People often referred to as spending scolds have never really appealed to me. Although their core message of living within your financial limits and prioritizing savings is valid, they tend to exaggerate these principles to the point of absurdity. For example, they often claim that buying a coffee prevents you from building a retirement fund.

Because of this annoyance, I never felt the need to read The Millionaire Next Door: The Surprising Secrets of America's Wealthy. This decision proved to be lucky. On the podcast If Books Could Kill, hosts Michael Hobbes and Peter Shamshiri provided a comprehensive critique that effectively dismantled the book. I highly recommend giving their episode a listen.