What are the criteria for success and happiness?
Economic YouTuber with 120,000 subscribers and tenured professor at Rutgers University Law School
The secret to success revealed by Professor Ban, a rich dad with both wealth and fame.

A tenured professor at a prestigious American university, a value investing expert, and an economics expert YouTuber with 120,000 subscribers.
There are many adjectives used to describe Professor Lee Tae-tak, who goes by the pen name 'ProfHalf'.
He displays in-depth knowledge across various fields and communicates with many supporters through his YouTube channel community, 'Mituree'.
Having achieved a position of success that is the envy of everyone, he is making every effort to share his experiences and knowledge with the public.
However, even though he is a law school professor and an economic expert, he turns into a worried father in front of his daughter.
My wish for my daughter to grow up upright and happy, and to develop the strength to overcome crises on her own, is no different from that of any other parent.


In this book, he talks about the journey of his life and what kind of mindset and effort should be required to create a good life.
Through novelistic conversations with her daughter, she shares the secrets to success that will be helpful to anyone, using easy-to-read language and easy-to-understand explanations.
The image of a father answering his daughter's questions without hesitation is the image of a parent that everyone would want to be like.


The chapters of this book are divided into the early years, the beginning of the marathon called life, through the middle years, and the final years, reaching the finish line, and point out points to focus on that change with each period.
It teaches you the essential knowledge, skills, and attitudes you need to cultivate in the early years of your life, the things you shouldn't miss in the middle years, and the ultimate mindset you need to have to be happy in your later years.

Life is a marathon, and the factors that determine happiness change slightly in the early years, middle years, and old age. As Solje Nizhny Novgorod says, life is uncertain, mysterious, and profound, and it is truly difficult to find the secret to happiness that is most suitable for each period of one's life. However, if you constantly think and walk your own path with patience, you will see the secret being mysteriously revealed little by little. It was only after a long time that I realized that my zigzagging life was actually forming a thick line toward happiness.
--- From the "Prologue"

There are many starting points in the world.
Most people can do it, but they just don't.
There's a saying that well begun is half done.
Because you have to think carefully and make a choice before taking on anything, it can feel difficult to get started.
The most important thing is to just get started.
Once you start and work hard, you will grow, and as you grow, you will feel happy.
If you do that, you may be able to get good results.
--- p.27

During this long period of growth, you will gradually produce good results, whether tangible or intangible, and when that happens, you will feel a sense of satisfaction, fulfillment, and happiness. Of course, investing a long time like five years doesn't necessarily lead to successful results like a successful business, topping an exam, or landing a desired job. Sometimes, circumstances and times are not favorable. However, those who put in the effort for such a long time are bound to grow a little during that time. They overcome failures here and there, achieve small successes, and become stronger. Ultimately, they are more likely to build a stable business, land a good job that suits them, or achieve greater success in a completely unexpected new field. Luck is something you create yourself through such long-term effort.
--- p.40

Children who have worked hard since childhood, read a lot of books, have a lot of experiences, and grow while learning are bound to be well-equipped with a wide range of basic knowledge, abilities, and skills. This changes their body, brain, and mind into a better state for acquiring other abilities, knowledge, and skills. Children who have grown in various fields for at least five years in elementary school and have a high level of abilities and knowledge will reap the benefits of compounding, easily adapting to new fields, and growing more quickly. If you read Tolstoy's books at a very young age, it may be difficult to understand, but as an adult, it becomes easy to understand and read them fluently. This is because a person has accumulated a lot of knowledge and experiences during that time.
--- p.66

One thing to keep in mind is that in this society, success based solely on money and fame does not necessarily bring happiness.
Money and fame are all meaningless once time passes and you retire.
Of course, we must first define what success is, but in a capitalist society, success is often said to be making a lot of money or reaching a position where one is respected and recognized.
This assumes a comparison within it, and this kind of judgment will never make you happy.
If you have the goal of earning a lot of money, investing it well, and achieving financial freedom, and you are satisfied with yourself and have achieved freedom, it will bring you happiness. However, if your goal is to earn a lot of money and show off to others by buying a big, nice house and a fancy car, you will never be happy.
--- p.71

A job is essential to earning money in a capitalist society, but you don't have to work like an accessory in a factory.
If you can find a job that suits you, grow, and work productively, you will be able to live a happy life.
Life is a marathon, so you have to work tirelessly for a long time. If you find a job that suits you, you will feel rewarded and have the joy of producing, and you will be able to work happily until retirement and achieve financial independence.
--- p.119

It's good to distinguish between good habits and bad habits.
Ironically, good habits are hard to form and easy to break, while bad habits are easy to form and hard to break.
So, first of all, it's better not to fall into bad habits.
It is important not to indulge in things that are harmful to your physical and mental health, such as alcohol, cigarettes, drugs, games, gambling, and sensual videos.
These things may initially give you a lot of pleasure, causing an excessive secretion of hormones like dopamine, which may temporarily make you feel good, but you will gradually become addicted to dopamine and seek out greater pleasure.
As more and more pleasure is needed to achieve the same level of satisfaction, more and more is needed, leading to addiction. Eventually, it dominates a person's time and life.

--- p.137