This book reveals how successful stock market investing can radically change your life and give you freedom from the daily drudgery and grind of a conventional job.

The book profiles the investing strategies, wisdom and lifestyles of 12 highly successful individual investors who accumulated £1m or more — in most cases much more — mainly from stock market investment. And, mind you, these are not "professional" or "expert" investors. While some have academic degrees or strong market backgrounds; others left school with few qualifications and are entirely self-taught investors.

Instead, the common binding factor among the people featured in this book is that all of them accumulated wealth on their own through investment in the stock market, in most cases starting with modest savings from a salary. The skills and temperament required to do this are different from those needed to advance in most careers, and also different from those of an entrepreneur. Personal investing requires no deference, no self-promotion, no management skills nor tact; it requires only a few good decisions.

This book presents many advanced insights and valuable investment hints about successful investing. It offers practical ideas and inspiration, and different paths, with revealing detail and minimal jargon, making it an indispensable read for novice and experienced investors alike — all those who wish to improve their own investment performance or better still, make a fortune.

Guy Thomas has been an independent investor since 1999. Earlier, he was a research actuary with a firm of pension consultants, and then a university lecturer. He has published papers in academic journals covering insurance economics, actuarial mathematics, and taxation and investment. He is an honorary lecturer at the University of Kent.