Chilton is the author of The Wealthy Barber, Canada’s all-time bestselling book. His unique combination of knowledge and humour helped to take the intimidation and dryness out of financial planning. Chilton’s speeches aren’t about just money. They’re about believing in yourself, overcoming mistakes (many of his are truly hilarious) and, most importantly, they’re about perspective – the missing ingredient in many people’s lives. The long awaited and highly anticipated sequel, The Wealthy Barber Returns, was published in September 2011 and it’s sure to receive as much praise as the first edition.
David Chilton is an economics graduate from Wilfrid Laurier University. In 1985, he won the award for the highest mark in the country on the Canadian Securities Course. Cheating was never proven but widely suspected.
In 1989, he released The Wealthy Barber. It went on to sell an astonishing two million copies in Canada. After milking his one and only good idea for years, Dave left the personal-finance field to home-school his children.
His daughter escaped after a few months, but his son served out his entire sentence of three years less a day. Both children somehow overcame the experience and are now attending university. Over the years, Dave also published the bestselling cookbooks Looneyspoons, Crazy Plates and Eat, Shrink & Be Merry! along with authors Janet and Greta Podleski. Adding no value but taking a third of the profits, guilt finally overwhelmed Dave and he left the sisters’ business in 2007. They just recently noticed.
His true professional passion, however, remains the field of personal finance, where he tries to mix humour and common sense to help people handle their money more wisely. A frequent guest on national TV and radio shows, and a much sought-after speaker, Dave lives just outside Waterloo, Ontario.
A Truly Unique Perspective is quickly becoming bestselling author, entrepreneur, financial guru and “dragon” David Chilton’s most sought after presentation. As someone who has experienced both success and failure, David humorously illustrates how a healthy perspective can lead to positive results, despite what life throws at you, using examples from both his professional and private life, including “behind the scenes” stories from Dragons’ Den.
David Chilton’s recipe for success is hard work, a clear vision and some clever marketing. Whether it’s helping thousands of Canadians achieve personal financial success or investing in low-fat cookbooks, David has always had a knack for recognizing great ventures from the get-go. Famously known for his all-time best selling book The Wealthy Barber, David has in recent years partnered up with the Podleski sisters to take on the multi-national, billion-dollar food industry. As their company president and publisher, David has helped the Podleskis turn their idea of low-fat cookbooks into an award-winning food company. The Podleski cookbook, Looneyspoons, is now one of the fastest selling books in Canadian publishing history. Hear this true David versus Goliath story from the inspiring, funny and entertaining David Chilton.
The book The Wealthy Barber has accomplished a “publishing impossible” by selling over two million copies in North America. More than ten years after it was first published, it still appears regularly on bestseller lists. The reason for its sustained popularity? It provides financial education in an entertaining and understandable format. The Wealthy Barber is not full of new techniques, complex strategies, nor get-rich-quick-or-even-semi-quick schemes. Instead, it focuses on the financial planning basics that, over time, have proven to be effective. It’s primarily common sense—common sense that, unfortunately, in our society is not common knowledge. By using a “novel” format and strong doses of humour, Dave has taken the intimidation and boredom out of the financial-education experience. Dave’s speech delivery does not fit the stereotype of a dry financial expert. The Chicago Sun-Times said it most succinctly when they stated “Chilton is charming, unpretentious, and funny.”
