has influenced your life?