Although the title of the book is I Will Teach You to Be Rich, the message of the book is about more than money; it’s about using money to manifest a fulfilling life. Sethi provides a six-week program to “help you figure out where your money is going and redirect it to where you want it to go” (21), whether it’s saving for a vacation to China or a wedding. Automating a personal financial system is the foundation, not the end goal, of a rich life. Once readers manage their finances effectively, they will “see that the most important part of a Rich Life is outside the spreadsheet—it involves relationships, new experiences, and giving back” (21). Sethi uses this theme to personalize the topic of finance and motivate readers to follow his advice.

Sethi returns to this idea throughout the book. Finances can become an obsession, as he demonstrates with a quote from a contributor to the FIRE (financial independence + retire early) “subreddit,” the name for a forum dedicated to a specific topic on the popular website Reddit. The writer spent too much time over the past few years focused on their bank account. They achieved their financial goals, but in the meantime, they had sacrificed a fulfilling life: “I built my savings, but I never built my life” (220), this Redditor laments.