Rich Dad Poor Dad: What the Rich Teach Their Kids About Money – That the Poor and Middle Class Do Not!, by Robert Kiyosaki
The Value-Add of this Book
Was the extent of your financial education in school learning how to open a checking account? Maybe it included some simulated stock trading? When you took on college loans, did you even know the impact of that?
Instead of teaching math concepts that you will likely never use or whatever other content that has no bearing on our daily lives that currently comprises school curriculums, we should have read “Rich Dad Poor Dad”. For many of us, our financial education simply started way too late in life.
Side note: My personal opinion is that financial education is hardly taught in schools because it is not a topic that many teachers have much experience. Would you, as a student, have listened to someone making $45,000 a year about wealth and financial independence? This is no knock on teachers. I was one briefly. But in my opinion, to teach it, you must have lived it. If you are a teacher reading this, please share this book with your students and anyone you know! Financial education should start early in life!
Returning to the book . . .
Rich Dad Poor Dad is the true story of the development of the author´s financial education taught to him by his own father and the father of one of his childhood friends. The author´s father was a dedicated educator who emphasized the importance of a strong education and a stable job that provided for a future retirement. His counterpart, the father of the author´s friend, taught the author and his friend the power of entrepreneurship and how they could use money to work for them. He taught them what is financial intelligence. What Rich Dad Poor Dad teaches us is to challenge conventional thinking when it comes to money and wealth. Rich Dad Poor Dad is a story and a guide for finding your financial independence.
If financial freedom is your goal but you just need a path to get there or if you have ever asked “how to increase my financial intelligence,” stop what you are doing and get this book now! I can guarantee it will forever change how you look at money. It does an incredible job of challenging the conventional thinking of a generation ago of work hard for someone else, pension/social security/government benefits, then start living.
The Lessons
I come back to this book every few months. I will listen to a few Rich Dad Poor Dad chapters on a run or in the morning to train my mind to look for opportunities that I come across throughout the day. The author likes to say “there is gold everywhere, most people are just not trained to see it.” If you take one thing away from this book, it is to always keep your eyes open for opportunities (and have the guts to grab them). Become a professional opportunist, as the quotes from Rich Dad Poor Dad teach us.
You will find your own pieces of wisdom in this book, and I find more each time I revisit it. Here are just some of my favorites:
The Power of Purpose
Most people would like to be rich and financially free, but often reality sets in and the road just seems too long or the hill too high. The solution: you need a reason – a combination of deep emotional wants and don’t wants – to push forward. Do you want to work all your life? Do you want to go back to being an employee? Do you want to be free to live the lifestyle you love and be young when you do it? Find your reasons to fight on. Without a strong reason or purpose, everything is a challenge.
Choice
What Rich Dad Poor Dad teaches is that with every dollar you possess you have the power to choose whether to be rich or poor. What will you do with that dollar? Invest in assets? Fuel your mind (your greatest asset)? Most people choose not to be rich. Don´t do that. Choose to be rich and make that choice everyday. Read this book to change your level of self-discipline. If money is smarter than you, you will work for it your entire life.
These are some other Rich Dad Poor Dad key points:
The Power of Association
As the saying goes, you will end up being like the people that you spend your time with. When it comes to money and investments, don’t listen to those who have none. One famous Rich Dad Poor Dad quote “My poor friends never ask me about how I made my money. Instead, they ask me for one of two things: a loan or a job.”
Have a Plan and Master It
Master the formula by which you will make money. If the key to your success is your business, master the skills that will make you the best at what you do. Working hard for money is an old formula born in the day of cavemen.
Never Use Savings to Pay Expenses
Use cash flow from assets to pay for your expenses. The rich know that savings are only to be used to make more money, not pay expenses.
The Three Key Areas
As entrepreneurs and business owners, the three most important things we must learn to manage are cash flow, people and the use of our time. Have you mastered these three areas of your business (and life)? If not, you need this book and the lessons from Rich Dad Poor Dad.
Pay for Good Advice and Information
Pay for good advice and information. Treat well those who will make you rich. Manage and reward those who are smarter than you.
Contribute
If you want something, you first need to give it to someone else. Whenever you feel short or in need or something, give first and it will come back in buckets. This is true for money or a smile. The principle of reciprocity is undeniable.
How You Will Benefit
Need more reasons? This book is your roadmap to wealth and financial independence. You’d have to search for excuses not to read it. It will truly change your life.
