The Number

A Completely Different Way to Think About the Rest of Your Life

By: Lee Eisenberg

Narrated by: Lee Eisenberg

Do you know your Number? What happens if you don't make it to your Number? Do you have a plan? The Number is no ordinary finance book—it offers an intriguing and entertaining tour of weath gurus, life coaches, and financial advisers, and our hopes and fears for the future. The result is a provocative field guide to your psyche and finances and an urgently useful book for anyone over thirty.

The often-avoided, anxiety-riddled discussion about financial planning for a secure and fulfilling future has been given a new starting point in The Number by Lee Eisenberg. The buzz of professionals and financial industry insiders everywhere, the Number represents the amount of money and resources people will need to enjoy the active life they desire, especially post-career. Backed by imaginative reporting and insights, Eisenberg urges people to assume control and responsibility for their standard of living, and take greater aim on their long-term aspirations.

From Wall Street to Main Street USA, the Number means different things to different people. It is constantly fluctuating in people’s minds and bank accounts. To some, the Number symbolizes freedom, validation of career success, the ticket to luxurious indulgences and spiritual exploration; to others, it represents the bewildering and nonsensical nightmare of an impoverished existence creeping up on them in their old age, a seemingly hopeless inevitability that they would rather simply ignore than confront. People are highly private and closed-mouthed when it comes to discussing their Numbers, or lack thereof, for fear they might either reveal too much or display ineptitude.

In The Number, Eisenberg describes this secret anxiety as the “Last Taboo,” a conundrum snared in confusing financial lingo. He sorts through the fancy jargon and translates the Number into commonsense advice that resonates just as easily with the aging gods and goddesses of corporate boardrooms as it does with ordinary people who are beginning to realize that retirement is now just a couple of decades away. Believing that the Number is as much about self-worth as it is net worth, Eisenberg strives to help readers better understand and more efficiently manage all aspects of their life, money, and pursuit of happiness.©2006 Lee Eisenberg; (P)2006 Simon & Schuster, Inc. SOUND IDEAS is an imprint of Simon & Schuster Audio Division, Simon & Schuster Inc.

Critic reviews

"There are precious few works that deal with the central issues of existence--life, death, and money--with this much elegance and wit. This amusing, essential book succeeds in tapping into the dreams and schemes of an entire generation who learned how to hang out and do very little in the 60s--and would now like to hang out and do very little in its 60s. Back then we were listening to Hendrix. Today we're tuned into Eisenberg."
--Stanley Bing, author of Sun Tzu Was a Sissy: Conquer Your Enemies, Promote Your Friends, and Wage the Real Art of War

"Lee Eisenberg has somehow found the sweet spot when it comes to 'financial planning' and, indeed, life. I started to read this book to write an endorsement, and ended up using it as a personal guide to my future. Yikes!"
--Tom Peters, author of Re-Imagine! and In Search of Excellence

"Thinking about retirement is as pleasant as a colonoscopy. Not in Lee Eisenberg's hands, however. He has written a funny and wise book about how to think about your future but also, and more important, how to think about life."
--Ken Auletta, author of Media Man: Ted Turner's Improbable Empire

Best read by a professional

Like some of the other comments here, this won't be a source of detailed financial planning advice, however, I don't believe the author intended it as such. The best frame of mind for this book is someone looking for a 35000 ft. overview of how to think about retirement goals. It would be a good read for a transaction oriented broker looking for pointers on how to converse with client about retirement goals in language other than raw numbers and returns. As an individual there is no such thing as a DIY retirment planning manual and anyone searching for one is bound to be greatly dissapointed by anything held out as such.

aerotunes

Average read. No profound insights into the issue. I would take a pass on this one.

Thoughtful & well done

Clever, flowing story with interesting research beyond the typical retirement book. Helps rethinking and to focus on what's really important to you.

I personally didn't like it.

sounds like the author was trying too hard. But the information didn't seem relevant. It was kind of a boring read as well.

Misleading Description

This book is a complete waste of time and does not match the description of the publisher at all. I was 20 mts into the book and realized that the published intentionally misled me. The quality of narration too is very poor i n comparison to other books I have downloaded from Audible.

Not what it said it was

Would you try another book from Lee Eisenberg and/or Lee Eisenberg?

Probably not

What was most disappointing about Lee Eisenberg’s story?

It did not provide info promised.

You didn’t love this book... but did it have any redeeming qualities?

Didn't want to spend time getting past the disappointment.

Any additional comments?

This book is a bit of a waste of time as it does not live up to the promise in the description of the publisher, not even a little bit. I listened for 30 minutes, and looked back at the publishers description to see if I had loaded the wrong track. Nope. It was the right track, and the publishers description was nice but not accurate. Maybe the publisher was referencing a different book?

Lots of stories, not much useful info

I think the publisher's description is misleading--this book is really more of a reporter's documentary about the history of retirement in the United States than ANY kind of a financial planning book. The author talks endlessly about case studies, stories and fictitious examples, but there is VERY little actual usable information in here. I would not buy it or read it again.

For a much better book about conscious financial & retirement planning, I very highly recommend "Your Money Or Your Life". It was far superior to this book.

Not Much Here of Value

There is not much in this book that hasn't already been said before. I got the impression that the author simply gathered together information from other sources and pulled together a book with little original thought.